The singer’s brand new album is classy and elegant.

This sixth studio album from the former First Lady of France has plenty to recommend it with its understated charm and reflective qualities. But it also feels that due to its delicate nature, some of the the songs can feel as they are trying too hard to have purpose.

But this is not to say that it is not worth listening to. Bruni’s smoky vocals really shine on songs such as ‘Quelque Chose’ or ‘La Chambre Vide’ which have great depth and understanding.

There is also a poetic and thoughtful quality to songs such as ‘Un Secret’ that really flows nicely from start to finish or ‘Un Grand Amour’ which is filled with tenderness. However, the lyrics can on occasion sound slightly superficial as though trying too hard to have great meaning without allowing the listener to find the meaning behind the song for themselves.

This doesn’t mean however that Bruni doesn’t try to be as diverse as possible in terms of subject matters – covering love, life, death and even as on ‘Le Petit Guepard’ – a cheetah. Each song does ebb and flow to the next with plenty of grace, with only ‘Voglio L’Amore’ feeling strikingly different and perhaps on reflection out of place in contrast the laidback nature of the rest of the album.

It is still a classy and elegant listen, with a real highlight of the album being ‘Comme si c’etait hier’, showing a more playful and jazz inspired side to Bruni’s vocals, equally matched by ‘Your Lady’ that once again highlights the depths of her vocals.

Overall, it is certainly an easy and elegant album to listen to – but it is a real mixed collection of songs with some making a stronger impact than others.

By Emma Clarendon

The album is available to buy now.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐