Somehow for the holiday season I’ve got not one but two new albums to share with you.

• CORY SEZNEC DEEP OF TIME (Officially releases January 12, 2024)
 ORDER VINYL, CD, DOWNLOAD HERE

• TOUKI PLASTIC MAN (Officially releases March 1, 2024)
ORDER VINYL, CD, DOWNLOAD HERE

1) The first, Deep of Time, is my “covid opera” – forged during the pandemic with producer partners-in-crime Jean-Etienne Loose and Geoffroy Dauptain. We went brick by brick through each track, arranging, then recording first as a demo – which in another era may have become the final product – to facilitate the final recording sessions. A handful of exceptional musicians were then brought on board to add their magic touch: harmonica player David Chalumeau, drummer Raphaël Chassin, pedal steel guitarist Paolo Conti, upright bassist Thomas Garoche, organist Jean-Max Méry, guitarist Daniel Mizrahi, percussionist Renaud Ollivier, sousaphonist/trumpeter Rafgee, fiddler/cellist Duncan Wickel

A good chunk of the music was recorded on an old Studer A80 24-track tape machine at Tonehouse Studio outside Paris. Instrumentation-wise we went “70s” on it: an old Ludwig drum kit, Hammond C3 organ, Rhodes piano, Juno synth, miniMoog, vintage guitars, tube amps, harmonica, percussion, violin, cello, pedal steel, etc.
The album artwork features photography by brother Yann Seznec shot at Hollywood Farm, and design by Tom Baxendale. It is now available for presale on Bandcamp in vinyl, cd and digital formats  (where you can also listen to a few tracks)
In fact, the cd and the vinyl have arrived in time for Christmas!

2) The second is a new album with Touki, my project with Senegalese artist Amadou Diagne. Made possible thanks to a grant from Arts Council England, the album was recorded at the renowned Real World Studios, and produced by Oscar Cainer, with arrangements by virtuosic American cellist/violinist Duncan Wickel.

Plastic Man focuses on climate change, environmental activism and spiritual matters—weaving together West African fables, personal stories and large social, economic and political questions facing our world. The name of the album was inspired by Senegalese climate activist Modou Fall, who dresses up as a plastic “kankurang”  (protective spirit figure) to draw awareness about plastic waste. The photography for the album, taken by Italian photo-journalist Giulio Piscitelli in the Libyan desert, harks both to the continually unfolding human tragedy of displaced populations, and the plague of plastic pollution.

About the music:
Touki’s sound infuses East and West African styles and traditions with Appalachian banjo, folk motifs, and orchestral arrangements. Diagne’s powerful percussion, Seznec’s muted guitar-picking and rapid-fire banjo-frailing, and Wickel’s cello-grooves provide a rhythmic foundation, while vocals, kora and violins add beautiful texture and emotional depth. The scorching sounds of Endris Hassen’s masenqo (one-stringed bowed lute) are peppered throughout the album, providing punctual pitstops at an Ethiopian azmari-bet.
On the road this project is fortunate to tour with French strings wizard Marius Pibarot.
Listen to a few tracks and pre-order the album in vinyl, cd or digital formats here.

Happy holidays to one and all!
-Cory

Am currently hard at work putting my next album together with producers Jean-Etienne Loose and Geoffroy Dauptain…this is definitely going to be an album for the times both technically and creatively. More soon.

Am also working on a research project involving the collection of all the existing recordings of Malawian guitarist Daniel Kachamba’s solo guitar music for a potential compilation.

My project with Senegalese artist Amadou Diagne is also looking to pick up where we left off last year. First up is to hopefully cobble together a UK tour in September 2021.

Fingers crossed!

Lots of irons in the fire for 2020…here are just a few tidbits…

-A tour opening for French supergroup La Rue Kétanou (made possible in part thanks to the support of L’Adami) :
Jan 29 – L’EMC2, Saint Grégoire (Rennes)
Jan 30 – L’Oasis, Le Mans
Jan 31 – La Cartonnerie, Reims
Feb 1 – La Madeleine, Bruxelles
Feb 13 – Le 106, Rouen

-We’ve nearly completed the mixing phase of a new collaborative album with Senegalese musician Amadou Diagne entitled TOUKI Right of Passage, to be released Spring 2020…UK tour in March:
March 18 – A World In London Radio Show
March 19 – Green Note, Camden, London
March 20 – Square and Compass, Worth Matravers, Dorset
March 21 – The Rondo Theatre, Bath
March 22 – The Old Tractor Shed, Mabe, Cornwall
March 22 – Calstock Village Hall, Calstock, Cornwall
March 23 – Rook Lane Chapel, Frome, Somerset
March 24 – The Wardrobe Theatre, Bristol
March 25 – Burnett’s Hill Chapel, Pembrokeshire, Wales
March 26 – Tuned.In London, Rotherhithe, London
March 27 – Smugglers’ Record Shop, Deal, Kent

-New video (made possible thanks to the support of la Spedidam) :

The latest from my little corner of the universe…

  • This past summer I had the good fortune of going to Reno Brandoni’s studio in Italy to record a couple of instructional guitar lessons for Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop. The themes are Spirituals for Fingerstyle Guitar (see video below) and Spiced Up Fingerstyle Arrangements. The lessons will be released on November 1.
  • Thanks to an Arts Council England grant, a new project, Touki (meaning “traveler” in Wolof), is in the works with UK-based Senegalese musician Amadou Diagne whom I met busking in Bath years ago. We will be recording at Real World Studios in November and touring the UK in March and France in May. Check out our Facebook page, follow us on Instagram, and on my website you can find the current tour dates
  • I’m currently hard at work on my 3rd album. Some “work-in-progress” videos recorded at Midilive Studios outside Paris will be released in the near future…
  • In July 2020 I will be teaching guitar at the Swannanoa Gathering at Warren Wilson College in Asheville, NC (and hopefully playing some shows before/after…interested in a booking? Email me ).

In other news…

Hope to see you somewhere along the way!
-Cory

Photo by Nuoc Mam Photography

After some excellent shows down in the south of France early March, I hauled the band to Penvénan in the rugged part of the Côtes d’Armor in Brittany for a creative residency at Le Logelloù, a center for creative exploration. Wow! This marked the first time that the band could come together and collaborate at a slower, more methodical pace. Needless to say in less than 5 days it felt as if my new songs magically materialized into something that could coherently and cohesively represent a new album. I was even able to test out some of the new tunes at La Cigale in Paris opening for the fantastic Leyla McCalla and her great young band from New Orleans, and also at the Festival Jazz à tout heure in the vallée de Chevreuse where I opened for the killer band (and lovely dudes) Delgres.
Coming up is a show on May 10 in Paris at our home base, Péniche Anako, where we’ll be shedding the new material before hitting the studio. BUY TICKETS. This will be followed by a show on May 11 at Salle Jacques Brel in Fontenay-sous-Bois opening for Otis Taylor . For other shows (including a small UK tour in July), go to my date page.
In other news, I’m running a 10k late June on behalf of an association I work with a lot here in Paris, l’Association Tournesol. I regularly perform in hospitals in the greater Paris area for patients and staff. This is some of the most redeeming and powerful work I do as a musician. If you’d like to contribute to this great cause, you can do so by supporting my run!
I also just recently completed the soundtrack for a soccer documentary directed by Fabrice Macaux to appear on Arte in late May 2019 (tbc).
Lastly, I will be recording a couple more video-lessons for Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop sometime this summer.
Over and out!

Photo by Emilie Vidrine

 

 

Having come off some gigs with the wondrous Senegalese musician Amadou Diagne (new project in the works, more to follow) in Paris and at SOAS in London, I’m now rolling up my sleeves and getting to work on my 3rd album as well as music for a football documentary to appear on Arte sometime next year.
Go here to see where I’m playing next.
A bientôt les amis !

Backroad Carnival was officially released in France in November 2017 (Inouïe Distribution) and a couple of months earlier worldwide. It’s been getting some great reviews and radio play in the UK and French media. The album release concert will take place at the Studio de l’Ermitage on January 26, 2018 featuring the full band plus some very special guests!
The band is excited to hit the road – touring southern England, Wales and the Midlands in March, dates here. It’s been 3 years since my last tour in the UK. To think for a while there I was touring Blighty 2-3 times a year! When we get back to France, Renaud Ollivier (percussion/drums) and I will be opening for the one and only Lucky Peterson.
Stay tuned for a couple of live videos shot by the dudes at Loustic Sessions, and more news in the coming weeks. Oh yeah, and here’s a fun stop-motion clip of my tune “Pigeon Man”, shot by some talented students over at the Ecole de la Cité in Saint-Denis!