charlton IV is a one man project. Songwriting pop and folk in English and French. 5 collections of songs recorded independently since 2002, mostly until in 2013, then a hiatus and a return to form in 2025. Always happy to be contacted for collaborations!
All the tracks present on this website are available for download, and the complete collection of my songs is on streaming platforms spotify, etc... (look for "charlton IV").
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charlton IV is my solo project after some experience playing with local bands as a guitarist/singer.
After a long hiatus during which I focused on career and family, I resumed publishing music in 2025, with 9 new songs that are as eclectic as the music I listen to. Still pop as a fundemental, yet influenced by powerful electronic blips and beats and jazzy chords.
In 2013, I completed a series of 12 songs that belong to the chartlon IV collection. This time, I went for shorter songs with immediate melodies that all use an acoustic guitar background; I had a go at a variety of rhythms and feels: mostly straight rock but also sometimes groovy, or even latin and brazilian. My main inspirations for lyrics, exclusively in English this time, remained experiences from my daily life, travels and stories inspired by the books and movies I read and see.
Before 2013, it went like this:
In 2005, I completed a first series of 10 songs in English (charlton I), all recorded with very limited means. The mood of these songs is intimate and is built around the classic acoustic guitar/vocal combination, with a bit of electric guitar and Wurlitzer piano to make the arrangements richer.
During the 3 following years, I wrote French texts that were representative of whom I was at the time. The result is a collection of 15 personal songs completed in 2008 (charlton II) with a rounder sound including many keyboard parts, and with a greater variety of rhythms and worked-out arrangements; I also invited some friends to contribute on certain songs to add colours (violin, trumpet, flute, drums and keyboards).
Between 2008 and 2010, I worked again mostly on English texts and used computers to create rhythms and keyboard parts. I completed a series of 7 songs published in 2010 and 2011 for which recording techniques remain elementary, but with a much fuller sound (charlton III). I finally got to reach what I feel is the right balance between lo-fi sound and rich arrangements, between immediate pop and crooner/songwriter sensitivity; that is the balance that I’ve been looking for ever since I started and keep aiming for in my most recent work.
I am of course interested in getting my music as known as possible, but I am also eager to meet artists and musicians to discuss collaborations.
Thanks for stopping by, Loïc
PS: art cover accompanying the songs are by Anna Halm-Schudel www.fotoschudelhalm.com/ for I-III or Jon for IV, thereafter my own.
