Angèle’s ‘Instinct’ album features Justice Soulwax and Polachek

Belgian superstar Angèle is ready to unleash a new wave of sonic exploration with the announcement of her forthcoming album, Instinct. The project is packed with high-profile collaborations, featuring heavyweights like Justice, Soulwax, and Caroline Polachek, promising an eclectic and captivating journey for listeners.

To kick off the excitement, Angèle has previewed the album with a new single and music video for Une seule vie. This track, produced by Angèle and long-time collaborator Tristan Salvati, is described as an “urgent call.” Lyrically, the song delves into the complexity of existence, capturing a stream of thought that navigates doubts and questions the relationship between the self, truth, and illusion, ultimately settling into the desire to live.

The visual accompaniment to this single is as unique as the music. Filmed entirely on 16mm film in the south of France, the video is a crafted, faintly surreal piece where memories and mental images physically break into reality. Through techniques like stop motion, superimpositions, mirrors, and printed images, the video makes the process of memory and time slipping away visible, using analogue methods to talk about nostalgia.

The album Instinct itself is positioned as a return to fundamental truths, moving beyond external expectations. Angèle explains that the record explores the fascinating tension between control and release, image and reality. Electronically rooted, the album utilizes chrome as a recurring visual and conceptual thread—appearing reflective, artificial, and cold on the surface, yet serving as a space for profound transformation and freedom.

At its core, the album invites listeners to explore the part of themselves that exists before performance and external noise, stripping away the need to fit into a fixed identity. This focus on internal experience is deeply personal, reflecting Angèle’s broader reflections on the music industry. Speaking about the challenges faced as a female artist, she noted that the industry often centers on physical aspects—whether being “too sexy” or “not enough”—and that women often have to navigate “double affords” just to be taken seriously.

With such layered themes and stellar collaborations, Instinct is set to arrive on October 16 via Angèle VL Records / Sony Music. It promises not just a collection of songs, but an honest, reflective visual and auditory experience that encourages everyone to look inward.

#Caroline Polachek#Instinct#Justice#Soulwax#Une seule vie

By Noah Miller