{"id":95233,"date":"2023-04-19T12:45:08","date_gmt":"2023-04-19T16:45:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/panm360.com\/interviews-panm360\/n-nao-une-lueur-precieuse-est-tombee-dans-leau\/"},"modified":"2023-04-19T16:18:28","modified_gmt":"2023-04-19T20:18:28","slug":"n-nao-une-lueur-precieuse-est-tombee-dans-leau","status":"publish","type":"interviews","link":"https:\/\/panm360.com\/en\/interviews-panm360\/n-nao-une-lueur-precieuse-est-tombee-dans-leau\/","title":{"rendered":"N NAO: A precious light falls into the water"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Rising from an agitated state of sleep, just before her metamorphosis into her adult self, the young Quebec singer and composer N NAO (named Naomie De Lorimier) creates, with her new album, L\u2019eau et les r\u00eaves<\/em> the imprint of an invisible illusion, a marvellous phenomenon, a mysterious encounter. Through an artistic and symbolic ritual that has been occurring naturally for millions of years, this prodigious second album of experimental dream pop, released via Mothland, is part of an ambitious transdisciplinary and collaborative work, whose theme gradually unfolds with the help of a documentary research project on the world of freshwater. Combining free jazz spontaneity, acoustic tenderness, soaring lyricism, psychedelic folk improvisation, krautrock rhythms, dream pop effect chains, and outdoor recordings taken on the run, the whole album, written with a rare sense of authenticity, invites us to get lost at the top of a mountain, to give birth to ourselves during a dream, next to a source of fresh water which makes life more porous to unconscious changes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Done in a meditative and trance-like state, her research brings to life the magic of a heavenly angel, sometimes gentle, sometimes stormy, like a deity personifying the forces of nature that make the pure sensation of living shine within. Safe in her room or in the studio, the spontaneous and intuitive urge of her unconscious is no longer afraid to say what needs to be said in order to lighten the burden of shadows. This silent, mystical, and caring communication allows one to look deep into the depths of matters: decay, loss, life, death, reconstruction, and care. The supernatural whisper of a long-distance connection encourages her to take risks on the edge of the abyss, as the sky now catches her in her fall.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The eclipse of colours is indeed a victory, it smashes the boundary between reality and imagination and allows life to be renewed with the future. A survivor\u2019s right to exist hides a mystery, a gift, a mighty tool. The power of the numinous gives hope to survive the “Fin du monde.” Simplicity creates miracles. N NAO agreed to meet with PAN M 360 to tell us about her secret.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PAN M 360: While we are only discovering you now, with your second album L’eau et les r\u00eaves <\/em>we can notice that you already have a long background in the underground scene, notably alongside Kl\u00f4 Pelgag, Marie-Pierre Arthur, Crabe, zouz, Safia Nolin, Jonathan Personne, and Lumi\u00e8re. How did you get involved in this community of artists?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

N NAO<\/strong>: Being born in Montreal, I was able to meet a lot of artists very early on in my career. In C\u00c9GEP, I already had contacts with people active on the music scene. I met Etienne Dupr\u00e9 (bassist for Kl\u00f4 Pelgag, Mon Doux Saigneur, zouz) who is currently in my band, as well as Charles, with whom I have been playing for a long time. I started doing sets in Montreal in DIY places like La Plante. The experimental music label Jeunesse cosmique also gave me my first chance. After my jazz studies, I moved to Berlin for four months with my effects pedals, to sort of conquer my fears. One night, I managed to play a set in a full venue, and that’s how I realised that there was actually an audience for what I was doing and that I could become confident. When I came back to Montreal, I started supporting Laurence-Anne, which helped me meet new people. One thing led to another and I began to support more and more artists. It all happened very naturally over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PAN M 360: During your CEGEP, you did a program in jazz singing, composition and arrangement. Was music present very early in your life?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

N NAO<\/strong>: Yes, my parents noticed very early that I had a good ear. When I couldn’t even speak yet, I could imitate the sound of the vacuum cleaner perfectly, I had the right note (laughs). As a child I studied classical music at Le Plateau school, my grandfather always listened to classical music and my father was a singer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PAN M 360: Charles was the first member to join you in your N NAO project. This meeting seems important to you, can you tell us more about it?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

N NAO<\/strong>: I started writing, composing, singing, and experimenting on my own between high school and CEGEP and Charles was the very first person who heard my songs. We feel connected through the way we see music, the way we listen to it, and the way we appreciate art in general. When we played together, it was as if we were exchanging our thoughts through music, like a kind of correspondence about our worldview. Charles has a master’s degree in art history and we really enjoy sharing our theories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PAN M 360: How did the rest of the group come about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

N NAO<\/strong>: The process was very natural. Lysandre M\u00e9nard (Lysandre, Helena Deland) was already on my first album A jamais pour toujours<\/em> in 2018. Just before her trip to London, I came to her house to sample her piano improvisations. I was sad about her departure and I wanted to keep a piece of her with me. This became her first contribution to the project. Etienne and I had already played together in the past in our studio, and we kept running into each other at the same shows. We met again in zouz, Kl\u00f4 Pelgag and then on my first record. Samuel Gougoux (TDA, Corridor, Kee Avil, VICTIME) had seen Charles and me opening for Jonathan Personne in 2019. He fell in love with our duo and we started playing as a trio from then on. These are all great encounters, it’s really magical when we’re together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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