The foursome recorded around 45 sombre and tormented songs while gaving a number of concerts in the area around Nantes. Later, with the singer Katerine, Dominique Ané recorded a number of songs in a more upbeat and livelier style.
Beginning of a career
At the beginning of the 1990s Dominique Ané recorded songs that were both minimalist and rock in style. He wanted to break with the traditional chanson, which he considered to be more literary than musical[1]. His first CD, released by the Nantes label, Lithium, met with critical acclaim by the alternative magazine, Les Inrockuptibles, and by Bernard Lenoir, the 'John Peel' of France. Furthermore, his song, Le Courage des oiseaux, (the Courage of the Birds), was an underground hit.
From 1992 onwards, he started to produce more and more live shows, either with a backing band or solo. His commercial success grew in 1995 with Le twenty-two bar, a single off the album, La Mémoire Neuve, but this success left a bitter taste in Dominique's mouth because he considered the song to be particularly badly written[1].
In 2000, he composed the score for Antoine Desrosières' black comedy film Banqueroute.
Le Détour and beyond (2002-)
Dominique's discovery of Alain Bashung's dark 2002 album, L'Imprudence shocked him to the point that it put his music into question and he decided to explore different ways of working. He decided to compile what he considered to be the first part of a musical time capsule, a longbox entitled Le Détour. He asked his fans to write about their relationship with his music, and some of their letters were published in the booklet accompanying Le Détour.
For his subsequent album, he wanted to experiment and, consequently, for the first time, he gave control over the album to a third party, the team who produced L'Imprudence. The end result would be Tout sera comme avant (Everything will be like it was before), which was released in 2004. Unfortunately, many fans had difficulty obtaining a copy. At the same time, Dominique gave many live performances variously using a big band, minimalistic backing, or all alone (where he would experiment with oversampling).
In March 2006, L'Horizon came out, a new work that he produced alongside Dominique Brusson, with whom he had made the early album, Remué. It was the first time that Dominique A returned to work with a producer. He was backed by his old collaborators, Sacha Toorop and Olivier Mellano, as well as the musicians with whom he produced Tout sera comme avant. Dominique A had recently quit his record label, Labels, due to his desire for more creative freedom; consequently, it is no surprise that he describes L'Horizon as his most experimental work to date.
Collaboration and influence
Dominique A collaborates regularly with other artists and on other projects. He has been one of the shaping forces of Françoiz Breut's career, writing many of her songs since her début in 1997. He has also composed several songs for Jeanne Balibar's second album, Slalom Dale and wrote Où est la ville ? for Jane Birkin's 2006 album, Fictions. He also sang Veruca Salt et Frank Black in trio with Keren Ann and Vincent Delerm on the latter's second album, Kensington Square.
Dominique A has inspired and influenced many artists. Among them were Yann Tiersen and the Norwegian electro band, Oslo Telescopic, who named one of their albums The Dominique O Project. Lyrically, Dominique's movement away from the constraints of chanson moved many other French-speaking artists, including Miossec, Holden and Arman Méliès.
Antonia
Dominique A Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mais ne traine pas encore assez Antonia,
L'herbe rouge écoute le sol craquer Antonia,
Sous la chaleur nos bras collent Antonia,
Tu resteras là, inoubliée
C'est décidé...
On peut encore voir d'anciennes routes se dessiner,
Une rangée d'arbre dans la plaine,
Quel âge ont nos pas dans la plaine Antonia,
Tu resteras là, inoubliée
C'est décidé... C'est décidé...
(Merci à Meenoo pour cettes paroles)
The song "Antonia" by Dominique A is a poignant reflection on time, memory and the fleeting nature of life. The singer addresses his subject, Antonia, saying that time is passing slowly for her, but it is not passing slowly enough. He observes the red grass listening to the crackling earth, as their arms stick together under the heat. He realizes that Antonia will remain unforgettable and it is decided that she will.
The singer reflects on the place where Antonia is and how well he knows it. He can still see the roads that used to be there and a row of trees in the plain. He wonders how old their footsteps are in that plain. The decision is made that Antonia will remain there, remembered forever. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of the beauty and transience of life and the importance of cherishing every moment.
Overall, the song is a haunting tribute to memories and to those that we want to keep close to us despite time, space, and other barriers.
Line by Line Meaning
Le temps se traine mon Antonia,
Antonia, time seems to drag on slowly.
Mais ne traine pas encore assez Antonia,
However, it still doesn't seem slow enough for Antonia.
L'herbe rouge écoute le sol craquer Antonia,
Antonia, the red grass listens to the ground cracking beneath it.
Sous la chaleur nos bras collent Antonia,
Antonia, our arms stick together in the heat.
Tu resteras là, inoubliée
You will remain there, unforgettable.
Parce qu'on connait bien ici Antonia,
Because we know Antonia well here.
On peut encore voir d'anciennes routes se dessiner,
We can still see old roads being drawn.
Une rangée d'arbre dans la plaine,
A row of trees in the plain.
Quel âge ont nos pas dans la plaine Antonia,
How old are our footsteps in the plain, Antonia?
C'est décidé... C'est décidé...
It is decided... It is decided...
Contributed by Declan W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.