Exclusive Premiere: Manuel ∞ Tincrès Projekt’s Soaring Debut Single ‘Hope’

When Mumbai-based guitarist Adil Manuel made his way to France with his jazz/blues band Adil & Vasundhara in 2009 to play a festival, they linked up with Réunion Island drummer and percussionist Allan Tincrès who sat in with them for a set. “Allan blew our heads off with his infectious blend of Reunionese and Afro Cuban rhythms,” says Manuel. Since then, the guitarist and Tincrès formed a friendship and would send each other the occasional message on Facebook over the past 11 years.

However, during the coronavirus lockdown, those “check-up” messages eventually turned into forming the Manuel ∞ Tincrès Projekt and exchanging music ideas that have now bloomed into a full-fledged Afro-jazz track titled “Hope.” Manuel says, “He’d [Tincrès] lay down the grooves and I’d throw in a fun progression and a melody.”

The instrumental “Hope” opens with a percussion intro by Tincrès before flutist Christophe Zoogonès builds the melody. Manuel then adds his silky guitar tone to the melody while bassist Dahel’s parts cut through impeccably over keyboardist Giovanni Velleyen’s innovative playing. All the artists except for Manuel are based in Réunion Island who have performed with Tincrès on numerous occasions. The guitarist says, “We started working like a band with real takes and over group chat would flesh out stuff.” The guitarist also tells us that he had to brush up on his French to communicate with the other musicians.

Manuel says, “To me, the sound was that of hope, reflection, introspection and towards the end soaring in the skies like an eagle… above all that’s going on around us, there’s hope.” The track has been produced, mixed and mastered by sound engineer Leo Levanti and has also been given a playthrough video edited by Réunion Island-based Gilles Bazin.

On collaborating with Manuel on the song, Tincrès says, “It all happened very simply and I’d like to thank Adil for his borderless friendship and great guitar riffs.” The drummer/percussionist tells us that he started a home studio just before a lockdown in Réunion Island was enforced due to the pandemic. He says, “This allowed me to work remotely in good conditions.” Manuel on his part has not put down his guitar while in quarantine which has put him on a creative high. “It was but natural for me to practice more,” he says.

Next, the Manuel ∞ Tincrès Projekt is plotting for more releases. Two tracks are already in the pipeline, including “Evans” which is named after the drummer’s son and “Tiny’s Dream” inspired by the guitarist’s cat. “There’s a lot going on musically,” Manuel says. He adds, “The plan is to release the next track in a month’s time.”

Watch the playthrough video for “Hope” below and click here to stream the song.