Guajira

(Sherbrooke) Avant de pouvoir leur offrir un second album, Guajira fera patienter ses fans avec le lancement à la fin du mois d'un... 45-tours!
«Ce sont deux pièces qui n'ont pas trouvé leur place sur le premier album. Les percussions ne sont pas produites à la batterie. Elles sonnent plus proches du blues et du folk. Ça n'allait pas avec le reste de l'album», explique le guitariste Jean-François Tremblay.

Le vinyle sera lancé le 28 septembre au bistro L'Antiquarius, sur la rue Wellington Nord. Les amateurs du groupe dépourvus de table tournante n'ont pas à s'inquiéter. Les deux nouvelles compositions seront aussi offertes sur le net en format mp3, une alternative techno à la galette délicieusement rétro.

En fait, le groupe n'avait pas véritablement le choix, puisque sa popularité grandissante repose sur un bouche-à-oreille numérique. Ses pièces instrumentales, où se mêlent une guitare progressive et des percussions rock ou franchement métal, trouvent écho un peu partout sur le globe grâce à la Toile.


«Nous avons pu retourner en studio après avoir lancé une invitation à nos fans pour le financement des heures d'enregistrement. L'argent nous est parvenu du Québec, mais aussi de New York, d'Atlanta et de Munich!» raconte Jean-François Tremblay.

Les sessions ont eu lieu chez AudioBec, le studio de Larry O'Malley, où le duo pouvait jouer en même temps. «Nous voulions pouvoir capter la même énergie que nous dégageons sur scène», explique le guitariste. Autre raison: Larry O'Malley a l'expérience d'enregistrer la musique pour des disques vinyles, plus sensibles aux fréquences hautes et basses.

Le duo aimerait pouvoir y retourner au printemps en vue de son second album.
- La Nouvelle de Sherbrooke

(Sherbrooke) Avant de pouvoir leur offrir un second album, Guajira fera patienter ses fans avec le lancement à la fin du mois d'un... 45-tours!
«Ce sont deux pièces qui n'ont pas trouvé leur place sur le premier album. Les percussions ne sont pas produites à la batterie. Elles sonnent plus proches du blues et du folk. Ça n'allait pas avec le reste de l'album», explique le guitariste Jean-François Tremblay.

Le vinyle sera lancé le 28 septembre au bistro L'Antiquarius, sur la rue Wellington Nord. Les amateurs du groupe dépourvus de table tournante n'ont pas à s'inquiéter. Les deux nouvelles compositions seront aussi offertes sur le net en format mp3, une alternative techno à la galette délicieusement rétro.

En fait, le groupe n'avait pas véritablement le choix, puisque sa popularité grandissante repose sur un bouche-à-oreille numérique. Ses pièces instrumentales, où se mêlent une guitare progressive et des percussions rock ou franchement métal, trouvent écho un peu partout sur le globe grâce à la Toile.


«Nous avons pu retourner en studio après avoir lancé une invitation à nos fans pour le financement des heures d'enregistrement. L'argent nous est parvenu du Québec, mais aussi de New York, d'Atlanta et de Munich!» raconte Jean-François Tremblay.

Les sessions ont eu lieu chez AudioBec, le studio de Larry O'Malley, où le duo pouvait jouer en même temps. «Nous voulions pouvoir capter la même énergie que nous dégageons sur scène», explique le guitariste. Autre raison: Larry O'Malley a l'expérience d'enregistrer la musique pour des disques vinyles, plus sensibles aux fréquences hautes et basses.

Le duo aimerait pouvoir y retourner au printemps en vue de son second album.
- La Nouvelle de Sherbrooke

Free translation from an article by Dominic Tardif :

Growing up to the sound of metal and progressive, the drummer fell for Latin sounds and founded a duo with Jean-François Tremblay (guitar), by
mixing the beloved rhythms of his youth to the warmth of his current passions. Their first album, recorded in a cottage in Ayer’s Cliff and chosen especially for its acoustics, takes us from surprise to astonishment. Tremblay’s fingerstyle astoundingly rich in harmonics has a lot to do with it. The duo hopes their music will take them around the world, especially to Germany where that type of music is very much in demand. Who knows, maybe they’ll remix Guantanamera, this guajira (term describing a traditional Cuban song) being the most widely known.
- Le voir de Sherbrooke june 18 2009

Free translation from an article by Dominic Tardif :

Growing up to the sound of metal and progressive, the drummer fell for Latin sounds and founded a duo with Jean-François Tremblay (guitar), by
mixing the beloved rhythms of his youth to the warmth of his current passions. Their first album, recorded in a cottage in Ayer’s Cliff and chosen especially for its acoustics, takes us from surprise to astonishment. Tremblay’s fingerstyle astoundingly rich in harmonics has a lot to do with it. The duo hopes their music will take them around the world, especially to Germany where that type of music is very much in demand. Who knows, maybe they’ll remix Guantanamera, this guajira (term describing a traditional Cuban song) being the most widely known.
- Le voir de Sherbrooke june 18 2009

Identifié par Voir Estrie comme l'un des nouveaux joueurs de la scène musicale sherbrookoise, Guajira fait tout de même office d'ovni parmi les siens. L'album éponyme que la formation lançait au printemps dernier nous a fait découvrir un son hybride qui flirte avec les musiques du monde, le prog, le rock, le jazz, le folk... mais au final, les mélodies instrumentales portées par le fingerstyle du talentueux guitariste Jean-François Tremblay se classent quelque part entre la musique actuelle et le nouvel âge. Toutefois, la méditation n'est jamais bien longue chez Guajira, car le jeu du batteur Luc Cloutier ne fait pas dans la dentelle, passé de "métalleux" oblige. Les deux comparses seront en spectacle le 14 août à 20h à l'Auberge La Caravane de North Hatley, un lieu idéal pour découvrir le groupe.

Matthieu Petit. 13 Aout 2009 - Voir Estrie

Growing up to the sound of metal and progressive, the drummer fell for Latin sounds and founded a duo with Jean-François Tremblay (guitar), by mixing the beloved rhythms of his youth to the warmth of his current passions. Their first album, recorded in a cottage in Ayer’s Cliff and chosen especially for its acoustics, takes us from surprise to astonishment. Tremblay’s fingerstyle astoundingly rich in harmonics has a lot to do with it. The duo hopes their music will take them around the world, especially to Germany where that type of music is very much in demand. Who knows, maybe they’ll remix Guantanamera, this guajira (term describing a traditional Cuban song) being the most widely known. - Voir Estrie

Growing up to the sound of metal and progressive, the drummer fell for Latin sounds and founded a duo with Jean-François Tremblay (guitar), by mixing the beloved rhythms of his youth to the warmth of his current passions. Their first album, recorded in a cottage in Ayer’s Cliff and chosen especially for its acoustics, takes us from surprise to astonishment. Tremblay’s fingerstyle astoundingly rich in harmonics has a lot to do with it. The duo hopes their music will take them around the world, especially to Germany where that type of music is very much in demand. Who knows, maybe they’ll remix Guantanamera, this guajira (term describing a traditional Cuban song) being the most widely known. - Voir Estrie

There are few things that can compare to the spiky beauty of an acoustic guitar and the keen snap of a drum. To the Canadian duo Guajira, they belong together, a marriage of sweet harmony and hard knocks.

Dismissing the clichés of guitar instrumental albums, which are often simply exercises of technical display, Guajira adopts the rhythm and flow of a real rock band but in the framework of an acoustic jazz act indebted to folk and Latin music. This self-titled release trims the fat from the usual excess found in wordless recordings, eclectic in its primary influences but never less than compelling from start to finish.

On “L’apothicaire,” the opening track, guitarist Jean-Francois Tremblay sets a dreamy tone, his hypnotic fingerstyle work drifting and falling as Luc Cloutier’s drums gradually build a sturdy backbeat. As the tempo rises, Tremblay and Cloutier dive headlong into an exhilarating jam. Cloutier’s drumming grows from steady to frenetic as Tremblay tosses in some bluesy slide guitar. It is truly magnificent. In “Rakuni,” Tremblay gives contemporary folk a shot of much-needed adrenaline with his wonderfully brittle riffs, and Cloutier pounds the skins with eagle-eye precision. “Rakuni” and “Livert Rurobert” reveals Guajira’s affection for Latin music but in a folk context that is utterly refreshing.

For a group with only two members, Guajira is surprisingly diverse in its sound. “Gypsy” has the dust-strewn swagger of a spaghetti Western soundtrack – one can already imagine Clint Eastwood walking moodily into a ghost town – while “Ariya Sacca” has the nighttime ambiance that is expected from an instrumental jazz piece such as this. None of the songs sound alike; they each have their own personality and quirks.

The music-theory cognoscenti will have much to savor as Tremblay and Cloutier are sharply skilled musicians; however, the real appeal of Guajira is in their ability to dazzle with magnetic hooks and cinematic textures.

Website: http://www.guajiraband.com
Availability: http://www.guajiraband.com/shopping
- Jazz Times.com

There are few things that can compare to the spiky beauty of an acoustic guitar and the keen snap of a drum. To the Canadian duo Guajira, they belong together, a marriage of sweet harmony and hard knocks.

Dismissing the clichés of guitar instrumental albums, which are often simply exercises of technical display, Guajira adopts the rhythm and flow of a real rock band but in the framework of an acoustic jazz act indebted to folk and Latin music. This self-titled release trims the fat from the usual excess found in wordless recordings, eclectic in its primary influences but never less than compelling from start to finish.

On “L’apothicaire,” the opening track, guitarist Jean-Francois Tremblay sets a dreamy tone, his hypnotic fingerstyle work drifting and falling as Luc Cloutier’s drums gradually build a sturdy backbeat. As the tempo rises, Tremblay and Cloutier dive headlong into an exhilarating jam. Cloutier’s drumming grows from steady to frenetic as Tremblay tosses in some bluesy slide guitar. It is truly magnificent. In “Rakuni,” Tremblay gives contemporary folk a shot of much-needed adrenaline with his wonderfully brittle riffs, and Cloutier pounds the skins with eagle-eye precision. “Rakuni” and “Livert Rurobert” reveals Guajira’s affection for Latin music but in a folk context that is utterly refreshing.

For a group with only two members, Guajira is surprisingly diverse in its sound. “Gypsy” has the dust-strewn swagger of a spaghetti Western soundtrack – one can already imagine Clint Eastwood walking moodily into a ghost town – while “Ariya Sacca” has the nighttime ambiance that is expected from an instrumental jazz piece such as this. None of the songs sound alike; they each have their own personality and quirks.

The music-theory cognoscenti will have much to savor as Tremblay and Cloutier are sharply skilled musicians; however, the real appeal of Guajira is in their ability to dazzle with magnetic hooks and cinematic textures.

Website: http://www.guajiraband.com
Availability: http://www.guajiraband.com/shopping
- Jazz Times.com

Free translation from an article by Amélie Boissonneau :

Guajira is the encounter of the worlds of a drummer and a guitarist, Luc Cloutier and Jean-François Tremblay, who compose divinely well together. The duo has just released its first album mixing rock, folk and music of the world.

All around the world, the word guajira harbours many different meanings, but music is always part of them. On our local musical scene, Guajira is the unusual encounter of a drummer and a guitarist who compose progressive rock. Say what? The story of the genesis of a duo, an album and a new unusual music mix.

¨To my knowledge, there isn’t another duo made up of a guitar and a drum. What we create, doesn’t already exist. It’s absolutely unique,¨ right offhand the guitarist, Jean-François Tremblay, explains the unusual, but so very trendy nature of their instrumental assemblage.

Unclassifiable, it seems difficult to categorize this pair of musicians who met in the hallways of the University of Sherbrooke’s music school. Bossa Nova, Latin rhythms, African drums, Flamenco guitar accompanied by jazzy beats, Guajira is finally a bit of everything. Why not try it?

¨It’s a bunch of small things, in fact, we could say that we play progressive folk, inspired by music of the world, mentions Luc Cloutier, the music box of the group. Let’s say, it’s the missing record in our collection.

Compound complicity
Before getting to their first album, which came out June 2nd, 2009, the influences of both musicians were put to work. ¨We have a good mutual understanding. We realized that we could compose really well together and that the energy was good¨, indicates Jean-François. ¨ Our style is the meeting of both our worlds¨.

Little by little, they bet on the strength of the duo. ¨There are no limits. Even traveling around will bring another dimension to the group¨, rejoices Luc by confirming that their project is going to continue for quite a while.
Thus, the fact that everything is accomplished by both, gives a greater dynamic tone to the duo.
¨In fact, schedules are more flexible, but we have to be able to do everything together. We must be able to reproduce on stage what we created in the studio¨, they add, laughing at the fact that since 2007, they developed the same complicity that a couple would have. ¨We talked eight days a week¨, they say, laughing.
All melody and sounds
The idea to push back the limits of acoustic guitar and drums, created an easy flowing music, but tends to be a bit at odds. ¨For starters, we thought it would be small, mentions Luc,¨ but the more it evolves the more we realize that our music reaches two or three different types of audiences¨.
And to get there, the duo has chosen catchy tunes. ¨We simply want it to sound good. We give all the room to the instrumental side and put music in the foreground¨, adds Jean-François, mentioning that the group is already planning to perform all around Québec till the end of 2009.
- La Nouvelle de Sherbrooke, Wednesday june 3rd 2009

Free translation from an article by Amélie Boissonneau :

Guajira is the encounter of the worlds of a drummer and a guitarist, Luc Cloutier and Jean-François Tremblay, who compose divinely well together. The duo has just released its first album mixing rock, folk and music of the world.

All around the world, the word guajira harbours many different meanings, but music is always part of them. On our local musical scene, Guajira is the unusual encounter of a drummer and a guitarist who compose progressive rock. Say what? The story of the genesis of a duo, an album and a new unusual music mix.

¨To my knowledge, there isn’t another duo made up of a guitar and a drum. What we create, doesn’t already exist. It’s absolutely unique,¨ right offhand the guitarist, Jean-François Tremblay, explains the unusual, but so very trendy nature of their instrumental assemblage.

Unclassifiable, it seems difficult to categorize this pair of musicians who met in the hallways of the University of Sherbrooke’s music school. Bossa Nova, Latin rhythms, African drums, Flamenco guitar accompanied by jazzy beats, Guajira is finally a bit of everything. Why not try it?

¨It’s a bunch of small things, in fact, we could say that we play progressive folk, inspired by music of the world, mentions Luc Cloutier, the music box of the group. Let’s say, it’s the missing record in our collection.

Compound complicity
Before getting to their first album, which came out June 2nd, 2009, the influences of both musicians were put to work. ¨We have a good mutual understanding. We realized that we could compose really well together and that the energy was good¨, indicates Jean-François. ¨ Our style is the meeting of both our worlds¨.

Little by little, they bet on the strength of the duo. ¨There are no limits. Even traveling around will bring another dimension to the group¨, rejoices Luc by confirming that their project is going to continue for quite a while.
Thus, the fact that everything is accomplished by both, gives a greater dynamic tone to the duo.
¨In fact, schedules are more flexible, but we have to be able to do everything together. We must be able to reproduce on stage what we created in the studio¨, they add, laughing at the fact that since 2007, they developed the same complicity that a couple would have. ¨We talked eight days a week¨, they say, laughing.
All melody and sounds
The idea to push back the limits of acoustic guitar and drums, created an easy flowing music, but tends to be a bit at odds. ¨For starters, we thought it would be small, mentions Luc,¨ but the more it evolves the more we realize that our music reaches two or three different types of audiences¨.
And to get there, the duo has chosen catchy tunes. ¨We simply want it to sound good. We give all the room to the instrumental side and put music in the foreground¨, adds Jean-François, mentioning that the group is already planning to perform all around Québec till the end of 2009.
- La Nouvelle de Sherbrooke, Wednesday june 3rd 2009

Free translation from an article by André Laroche:

It’s the story of a drummer with a metal root invited to join in the world of a really gifted guitarist. Their meeting has given birth to a stunningly sensual music with rock undertones. This duo will release their first album Tuesday evening at the Siboire.

How was Guajira born?

Jean-François Tremblay: I had been composing unique material for a few years. But I wanted to mix guitar and drums, without any other instruments. Since I play fingerstyle, the guitar takes on the melody, the base and the chords. It’s as if the guitar was the whole band by itself. I simply needed to add drums. I asked Luc Cloutier (his stage companion with Les Héros du dimanche matin and the belated Mission sur Mars group) if he wanted to try it out.

Has the merging happened quickly?

Luc Cloutier: Sincerely I didn’t think it would work out. I would listen to Jean-François
and ask him ¨What do you want me to do?¨. Jean-François doesn’t have a drum in his head, he doesn’t compose with this idea to start with. But nonetheless, we searched for a sonority and rhythms. When we managed to create a good part, we would keep it and reject the rest. It took a long time to find all the pieces of the puzzle for the first three songs, at least three months, three days a week. Afterwards, we found a better way to work together and it became a lot easier.

Sometimes it seems as though I hear Metallica on Latin melodies. Am I mistaken?

Luc Cloutier (laughing): Not at all. You are right on. My first influences were, Panthera, Iron Maiden, Pearl Jam, Metallica…. At college and later on at the university, I refined my style by adding jazzy rhythms. For Guajira, I added Bossa from African and Latin music. Although I kept my metal roots.

Through all that, do the drums add to the melody?

Jean-François Tremblay: Luc owns an electronic drum set, a type of electronic xylophone, with which he can infiltrate the melody. The idea is to duplicate on stage, what we recorded in the studio.


And you switch roles occasionally?

Luc Cloutier: I play guitar on a few pieces. I had to learn when I moved into my apartment. The neighbors soon came knocking at my door the minute I started playing drums. So I bought a guitar, but Jean-François had to learn to play the drums for Guajira. Other than the fact that it varies our styles, it also creates a movement during the show, since we are both sitting while playing our instruments. It gives the show an interesting edge.

And the shows are going well?

Jean-François Tremblay: There is a demand for our music. We played in Montreal last winter and we are going back in August. Our audience is becoming larger by the day.
- La Tribune de Sherbrooke, Saturday may 30 2009

Free translation from an article by André Laroche:

It’s the story of a drummer with a metal root invited to join in the world of a really gifted guitarist. Their meeting has given birth to a stunningly sensual music with rock undertones. This duo will release their first album Tuesday evening at the Siboire.

How was Guajira born?

Jean-François Tremblay: I had been composing unique material for a few years. But I wanted to mix guitar and drums, without any other instruments. Since I play fingerstyle, the guitar takes on the melody, the base and the chords. It’s as if the guitar was the whole band by itself. I simply needed to add drums. I asked Luc Cloutier (his stage companion with Les Héros du dimanche matin and the belated Mission sur Mars group) if he wanted to try it out.

Has the merging happened quickly?

Luc Cloutier: Sincerely I didn’t think it would work out. I would listen to Jean-François
and ask him ¨What do you want me to do?¨. Jean-François doesn’t have a drum in his head, he doesn’t compose with this idea to start with. But nonetheless, we searched for a sonority and rhythms. When we managed to create a good part, we would keep it and reject the rest. It took a long time to find all the pieces of the puzzle for the first three songs, at least three months, three days a week. Afterwards, we found a better way to work together and it became a lot easier.

Sometimes it seems as though I hear Metallica on Latin melodies. Am I mistaken?

Luc Cloutier (laughing): Not at all. You are right on. My first influences were, Panthera, Iron Maiden, Pearl Jam, Metallica…. At college and later on at the university, I refined my style by adding jazzy rhythms. For Guajira, I added Bossa from African and Latin music. Although I kept my metal roots.

Through all that, do the drums add to the melody?

Jean-François Tremblay: Luc owns an electronic drum set, a type of electronic xylophone, with which he can infiltrate the melody. The idea is to duplicate on stage, what we recorded in the studio.


And you switch roles occasionally?

Luc Cloutier: I play guitar on a few pieces. I had to learn when I moved into my apartment. The neighbors soon came knocking at my door the minute I started playing drums. So I bought a guitar, but Jean-François had to learn to play the drums for Guajira. Other than the fact that it varies our styles, it also creates a movement during the show, since we are both sitting while playing our instruments. It gives the show an interesting edge.

And the shows are going well?

Jean-François Tremblay: There is a demand for our music. We played in Montreal last winter and we are going back in August. Our audience is becoming larger by the day.
- La Tribune de Sherbrooke, Saturday may 30 2009