CONTRE-COURANT

This record is really among the excellent prog albums of the Quebec prog scene, almost at the same level as Harmonium's Si On Avait Besoin D'une 5ième Saison. Musically speaking, this record is REALLY complex and elaborated, presenting compositions suited for the most difficult prog fans. An overall mix of Baroque & fusion tendency allows the music to often fall into fast, dense & intricate patterns. The omnipresent piano and flute remind a bit a lighter version of the famous Baroque record featuring Jean-Pierre Rampal & Claude Bolling. ELP is another slight similarity too, because of the way the piano is played. The best parts are the fast, loaded & synchronized ones. There are many very good mellow bits that maybe could be a bit more catchy. The record is not really emotional, but the technical performance and the quality of the compositions are outstanding. Another important characteristic to mention is that the music is mostly very disciplined: there are very few obscure things, no experimentation, no improvisation and no jam sessions: mostly everything is mathematically calculated & dosed. The keyboards are surprisingly discreet, but the other instruments compensate very much: the piano is the most preponderant one. It is sad that their discography is only made of 2 albums. The last lyrics parts of "Les Saigneurs" sum it all up: "Es-tu fier de toi? Dans un PAYS que l'on nomme le QUÉBEC, est-ce normal que de parler l'anglais? Is it abnormal to speak FRENCH?" WOW: Speechless!

Rating: 4.5 stars