Nearly a year after the release of their striking album Renegade Breakdown, Marie Davidson & L'Œil Nu now unveil their new single Persona via Bonsound and Ninja Tune. Inspired by Carl Jung's concept of the "Persona", the band offers three versions of the same song sung entirely in French: a shoegaze, fully guitar-oriented version, an electronic version with trip-hop undertones (Persona BB) and an interlude version that can be played on a loop to escape.
The music video for Persona also echoes Carl Jung’s concept that gives the song its name. Playing with the idea of a counterpoint to the archetype of the persona (the mask we wear to make a definitive impression on others and hide the true nature of the individual), the Montreal band wanted to present a video that is true to who they are. We didn’t want a sophisticated and expensive HD music video depicting us as glamorous artists evolving with nonchalance in a highly controlled environment, explain Marie Davidson & L’Œil Nu. But rather we wanted to offer a simple and honest document, shot ourselves with our phones, showing us as individuals, friends, musicians, in our daily lives, à l’envers du décor.
Watch and share the video for Persona via YouTube.
Marie Davidson & L’Œil Nu’s new single is available on all music services.
Initially formed by Marie Davidson, Pierre Guerineau and Asaël R. Robitaille, the group has evolved from a trio to a four-piece with the official addition of multidisciplinary artist, composer and producer Jesse Osborne-Lanthier on percussion, synths and electronics. A long-time friend and collaborator of the band, Jesse has previously co-produced and performed additional vocals and sound design on the album Renegade Breakdown.
The band will take part in Berlin’s online PopKultur Festival, which takes place from August 25th to August 28th and will feature a performance from Marie Davidson & L’Œil Nu entitled Persona & Other Fiends. Midway between a live-performance and a music video, Persona & Other Fiends is a musical and visual triptych of 3 songs (Persona, Center of the World (Kotti Blues) and Renegade Breakdown), directed by Clara L'Heureux-Garcia and filmed at Thee Mighty Hotel2Tango recording studio in Montreal. Taking the themes introduced in Persona one step further, this hybrid document will explore in an intimate and performative manner the relation between stage and image of Marie Davidson & L’Œil Nu.
On September 4th, Marie Davidson & L'Œil Nu will perform at the Festival de la musique émergente in Rouyn-Noranda. Then, on October 8th at La Tulipe, the group will give their first performance in Montreal as a band. Shows in Ottawa and Toronto will follow on October 14th and 15th. Later this fall, the band is heading to Europe for a tour that includes dates in Zurich, Amsterdam, Brussels, Paris, London, Reykjavik and Berlin, to name a few. Check out the list below for all the tour dates and visit marie-davidson.com to purchase tickets.
Renegade Breakdown, released in September 2020, is the band's first introduction to the world as Marie Davidson & L'Œil Nu. It is a bold reimagining of the Montreal-based musician's multifaceted sound. With a dark humor of her own and interpolated musical influences - from Fleetwood Mac to Mylène Farmer to Billie Holiday to The Carpenters - each of the album's tracks unfolds in radically new directions. Widely acclaimed upon its release, Renegade Breakdown has attracted the attention of notable publications such as The Guardian, Pitchfork, The New Yorker, Billboard, DAZED, Vulture, NME and many others.
Tour dates
25-28/09/2021 Berlin, DE - PopKultur (Online)
04/09/2021 Rouyn-Noranda, QC - FME
08/10/2021 Montreal, QC - La Tulipe
14/10/2021 Ottawa, ON - Club SAW
15/10/2021 Toronto, ON - The Axis Club
20/10/2021 Zurich, CH - Bogen F
21/10/2021 Düdingen, CH - Bad Bonn
23/10/2021 Luxembourg, LU - La Rotonde
24/10/2021 Amsterdam, NL - Paradiso
26/10/2021 Brussels, BE - La Rotonde
27/10/2021 Paris, FR - La Boule Noire
28/10/2021 Vendome, FR - Les Rockomotives
29/10/2021 Lille, FR - L’Aéronef
30/10/2021 Brighton, UK - The Arch
31/10/2021 Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Club
02/11/2021 Manchester, UK - YES
03/11/2021 London, UK - Village Underground
05/11/2021 Reykjavík, IS - Iceland Airwaves
07/11/2021 Berlin, DE - Volksbühne