Oklou is the pseudonym of Frenchwoman Marylou Maniel, who has been scouring the London club scene for some time. Choke Enough is her first full-length album.
From the second “track, thank you for recording,” it’s clear that the young lady is classically trained, with a predilection for Bach and Baroque. On the other hand, don’t look for too much complexity in the arrangements. Oklou is a pop musician, looking above all for catchy melodies. But her classical background is nonetheless noticeable and sets her apart from other synthetic pop musicians.
There’s also a love of folklore, with sounds of tambourines and synthetic flutes. Oboe and trumpet are also occasionally heard. But Choke Enough remains a pop album dominated by synthesizers and oscillators.
Oklou’s pure voice is also used as an instrument. She sometimes overuses the vocoder, but fortunately not always. When she does harmonies, you can hear that the young lady has quite a versatile vocal range. Which she could perhaps explore further.
There are more danceable tracks, like the title track. On the whole, however, the album is one of introspective, self-reflexive, fairly quiet pop. Sometimes a little repetitive, but interesting. Personally, I prefer those moments when the baroque mixes with the synthetic.
Marylou Mayniel seems to have created a buzz in the Anglo-Saxon music world. Her trajectory is one to follow.
One reservation: why systematically sing in English when you’re a French-speaking artist? I know: I’m old-fashioned. But I persist.
