Blue Monday People is a soul-jazz acoustic trio featuring François Vaiana on voice, Lara Rosseel on bass and Benjamin Sauzereau on guitar.Their love for storytelling gave birth to a deep minimalist sound. Lara's rooted grooves blend harmoniously with Benjamin's airy and distorted textures. Both leave an open door for the freedom in François's voice. These three musicians are tinted with European spleen and painted with blues coming from the Americas. Some of their stories are founded in the forgotten soul standards of the 70's, others grew from their modern interpretation. Imagine Bill Withers, Nina Simone and Kurt Weill having dinner conversations about Baudelaire, Ben Okri and Alice Walker. Each song played has an overwhelming warmth reminding us that everything is gonna be alright.
Blue Monday People’s repertoire is a meeting of the lead singer’s compositions and soul masterpieces written in the 60’s and 70’s. The later are revisited by the group’s own idiom, arranged with simplicity to bring out the core of their message. François’s pieces are urban tales deeply influenced by the people he met and the places he’s been to. He depicts situations and characters we all know. The good, the ugly, but always free of judgment.
“Blue Monday People and the Spirit Children” is an extension of the trio. François Vaiana arranged and rewrote his music for a band of ten, adding piano, drums and a horn section (soprano saxophone, flugelhorn, french horn, euphonium and trombone). The original trio remains the heart of the music, making this full band sound like a modern musical box.