Actress Charlotte Gainsbourg Exposes Deepest Thoughts on New Record

Releasing her third album, IRM, French actress and singer-songwriter Charlotte Gainsbourg has stepped out of her father's shadow to emerge as a serious artist. Beck has aided her in this transition by producing, co-writing lyrics, and lending vocals to a record which channels both sleek French-pop and quirky American Indie music.   

Gainsbourg began her music career in 1984 at the age of 13. She collaborated on the album Lemon Incest with her father, Serge Gainsbourg, one of the most celebrated and controversial French singer-songwriters in modern music. Since then, she has emerged as a talented actress and released the much-overlooked album 5:55 in 2005.

On her first album in five years, Gainsbourg is conscious of her father's legacy but mirrors his hushed intimate vocal-style. She distances herself from Serge, however, by incorporating personal themes into her songs. The song “IRM,” or MRI in English, documents her experience living through a cerebral hemorrhage due to a water-skiing accident.

The album deals with her own mortality, with lyrics like “leave my head demagnetized/tell me where the trauma lies/in the scan of pathogen or the shadow of my skin?” Set to a pulsating drum, “IRM” expresses a celebratory tone towards life, but also presents painful details about her recovery. Even though half of the songs are sung in French, her tender voice accompanied by simple arrangements on “In the End” and “Master's Hand” mimics the sounds of female American musicians like Mirah and Cat Power.

Since Beck has a heavy presence on the record, it’s hard to determine how much of Gainsbourg's own creativity went into IRM. His lush strings and country twang elevate her sometimes flat vocal range. Upon listening, comparisons to Beck's own album, Sea Change, come immediately to mind. The weepy strings and far off guitar vibrations on Sea Change are carefully placed throughout somber moments in songs like “Vanities” and “La Collectionneuse" on this release.

On later tracks, there is a constant tension between the delicate arrangements of Serge Gainsbourg and other French artists and the lively Americana-blues shuffle. Beck attempts to manipulate both genres with the clank and clatter of busy percussion and with a darker tone than any of Serge's records.

The song “Le Chat Du Cafe' Des Artistes” has a jarring cinematic quality and daughter Gainsbourg plays the part perfectly, giving an unsettling performance over an array of building and swelling violins. She and Beck compliment each other well on their duet “Heaven Can Wait.” Layered with piano, tambourine, and horns, the instruments provide a stomping beat and create one of the most charming songs of the year. 

Gainsbourg doesn’t seem like an actress looking to make some extra cash by putting out an album while looking for her next audition. She is a singer who put forth an album of real loss and healing, exposing herself in a way few musicians do.