Michael Wookey

Michael Wookey is an English singer-songwriter and composer, born in Southampton and based in Paris. Wookey is known for using toy instruments in his music, and in 2013 he arranged a 10-person toy orchestra to play his compositions at Paris's Théâtre du Châtelet; a second performance followed in 2014. He collaborated with Margaret Leng Tan and wrote a concerto for her named "Coney Island Sous l'Eau". The U.S. premiere of Wookey's concerto was in 2013 at the Washington Square Music Festival in New York City, with The New York Times calling it "the most rewarding of the pieces for toys on the program". "Hollywood Hex" is his sixth studio album.

Michael Wookey performs perfectly eccentric melancholic songs, ranging from blues stomps with just voice and feet, to Game Boy-tinged electronica. It's hard to put it in to words, but his voice is what binds it all together. He is generally alone on stage with his banjo, chains, toy piano and sampler, and sometimes accompanied by The Toy Orchestra.

“Hollywood Hex” s’inscrit d’emblée dans la lignée d’albums exceptionnels, dont on sait qu’ils seront des compagnons pour longtemps. Michael Wookey vient de signer un disque majeur, qui tutoie avec une grâce affolante les sommets d’une pop précieuse, qui ressemble à la vie. Soit la somme des bonheurs et des malheurs, parfois les deux mêlés. La rencontre étrange de l’obscurité et de la lumière, qui semblent irrémédiablement liées. La musique de Michael Wookey est forgée dans ce constat. A l’aide d’instruments nombreux, parfaitement orchestrés, il compose des chansons oniriques et raffinées, explorant l’âme humaine. L’album, enregistré en France, aux Etats-Unis et en Grande-Bretagne, est le chaînon manquant entre la pop baroque, merveilleusement bricolée, et le rock sensible mais aride d’une formation comme Grandaddy.