Mama Rosin Cajun trash country 2-step garage rock'n'roll
Samedi 9 juillet 2011 - 23h20
Petite Scène
Non, ils ne débarquent pas d’une autre planète. Ni du fin fond d’un bayou en Louisiane. C’est de Genève que vient ce trio génial, qui mélange des sonorités de la musique cajun, fruit des migrations françaises au sud des Etats Unis, à des accents old blues et rock’n’roll garage ! Au final on obtient une musique qui ne ressemble à rien de connu, et dansante à en perdre la tête… Avec leur banjo, leurs sons de guitare d’outre-tombe, leur mélodéon et leur section rythmique diablement entraînante, ils ont déjà conquis une bonne partie de la planète et sont devenu incontestablement un groupe de classe internationale. Sans nul doute, nous avons là affaire à l’une des propositions les plus immanquables de cette 5ème édition ! Un très grand groupe sur la petite plage de Cheyres !!
From the seemingly placid shores of Lake Geneva comes a sonic earthquake. It’s the ragged punk Cajun sound of a Swiss trio. Mama Rosin burst into view with a breakthrough performance on BBC TV’s Later...with Jools Holland, bringing in thousands of new fans & confirming their place amongst the hottest new bands to watch out for in 2011. Fusing the old time French migrant music of Louisiana with garage rock’n’roll, Mama Rosin create an alternative raw incendiary music & attract international attention.
Mama Rosin – their name comes from a Cajun song – were formed by Cyril Yeterian (melodeon, vocals, guitar) and Robin Girod (guitar, banjo, washboard, vocals). They started jamming and found they shared a similar enthusiasm for hardcore rock’n’roll and lost American roots music. Their first ever gig, supporting The Dead Brothers, won them a deal with Voodoo Rhythm, the infamous Swiss garage punk label. They cut their debut album Tu As Perdu Ton Chemin in a matter of hours; it was given very little promotion but Ton Chemin found its way to music fans and tastemakers across Europe. In the UK, Radio 2 DJ Mark Lamarr was the first to spot them.
Today, as the band’s name spreads quickly, their music captivates lovers of both rock and roots music alike. Now with forthcoming breakthrough album – album release No 3 Black Robert – the band adds voodoo-jazz to their down ‘n’ dirty Cajun garage sound. Black Robert’s cover is an ad-hoc shot taken in London at Hackney’s Broadway Market when Mama Rosin were first in the UK. While the cover of their second album BruleLentement paid tribute to the Velvet Underground’s debut, they designed the Black Robert album to resemble a classic Blue Note jazz release of the 1950s –“Black Robert is different from our previous albums because it has ataste of jazz and calypso. Our previous albums were more focused on energy. Black Robert, well, it’s like we’re on the bayou in Louisiana. When we visited Louisiana and met people including our old time heroes, we realised that the way they live is ‘on the bayou’: growing food, fishing, listening to vinyl, not rushing. And that philosophy informed this album.” The band’s visit to Louisiana was truly an eye-opener: the local youth loved their punkflavoured approach to Cajun and Zydeco while the elders wept and spoke of Cajun culture being decimated.
“Cajun culture is being killed step by step by American culture. People forget to speak French, forget to play their own music. For a long time it was really bad to say you were a Cajun. But the young generation invited us to Louisiana and they had tears in their eyes when we played. They give us the credibility. It really touched our hearts. We speak French with them and we understand one another.” Mama Rosin are however reluctant to play on the ancient historic bonds between France/French and the Cajuns. Robin adds that Cyril was born in Lebanon to Armenian parents who fled to Europe when war broke out in Beirut. It is just a coincidence, he insists, that they are French speakers.
If Mama Rosin cite Amede Ardoin, the pioneering black melodeon (small accordion) player of the 1920s / 30s as an inspiration and their favourite Louisiana artists tend to be Zydeco musicians – the black Cajuns who infused Cajun music with a strong dose of blues and rock’n’roll – the band also look to The Velvet Underground, The Clash, Serge Gainsbourg and The White Stripes as influences. “Our sound starts in the Louisiana juke joints,” says Robin, “but we like the Texas sound, calypso, the Spanish sound, the blues sound. All those styles were kicking around Louisiana, the Caribbean, the Gulf of Texas one hundred years ago. We feed off them but then we take off on our own!” With the ability to fire up audiences wherever they play and lyrics in both French and English, Mama Rosin have quickly gained a cult following in their home country. As the band’s touring expands over new territories so does their following. Mama Rosin have just confirmed an opening slot on forthcoming Jon Spencer Blues Explosion German tour, appearances at European festivals i.e. Les Transmusicales de Rennes (FR) in December, a 15-date UK tour in Jan 2011 including Celtic Connections (21-23) & their London debut (27, The Borderline).
The trio from the Swiss bayous are out to take on a bigger world. Watch out…www : http://www.mazurka.ch/html/MAMA_ROSIN.html
Mx3 : http://www.mx3.ch/artist/mamarosin
Myspace : http://www.myspace.com/mamarosin
