French DJ, producer and label boss Folamour is to release second studio album Ordinary Drugs on February 1st 2019. The mellifluous 11-track affair is another comprehensive showcase of his ability to tell real stories that draw on his unique fusion of sunny house, soulful disco and space jazz.
Folamour’s musical background is diverse and accomplished. Formally trained on drums, bass, guitar and percussion, he has worked with Lyon’s National Orchestra and been involved with projects that range from pop to jazz. As a result, his music is always infused with a rich musicianship that makes his output romantic, poetic and emotionally lasting. His masterfully orchestrated tracks work in many different situations, and have come on a fine array of labels from All City to Classic and Church to Glitterbox, as well as his own hotly-tipped FHUO Records.
An artist who draws on the core values of classic house and disco artists while adding his own distinctive flair, Folamour has made standout appearances at Dimensions Festival, Lost Village, Nuits Sonores, Peacock Society, Dour and Defected Croatia, and played key clubs in Asia, Australia, the US and all over Europe. This new album follows Umami in 2017, and is another impossibly blissed-out affair for the soul that comes with a backstory from the artist himself.
“I remember these long sleepless nights, all these thoughts whispering and screaming in my head, all of these memories, fading, day after day. And I remember your face. Or... do I? Some days, it was harder than usual, not remembering your smell, your hands, all these smiles falling in the movies inside my thoughts, and it was pain to find out my life was swallowed by the clouds.
But every bit of these memories are stronger than any drug to me. Like walking in the streets, early in the morning, feeling the chaos waking up, the noises and people madness. Coming out of my place, blinded by the sun light, smoking a cigarette, slowly, and then, another one. Looking at the trains waltz from my balcony, the wind bringing all the city words to my ears. Witnessing the exhaustion of suits going back home to their closet, the first seconds of roses rising through the concrete, and the breathlessness.
This album is dedicated to all these little things that bring me back to life every day, which help me get through the restless nights, through the big waves crushing on my shore. I have learned to find small pieces of happiness in everything I can and I wish for you to master that craft a little more every day, all your life, like I hope I will.”
Right from the off, this is a lavish, heart-warming record that fuses glowing jazz keys and lingering trumpet motifs with low slung beats, dreamy top lines and catchy basslines. Guests like Wayne Snow add vocal pain to the forlorn and abstract ambiance of ‘Underwater Memories,’ tracks like ‘Don't Make Me Leave You Again, Girl’ are rousing and live sounding house tracks to lift your spirits, ‘These Are Just Places To Me Now’ features exquisitely filtered vocal samples that make your heart ache and ‘I Only Remember You When I Sleep’ feat Mark Borgazzi is a beautiful downtempo number that is impossibly intimate and honest. They all add up to an enchanting listen that will make you feel the sun on your face even in deepest winter.
