LITURGIES CONTEMPORAINES

A new prog project by Eric Bouillette and Anne-Claire Rallo of the French band Nine Skies, SOLACE SUPPLICE is going the route of many non-English speaking bands and that is adopting their native tongue for their lyrical delivery. English has for better or for worse become the common tongue for virtually everyone on planet Earth in the 21st century and while it's actually quite beneficial to have one language that bridges the gap between all, let's face it. Any language lacks certain characteristics that any other possesses. This is particularly true in the rhythmic delivery department of the musical world. Not that the French language has been ignored in prog circles but when considering the French world's most successful band Magma ignored Earth languages and invented a new one, it's always refreshing to hear a new band stand its ground in the linguistic department!

This band features four members: Eric Bouillette (vocals, backing vocals, guitar, keyboards, violin), Anne-Claire Rallo (keyboards, bass), Jimmy Pallagrosi (drums) and Willow Beggs (bass) with guest saxophonist Laurent Benhaumou on "En Guidant Les Hussards." This is an interesting mix of classic symphonic prog French bands such as Ange along with a modern take on darker, heavier music that amplifies the guitar, bass and drum rolls without sacrificing the ethereal symphonic qualities of the keyboards, vocals and overall atmospheres. What's also cool is that every song is sung in the band's native French which in the prog world has played a back seat to the English language for prog's entire history.

LITURGIES CONTEMPORAINS (Contemporary Liturgies) is this band's debut album and features 11 tracks just missing the 49-minute mark. Exclusively en français, the lyrics will escape all but native French speakers however many of us don't give a rat's ass what the hell lyrics are conveying. We love music first and all that other mumbo jumbo is secondary. At least i speak for myself! This album is a strange mix of upbeat symphonic prog sensibilities and darker cloud covered lugubrious prog rock in the vein of gothic rock. The music is very accessible and also features a sort of 80s new wave easy on the ears quality. Power chords and snappy key runs add some addictive ear worms as well as some folky musical scales and stellar production. There are also some circus music moments that add a bit of funhouse moments but rare. There's also a tinge of Middle Eastern folk music lurking beneath the surface.

Well?.. i have mixed reactions to this album actually. Musicianship great, as well as gloomy execution in the production department. I guess what really keeps me from hella-luvin' this album is the fact that lead singer Eric Bouillette is on the lower register and pretty much delivers a monotonic vocal performance for the entirety of the album which unfortunately means the entirety of the album stagnates in a single mood despite the instrumental diversity. It seems the project wants to present itself as a dark deep dive into the world of depressive prog rock but doesn't quite do it in a way that is convincing. The upbeat nature of the Depeche Mode like electronica with the various elements of Pink Floydian space rock and Ange like symphonic prog doesn't quite gel over the long haul.

Musically great album but if you want more variety in the vocal department (no matter which language) then this album will disappoint a bit as it did for me. I mean vocals are supposed to be an instrument (albeit with linguistic meaning for the most part) and when the lead singer is basically half-singing and half-narrating for the entirety of an album's experience then i just can't jive as much as i would if the singer performed exquisite vocal acrobatics. Even depressing singers can deliver outstanding performances. Perhaps i just don't like the tone of this album as much as others. When i think about other monotonic singers i can fall in line but this one doesn't quite do it for me. Oh well!

3.5 rounded down