Griffure: Paratonnerre

Oddly, Paratonnerre is the first album release from the duo Griffure which comprises Léonore Grollemund who plays cello, sings and composes, and Amaryllis Billet who plays violin, sings and composes. Since adolescence, the partnership of Grollemund and Billet has been a field of experimentation involving voice and composition. Griffure is the result and continuation of that collaboration. The oddity is that the pair have never recorded as a duo and that this debut recording, Paratonnerre, finds them in a sextet alongside four other women—Chloé Julian on violin and voice, Alix Gauthier on viola and voice, Léa Yèche on double bass and voice, and Undae on electronics, arrangement and electronic composition; yes, five of them play string instruments and use their voices to sing and/or recite.

The album comprises fifteen tracks varying in duration from 01:35 up to 07:12, a total of fifty-seven minutes. The lyrics of seven of the tracks are printed, in a mixture of French and English, in an insert; the other tracks also have wordless vocals. With five of the sextet credited with vocals, it is nigh on impossible to select individual vocalists for praise; instead, it is fitting that the entire sextet is praised as a collective, one with its own beguiling trademark sound and personality.

With two violins, a viola, a cello and a double bass, it is far easier to identify individuals for praise. In particular, Yèche's double bass frequently underpins the other strings while keeping rhythm. Griffure are keen to stress that the instrumentation does not mean the music is intended to be classic string ensemble—a point eloquently made by their own original compositions and group sound. Based on the evidence here, this sextet has its own sound and style which are unlike any other ensemble's. Although this album is credited to Griffure, it seems unlikely that Grollemund and Billet will revert to being a twosome instead of this line-up.