Carencro

Description

Broussard’s high octane take-off uses no formula at all.
Instead he offers a blend of abilities, styles & enthusiasms uniquely adapted
to himself on his debut album, Carencro. He calls himself “a white boy singing
soul music.” But that’s deceptive because his music draws from everything he’s
absorbed. “I feel like I’ve melded a bunch of things together that people
haven’t focused on for a long time.” In his songs can be heard influences &
accents ranging from soul men like Stevie Wonder & Brian McKnight to Louisiana
icons like Johnny Allan & G.G. Shin to road warriors like Dave Matthews. What
the 22-year old Broussard takes from all of this is a sense of craft & above
all, great depth of feeling. That’s what makes him so soulful. Well, that &
his husky baritone with a range similar to Wonder, or another influence, Donny
Hathaway. Like them, Broussard moves up & down the scales without any sign of
effort-the hard work he puts into his music isn’t meant to show. When it comes
to music, Broussard is like a bayou rendition of The Natural.
Carencro, named for Marc Broussard’s Louisiana hometown, is at times a swamp-
pop masterpiece, with leadoff track “Home” stealing the mud-crusted show. What
happens in the 11 songs that follow, though, could redeem major record labels
from their bullying reputations. Because instead of shoving this
pop/rock/soul/R&B wunderkind in the right direction–that being the direction
that center-spears his gift for channeling greats like Sam Cooke, John Hiatt,
and Stevie Wonder in the space of a single song–whoever was in charge let him
wander, and what resulted is a collection that, while hugely promising, fails
to measure up to his big, baritoney talent. The songwriting is troublesome in
spots (“I know you can break these chains/and set me free,” from “Save Me”),
and the genre shifts, while fun (“Saturday” is a ’70s-style, horn-studded
affair), can be jarring. For next go-round, fans–he will earn them, and
deservedly, with this disc–should keep their fingers crossed that “Home” is
where his heart is. –Tammy La Gorce

Features:

Product Details:

• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.88 x 5.59 x 0.47 inches; 3.32 Ounces
• Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Island
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 1754464
• Original Release Date ‏ : ‎ 2004
• Date First Available ‏ : ‎ April 30, 2006
• Label ‏ : ‎ Island
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Best Sellers Rank: #84,573 in CDs & Vinyl (See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl) #209 in Blue-Eyed Soul #538 in Contemporary Blues (CDs & Vinyl) #559 in Alt-Country & Americana (CDs & Vinyl)