PARDON OUR FRENCH

Pardon Our French is the title of French TV's eight album. After a long time, they decided to do covers again (they already had a cover of a Van Der Graaf Generator song before) and show that the name French TV is well deserved. Namely, they chose to do covers of only French artists - Ange, Pulsar, Shylock, Carpe Diem, Atoll and Etron Fou Lelouban. So, basically a wet dream for any fan of French progressive rock and a nightmare for normal people.

The line-up is again based around the bass player, Mike Sary, who is again surrounded by the right people to share his extraordinary vision. Again, they managed to create that perfect French TV organised confusion, chaos that makes sense. They must have made their fans and female fan very happy.

The first two pieces are typical of French TV. It's a typical mixture of avant-garde and the occasional symphonic rock. Once more, we see some "unusual" influence, like Mexican and oriental music. They manage to create pieces that are fluid and unforced. They decided to cover their favourite French artists on the third piece (they are French TV after all). We can hear artists like Ange, Pulsar and Rock in Opposition legends Etron Fou Lelouban. The covers are great, the female vocal replaces the male excellently, only the French accent perhaps isn't the most convincing (but it adds a certain charm, a certain je ne sais quoi) - the lack of nasals is especially noticeable. For the end, we have two more French TV classics, which again show how unpredictable the men can be with their mixture of tragic and comic, dark and humorous.

French TV are exceptional musicians with a very specific style, but they still manage to surprise with an unexpected ingredient on every album. Pardon Our French is also full of such elements. Besides that, the album is also masterfully played and produced. This effort might suit people who are more into classic prog (if for nothing else than the covers) and can serve as a good introduction for all people who aren't that into the more experimental styles. Anyway, French TV cook up a feast again and you don't feel deprived of anything at any moment.