SOL

Description

For his sixth solo album, Ezéchiel Pailhès returns with a new collection of songs
infused by a sunny wandering spirit.
Within each of the twelve songs on SOL is a thread of melancholic happiness that has
permeated much of Pailhès’ music and songwriting. He addresses love, the passing of
time, hope, lost illusions, fleeting moments of grace, the temptation of forgetting, a
need to escape, and desire. All this is insulated by understated orchestrations that
blend acoustic and electronic instrumentation with deft confidence.
The Portuguese and Brazilian concept of saudade—a form of melancholic longing
and nostalgia—pervades, thanks in part to Pailhès decision to record the album in
Rio de Janeiro and to reinterpret some of the finest works of Música Popular
Brasileira (MPB). In particular, he revisits a handful of lesser known classics from the
mid-century samba and bossa nova era—originally written or performed by talents
including Vinícius de Moraes, João Gilberto, Tom Zé, Dorival Caymmi, João Donato,
Os Tincoãs, and Ataulfo Alves.
The shift from Brazilian Portuguese to French and the decision to adapt rather than
perform a straightforward cover versions, allows Pailhès to invent a form of prosody
and euphony (the musicality and harmonious combination of words) that feels
vibrant and unlike anything else in today’s French chanson landscape.
Ezéchiel Pailhès reinvents this rich Franco-Brazilian musical legacy, bringing to it a
personality and modernity that stand confidently alongside those of his forbears.