There is strength in numbers, so the saying goes. This is confirmed with Cold Moon, which Alela Diane did not write alone, but with the guitarist Ryan Francesconi. The two met at a friend’s concert in October 2014, bonding over the creative block that they were currently experiencing. Francesconi lacked the inspiration to compose; Diane was finding it hard to start writing a new album following the birth of her daughter. A few days later, Francesconi asked Diane to collaborate with him, sending her several guitar compositions. The Californian spent the autumn thinking over these recordings, without quite knowing how to add her voice to them. Then it clicked. The words arrived first, then the melodies. That winter, Alela Diane traversed Portland to join Ryan Francesconi at his home, and work on songs over a cup of tea… Then, with the arrival of spring, without quite realizing it, they had written Cold Moon: songs containing intangible emotions that call for reflection and hope. Since Pirate’s Gospel was published in 2007, Alela Diane has been thought about as one of the most beautiful voices in the current folk scene. And this 2015 vintage only confirms this. Composer, guitarist, Balkan musician, programmer, and cyclist, Francesconi arrives less known to the public. He lives in Portland, has recently arranged Have One On Me by Joanna Newsom, has released a solo album, and has recently put out the album Parables Road to Palios, in duet with Mirabai Peart. Their meeting was magical in its ability to make internal sparks fly. With this new partner in crime, Alela Diane has changed her songcraft slightly, giving it a unique serenity, with a less grandiloquent touch in the scansion. © MD/Qobuz