Eccentric, offbeat, surprising: there is no shortage of adjectives to describe the Biel-based artist Cee-Roo, who has just turned 30. Showing in several Swiss cinemas, his show, halfway between a film concert and a play, transforms everyday sounds into melody.

In the depths of the oceans, silence reigns. Plunged into darkness, the viewer slowly rises to the surface, lulled by the distant cries of whales and the lapping of waves. Once on dry land, the sounds of nature are gradually drowned out by the cacophony of human voices. Organic sounds become mechanical. Cee-Roo, seated in a corner with his back to the screen, carefully crafts his staging. For 75 minutes, he delivers his score, stringing together sequences with editing that gives pride of place to sound and visual compositions.

Cee-Roo, whose real name is Cyril Käppeli, began his artistic career at the age of 18 while studying at EIKON, the professional school of applied arts in Fribourg. For his first music video, he decided to dress up in case the video was a flop. Unfortunately for him, it was a hit. An old sweater and hat with random patterns, sunglasses, and a pipe in his mouth became his trademark.

A strong dose of self-deprecation and absurdity completes the character throughout the videos. In 2012, he began to make a name for himself with Memories, an album featuring 12 classics from the 20th century: Frank Sinatra, Nina Simone, and John Lennon are revisited with Cee-Roo's signature blend of groove, funk, and electro. This admiration is evident in his new show, with a vibrant tribute in the middle of the performance. An interlude before returning to his main mission: exploring the world with his eyes as much as his ears.

Striking images

"This idea for a show emerged several years ago and grew stronger after trips to Sri Lanka, Kenya, and Senegal. Three years ago, I joined the team at 26 Minutes and then 120 Minutes on RTS with the concept of World Music. I select striking news images from the month to create rhythmic and dynamic two-minute compilations," explains Cee-Roo at the end of a dress rehearsal in early March at the Rex cinema in his hometown of Biel. But between making a short video and designing a show for an audience, there is a lot of anticipation. So is the pressure. The artist takes off and spends six months refining his project during a residency in Brussels. As the recipient of a residency grant from the canton of Bern, he takes advantage of the creativity of Brussels' vibrant scene.

"I was able to count on the help of amateur and professional filmmakers who provided me with footage from around the globe. From the outset, my ambition was to present our planet and the beings that inhabit it in all its forms. In addition to my database, I did a lot of work selecting striking excerpts. Then I had to find sound sequences and edit them in a meaningful way," explained the Biel-based artist during a Q&A session with his audience.

Corporate turmoil

While the opening scene may resemble Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey, viewers quickly realize that this is not a film, but rather an artistic performance. Faced with the immensity, complexity, and fragility of this completely untouched world, the pace quickens when the artist appears before the audience. Equipped with electronic devices, he introduces the triggering and decisive element of his narrative: the dramatic arrival of human beings. He draws on the turmoil of modern societies. The screen is divided into ten boxes offering ten representations of the world. By pressing the keys on a keyboard, he activates excerpts from television news programs, speeches by political leaders, and everyday noises. It is up to him to find the right combination to create the appropriate sequence.

Although he insists that he did not want to “take sides and leave it up to the viewer to form their own impression,” the criticism of these political figures perched on their podiums is clear. In the sequence dedicated to them, their favorite sound bites clash, creating increasingly strident sounds. Politics collides, voices rise, chaos looms over citizens. Stunned, Cee-Roo flails about like a theater actor to stop the din. There is only one solution: to disconnect from the incessant flow of news and return to what is essential, the human.

After the absurdity of this world gone off the rails, the screen fills with smiles and kind looks. We leave the show with a mixture of conflicting emotions: from anger to hope, from resignation to the desire to do better. On the way home, we pay more attention to the sounds of everyday life, to those little details that seem insignificant. If poetry can be found anywhere, Cee-Roo has the merit of bringing it out all over the planet.

Sébastien Roux