With a band name inspired partly by chanteuse Melanie Coulet’s first name and Nirvana’s smash release, the second album from Melissmell is a good example of just how dynamic French chanson has become. Droit dans la Gueule du Loup (Right into the Wolf’s Mouth) employs pianos, toy keyboards, organs, strings, some thumping electric guitars, drums and even the recherché ondes martenot, an old electronic instrument that makes whooshy sounds. And on top of this, there’s Coulet, whose husky voice and distinctive vocalizing have to be heard to be believed.
Tragedy and the chanson go together in French-language music (think Edith Piaf and Jacques Brel for the style’s emotional flavour) and in this Coulet is no rebel. Her 10 songs (en français, naturellement) brim with emotion – fury, yearning, tenderness. ‘Les Souvenirs’, for example, is a bodice-ripper of a closing track. And despite the surprising instrumentation, there is a traditional swing in the music created by Coulet along with pianist Matu and guitarist Daniel James. More unusually, there is a political impetus normally absent in traditional chanson. This is both an updating of the genre and a product of musical alignments with bands such as Mano Solo (the home of James and Matu) and Mano Negra. Either way, it’s a terrific album.
