Julie and Martin of “The Rain” are just “walking around, walking around” into the Parisian
independent music scene with nothing holding them back. This folk acoustic duo with only three
weeks of “real experience” put creative inspiration in their genuine, memorable tunes of love,
heartbreak, and dreams in the city.
Duos are the new standard in today’s folk genre such as “Kings of Convenience” whose musical melody and poetic devices influenced those of “The Rain”. Julie and Martin sing in English with an accent unlike the typical French one, but rather a result of an US-southern country meets LA chic. Julie’s voice resembles Zooey Deschanel’s of « She & Him », in which both emphasize the idea of returning to the foundation instead of repeating the same oohs and lahs of other singers today.
Their presence on the stage is often reminiscent of Simon & Garfunkel, except this duo faces each other, rarely turning their attention towards their melody-thirsty audience. Immersed in the intensity of each performance, Julie and Martin remain poised even if the audience gets a little too loud. But even with that said the resonation of Julie’s lips harmonizes through every little crack of the room, just as rain falls in the forest. Martin strums the guitar with a non-imitable lightness and his megaphone announcement proclaiming words of wisdom voice echoes like that of Brandon Flowers from “The Killers.”
The mélange of airy or upbeat harmonies resemble the early 60’s rock sounds from “The Kinks” or “Velvet Underground”, only lacking in the full band presence that these groups had. Their harmonies do not coincide with the familiar everyday tunes coming from artists such as Rihanna, but a spin on those who made these genres popular. This duo’s future depends on a faithful open-minded audience (who doesn’t rely on modernity), just as the optimism the audiences had for “The Beatles” or Bob Dylan.
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