GAELLE BUSWEL: Your Journey (ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

It's already been almost ten years since Gaelle Buswel has been making her way. And what a journey she has made since the self-produced "Yesterday's Shadow" (2012)! Not only, thanks to a loyal and generous fanbase, she has been able to record two more albums, but the latest one, "New Day's Waiting" (2017), has allowed her to land many prestigious opening acts such as ZZ Top, Status Quo, Jonny Lang or Beth Hart. While she also managed to make her mark in North America and Japan, she landed a contract with Verycords and went to record her new album in Belgium, in the prestigious ICP studios in Brussels. She even took advantage of the legendary Abbey Road studios to record a few tracks that would appear on the Deluxe version of this "Your Journey".

This one is undoubtedly a new level in the career of the beautiful and the eponymous title which launches this opus is a perfect demonstration of it. It shows a power rarely reached until now, whether it is in the production or in the vocals of Gaelle. The latter rises in spheres that she did not make us discover on her previous albums and her progress is breathtaking throughout the eleven tracks of the original version. Moving on 'A Rose Without A Thorn', worrying on 'Perfect Foil', fragile on 'Just Like The Wind' or seductive on 'What Might Have Been', she offers a real demonstration of a varied and bewitching vocals. At her side, Michaal Benjelloun is her alter ego on the guitar, always putting himself at the service of the songs without entering into sterile demonstrations but by bringing a great palette of colors. As for Laurian Daire's keyboards, back in the line-up, they participate to the depth and diversity of the new compositions.

Indeed, while showing an even greater maturity, Gaelle Buswel explores a great variety of territories with an old school thread which guarantees the coherence of the whole. Whether it's the soulful blues of 'Razor's Age', the dark and heavy 'Perfect Foil', the big rock of 'Louder' or the bluesy and slightly psychedelic ballad 'What Might Have Been', most of the tracks would not have been out of place on the Woodstock stage. It is also worth noting that several of them have structures that evolve and avoid too much simplicity. 'Last Day' alternates heavy rock verses and lighter choruses. 'A Rose Without A Thorn' rises in power both instrumentally and emotionally. 'Perfect Foil' plays on a saturated guitar, a pachydermic bass and a heavy and powerful drum. From a pure and melancholic first part, 'Just Like The Wind' takes off towards a well of light in the middle of the clouds. All this richness is discovered after each listening, proving also in passing the monumental work done by the rhythmic section.

If there are unfortunately few chances that the musical landscape offers to this album the place it deserves, "Your Journey" is nevertheless of a bewitching and dizzying richness. Navigating between blues, rock, folk and soul, as groovy as melancholic, powerful as delicate, it will hypnotize all those who will take the time to dive into it. - Official website

GAELLE BUSWEL

YOUR JOURNEY

VERYCORDS

ROCK