Her influence – Newspaper Kommersant No. 223 (7424) dated 12/01/2022

Music lovers, whose taste was formed in the late 1980s and early 1990s under the influence of clip collections on VHS cassettes, are surprised to hear the news about each new album by Mylene Farmer. Even more surprising is the fact that even in the absence of her longtime collaborator Laurent Boutonne, she releases music worthy of attention. Mylène Farmer’s freshly released disc, entitled “L’Emprise” (the most obvious translation in this case is “Influence”), listened to Boris Barabanov.

All the great pop musicians that we inherited from the 1980s have already crossed the line of the 60th anniversary, but they continue to create and, most amazingly, influence the next generations. Duran Duran, Soft Cell and a-ha have released new albums over the past year, with studio work by Depeche Mode and The Cure on the way. All of these musicians are native speakers of the language of popular music, and The Weeknd, Harry Styles and other chart heroes are happy to communicate in this language on their best-selling albums.

Mylene Farmer is on a par with these performers of the generation of the 80s, not because of musical proximity, but as an artist who once came to the attention of the domestic audience in a similar way – through amateur video recording, in MTV hits collections, and also thanks to the Europa radio station. A plus”. In addition to the unconditional and crushing eroticism of the clips that Mylène Farmer made with her then collaborator Laurent Boutonnat, the singer offered an alternative to American female pop music, whose flagships were Madonna and Janet Jackson. The high “elvish” vocals of Mylene Farmer required a different setting; straightforward pop with an obvious rhythmic organization did not suit him. Farmer was more elegant and aristocratic and therefore was perceived as a symbol of European sophistication. Her videos were “real films” with a plot and extras, which was a revelation for the early 1990s.

All experimental turns in Farmer’s career were perceived by the public quite positively while Laurent Boutonnat was her partner. However, the singer has already released her third album without him, and the main topic of discussion among fans is her ability to create interesting music in the absence of her Pygmalion.

In her 60s, the red-haired Frenchwoman continues to act in spectacular videos. In the music video “A Tout Jamais” that preceded the release of the album, Mylène Farmer, in the manner of Björk, is buried in the folds of flowing fabric and hides among the threads and petals of giant algae. In another video, “Rayon Vert”, she was paired with the co-author of several songs “L’Emprise” – Simon Bure of the electronic duo AaRON.

In the “Rayon Vert” video, a black raven appears for a few seconds, remembered from the cover of Farmer’s most famous album “L’autre …” (1991). Musically, “Rayon Vert” does not resemble the sound of Mylène Farmer’s “golden era” in any way, it is rather electropop in its version, which was called the French touch. The clip unequivocally refers to “Melancholy” by Lars von Trier, and if you meet the inevitable, it is better, of course, in the company of such an irresistible handsome man as Bure.

Farmer worked with him for the first time. But I already met Darius Keeler from the English group Archive in the studio – during the album “Bleu Noir” (2010). Fans of the theory of dating through one handshake will be interested to know that this is the same Darius Keeler, who participated in the work on Zemfira Ramazanova’s album “Borderline” (2021). Written by Keeler for Farmer, “Do You Know Who I Am” is a neat dance track with a touch of dream-pop. The thing is predictable in composition and arrangement. And yet the voice of Mylene Farmer is so unique that it penetrates the soul through any producer innovation.

Another old acquaintance of the singer is Moby, with whom she recorded the song “Rallumer Les Etoiles”. The American electronic artist added his favorite gospel vocals to the arrangement, and the song became more like “Go West” by the Pet Shop Boys than his own works.

The main producer of “L’Emprise” was Yoann Lemoine, aka Woodkid. This is one of the most popular French songwriters and producers. And therein lies the danger: working with him, there is a risk of just getting into the “new Woodkid album”. However, the dreamy melancholy underlying Farmer’s personal style is so original that even her colleagues, equal in talent to the singer, cannot move her from her place. However, if Woodkid and Farmer decide to play these songs live together, something interesting might turn out. Mylène Farmer’s tour, ironically titled “Nevermore”, is scheduled for summer 2023.