The French part of Canada is famous for two things: ladies with shoulder length hair and a boisterous laugh who steal your heart, and maple syrup. Beyond that, Quebec is Canada's largest province, spanning the Arctic tundra down to the Appalachians, and it's the last bastion of European elegance in the land of flannel and diesel. The French language is the glue that binds Canada's most prolific stronghold of culture — and francophone neo-traditional music embodies that culture. Sara Dufour brings it to the world.
If you think you don't like folk music, you're mistaken. Folk music is for your soul. Folk music was your favorite in a past life. Back then, folk music was just called 'music.'
Image via Sara Dufour
It starts in your toes. The mind may recoil at first. You'll say to yourself, "I moved all the way to China so I could escape country music." But it isn't country music. Folk music can't be described using conventional genre terminology. It straddles the border between rock, country, blues and a myriad of other obscure archipelagos of musical oblivion. The common thread being the use of real, analog, 'air-being-manually-disturbed' instruments. Thus, one descriptor we keep seeing is neo-traditional. Throw in a synthesizer and just a few more cigarettes, and you'd have alt-rock.
The toes tap faster — pulsating to a rhythm that is slowly filling you with a naive joy. You remember that life isn't so bad after all. It's all about the people close to you. Friends, family... even strangers.
Your knee is bumping up and down to the thumping of the bass guitar and the twang of the acoustic. You're smiling, and you can't seem to stop. This is the music of your forefathers. This is the music that brought communities together and held them, the music of a healthy harvest or a long winter. Folk music tells a story.
That said, speaking French is not a prerequisite for appreciating the music of Sara Dufour. The riffs are upbeat and her rich melodic voice is captivating. In all likelihood, even francophones get lost in the music itself. She gives us less-sad Joni Mitchell vibes with Dwight Yoakim's harmonica. A less pessimistic Edie Brickell. Life is nice for Sara Dufour.
Image via Sara Dufour
Dufour's musical journey began in her teenage years when she picked up her first guitar at the age of 16. Self-taught and driven by passion, she honed her craft and soon found herself immersed in the world of music. In 2011, Dufour made the bold decision to put music at the forefront of her life. Her breakthrough moment came when she performed in front of 90,000 people at a summer festival in Québec City, opening for the legendary francophone rock group Les Cowboys Fringuants.
Behind every great artist lies a talented entourage. With her drummer by her side since the beginning, and her guitar player and bass player joining the fold three years ago, Dufour's band is a tight-knit unit that brings her music to life on stage.
Dufour's tour begins in Hong Kong and then she spends the following week doing a loop between the major metropolises of the GBA. We highly recommend that you make an effort to see her. And if you do, don't mistake this for sittin' down music.
Scan the QR code below to follow her on Instagram or look for her music on major streaming platforms.
[Images via Sara Dufour]
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