Emerging French alt-pop artist L.A. Rochelle releases his heartfelt new EP ‘CHAPTER 1 : DENIAL / ANGER’, alongside the new single ‘TAKE ME HOME’ on March 11th

LISTEN TO THE EP HERE

PRAISE FOR L.A. ROCHELLE

“Rising Star” – WONDERLAND

“mournful and beautiful” - RECORD OF THE DAY

"The early contender for Song Title of the Year (STOTY?) has arrived courtesy of L.A. Rochelle” – VANYALAND

"The new track intertwines French and English lyrics to touch on this hellish life event. Featuring a subtle pop-based background instrumental, he employs simple yet vivid lyrics to capture the harsh bitterness of his reality. In particular, Berndt manages to contrast this difficult emotional state in his songwriting with a relatively upbeat, light electronic backing." – EARMILK

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Following the zealous response to his heartfelt and passionate offerings ‘ALL AWAY’ and ‘IDONTEVERWANNATHINKABOUTYOUNOMORE’, which received tastemaker support from Spotify NMF (UK), Earmilk, RTE, When The Horn Blows, The Most Radicalist, Acid Stag, Vanyaland and Variance Magazine to name a few, emerging alt-pop artist L.A. Rochelle has now released his eagerly-awaited new EP ‘CHAPTER 1 : DENIAL / ANGER’, alongside the captivating new single ‘TAKE ME HOME’.

What would you do if you lost your two best friends in one day? L.A. Rochelle’s ‘CHAPTER 1 : DENIAL / ANGER’ is the first in a series of releases tackling the stages of grief that he experienced when his best friend took the life of his other best friend. Having lost his two closest friends on the same day, one to murder and the other to prison, L.A. Rochelle documents his grieving process for two very different kinds of loss, through powerful songwriting and explosive pop-driven production.

While the collection’s initial offerings focused on the pain he experienced at the time, focus single ‘TAKE ME HOME’ aims to reflect on the aftermath of such an ordeal. Having to continue on with his life despite all that has happened, he sings of numbing experience, detached from the real world, where pain seems to be the only emotion.

Speaking about ‘TAKE ME HOME’, he said, "I wrote this song when I was in complete denial of what had happened in my life, and I remember feeling so detached from my own body and disconnected from the people around me. I was angry at everything and everyone, while blaming myself for all the emotions I was feeling: broken and unable to understand why no one could do anything to fix this. I think I was hoping that somebody would come take me away, and that they’d somehow make me feel something. I didn’t care who or what that was - I kept finding myself in desperate need of human connection, searching for someone to save me from myself, someone who could make me feel like I was ‘Home’ again."

The EP’s closing offering ‘EPILOGUE ; CIGARETTES, KNIVES & JEALOUSLY’ caps off the release in an extraordinarily powerful way. Coming to the realisation that things will never be the same as they once were, the song describes this moment L.A. Rochelle found himself standing in a room, surrounded by all these objects linked to the friend he’d lost, and acknowledging that he had no choice but to just let go of it all.

Adding about the final track, he said, "After my friend Ange died, I often found myself sitting on my window sill, having imaginary conversations with him and talking out-loud into the night. I refused to accept that he was gone, so I would simply sit there, staring out at Paris in the silence, chain-smoking cigarette after cigarette, in the same way we used to do when the three of us were still together. I couldn’t understand this new loneliness, and I was searching for some moment in this ritual we used to share, that I could cling onto. Sometimes, I would write down these nocturnal, one-way conversations I used to have with him, trying to find some catharsis from the pain, and some refuge in my journal. This is what this poem is: me talking to my friend in the night."

The L.A. Rochelle project and pseudonym was formed as the artist escaped his flat in Paris where his best friend had taken the life of his other best friend. Both were his flatmates who were forced to hide their gay relationship due to fear of judgement from their family.

Dealing with immense trauma and grief, L.A. Rochelle immersed himself in his music – a process that redefined his perspective of love, friendship and loss. It was through his escape from his hometown, La Rochelle in France, to L.A., that the name that would later define his project came into being.

The London-based artist, real name Pierre-Andréas Berndt, previously found his feet in the creative world with production credits for Tricky, recording vocals for synthpop duo Scratch Massive, and composing the soundtrack of a lost Lars Von Trier feature amongst other numerous fashion and artistic events.

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lorraine longMarch 11, 2022