Carotté "Punklore et trashdition" Slam Disques SLAM-2402
Release date: 10 Februray 2015
Running time: 45:43, 14 tracks
The Celtic rock/Celtic punk/folk-punk scene in Quebec is really amazing. There are quite a few bands singing in English: Farler’s Fury (Bagpipes punk), Drunken Dogs (Pogues infused stuff), Irish Moutarde (bagpipes Celtic punk), The Irish McDrinkers (Celtic punk), The Magotty Brats (a Celtic punk band that has evolved into a folk punk band). But some bands have also decided to sing in their mother tongue: the sadly defunct Celtic punk band Corrigan Fest and the Celtic (punk) rockers Bod’haktan. Médé Langlois realized that there were a lot of bands playing Irish and Scottish inspired material mixed with punk, but there were no bands giving a punk twist to the songs from their ancestors. Then, he made up his mind to form a real Quebecer folk rooted punk band. He called three traditional musicians that played in a traditional folk band called Les Quêteux and a couple of friends that have played in punk bands and Carotté was born in 2012: Médé Langlois (electric guitar, bckg. vocals), Manu Lavallée (banjo, harmonica, guimbarde, acoustic guitar, backing vocals), Eric Roberge (lead vocals), Étienne Bourré-Denis (fiddle, jew's harp, mandolin, feet, bckg. vocals), Max Doré (drums, bckg. vocals) and Simon Lavallée (bass, bckg. vocals)
To be fair, Carotté would not be “strictly” the first band to play traditional Quebecer music with a punk attitude. La Drave did something similar. But it’s true that La Drave also played some Celtic jigs and reels that are commonly played in the Quebecer folk and Carotté has focused on the songs in French. To put it in a nutshell, Carotté would be the bastard sons of La Bottine Souriante.
The six French speaking guys have released a 14 track album with the most suitable title: “Punklore et trashdition”. The music is 100% rooted in the tradition and the lyrics cover traditional topics, but also some matters from the 21st Century. The blend of traditional instruments and rock instruments is perfectly balanced and the production by Vincent Peake is impeccable.
“La visite” is the first track on the album. It’s a song about the visit of those rude relatives that arrive with all their noisy children, eat everything and once they’ve finished, they leave straight away. “Le bonhomme” features harmonica and a great vocal performance. “Invisible” is the first single and a video for this track was shot. The percussion kicks ass and the fiddling is great on this number with punk lyrics.
“Evolution” is another number with updated lyrics. La Bottine Souriante shadow is present on this song: the traditional way of singing (the singer sings one line and then the rest of the band repeats the same line) and the addictive tune that will make you dance. “Chers Canadiens” is an upbeat political complaint against the government.
“Taper la bizoune” starts with a Jew's harp. It’s an awesome number with lyrics in the traditional style. A real tongue twister with an addictive tune at the end. The next number is called “Embâcle” and the lyrics have traditional things and new stuff.
“Bouteille de rhum” is the right blend of traditional song and punk song. Once again, a tongue twister and fantastic tunes at the end. “Veillée chez Médé” is a song about a party at Médé’s song. Maybe I should have mentioned that Médé lives in a farm. Back to traditions, let’s call the neighbours and dance to the music! (and don’t forget the booze and the “cigarettes”)
And just when the album is finishing, the best song on the album arrives: “La bonne femme Gendron”. This song tells the story of a woman who is going to milk her cows. Unfortunately, the old fart doesn’t have anything to filter the milk. Then she uses her clothes that, to tell you the truth, are not clean. Thenrefore the milk she gets is not white, but brown. Anyway, she makes her cheese and sells it to the Englishmen, who find it delicious. That would be the proof that the Englishmen like to eat shit.
And the last number is the new ode to beer in French language. All of us enjoy “La bière” by Les Garçons Bouchers, and now we have another beer anthem to sing-along.
“Punklore et trashdition” is available both in CD and digital versions. It can be purchased from Bandcamp and iTunes. The digital version on iTunes includes a couple of extra songs. All the lyrics to the songs can be found on Bandcamp.
My advice: even if you don’t speak French, Carotté “Punklore et trashdition” is an excellent album that you’ll enjoy. Yes, it’s not a “Celtic” punk album, but it's a folk punk gem. Forget your prejudices and give it a try!
Release date: 10 Februray 2015
Running time: 45:43, 14 tracks
The Celtic rock/Celtic punk/folk-punk scene in Quebec is really amazing. There are quite a few bands singing in English: Farler’s Fury (Bagpipes punk), Drunken Dogs (Pogues infused stuff), Irish Moutarde (bagpipes Celtic punk), The Irish McDrinkers (Celtic punk), The Magotty Brats (a Celtic punk band that has evolved into a folk punk band). But some bands have also decided to sing in their mother tongue: the sadly defunct Celtic punk band Corrigan Fest and the Celtic (punk) rockers Bod’haktan. Médé Langlois realized that there were a lot of bands playing Irish and Scottish inspired material mixed with punk, but there were no bands giving a punk twist to the songs from their ancestors. Then, he made up his mind to form a real Quebecer folk rooted punk band. He called three traditional musicians that played in a traditional folk band called Les Quêteux and a couple of friends that have played in punk bands and Carotté was born in 2012: Médé Langlois (electric guitar, bckg. vocals), Manu Lavallée (banjo, harmonica, guimbarde, acoustic guitar, backing vocals), Eric Roberge (lead vocals), Étienne Bourré-Denis (fiddle, jew's harp, mandolin, feet, bckg. vocals), Max Doré (drums, bckg. vocals) and Simon Lavallée (bass, bckg. vocals)
To be fair, Carotté would not be “strictly” the first band to play traditional Quebecer music with a punk attitude. La Drave did something similar. But it’s true that La Drave also played some Celtic jigs and reels that are commonly played in the Quebecer folk and Carotté has focused on the songs in French. To put it in a nutshell, Carotté would be the bastard sons of La Bottine Souriante.
The six French speaking guys have released a 14 track album with the most suitable title: “Punklore et trashdition”. The music is 100% rooted in the tradition and the lyrics cover traditional topics, but also some matters from the 21st Century. The blend of traditional instruments and rock instruments is perfectly balanced and the production by Vincent Peake is impeccable.
“La visite” is the first track on the album. It’s a song about the visit of those rude relatives that arrive with all their noisy children, eat everything and once they’ve finished, they leave straight away. “Le bonhomme” features harmonica and a great vocal performance. “Invisible” is the first single and a video for this track was shot. The percussion kicks ass and the fiddling is great on this number with punk lyrics.
“Evolution” is another number with updated lyrics. La Bottine Souriante shadow is present on this song: the traditional way of singing (the singer sings one line and then the rest of the band repeats the same line) and the addictive tune that will make you dance. “Chers Canadiens” is an upbeat political complaint against the government.
“Taper la bizoune” starts with a Jew's harp. It’s an awesome number with lyrics in the traditional style. A real tongue twister with an addictive tune at the end. The next number is called “Embâcle” and the lyrics have traditional things and new stuff.
“Bouteille de rhum” is the right blend of traditional song and punk song. Once again, a tongue twister and fantastic tunes at the end. “Veillée chez Médé” is a song about a party at Médé’s song. Maybe I should have mentioned that Médé lives in a farm. Back to traditions, let’s call the neighbours and dance to the music! (and don’t forget the booze and the “cigarettes”)
And just when the album is finishing, the best song on the album arrives: “La bonne femme Gendron”. This song tells the story of a woman who is going to milk her cows. Unfortunately, the old fart doesn’t have anything to filter the milk. Then she uses her clothes that, to tell you the truth, are not clean. Thenrefore the milk she gets is not white, but brown. Anyway, she makes her cheese and sells it to the Englishmen, who find it delicious. That would be the proof that the Englishmen like to eat shit.
And the last number is the new ode to beer in French language. All of us enjoy “La bière” by Les Garçons Bouchers, and now we have another beer anthem to sing-along.
“Punklore et trashdition” is available both in CD and digital versions. It can be purchased from Bandcamp and iTunes. The digital version on iTunes includes a couple of extra songs. All the lyrics to the songs can be found on Bandcamp.
My advice: even if you don’t speak French, Carotté “Punklore et trashdition” is an excellent album that you’ll enjoy. Yes, it’s not a “Celtic” punk album, but it's a folk punk gem. Forget your prejudices and give it a try!
Tracklist:
01. La Visite 02:15
02. Le Bonhomme Qui Riait 04:15
03. Invisible 03:29
04. Évolution 02:58
05. Chers Canadiens 03:45
06. Souffrance 01:56
07. Tape La Bizzoune 03:16
08. Embâcle 02:36
09. Un Gars Du Far West 03:28
10. Les curés et les patates 04:26
11. Bouteille De Rhum 03:16
12. Veillée chez médé 03:00
13. La Bonne Femme Gendron 03:32
14. La Biere 03:03
15. Allons à la taverne (bonus, only on iTunes) 2:28
16. Nous partirons (bonus, only on iTunes) 2:40
Click to buy:
Band's Store
Bandcamp
iTunes
P.S.
Les Quêteux album and EP are available at Bandcamp
Review by Kinksmarkham
Hey I dig you blog! I started a blog dedicated to punk videos called ear-stress.blogspot.com. Check it out if you get a chance! Cheers
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