Biography
Orange Blossom, a French worldbeat ensemble, issued their first album during 1997 and maintained an intermittent presence in the years that followed. The collective originated in Nantes, Pays de la Loire, during 1993, initially consisting of P.J. Chabot (born Pierre-Jean Chabot; violin) and Jay C (born Jean-Christophe Waechter; vocals). Carlos Robles Arenas (drums, percussion, sampler) entered the lineup in 1995 amid subsequent personnel shifts. Their self-titled debut full-length appeared that same year on the independent imprint Prikosnovénie, after which the group embarked on international tours to promote the recording. Jay C departed in 2000 to establish the ensemble Prajna, leaving Orange Blossom without a singer and prompting a temporary suspension of activities that lasted several years. Leïla Bounous (vocals) and Mathias Vaguenez (percussion) were brought into the fold during 2002, at which point preparations for a follow-up album commenced. The resulting sophomore effort, Everything Must Change, emerged on the Bonsaï Music label in 2005 and achieved greater commercial traction than its predecessor by climbing to number 141 on the French albums chart. Following this success, Wrasse licensed the album for release outside France in 2006, while the original self-titled debut received a simultaneous reissue.