'Baxter Dury', House of Music Budapest, 20 April

  • 11 Feb 2024 9:43 AM
'Baxter Dury', House of Music Budapest, 20 April
One of the most diverse and reliable singer-songwriters of the past two decades, Baxter Dury – who crossed indie-pop with synth-funk and neo-soul – drew a line in 2021, closing a period in his musical career with a best of album and by publishing his memoirs.

He then opened a new chapter with his seventh solo album, I Thought I Was Better Than You, released in the summer of 2023.

Baxter, whose father Ian Dury was also a rock star, now takes his turn with this introspective album, performing for a Hungarian audience for the first time at the House of Music on 20 April 2024.

Baxter Dury, at the age of twenty-one, released his debut album in 2002, and it's no wonder that he immediately presented a mature and well-crafted piece of work.

It's also no surprise that he took his time with the debut, given his tumultuous childhood and adolescence. Those familiar with his father, Ian Dury, the revolutionary songwriter-performer who arrived with punk in the late seventies, known for iconic songs like "Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll" or "Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick," might recall that Baxter made an appearance at the tender age of five on the cover of his father's legendary debut album "New Boots And Panties!!" in 1977.

For those who have seen Ian's biographical film, they are aware of Baxter's challenging childhood, but he also inherited some positive traits from his father, like the determination never to compromise.

Throughout the first two decades of the 21st century, Baxter earned great recognition with his excellent albums released every few years, gaining acclaim from both critics and audiences. However, after a career hiatus in 2021, he is now facing the challenges brought about by his famous father.

Baxter approached this phase of his career with music that reflects a deeper connection to his early influences, particularly hip-hop. The previous synth-funk sound is now replaced by more neo-soul solutions, creating an even more organic sound, with his lyrics remaining witty and humorous.

Undoubtedly, Baxter is a defining musician in his own right, comfortably exploring more abstract musical ideas and consistently refreshing his storytelling style. Influences from Frank Ocean and Tyler the Creator are evident in his latest songs, and his impact on the audience is profound – experiencing this live is not to be missed.

By the way, there's Hungarian blood in the Dury family; his wife (and the mother of his child) is the granddaughter of Hungarian film director Zoltán Korda!

Before Baxter Dury, Fabienne Débarre, also known from the indie-synth-pop French duo Evergreen, is making her debut in front of the Hungarian audience at Zene Háza.

While Evergreen, releasing new material under the Moshi Moshi label in 2023, presents fresh, laid-back synth-funk songs, Fabienne Débarre, the singer and keyboardist who has collaborated multiple times with Baxter Dury (and even worked with garage punk band Slaves), released her debut solo album in January 2024 after her debut solo EP in 2023.

The album, titled "Welcome To The Age Of Broken Minds," marks a promising first step in her career, featuring electro-pop, sparkling, dream-pop tracks. Débarre worked on the album with sound engineer Mark Neary, known from his work with Placebo and Noel Gallagher, whom she got to know through collaborations with Baxter Dury. It's fitting that she will introduce her first solo album on a Baxter tour – even here in Hungary.

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