Toystore

by Coralie Clement

Overview

Coralie Clement's third album, 2009's Toystore, takes the singer's winsomeness and delicacy to a whole new level. As the title implies, this album is brimming with cutie-pie instrumentation (toy Farfisas, glockenspiels, and ukuleles, just to name a few); it's the kind of thing that brings to mind Cake on Cake, Yann Tiersen (particularly his work for the movie Amelie), and Detektivbyran. Benjamin Biolay's arrangements, intricate as clockwork, mingle pleasantly with Clement's romantic, wistful vocals. On the surface the instrumentation might seem simple and childlike, but Biolay manages to work a good helping of darkness, even malevolence, into the twinkling sounds of these diminutive instruments, and it results in some puckish, charming-as-heck music. "C'est la Vie," "So Long Babylon," and "Sono Io" are dark in the way a fairy tale or a marionette show can be dark; the syrupy-sweet materials belie the darkness and complexity stirring beneath the surface. There are a few moments when this sugariness becomes tad cloying -- one track in particular, "Je Ne Sens Plus Ton Amour," a cabaret-style piano-driven duet featuring Etienne Daho, is a bit too soggy-sweet, like cake soaked in sweetened condensed milk. Surprisingly, this has less to do with the toy instruments than it does with the piano arrangement and the overripe production; Clement and Daho sound a bit too slick and theatrical here. Toystore probably won't be remembered as one of Clement's best albums, seeing as it sounds so cute it's almost kooky. Still, it's an interesting, and well-made, detour from the chic, windswept, and wistful fare found on her previous two albums. [This edition includes a bonus track.] ~ Margaret Reges

Product Details

Release Date:	05/19/2009
Label:	COMPASS RECORDS
UPC:	0766397451022

Tracks

1. L' Effet Jokari
2. C'est la Vie
3. Share the Day
4. Le Baiser Permanent
5. Je Ne Sens Plus Ton Amour
6. Sono Io
7. On ¿¿tait Bien
8. Houlala
9. Reine des Pommes
10. Paris Dix Heures du Soir
11. So Long Babylone
12. Tu Seras ¿¿ Moi
13. Les Sollicitations

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Coralie Clement   Primary Artist
Etienne Daho   Primary Artist
Chiara Mastroianni   Primary Artist
Benjamin Biolay   Carillon,Melodica,Triangle,Harmonica,Tambourine,Metallophone,Grosse Caisse,Alto,Basse,Guiro,Piano,Cornet,Guitar,Shaker,Ukulele,Maracas,Sifflet,Tom-Tom

Technical Credits

Benjamin Biolay   Composer,Producer
Fabrice Maria   Engineer,Vocal Engineer
Jacques Duvall   Composer
Dominique Blanc-Francard   Mastering
Ludovic Palabaud   Engineer
Benedicte Schmitt   Mixing,Vocal Engineer
Eric Verwilghen   Composer
Chiara Mastroianni   Composer
Alain Chamfort   Composer