Having only released four tracks as of yet, Yannick Ilunga, also known as Petite Noir, is able to infuse insistent afro-beats with indie vibes to make an original composition, almost as vibrant as his vintage shirts - unquestionably taking fashion advice from Yannis of Foals.
Starting with his debut single – ‘Till We Ghosts’, released through Bad Life, achieving critical acclaim in The Guardian and BBC Radio 1, Ilunga underlines a feeling of loss and longing through his expressive, baritone voice and haunting ooohs in the background. With hard-hitting drums from the start which conjure into more traditional African beats in the choruses, he ends the track with a softer guitar melody similar to Bloc Party’s ‘Octopus’, but more poignant.
The youthful twenty-two year old launches straight into ‘Disappear’ with a fast-paced melody reminiscent to a much swifter ‘Ache’ by Twigs. Again with a forceful drum beat, we see much darker lyrics take over in this track: ‘All we have in life will disappear’, sounding like he sings from experience. With subtle influences from Ilunga’s previous band, Popskarr, floating around this track, we see where he gets the pop feels from.
Stripping away the heavy drums in the intro of ‘Pressure’, the ex-Popskarr member’s thick voice is highlighted. With the beat building up nearing the end of the intro, he delves into an assertive main body with an anticipated dominating drum beat and a complimenting bass melody. The track hits climax as he asks soulfully ‘Do you love me?’, and leaves us with a lingering feeling of nostalgia though a slow and trippy outro.
Ilunga takes a more mellow approach in his latest release – ‘Kinshasa Waltz’, with a consistent and tranquil guitar melody united by lyrics that once again show a yearning, maybe this time for his roots in Congo
Blood Orange enthusiast, Ilunga, states that he loves that ‘people don’t know what to call [his music]’. You can undeniably see that Petite Noir definitely isn’t ‘a regular’ [‘Till We Ghosts’] artist with tracks as ‘vibe-uous’ as his. Big things are certain for and from this guy…
BELIEVE IN NOIR WAVE!
