Music

Cœur de pirate got us hooked

3 reading minutes

written by Lauriane Pipoz · July 30, 2019 · 0 comment

Paléo Festival 2019 - Lauriane Pipoz

Cœur de Pirate, whose real name is Béatrice Martin, delivered a performance perfectly suited for a festival this Sunday, July 28, at the Paléo Festival. Let’s take a look back at this angelic artist—far too big for this little auntie.

A white grand piano takes center stage. The instrument matches the clothing of all the characters in the show of the lovely Quebec woman. Because the singer-songwriter-musician went to great lengths to put on a real show: you can really feel the attention to detail throughout this hour-and-a-quarter-long performance, where the musicians clearly enjoy themselves as Cœur de Pirate twirls around the stage.

The singer revealed this summer She wants to showcase a certain turning point in her life through her concert: she wants to move people, but she also wants to have a blast. It seems she succeeded completely during her concert at the Dôme, the stage dedicated to Quebec this year at the Paléo Festival. Far from getting a big head, she made it clear just how thrilled she was to be there—for the third time. Completely at ease, she not only greeted the audience right in the middle of her first song—how classy!—but also called out to them repeatedly throughout the show. In particular, she humorously checked in to make sure that we, the audience, were still doing okay after three sad songs and as a melancholic track was about to begin.

Yes, her lyrics are indeed rather dark overall, but no, her music wasn’t depressing at all. She managed to turn it into a show where good cheer was the order of the day. Glitter in the background, warm colors like pink and purple, bursts of laughter between songs: everything was there to ensure we had a great time.

As she mentioned at the end of the concert—before performing one of her new songs, Don't call me –, she’s taking her music in a new direction. While I’m not exactly an expert on this wonderful Quebec artist—I plan to start catching up right away, and I recommend you do the same if you’re in the same boat—this latest song seemed to have a much more joyful sound, with a bit more electronic music mixed in. The result was very harmonious and danceable—and it suited her well! It’s a bit of a paradox that this musical joy coincides with her desire to never hear from her ex-partner again.

Even though, of course, she still retains that very emotional side. This aspect was particularly highlighted in her very minimalist piano-and-voice rendition of Mistral wins. This masterpiece by Renaud—who needs no introduction—was reinterpreted by the singer and pianist for a tribute album to the French singer released in 2014. This song, which she made her own with tremendous elegance, was my favorite moment of this beautifully orchestrated concert.

The icing on the cake that demonstrated the artist’s perfect mastery of shifts in vocal register. A well-rounded singer-songwriter, capable of connecting with the audience in a truly delightful way, commanding the entire stage with natural ease, making people laugh and move them to tears, writing beautiful lyrics, and, above all, performing them magnificently with a velvety voice.

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