To all fans of contemporary jazz, you urgently need to listen to Elliavir’s album Rewind, released at the end of 2023 (so we’ll leave a place for it in the top albums of 2024). This album is quite simply my total favourite of recent years.
Led by French singer Lou Rivaille, Elliavir is first and foremost a captivating encounter between the singer’s hypnotic voice and the fascinating sound of Rémi Flambard on trumpet. The chemistry between these two artists is transcendental: you can’t escape the raw beauty that radiates from their association. This melodic duo is accompanied by Christophe Waldner on piano, whose playing explores an impressive palette of colors: at times of infinite tenderness, at others of almost raw rhythmic force, but deliciously effective. Cyril Billot plays a warm double bass, with drummer Maxime Mary at his side. After the sublime voice/trumpet pairing, what’s striking is the intelligence with which each musical idea is exploited. Sometimes groovy, reminiscent of Esperanza Spalding’s universe, with pieces like Endless Fascination, sometimes airy and modern like 26 juillet, recalling the complex music of Avishai Cohen, Elliavir hits the bull’s-eye every time. The French jazz scene has already hailed the group, having won the prestigious Jazz à Vienne Festival competition in 2021, unanimously crowned by juries headed by the celebrated Anne Paceo.
I can only encourage you to go and listen to this pure, magnificent nugget, in the hope that one day the group will be able to perform on Quebec jazz stages. Why not at the Montreal Jazz Festival? I can only dream…
