Allez Ouest

... le groupe était bien en voix. Des harmonies richement fignolées sont déjà une marque de commerce du groupe. Au point que les interprétations de Pars Pas et Étoile du Nord, chantées respectivement par Mireille et Joël, rappelait les beaux jours de Beau Dommage...

Somme toute, la communauté franco-albertaine possède une formule gagnante en Allez Ouest... Allez Ouest est une denrée rare: les membres du groupe figurent parmi les musiciens et les compositeurs les plus chevronnés de l'Ouest canadien. Peut-être Allez Ouest complètera-t-i enfin la route timidement empruntée par ceux qui l'ont précédé.


- Le Franco

Life sometimes requires that things happen in a certain order. It makes things easier, for instance, if you put the bread in the toaster before you slather on peanut butter.

If you’re a musician, it could make things easier to have a band together before you start accepting gigs. But then, when it comes to bands, the order of things can be a bit looser. The Spice Girls sold a kajillion albums before they ever set foot on stage as a group. And Gorillaz released albums without even really being a group.

The members of Edmonton’s Allez Ouest were invited to play the 2006 Smithsonian Folkways Festival before they were even an official band.

“It was a project band. We came together for Alberta at the Smithsonian at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, DC,” singer and guitarist Mireille Moquin explains. “We brought tunes from our own repertoires, adapted them to the Allez Ouest sound, if you will, and we saw that there was something there. We got together, went down there and played for two weeks, and it was really great.”

It took the francophone band another couple of years to put together Hybride, Allez Ouest’s debut album. The band—rounded out by Jason Kodie on accordion and piano, Joël Lavoie on guitar, mandolin, bass and banjo, and Robert Walsh on guitar, mandolin and bass—needed to write music specifically for the band, of course, and the result is one that Moquin feels breaks through the stereotype of French-Canadian music.

“We really go into a roots feel, and even our text, they are reality. There’s a Western francophone reality, of living in minority somewhat, and dealing with assimilation,” Moquin explains. “So it’s really a product from here, I think it’s safe to say. And I think it’s unique in its sound.”

Allez Ouest’s members also had to find time between each of their various other projects. For her part, Moquin is heavily involved with L’Uni Theatre, both as an actress and in the production side of things. She didn’t start pursuing music in a professional way until several years ago, which puts her in a position to drink up the longer-term experience of her bandmates.

“Well, you’ve got four heads around the table,” she says. “There’s one tune on the album, we had written it, and it took a couple of days, but I remember we were trying to change one line and it took us about two hours to change the line. It turned out to be an excellent line!

“It’s interesting in its development. All of the different ideas and where it brings the discussion of the song—somewhere where you probably wouldn’t have gone, or maybe you’ve gone or you wouldn’t have thought of going if you were sitting at the table by yourself,” she adds. “Sometimes it would take longer than if you were to write a tune by yourself, but sometimes it was great because you’d get to some interesting places.” V
Fri, Nov 14 (5 pm)?Allez Ouest?Funky Buddha (10341 Whyte Avenue)

Carolyn Nikodym / carolyn@vueweekly.com

- Vue Weekly

An all-star roots group inspired in part by Alberta's francophone heritage is inviting listeners to Allez Ouest. (Translation: go west.)

The band's origins date back several years to the Alberta Scene centennial promotions and the Smithsonian Folkways' celebration of Alberta culture. A circle of francophone songwriters came together for those events. Now, after a couple of personnel changes and serious musical collaborations, Allez Ouest is about to release its first CD, 'Hybride'.

"We're kind of a French Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young," jokes Jason Kodie.

His accordion falls in line with three guitarists handling multiple strings, mandolin, banjo and dobro: Joel Lavoie, Mireille Moquin, and Robert Walsh. All four trade off on lead and backing vocals, mostly in French.

The CSNY comparison makes sense when you hear their vocal harmonies, but 'Hybride' lives up to its name with an entertaining mix of roots sounds, blues and Cajun elements, power ballads, and the sort of typical folk lyric themes Kodie sums up as "songs of heartache and day to day struggles."

While much of their material comes from co-writing efforts, all four have considerable experience in the performing arts. Kodie has been part of bands like Le Fuzz, Captain Tractor and Hookahman, in addition to writing for theatre. Peace River-born Lavoie is a seasoned songwriter, Moquin is a former solo songwriter and stage manager for the Edmonton Chante festival. Finally, Walsh is a veteran musician and producer whose resume includes theatre, ballet, opera and symphony collaborations. He also produced 'Hybride'.

With such a diversity of backgrounds, it's too early to tell what musical direction Allez Ouest may take next.

"There's a lot of different music on this album, partly because we wanted to explore what we're capable of," says Kodie.

"Chances are it will take more of a focus the next time but we're also trying to find the right audience so it's difficult to say where things will go."

He says it can't hurt that the Edmonton and Alberta francophone population has grown considerably since 2000, but Kodie notes the band would love to tap into the Quebec music circuit or beyond that to Europe.

Today, Allez Ouest mark the release of 'Hybride' at Funky Buddha, 10341 Whyte Ave., at 5pm.

The album will be available from local independent retailers, online from CD Baby and iTunes.

-
Roger Levesque - Edmonton Journal

The members of an all-star roots group have enjoyed a busy fall and are now looking forward to some down-time over the holidays. Allez Ouest is made up of local musicians Jason Kodie, Joel Lavoie, Mireille Moquin and Robert Walsh and in November, the foursome released its first CD, entitled Hybride.

Allez Ouest means “go west” in French, and originated when a circle of francophone songwriters came together to prepare for Alberta’s centennial celebrations in 2005, which included appearances at the Smithsonian Folkways celebration of Alberta culture in New York, says keyboarder and accordionist Kodie. “We’re kind of a French version of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young,” he jokes. The CSNY comparison makes sense when listeners hear the vocal harmonies, but Hybride lives up to its name with an entertaining mix of roots sounds, blues and Cajun elements, and power ballads. “It’s a link that non-Francophone audiences have discovered, with the four-part harmonies and acoustic instruments giving them lots to enjoy, despite the fact that most songs are sung in French,” he adds. Kodie sums up the typical folk lyric themes as “songs of heartache and day to day struggles.” His accordion falls in line with the other three band members on multiple strings, including guitar, mandolin, banjo and dobro. All four trade off on lead and backing vocals.

While much of their material comes from co-writing efforts, and all four have considerable experience in the performing arts. Kodie has been part of local bands Le Fuzz and Hookahman, in addition to writing for theatre. Peace River-born Lavoie is a seasoned songwriter, Moquin is a former solo songwriter and stage manager for the Edmonton Chante festival. Walsh is a veteran musician and producer whose resumé includes theatre, ballet, opera and symphony collaborations. “I was pleased to get a spot with the Edmonton Symphony through Robert when he was asked to find a replacement accordion player and that’s a memory I’ll treasure. What a rush that is, playing with an orchestra of that calibre. I was humbled,” says Kodie. Walsh also produced the 12-song Hybride, which took more than a year to record with painstaking perfectionism at Time and Place Studios in Edmonton. It is available at local independent retailers, online from CD Baby and iTunes and will be in HMV and the other mainstream music stores soon, adds Kodie. “We collaborated on the songs, amongst ourselves or with songwriters outside our group. Writing with four people is very intense and quite an experience, but the end result is very satisfying.”

The Cajun influence is strong, and intricately linked with the French culture. “But there’s everything on the album, there’s no one strongly-represented genre. We’re all over the map, and for that reason the CD is appealing to a large audience.” Kodie also enjoys regular gigs with Captain Tractor, a band that’s a stalwart addition to the Edmonton music scene for over ten years. With such a diversity of backgrounds, it's too early to tell what musical direction Allez Ouest may take next. “There's a lot of different music on this album, partly because we wanted to explore what we're capable of,” says Kodie. “Chances are the next one will take more of a focus but we're also trying to find the right audience so it's difficult to say where things will go.” The arts community is missing the presence of the now-defunct Sidetrack Café where for 26 years, local bands gained much-enjoy exposure before appreciative audiences. “There is, as yet, really no venue to replace it since it closed in 2007,” adds Kodie.

Allez Ouest is grateful for the fact that the Edmonton and Alberta francophone population has grown considerably since 2000, but the band would also love to tap into the Quebec music circuit or beyond that to Europe. More information about the talented foursome is available at www.myspace.com/allezouest. The group travels throughout Alberta, treating rural residents who don’t get into the city to attend performances but also enjoys local gigs as well.

The four band members are spending the holidays with family and friends, enjoying some much-earned time off after the frenzy of producing and launching the CD. “Over the course of the summer, we spent a lot of hours away from home,” adds Kodie. He is also involved in charity work as he delivers hampers for the Christmas Bureau. “It’s a selfless act of giving, and something I want my three kids to be aware of, so they realize that Christmas isn’t all about receiving, but also about giving. I think it’s important that they meet the family that we are donating the hamper to, and learn about the true meaning of the holiday.” He and the other members of the group recognize the importance of giving back to the community and helping those less fortunate and encourage all citizens to remember others at this time of year.

He says that recognizing the importance of family is obvious at this time of year too. “I couldn’t have survived the ups and downs of life as a musician without the support of my family,” he says. “Joel is a great musician who just released a solo album of himself on guitar, and teaches his skills to aspiring students around town. And Robert is married with two children, and is a sought-after producer around town. Mireille is stunning as an actress as well as keeping busy as a musician and singer.”

First-time listeners will find that the music speaks for itself. “French dominates the album, but the production is superb and the music enjoyable and transcends the language. Allez Ouest is a product of Alberta,” he concludes. “We are trying to keep the culture vibrant and alive and we know everyone will be excited by the music.”

Know of a worthy organization or individual who we can salute? Comments and suggestions for this column are welcome. Please e-mail me at hcmiller@shaw.ca.


- Real Estate Weekly