New Album: Carla Bruni

I admit: I am biased in favor of all things Carla Bruni. The heiress to an Italian tire manufacturing company, Bruni studied art and architecture before leaving school at 19 to become a model, and then she ditched that to record music and is now the Dior-donning Madame Président. Perfect.


But the credits of a personal paradigm do not blanket my ears, and even the coldest of critics must agree—Carla Bruni’s voice is lovely. So for her new album, Comme si de rien n'était (As if nothing happened), Carla delivers what fans like me have come to expect: pretty baroque pop. Her soothing, sixties-inspired melodies are sung with quirky but dreamily romantic lyrics, and on her website she has provided full-length versions of all 14 songs, most of which were written and composed by Bruni herself.

No, the album won’t change your life, but what I appreciate most about this and all of Bruni’s work is the honesty with which it is approached. Her songs appear as entries from a journal, and while some might find her lyrics embarrassing and unbecoming of her esteemed position ("You are my drug. More lethal than heroin from Afghanistan and more dangerous than Colombian white"), I can’t help but smile. From her open declarations of polygamy to her naked photo shoots, it’s obvious that Bruni ne regrette rien. I’d expect nothing less from the French, much less their first lady.

Try: “l’amoureuse,” “Je suis une enfant,” and “You Belong to Me,” a cover of the Bob Dylan classic and the only English track on the album.