DIEU EST FOU

Pascal Duffard started releasing Eps and singles during the second half of the sixties and into the seventies. He was a singer/ song writer playing keyboards. Playing that Chanson style which I suppose is like adult contemporary. Something changed when he collaborated with pop singer Pascal Lami and met Mauricia Platon(ZAO) and Francis Moze(MAGMA) who were playing on that song. Two years later in 1976 Pascal releases "Dieu Est Fou"(God Is Insane) and those who knew his music prior to this, must have thought Pascal himself had gone insane.

He has a dozen musicians helping him here and five vocalists. Yes Mauricia is one of the singers and Francis Moze is here, plus his MAGMA buddy Claude Engel on guitar. Both played on MAGMA's debut. Oh and how about Yochk'o Seffer from ZAO on sax. And finally Tim Blake on synths from GONG gets in on the action. I personally don't think this is as Zeuhl sounding as many relate, this is more avant music, and I would include the vocals in that. And really the vocals maybe more than anything give us that Zeuhl vibe at times. There's no Zeuhl rhythm per se, in fact I wish Moze was more upfront with his bass.

I do not know French but this feels like a recording that tries to prove stuff. Two of the songs are broken down into that "exposition/argument/conversation" style, while two more are broken down into "exposition/argument", then it ends with the "Action-Reaction" and the final conclusion that "Dieu Est Fou". There really is a nice balance here between the insanity and the normal, and that's both vocally and instrumentally. A tough listen no doubt. A four star album but too annoying at times to go higher. I discovered this one and fellow Frenchman Gerard Manset's "La Mort D'orion" album around the same time, and while the music is different, both are such special albums. In fact with both of these albums you really do need to hear them. Describing the music does not do them justice. This is an absolute gem from 1976, but not for the faint of heart by any means.