Brülée

All songs on this website were written by one or more members of Brûlée.

Brûlée’s music is a blend of many styles. When Aura and Lou first met, the intention was to build a band around the sound of jazz guitar with intimate, torchy vocals, but soon songs started emerging based in other sounds as Lou and Aura discovered their mutual love for the Replacements, the first four REM albums, Damien Rice, and a favorite song by Death Cab for Cutie. So we thought, why not have a band that can play everything from straight-ahead jazz ballads to loud indie alt-pop? And why not throw in a little loungy bossa nova and acoustic Americana?

So Brûlée can play jazz sets at jazz clubs, alternative indie-rock sets at rock clubs, or shows that blend all these styles when we find ourselves in front of anything-goes crowds. This page has songs grouped into four categories: jazz-ish songs, alternative rock songs, odds and ends, & duo songs.


Booking for a Jazz club? Listen to these: GLAZE A road song with a bossa feel. The first song Aura and Lou wrote together. BEGGING BOWL Aura gave Lou these lyrics, which are a true story. He came up with the music while hiding from a rainy day in a cave on a Greek island in October. Bossa Nova verses, joined with a jangle-pop chorus. FLAMINGOS (FREYA'S SONG) Lou wrote this one for his daughter when she was 4 months old. This is a live recording of the song’s first performance. POESY This is another live recording. Aura had these lyrics about hazy memories of an ex around for a long time before Lou added suitably trippy chords. It’s in the jazz 6/8 time popularized by the classic Coltrane Quartet. The wonderful alto sax solo is by Michael Gedzelman, who had never heard the song prior to this performance. RAINCLOUD A lightly swinging jazz ballad with a straight-ahead 32 bar AABA form. Thanks to Stephan Pastis for the Raincloud image. JUMP IN Whispery jazz chords and a pop song structure. The imagery is from an atoll in the South Pacific called Rangiroa.		Booking for a Rock club? Listen to these: PECULIAR SAINTS The three guys in the band love playing the funky unpredictable breaks behind Aura’s girl power lyrics. IN THE DEFENSE OF A BLUE SHOWER CURTAIN Written about a shower curtain that single-handedly lifted Lou out of his blue period. LA JEFE A theme song for one of Washington DC’s most fabulously notorious residents. After she heard this, her response was “I always thought I deserved a song.” CHANGE IT DOWN A live recording of the first performance of the song. This debut performance was quite messy and we didn't yet have an ending, but the spirit feels right. Although the song was written in 2008 and all band members were Obama supporters, Lou wrote this song about the disorientation that comes with personal, rather than political, change.

And if you want to hear more uncategorizable Brulee, try these: COUNT SHEEP A song that Lou wrote many years ago during his early 20s insomnia days (and nights), but recently revolutionized by Lex’s idea to add the Samba beat straight from Carnival in Rio. The sheep rap at the end was written by Dan Fishman. JANUARY A quiet song about those moments when the future seems wide open. Most of the images are from a quiet Sunday after a Washington, DC snowstorm. “How many seasons do you have” is one of the questions commonly asked by monks in Burma when they're trying to practice their English with the few tourists that make it to their country. WEEK 52 A recent informal recording in Aura’s living room (December 2009). This song is an ode to the romantically spooky week between Christmas and New Year's. We’re hoping Week 52 catches on as an internationally recognized 7-day holiday. Also, Aura and Lou can play shows as a quiet vocal/guitar duo. Here is an example: AMSTERDAM Written for Lou’s friend Larry Drake, known as the Big Man, who died ridiculously young in a motorcycle crash. Credits: The studio recordings were tracked in one day in May 2008 at Michael Harvey’s studio in Northern Virginia. The live songs were recorded live at Almaz on U St (March 28, 2009). We showed up to this gig without any knowledge that would be reported. Then, a good FOB (Friend of Brûlée) Marc Feldman set up his computer and some microphones to record the show.