Petite Noir, La Maison Noir / The Black House, EP Review
Petite Noir
La Maison Noir / The Black House
Album Review
Petite Noir was an artist that I knew of before 2018 began. However, I never really listened to his music before the release of the single "Beach" which came shortly before this "mini album" which is titled "La Maison Noir / The Black House"
LMN/TBH is the fourth effort from Yannick Ilunga's alias and is essentially a six track EP that lasts only under half an hour. However, I can sense that quality was much more of an aim rather than quantity as each of the tracks carry their own unique charm and yet they all meld quite well together stylistically with its Africanised spirit and summery warmth.
The first track of the EP "Blame Fire" was released in July of this year (which I somehow missed) and brings the energy that will become the overall theme of the EP in a relatively short amount of time. It has that quintessential dance rhythm and a lot of infectious electronic elements that ultimately make for a very memorable track.
The next track "Beach" is the one that I've spent the most time listening to and I feel that this factor might have something to do with why it stands as one of my favourite of the six songs. It may also be due to the fact that the song features none other than Danny Brown, who fittingly had Petite Noir feature in one of the songs from his most recent album "Atrocity Exhibition". But with all of the bias aside, I still love this track purely for its wondrous and atmospheric production which I think contrasts really nicely with the clearness of the vocals from both artists.
"F.F.Y.F (POW)" has a magnificent level of warmth to it. And while the vocals took me a little bit of time to get invested into, this is the type of track which would make a perfect festival song. It just really takes me back to the brighter, warmer days of summer which I find really cool!
I found "R E S P E C T" to be a really cool track and an especially unique one somewhat. It was the sinister tone that was somehow added to an otherwise jolly and fun sounding song that really won me over. However, the initial oomf has unfortunately died down a little for me in recent days, but that still doesn't detract much from how unique the song truly is.
I know I tend to compare a lot of 2018s music to Foal's, but I'm about to do it once again with the following track "Blowing Up The Congo". But when you pay attention to the musicality of this track, one could potentially see where I'm coming from. It has that same ambience and echoed vocality and it is a very infectious track. I also really enjoyed the input from Saul Williams as it sort of added an extra layer of purposefulness to the track. I find that it come very close to "Beach" as my favourite.
Lastly, the sixth and final track, titled "Hanoii" has some really cool percussion elements that give it this sort of rainforest vibe. This then progresses into a more conventional drum beat and a very nice sounding bass riff. After this, the song adds in an electronic melody for its finale. The only thing that I didn't really find as effective were the vocals, which I felt were a bit monotone. But while not being quite as memorable as most of the other tracks on this EP, it still stands as a stellar track.
In conclusion, I loved the aesthetic of this album and the overall style of it. I would've unfortunately have hoped for enough songs for LMN/TBH to have counted as a full album but when all is said and done, it is certainly one of the best EP's of 2018!
Thank you for reading,
BBP
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