From behind the polished taps of Birmingham’s Hare & Hounds bar venue, I stood and listened in disbelief as the voice of Andrea Balency rose over the synth and bass coming from this single person performance in-front of just a handful of people.
Her headline comes as the first part of the French ‘Oui Love’ 2014 Tour, showcasing some of the finest up and coming French artists to the UK. Though born in the French capital, Andrea lives between Paris and London, producing as she goes. Without an ounce of bias, I can tell you, she is going to continue to rise and rise.
Time for some back story; after being spotted by (amongst others) James Blake, she was chosen to open the last gig of The Cure’s tour of Mexico back in April last year. Then came performances at SXSW and Sonar, which led on to the writing of her Walls EP, released earlier this summer.
Following this came a lot of pretty high-profile collaboration work, including L.A producer Salva, Young Turks act We Are Shining, sharing writing duties between themselves and the unstoppable FKA Twigs (Mercury Prize favourite) and finally writing up her first album including a collaboration with none other than Mount Kimbie. It’s clear Andrea does not do things the half.
“Soft airy notes grew into a passionate and powerful sound, sometimes without lyrics, but always with a meaning hidden underneath somewhere. It’s like listening to a young girl singing away unnoticed. It is powerful but also beautifully nonchalant.”
At the painfully tender age of just 22, she has conquered the Mexican art-rock scene, Parisian R’n’B and now moves to the British Isles to spread her multilingual lyrics laced with bass, along the way gaining support from Gilles Peterson, Benji B and many a reputable music source.
With a voice akin to AlunaGeorge or FKA Twigs, she commands a presence that is hard to ignore, and although some have likened her to Marmite, I just think she’s deliciously sweet.