Ariane Moffatt's Ma

Canadian singer songwriter Ariane Moffatt is not what you think. If you think this Quebecian carries around an acoustic guitar and yodels at a coffee house you'd be wrong. If you imagine her as a French speaking chanteuse who is slinky, sexy, and seductive you'd be on the right track. Ariane brings to mind the golden era of chanson music but modernized for today’s world. Her album Ma is a fantastic cultural synthesis of language and sounds.

Named after the concept of the ma, which refers to a sensorial experience of negative space or downtime the album is a bit personal and introspective but far from being down, negative, slow, or depressing. Oh no, Ma is an upbeat sounding record that was put together and produced by Adriane herself and you can hear the personal touches and sounds that each song has. While Adriane is a singer songwriter, nothing about Ma would indicate this. The songs here feature lush synths, atmospheric songs, and Ariane's lovely voice. This is about as close to being a singer songwriter album as Quebec is to Florida.

Ma is a rich tapestry of sound and creativity and the fact that Adriane did this mostly by herself is a testament to the fact that she's more than just another songwriter. If there's one solo artist album you buy this year, I'd invest some money in Ariane Moffatt's Ma. You can order the album here.