Clement Jacques

Born under the Saguenay skies, a place that instilled in him a constant need for freedom and open spaces, Clément Jacques was drawn to music early in life. He has been captivated by all things musical since the age of 10, and upon entering high school became steadfastly involved in various rock bands. In a desire to further develop what he gradually came to perceive as his calling, he went on to enrol in music studies at college, focusing in particular on percussion.

In his early twenties, the man who when asked to define his artistic style described it as a "countryish-folky-grounded-kinda-thing" multiplied his stage appearances interpreting jazz standards, before turning increasingly towards folk. He formed a duo with his friend Jean-François Tremblay and broadened his repertoire while learning to "really" play the guitar in less than a year. The two friends were granted a street performance license and took their folk sound to Saint-Jean Street in Québec City, as well as appearing in tribute performances in small inns.

A few months short of completing his Bachelor’s degree in jazz vocals, Clément Jacques auditioned somewhat reluctantly for a project aimed at helping up-and-coming artists, where a member of the panel set about orchestrating the next stages of his budding career.
His manager, more and more convinced that the artist he had taken under his wing would go far, suggested the release of the EP Smile for a While which featured 5 songs, sold 3,000 copies and was produced through independent means. On the strength of the positive response to this mini-album, a tour of acoustic shows throughout the province soon followed. "The shows were far from sold out," Clément admits today with a half smile, "but I gave it my all. It was a formative period during which I was constantly sowing the seeds for the future."

From behind his party loving "bad boy" image, there slowly emerged an ultra sensitive young man, preoccupied with matters of faith and redemption and for whom moments of despair would be hard to stomach were it not for the possibility of venting his feelings through music. Clément Jacques’ first compositions already clearly reflected his desire to become a better person, to find his rightful place in the world and to converse with those greater than himself. At the end of 2006, another decisive encounter: during an acoustic performance by the Respectables at the Théâtre Petit Champlain in Québec City, the singer made the acquaintance of Éloi Painchaud. The two chatted about creation, blues music, the Wood Brothers, and promised to keep in touch.

When Audiogram began to take a keen interest in Clément Jacques, the record label took on the role of supporting him in the production of his first album. During a hiatus in 2007, the artist had the opportunity to take part in a writing workshop in Los Angeles with Tim Bader. "In LA, I learned to give free rein to songs while at the same time giving them the role they were destined to play," he says now. Upon his return, he worked intensively with the former Okoumé member, developing and recording his songs. And the fruit of this studio adventure is the highly inspired Consumed and Guilty, to be released in February 2009 on the Audiogram label.