"Ajru"
isa dynamic show of frenetic rhythms mixed together with truly intimist
melodies, numerous instruments whose tones merge, yet maintain all that
which is most traditional of avant-guard sounds as a focal point. And
all of this is carried by one solitary voice which represents the true
strength of our sound, Mercedes Peon. "Ajru" is a great performance
which reaches all kinds of audience ; this can be perceived due to the
sell-out concerts and the fantastic audience participation, dancing
and singing along to the chorus and will, without doubt, give people
something to talk about.
"From
the vocal flights of "Isué" or "Sombra e Luz"
to the theatrics of Marabilla, Peon shows us her world. A world with
its roots somewhere in the west of the Iberian Peninsula, and which
reaches us through these eleven numbers. (...) A great voice from the
shifting skies of Galicia. Her name is Mercedes Peon. Listen to her,
absolutely! " - CELTICS
"A
girl with a shaved head, wearing a skirt and sandals, launches into
a pagan incantation, soon joined in polyphony by two chorus singers.
Like Judith brandishing the head of Holopherne, the bald Primadonna
raises a hoe to the heavens and beats the blade with a piece of cut
flint, singing her frenetic chant all the while. Next, Mercedes Peon
addresses those present in her native Galician and picks up a gaita
- the bagpipes of her country - while the rest of the group sets up.
An hour later, after dedicating an encore to her mother, she withdraws
to the applause of the crowd. Since her first album came out in 2000,
Mercedes Peon has been the symbol of the renaissance of Galician folk
music. " - François-Xavier Gomez - LIBERATION
She plays
as she seems to be : with astounding generosity - a generosity that
she infuses into her gaita (Galician bagpipes), her tambourine and above
all her incredibly bewitching voice. Her repertoire forms around those
vocal chords blessed by the gods, in harmony with the equally charming
voices of her chorus singers. When these exceptional voices come to
the fore the audience bathes in happiness ; the voices combine forcefully
with the rhythm of the traditional Spanish and African instruments.
Certain moments are trance-like. This fusion between machines and ancestral
tunes is not a question of trend but of real artistic desire. (...)
Her chants, sometimes incantatory, sometimes caressing, draw in and
definitively seduce the listener. - Yannick Delneste - SUD OUEST