Alexiane soldiers on through tough times with her ironically titled new EP Bad Sounds — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
“We all have different demons to face,” says the Canadian alt-pop singer/songwriter and producer. “Music is the best way I know to look those demons in the eye. For me, advancing is writing, and fighting is creating. Although I have always had a shy and reserved temperament, all the challenges of life pushed me at a very early age to sing and write lyrics and melodies from a personal perspective. It helped me overcome life’s challenges.”
Packed with unflinching honesty and a knack for finding hope in the darkest of places, Bad Sounds serves as an aperitif of sorts, set to both tease and ease earnest ears as an introduction ahead of her 2021 album, Into the Sun; the forthcoming full-length — slated for co-production by Carla Bruni alongside Alexiane under the Montreal artist’s label Gion Records — will feature all six songs from Bad Sounds.
There’s an ode to courage and confidence in Soldier — complete with a self-produced video made solely on her phone. There’s a stunning duet with Malian singer Salif Keita to be found in Gold. And also not to be missed: a stripped, laid-bare revisit of A Million on My Soul — her 2017 single featured in Luc Besson’s blockbuster film Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.
Born in Montmagny, Quebec to a Senegalese father and Canadian mother, Alexiane grew up shuttling between Montreal and Senegal, in West Africa, soaking up the Afro-Latin, French, and North American soundscape along the way. With a sound self-described as “dark, cinematic pop with African undertones,” Bad Sounds serves as a good showcase for the multi-faceted, emotively astute artist’s expansive talents.
Watch the video for Soldier above, listen to Bad Sounds below, and learn more about Alexiane on her website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
