11

LAZULI French group, one of the most recognized? abroad; stallion group with the particularity of Claude's Léode. Formed in 1998, they explode on stage with a new, fresh sound, on world music and captivating crescendic titles. Followed since 2007, adoring their lyrics and this half-guitar, half-synth, half-demon electric Léode. Rock, folk; pop, on ANGE, on Peter GABRIEL for deep, moving and vibrant sounds; on SIMPLE MINDS (be careful, I'm not saying it's new wave either) for the symphonic flights; world music where the instrumental parts tirelessly lead back to prog. A 10th album, 11th in all including their 'Denuded' made of unplugged covers. Few chronicles I feel the trap.

"Cross oceans of vinyl" with a warm text on listening to 33 rpm, you know the record that cracked, listen to you will have the cracks. Intoxicating sweet melody where Dominique abuses her bewitching voice; the solo amplifies this moment, good as a start, end too soft. "Sad carnival" Dominique at the helm who recites his text, which is likely to stay in your head quickly; a nursery rhyme stirring memories where the orchestration is set back, too bad; ridiculous when you realize that the Léode moment is more hovering than in the other albums and brings an enjoyable ephemeral singularity. "Who else but the other" vibrating keyboard, slide guitar and I find the sound of LAZULI, the one that melts; a latent rise, a screaming guitar cry, Arnaud transcends this title, and the warm, fat, subtle solo makes me stop thinking, it's beautiful, we don't know if it's a 4 or 8 minute title , time fades away. Awesome. Acoustic guitar "handsaw" à la SUPERTRAMP, no à la BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST, yes I can't help giving hints; hymn title with an air à la SIMPLE MINDS for the plaintive notes as on 'Mandela Day'; in short, nothing new here but a title that must explode, bluff more than one on stage, to be continued. "Grey Lagoon" same departure, acoustics and voice; redundancy yes, ballad-rhyme to listen to in a pub, a mug of beer in hand, humming the 'ah-ah-ah'; it's the slide-country-greasy guitar solo that gets you going.

"Let's talk about time" with a very beautiful text, yes you have to take a moment and say it, the texts are bewitching, put forward and the orchestration is in fact set back, a certain fact on this nostalgic ballad, instruments which miss me. "The mourner in the rain" with a tune where the keyboard can still make you think of SUPERTRAMP; title-climb in two stages with another carabine solo from Arnaud to fly away until the end, that he is gifted this Arnaud. "The old-fashioned words" which send me back to these little Genesis laments between two large titles, as an interlude; a guitar arpeggio to guide Dominique's words, text still forward. "The cattle truck" ah finally a prog intro, I'm hard but I chronicle; the horn on a tune à la James BOND and the voice which wants to be more sustained, less nursery rhyme; the digression is nervous, the Léode returns to LAZULI with a twirling sound, superb 2nd title I am reborn. "A thousand dreams out of their cage" piano-rhyme with Dominique in front; the orchestral moment is more in continuity than as a frank space with a soft ending. "Le grand emptiness" I thought that it must be hard to compose, to find words to captivate.

LAZULI with Arnaud as a real '' frontman guitar '' gives a sequel to the magnificent concept album on Dieter; a modern music where the text is king, fortunately 'saved' by the instrumental flights. Simpler music, less complicated, it is launched; the pandemic is of course orienting them towards world-poetic-melodic sound, modern music that could be played on the radio, which risks posing a problem for many progues who plunged into dreamlike musical delusions. This is the downside without a doubt on their latest opus, a bet to dust off this dying prog? To get out of this spiral? You will have the choice to listen to the words, beautiful, very beautiful, but with this overrated society will they hit the mark... at the risk of having the evils of the lack of orchestral parts; the digibook is very beautiful for your information.