Petite Noir — MotherFather — Album Review
Alternative | Soul | R&B
Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music
It’s funny to think that, despite knowing of Petite Noir, the musical alias of Belgium-born singer-songwriter Yannick Diekeno Ilunga, this would be the very first album of his that I have reviewed.
I discovered Petite Noir a while after his previous studio album, titled La vie est belle / Life Is Beautiful, and released all the way back in 2015! To this day, I still haven’t listened to said album from start to finish. However, I did get a chance to listen to Petite Noir and his music from start to finish, with the release of La Maison Noir / The Black House, and even that was released back in 2018.
It goes without saying that Petite Noir’s musical releasing schedule is a little more infrequent than most other artists. However, I believe that once the artist finally does come around with something new, fans can always expect something expressively special. That being said, I was very excited to see the release of Petite Noir’s sophomore studio album, and his first in nearly 8 years. Enter, MotherFather.
For one reason, or another, my personal experience with the tracks that teased the release of this album was a little odd. While I discovered that another album was on the rise through the track “Blurry”, released at the end of January this year, and featuring Sampa the Great (which was likely how I managed to discover the track in the first place), I’ve only now just discovered, as I’m writing this review, that there were another four teasers for the brand new album, which “Blurry” was released in-between of.
Nevertheless, I was still excited to go into this album with a relatively blank slate of expectations, as I knew that, despite my limited experience of the Petite Noir discography, I still knew that he was capable of bringing the artistry on this long-awaited sophomore release.
And indeed, that seems to be exactly what we got with MotherFather. The initial vibe I got from the musicality of this album, as well as the general feel, reminded me a lot of the Young Fathers album Heavy Heavy, released earlier this year. However, I will say that this album also favours versatility over the consistent musical thematics found on the aforementioned Young Fathers project. It seems like Petite Noir has vouched to sprinkle in as many different musical elements as he could, whilst the overall theme of MotherFather helps to tie everything together.
Thia album was one of those that piqued my interest, regarding the underlying message and/or story of the record. And after doing some digging, it seems that MotherFather (at least in name) was inspired by Ilunga’s spiritual reflection, and newfound feelings towards god being both a maternal and paternal figure. In turn, the album not only has a spiritual tinge to it, but also a festive and motivating one of that.
Having bth moments of tenderness and raw energy, there’s something for everyone to be found on MotherFather musically. But for an eclectic music lover like myself, it’s an absolute feast for the ears.
This album is definitely one that I feel has left an impact on the musical year of 2023, and will likely give fans something to keep coming back to for a very long time.
Favourite Tracks: 777 | Finding Paradise | Simple Things | Best One | Play
Roya
