Anour Releases Debut Album

For Syrian-Canadian artist Anour, it seems all music is personal, and all music is local. In many ways, she fits perfectly into a highly celebrated legacy of Canadian alt-pop. Entertainers who helped defined multiple eras, while retaining a distinctively anti-commercialist view when it came to producing music in the popular eye. Her self-titled debut album does not fail in this regard. Everything on the record feels almost mathematically succinct, songs carefully placed one after the other building a distinctive theme for the album that feels cohesive and thoughtful.

URL: https://www.iamanour.com/

Maybe this is in part due to Anour’s wandering, intellectual approach to music-making in the public eye. While just beginning her career, she’s no novice to fleshing out her place in the industry. When she speaks about her craft, it’s with the distinctive flair of someone fully formed in terms of creative identity, regardless of the evolution in musical performance. In interviews, Anour comes across as something of a rebel – once again, unusual to see in purist form in the American music scene. Yet as a student of music from all parts of the world, something that proudly signifies her allegiance to the Canadian heritage of making thoughtful, innovative contributions to the art form.

“I’m figuring it out as I go, and I don’t think art can really be optimized. Day by day, I’m hoping to connect with people who think deeply about the world and want to sit with ideas rather than scroll past them,” Anour says to Bored City. “…My music taste is very eclectic, but music itself isn’t usually where I draw inspiration, at least not consciously…Kovacs has been one of my (favorite) artists for a while now. As for where I find inspiration, it comes from life, news, art, books, podcasts, rabbit holes, and occasionally a bit of drama or trauma for good measure, the usual. Essentially, inspiration comes from everything I observe, feel or experience…

My music is not an escape; it is a mirror. If you are someone who contemplates the contradictions of our times, you may find something here. I am interested in engaging with people who think deeply about the world, and would hope that my art always inspires compassion…Writing has been deeply personal for me, but with the right chemistry, it could be interesting to explore working with someone whose work moves me or perhaps completely unsettles me. In an alternate reality, however, perhaps Leonard Cohen. He understood how to hold devastating truth with tenderness.”

APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/ca/album/anour/1856629895

While certainly commendable to cite one of the greatest singer-songwriters of all time, Anour seems on her way to living up to her own, considerable ideals. While not yet at a level of someone who can wear the singer-songwriter badge with impunity, her sense of vision, mastery of performance craft, and thoughtfulness and ideals make her someone to watch closely over the next couple years.

I have a sneaking suspicion she’ll be a household name soon, and with the breaking open of the popular music scene to include people who don’t fit the current mold defining the American Top 40, it’s exciting to see what can come out of that for musicians who don’t just want to entertain, but serve as something of stewards, guides, and change agents.

Encore.

Nicole Killian