Le Roseau 
Gabriel Yacoub : De La Nature des Choses (F,2008)****
When Gabriel Yacoub went solo (after Malicorne) also in Belgium he remained one of the most respected French folk musicians. His vocal timbre alone, as well as his personal emotionally engaged and strong melodic variation in singing, fitting perfectly with the French language, sounding like a standard, is a perfect mastered example on its own. Gabriel’s way of inspiration and interpretations carry the songs through his vocal representation well, so that when he leads the music with his voice, like he does here, this alone brings already a dominating high quality to the music. Therefore it is not necessary to understand the lyrics to feel attracted by it. Gabriel Yacoub was guest in Belgium quite often. His latest album is therefore also distributed in Brussels.
And even when it seems it has been seven years before his last album I feel a strong mature quality. Like I said before, Gabriel’s voice leads all compositions, with captivating melodic fluency and expression, while being surrounded by well fitting arrangements. This is not really folk/pop nor singer-songwriter music, but keeps certain but hardly traceable folk flavours (like small electric hurdy gurdy touches). Above all, Gabriel Yacoub’s own lyrical-melodic expressions were formed in a rich folk and folk-rock past but within this he also established his own independent evolution that became something unique. The accompaniment sounds like a warm and calm podium-band ; sometimes the piano leads, and there are also good acoustic guitar pickings adapted to the melodic vocal ideas, some sparse, recognizable for Gabriel Yacoub, strong vocal arrangements, and a few brass arrangements that have a slight post-baroque flavor within a folk reference.
A strong expression.
