"Live at daFestival"
Grégoire (Thot) releases solo EP
Thot founder Grégoire Fray has recorded a solo live EP. Today is release day. I had the honour to listen to "Live at daFestival" in advance, and I think it's incredible.
The recording for "Live at daFestival 2020" took place during the first lockdown for a Youtube event of the Belgian zine daMusic.
Grégoire's voice sounds emotional, moving and hurtful. The three pieces are a bit different from the music he makes with Thot. The style reminds me of the great singer-songwriters of the 1980s.
A completely new song
There is also a completely new song on the EP. The artist played it for the first time in front of an audience when he recorded the record.
Grégoires music lives from its contrasts, and it's no different with "Live at daFestival". While the first piece, "Vltava", is relatively calm, you can sense Grégoire's passion for industrial sound in the second song "Keepers" quite good. This alternates with his expressive vocals and the harmonious piano playing, giving the piece a fantastic and imaginative colouring.
"Live at daFestival" gets under your skin
The harmonies get under the skin, the heavy interludes stir up, leaving the narrow boundaries of strict genres far behind.
The new song is the third and last one on the record. With its 6:40, it is the most extended and definitely my favourite. Its distorted guitar sound and a voice that seems to come from a distant world carry me away while listening and lead me into a wonderland of exciting soundscapes.
"Live at daFestival 2020" is a gem that touches me deeply. It gives me goosebumps from the first note to the final chord, and I immediately feel the urge to listen to it again afterwards.
Last years mood perfectly set to music
Grégoire has perfectly set last year's overall mood and the uncertainty that prevailed, especially during the first lockdown to music with his three solo pieces. He has also managed to sum up everything I love and appreciate so much about music.
I asked Grégoire for a personal statement about his solo EP:
"It felt strange to do this performance in the middle of the first lockdown. It has been filmed by my good friend Michael who also filmed the "Blue and Green" video. He's Thot's second drummer and he owns Weyrd Son Records who released our latest album "Fleuve". The song "Vltava" is taken out from this album, "Keepers" is taken out "The City That Disappears" (2014), and the song "Sleep Oddity" has never been played before, as it's a new song to be on our next album."