Panorama

Originally from France, who has established a distinctive place in the city’s underground music scene. Formerly part of the post-punk trio Moss Lime, she now runs the indie label and fanzine Celluloid Lunch with her husband, Joe Chamandy, who also plays guitar on her new album Panorama. Though she tends to avoid the spotlight, Barbier has evolved into a uniquely compelling solo artist—imagine Jane Birkin stumbling into an early ’80s post-punk club and deciding to sing. Over nine tracks, she shifts between French and English while exploring styles from jittery no-wave (“Marcel”) to sparse art-pop (“Milquetoast,” “Weather Channel”), with guitarist Meg Duffy guesting on several songs. Some tracks wander (“Lapin”), while others groove effortlessly (“Plastique Couch”), but Barbier’s understated charisma ties them together.

At just 27 minutes, the album still leaves a strong impression because of Barbier’s offbeat and joyful approach to arrangement. She builds songs from jagged basslines and sharply angular guitars, often leaving the midrange open to create a strange, airy tension. This is especially striking on “Marcel,” where layers of abrasive guitar stack chaotically over a winding bass riff, evoking the “accidental” methods of Brian Eno and David Bowie, who once made Adrian Belew record without hearing the track’s key. Whether Barbier uses similar techniques is unknown, but the music suggests an artist unafraid to push simple ideas into intriguingly unbalanced territory—sometimes even with a sense of humor (“with or without the dog”).