Yves Paquet – Every Now & Then (Universal 
Music Belgium)
Release Date: Out Now
Criminally, I’ve been sitting on
this album for a while now - dipping in and out as I thoroughly enjoyed the
half hour long player – but the time has come to share the joy with you all.
Yves Paquet is a young man from Belgium and ‘Every Now & Then’ is his debut
album which makes it all the more impressive but if you’re looking for bombast
and high-octane excitement then you’re in the wrong place.
The smooth piano of ‘Cycles’ gets
us underway with an urban but chilled vibe that introduces Paquet’s superb vocals
in a way that should make you sit up and pay attention. Next up comes ‘Is It
Me?’, which slows things down half a notch but maintains that same vibe which
makes Paquet sound like the Alt-Pop Bruno Mars meets George Ezra with something
special in the middle that it’s hard to put your finger on. ’25-28’ is a
stand-out track with it’s Squeeze story-telling matched with a Paolo Nutini
youth and exuberance feel. As an opening trio of tracks, they go a long way towards
making you fall in love with this young man.
The album progresses with ‘Frozen
In Time’ which is a more electro fuelled track with an uplifting chorus tinged
in regret before ‘Kingston’ strides in with a swaggering take on reggae, buried
in a pulsing beat and sunny guitars designed to melt every single care away. Paquet’s
ability to imbue any tune with lightness and sunshine is hugely endearing as we
find on ‘Bullet’ as the clattering, skittish beats are soothed by the floating
melodies that drift around like Dandelion seeds on a summer’s breeze. A
favourite of mine is ‘Chest’, a kind of Mungo Jerry for the 21st
century vibe that makes you want to drive down country lanes with the roof down
blaring this one out for anyone who cares to listen.
The woozy keys of ‘Radio Star’
have a real Euro-dance feel, especially once the beat kicks in and Paquet’s
repeated refrain of “I’m a radio star” is delivered with no sense of bravado,
just calm confidence. ‘If I’m Losing You’ keeps the party going with a Parov
Stelar-esque bop that makes you want to dance the blues away – Paquet’s talent
for matching the aforementioned lightness with lyrics that talk of heartache
and sadness is perfection and incredibly moreish. The album closes out on ‘Flow’
which could easily be a mainstream radio track in heavy rotation in the US but
I’m not sure the Republicans deserve this goodness. Keep your eyes and ears on Yves
Paquet – for your own benefit but also because I think his journey may well be
an interesting one.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/YvesPaquetMusic