Audiopile Review: Among a certain sub-set of music heads, Myriam Gendron’s name is spoken with hushed reverence. These are folks who really go deep. They’re more likely to recommend some lost Peruvian prog rock outsider than a contemporary folk singer from Quebec. So, what gives? Sometimes, folks who really know their music seem like they’re pretending to enjoy the most obscure, inaccessible music imaginable. “You’ve gotta hear this album of anal flute music from Greenland, man!” But what these people really want is to have something unequivocally beautiful shoot through all the pretence and melt their hearts. It’s us, okay? We’re talking about us! And Myriam Gendron’s music melted our hearts the moment we heard it. Her latest album, ‘Mayday’, mixes original and traditional songs, sung in English and French. It mixes utter simplicity with a spooky, subtly experimental edge. Myriam Gendron is the real deal. Those who know, know. And if you don’t know, now you know.

Mayday is the third LP by Montreal-based artist, Myriam Gendron. It follows her earlier, critically acclaimed albums, Not So Deep As A Well (2014) and Ma Délire: Songs Of Love, Lost & Found (2021). Myriam began exploring the complex folk traditions of Quebec (and beyond), with Ma délire, which combines traditional and original songs with arrangements that make space for avant-garde musical interludes by such folks as guitarist Bill Nace (Body/Head) and renowned jazz percussionist Chris Corsano. Mayday presents an even more syncretic fusion of the elements Myriam uses to create her sound. Most of the songs are original, sung in both English and French, and they blend traditional and avant elements with abandon. She is often accompanied on this album by the guitarist Marisa Anderson and drummer Jim White (Dirty Three, Xylouris White), whose work provides a quietly aggressive sort of free-rock base. Additional players include Montreal bassist Cédric Dind-Lovie, Bill Nace and saxophonist Zoh Amba. Mayday is a thoroughly thrilling effort that manages to create new vistas of sound while maintaining a feel that is both intimate and familiar. The music here certainly possesses a richly serious tone, but Myriam Gendron (like Leonard Cohen) is able to infuse her darkness with a subtle, powerful light that reminds listeners that even the most pitch-black night is but a transitional state. Beautiful work. Recorded at home and at Hotel2Tango with Howard Bilerman and Shea Brossard. Mastered by Harris Newman.