Through their individual careers playing in backing bands for artists ranging from Andy Shauf to Beverly Glenn-Copeland, the members of Bernice have absorbed an unbelievably wide scope of performing experience—as well as a broad spectrum of influences that inspired those artists they’ve played with. Naturally, the songs they compose together draw on a little bit of everything, from jazz and R&B to minimalist electronics and conventional rock.
Eau de Bonjourno, their latest opus, progressively hums and blips along through dance-y moments (recalling recent upbeat experimental jam projects like P.E.) and periods of introspection, resulting in a record that’s as pleasant as it is hard to pin down. While Robin Dann provides a vocal anchor through this serpentine tracklist, her backing band—keyboardist/guitarist Thom Gill, e-percussionist Philippe Melanson, bassist Daniel Fortin, and vocalist Felicity Williams—introduce all types of unique sounds that zag every time you anticipate a zig.
To speak to the instrumental side of the project, the band is sharing a playlist of non-vocal songs that helped shape the record, providing insight into each pick. Hear that below, and read on for a bit of commentary. You can pre-order the new record here.
Sawako, “jupiter c.loud”
Robin: This album gets me through.
Lindsay Cooper, “Botticelli”
Thom: Canterbury and beyond superstar, you always know it’s her. Her dark, earthy double-reed tones flatulating across your clothesline. Her comfy-cozy, retro-alien, light-is-dark harmonic lingos. Major. Rest on….
Actress, “Holy Water”
Phil: I love loops and digital texture.
Reid Anderson / Dave King / Craig Taborn, Golden Valley Is Now, “City Diamond”
Dan: I love this record. All of the parts are meticulously composed, but when everything is put together it has this energy that feels improvised somehow.
David Virelles, “The Scribe”
Felicity: I don’t know how to dream, but I’m dreaming.
William Lawes, Consort Music, “Fantazy (the sunrise)”
Robin: It’s like a perpetual opening, like a flower reaching up forever. Four hundred years old and still brand new.
Mary Watkins, “Silent Praise”
Thom: Huge fan of the whole Olivia Records world, but especially anything Mary has been a part of. This 2003 “meditational” is a newer vibe for her. Feels like pre-mirror stage Twin Peaks. Everything dry, thank gosh. (Peep the Olivia YouTube channel for a very recent home concert with Mary—a must.)
Ellen Arkbro, “Three”
Phil: I love patience and tuning.
Kenny Drew Trio, Pal Joey, “Do It the Hard Way”
Dan: I come back to this recording a lot—actually, sometimes I’ll just listen to the first five seconds a few times in a row. The rhythm section hookup is so beautiful, so instantly swinging right off the bat.
Arve Henriksen, “Plume of Ash”
Feli: Bought this record on a whim at Amoeba in LA and listened to this song over and over on subsequent drives through the desert—it’s acquired those vistas in my mind’s ear. If I could wallpaper my inner life with this shade of happy-sad, I might.
