French singer Zaz has released her fifth album entitled Isa. The themes are love, life, and heartbreak.
The music is French Pop. There are beautiful ballads. The happier ones are Les jours heureux (Happy Days), Ce Que Tu es dans ma vie, (what you are in my life), and Il faut qu’on se Donne (we have to give it our all), Exister (existing),and À perte de rue (as far as the streets go). There are sadder ones too: Comme tu voudras (as you’ll want it), Avec son frère (with her/his brother), Le Jardin des larmes (the garden of tears) featuring Till Lindemann, Le chant des grives (the song of song thrushes*), and Et le reste (and the rest).
The upbeat tunes are Imagine, De Couleurs vives (vibrant colours), and Tout là-Haut (just up there), parallel classical French music from artists like France Gall and Sylvie Vartan. The piano and guitar complement the album nicely. The music is relaxing and has a bold new style, and there are great compositions. The composers and producers did an incredible job of tailoring the music to each song’s story and mood.
Zaz’s voice is beautiful and rhythmic. She has an impressive vocal range, and she hits the high notes at the right moment. She sings with Till Lindemann in the piece Le jardin des larmes (The garden of tears). Their voices compliment each other well.
The lyrics are poetic, profound, and at times romantic. The words are from the heart and full of soul. The songs are well-written with a broad range in the subject matter. There’s a great use of imagery, along with deep metaphors. There are cheerful songs: Les jours heureux (happy days), Imagine, and De couleurs vives (vibrant colours).The piece De couleurs vives is a fantastic example of feeling pure confidence, passion and joy. The bright colours symbolize the beautiful things in life (i.e. the sun, the foliage, etc.).
Other songs reflect more touching life stories (sad, happy, or mixed feeling depending on the subject), including Comme tu voudras, Avec son frère, Il faut qu’on se donne, and Le jardin des larmes (the garden of tears) featuring Till Lindemann. The sense of vulnerability is genuine, sincere and relatable. Le jardin des larmes represents the pain and tears that gathered with time. The songwriters did an excellent job of capturing the essence of each piece with poetry and depth. The songs are rich in language with layers of dynamic meaning.
The album Isa is available.
*a song thrush is a type of bird
