Morgan Manifacier - Grande (Tape Club)
4/5
By: Yousif Nur
You may well think that the current influx of nu-folk acts of late has reached a saturation point. But before you do, spare a couple or so minutes for French by way of California singer-songwriter Morgan Manifacier. He has a lovely debut album at the ready entitled Grande, which as you might have guessed from that intro is a mostly acoustic affair.
It was apparently recorded in a variety of places, yet ones secluded from the rest of the world. Manifacier displays a maturity that's not often seen in such a young singer-songwriter, and there's evidence to suggest that his travels between the South of France (where he hails from) and California have had a direct influence on his outlook.
Let’s take opener 'LAP' for a quick reference point - think Nick Drake’s guitar plucking style and the vocal harmonising acrobatics of Fleet Foxes. It's gorgeously atmospheric, sparse and only a minute and a half long, which is a real pity. Still, with the rest of the album to follow on there's a lot to whet the anticipation it builds up.
The Fleet Foxes influence is at the forefront yet again with 'Soul For Sale's strong presence of atmospherically overdubbed vocals. There's also 'Barbe Rousse', which bucks the trend a little with a piano-led angle showing that Morgan is just as learned and accomplished on either instrument. All in all, it’s a thoroughly comforting listen.
Morgan Manifacier - Grande by Morgan Manifacier
Artists in this article: Morgan Manifacier
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