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Thursday, March 14, 2024

O'Bear and the transporting dreaminess of "Smalltown Kids"

 







"[Smalltown Kids / Angel Wings / Écume]



"A short film about growing up in a small provincial town, and a journey through alpine landscapes. An ode to childhood and daydreaming, through the eyes of a teenager and her dog."

That is the descriptor, the synopsis of the transporting Short Film "Smalltown Kids - Court-Métrage" and it sums it up perfectly. Now I will focus on the three songs "Smalltown Kids, "Angel Wings" and "Écume" from O'Bear, aka Paris based composer, musician Arthur Tonglet, who recently released the album "Living on Xeplio" where these songs reside, tracks 4, 2, 5 respectively. 

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"Smalltown Kids", from the onset feels dramatic, like sunlight rising on impactful memories, of a battle or feral storm and when the sonic tensions calm into somber piano chords, the tone shifts until once again that storm begins. Tonglet mixes sounds that feel organic and synthetic creating demonstrable tensions. You in fact begin to hear or imagine wind, sirens, moments of fear and of survival in the mix. 

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"Angel Wings" feels futuristic as synth baffles repeat and droney bottom synths feel like electronic subway cars flying by. The electronic waves of sound give way to Tonglet's piano runs as the rush of other sounds create a forlorn fog or smoke encasing it all, creating lovely covers, obscuring then revealing, those piano and bass notes. 

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"Écume" runs immediately on ambient sensations, circular piano notes and orchestral sounds. You can hear rushes of water and maybe those aforementioned angel wings fluttering and whether an angel or not there is a distinct sense of dire things on the horizon. What feels like electric guitar lines flutter a bit too and the swirling sense of emotional disarray swirls until it does not.

These three songs sound quite different, feel softer in the contest of the dreamy imagery provide by the Official Vide but either way, they impart interesting emotional shifts that at there core might feel seeded from classical piano shapes but are nicely juxtaposed by synthetic otherworldly tones. 

LINER NOTES:

[After sharing his music on social networks, and participating in the composition of several soundtracks for short films, Arthur Tonglet chose the stage name O'Bear and started the creation of his first album. Beyond a musical work, GLASS is a direct extension of the photographic and novelistic work of its author’s. As a part of the production of his EP, Arthur wrote a short story called LA CABANE, based on his own photographs of his native region: Les Ardennes (France). Music, Novel and Photos thus form a single, intimate and melancholic universe.]

Dip into the dreamy mini-film "Smalltown Kids - Court-Métrage" and enjoy.

-Robb Donker Curtius








THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM 


https://open.spotify.com/artist/66yE560A43M6IY0e6T8sjd

https://www.instagram.com/obear.music/

https://www.facebook.com/obearmusic

https://obear.bandcamp.com/album/living-on-xeplio



After sharing his music on social networks, and participating in the composition of several soundtracks for short films, Arthur Tonglet chose the stage name O'Bear and started the creation of his first album. Beyond a musical work, GLASS is a direct extension of the photographic and novelistic work of its author’s. As a part of the production of his EP, Arthur wrote a short story called LA CABANE, based on his own photographs of his native region: Les Ardennes (France). Music, Novel and Photos thus form a single, intimate and melancholic universe.



Smalltown Kids est un court-métrage réalisé par Eliott Fettweiss et produit par Titouan Le Gouis, à partir de trois musiques de O'Bear (tirées de mon album Living on Xeplio).
Ce projet a vu le jour en début d’année 2023, lorsque j’ai demandé à Eliott de travailler sur un clip pour mon nouvel album. De fil en aiguille, on a eu l’idée de partir ensemble sur un court-métrage rassemblant trois de mes musiques, parce que l’idée d’un petit film à partir de mes morceaux me trottait dans la tête depuis longtemps, et aussi parce que je pense que mon univers s’y prête bien.
Eliott a su transformer la proposition en quelque chose d’assez singulier, en y mêlant une approche found-footage, et a eu l’idée de filmer tout ça comme un petit film de vacances.
On a très vite proposé le projet à Titouan, qui nous a rejoint en tant que chargé de production. Il nous a apporté son expertise en matière d'orga, et aussi un regard avisé sur notre démarche artistique.
Ma petite soeur Alix s’est ensuite jointe à l’équipe en tant qu’actrice principale, et ma mère Kymia nous a aidée sur pas mal de points, notamment en nous transportant d’un bout à l’autre de la Haute-Savoie (merci maman), et en confectionnant le costume d’astronaute. D’ailleurs, le chien que vous verrez dans le film n’est autre que Bounty, le familier de la maison.
Si vous avez aimé le projet, n’hésitez pas à m'écouter sur les plateformes de streaming (je vous mets tous les liens en bas de page), ou à me suivre sur mon insta @obear.music, et pareil pour le travail d’Eliott, qui réalise des tas de de projets de cinéma et de clips tous plus fous les un que les autres.



O'Bear, composer, musician, soundtracks, French creator, Arthur Tonglet, new album "Living on Xeplio", Short film "Smalltown Kids - Court-Métrage", evocative soundscapes, dramatic, organic electronica,

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