Clare Manchon embraces idiosyncrasies. With her band, Clare and the Reasons—essentially her and husband Olivier Manchon—she lends her feather-light voice, which somehow emerged from an upbringing heavy on blues and jazz, to space-age chamber pop melodies. On Arrow, the band’s second album (out now), new brass notes add welcome weight to the Manchon’s cinematic arrangements and a refined flair for storytelling—and despite its foundation on unexpected elements, the record feels like a natural progression from 2007 debut The Movie. Paste recently chatted with the singer/songwriter/bandleader about making records, rebelling with Phil Collins and the odd allure of Sweden…

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In general, when I arrive at a show and learn that I am walking in on an opening act that I was not aware of - I’m not very pleased. I had a timeline in my head of what I thought set times were going to be and realized that now, all of a sudden, every thing had been pushed back an hour. Sunday night however, it only took about five minutes for me to realize that I was going to be catching a great set of music from Clare & The Reasons, a band I had never heard of - in fact I did not know the name of the group until after their set was over and I swung by the merch table…

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The music end of Ralph Lauren has gone wild for Clare and the Reasons. Here’s what they posted today:

We were so smitten by Clare Manchon and her Reasons at this year’s CMJ festival in New York, we wanted to bring you a download from her new album Arrow, out last week, so you can share the love. We tracked down the sweet soprano while she was en route to a performance in Newport, Kentucky, (”We’ve been reading the KISS biography, KISS And Tell, aloud,” she told us from the car) to ask her about the new record, how she made it and what else she’s listening to these days.

Download the single “Ooh You Hurt Me So“

“Did you know that Gene Simmons dated Cher and Diana Ross?” We didn’t, in fact — nor would we have thought that this velvet-voiced chanteuse would pick such heavy road reading. She assured us, though, that her musical tastes are about as far from flamethrowers and facepaint as you can get. “I love big melodies,” she says, “the Everly brothers, and stuff like that… there aren’t a whole lot of current bands doing that. Though of course,” she admits, “I love Grizzly Bear like any other Brooklyn girl.”

Swelling orchestral interludes — trombone, tuba, clarinet and violin intermingle with ethereal electric guitar — are certainly her band’s specialty. Members of Bierut and The National bring their special brand of indie shimmer to Clare’s sound, while husband Olivier Manchon, who has a background in French classical music, is adept at spinning the melodies she writes into intricate, vaguely Parisian arrangements. “To have it be complex and seem simple,” Clare says, “I think that’s the ultimate challenge.” Listening to the pristine compositions on Arrow, we just have to say fait accompli, Clare.

11.06- PITTSBURGH- Howler’s Cafe
11.07- ATHENS, OH- Donkey Coffee
11.10- ST. LOUIS- Cyrano’s
11.11- CHICAGO- Empty Bottle + Daytime performance on WLUW 88.7
11.21- BROOKLYN- Sycamore
12.11- NYC- Rockwood Music Hall
12.15- HOUSTON, TX- Live on KPFT 90.1 FM- “Sound Awake”
12.16- HOUSTON, TX- The Mink
12.15- AUSTIN, TX- TBA
12.17- DALLAS, TX- TBA
12.18- DENTON, TX- TBA
For more details, click here!

When we got to the Ottobar, things we’re running late as usual, so we got right into the dressing room with a meal on our minds.
I started chopping, turned on our little double stove top and got the water rocking for our quinoa.
I sauteed the chopped shallots in some alter eco olive oil.  I’m not used to electric cooking stove tops, so it takes some getting used to heat wise. In went the chopped zucchini with the shallots. I let it all sautee for a while and the quinoa and veggies were done at the same time.  We put some kerrygold (I think) Irish butter.  Sadly, we don’t find the organic butters to be very good.  We cooked up the shredded turkey for Bob and Olivier, Ben and I stayed veggie.  We all enjoyed our yummy, easy meal.  I also added brags liquid amino acids to mine. We had made this less than attractive rock club dressing room into a cozy, oasis with good food.

If you prefer to concentrate on life’s positives rather than on the dreary realities of war, drug abuse and poverty, that’s your right.

Clare and the Reasons’ positive, spunky orchestral pop tunes won many hearts last week at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York….

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[Clare and the Reasons] sang quiet songs that only accentuated Mr. Chesnutt’s dire crescendos. Clare and the Reasons played sweetly intricate chamber-pop that somehow mingled folk-pop, Philip Glass, cabaret oompah and the Beach Boys — for starters — behind the songwriter Clare Muldaur Manchon’s poised high voice, with an endearing quaver as she sang choruses like “Ooh, you hurt me so.” Liz Durrett opened the show solo, picking stark guitar parts and singing with the breathy vulnerability of Beth Orton or Cat Power. Her folky ballads succinctly balanced sorrow and the determination to hope.

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Musee Mecanique are writing and recording their second album, sure to be a blast of beauty for our ears. They’re also heading to Europe in November! Here’s a list of tour dates:

11/17 - Berlin, Germany - Café Zapata
11/18 - Niederstetten, Germany - Kult
11/19 - Munich, Germany - Rote Sonne
11/28 - St. Gallen, Switzerland - Palace
11/29 - Zürich, Switzerland - El Lokal
12/1 - Fulda, Germany - Kulturkeller
12/2 - Leipzig, Germany - Werk II
12/3 - Frankfurt, Germany - Brotfabrik
12/4 - Rubigen, Switzerland - Mühle Hunziken
12/5 - Geislingen, Germany - Rätschenmühle
12/6 - Luzern, Switzerland - Schüür

Learn more about Musee Mecanique
Buy “Hold This Ghost”