UN PEU DE L'ÂME DES BANDITS

At least the Prog Archives show the censored cover. Look at 'Rate Your Music' - they trembled in fear of opprobrium and instead show a big 'X' instead! It's political correctness gone mad I tell ya.

If ever the term 'Avant Prog' was suited to a band 'Aksak Maboul' are the culprits. "Un Peu De L'Âme Des Bandits" is a twisted concoction of Jazz Rock. A hugely overblown wacky chamber prog album that is superior in many ways to 'Univers Zero' and 'Art Zoyd', with their unpredictability and wide variety of instruments.

'Maboul' is very fitting as it means 'mental' in French and you won't hear a much more mental 'RIO' recording this side of Uzbekistan. Chaos reigns supreme with a whacked out Fred Frith and Chris Cutler pulling the strings along with ex "Cos" keyboardist Marc Hollander doing what he does best.

Many genres are pounced upon, ravished then left for dead as they work their way through the fields like a 12 man slaughterhouse team: Middle East, Chamber and Punk are all decimated as the 'Maboul' tank rolls on.

'Cinema' is a monster 23 minute track heavy with woodwind instruments. Despite the rather cacophonous opening it definitely gains shape and form the longer it progresses and at points almost gains some semblance of a tune.

'"Un Peu De L'Âme Des Bandits" is one of those annoying albums that sounds great when you're listening to it but where you find yourself unable to remember much about it afterwards. There's nothing 'hummable' which would want to make you go back and listen to it again.

Too erratic and random for five stars, too tuneless for four, An album that has very little wrong with it and probably deserves more than the measly three I've given. It's for a certain time and place - a time and place I don't have much time for...