TOME 87

I'm surprised that this is the first review from "Tome 87", the seminal French progrock band Ange has delivered so many pleasant and exciting prog. But in my opinion the last months the Prog Archives site is a bit too dominated by fans from Dream Theater, Mars Volta, Radiohead and people who are begging for attention (and awarded!) by offending the progheads with ridiculous negative reviews about progrock masterpieces from bands like Yes, Rush, Genesis and Yes. So please Prog Archives, be careful with your permanent links and keep in mind that this site should be more than a flood of reviews from a aforementioned bands, the charm from Prog Archives should to be that the visitors from this site got the possibility to discover more unknown and interesting prog! This review is about this live-CD from Ange who could only rehearse one week in their 'Tome VI line-up' to make 'Tome 87'. If you're up to the typical Ange sound (a bit theatrical French vocals and very alternating climates) this CD is a must, what a captivating and compelling music! This CD contains 11 tracks including many 'classic' songs like "Les longues nuits d'Isaac" (excellent singer Christian Decamps and a great interlude with melancholic vocals and soaring keyboards), "Sur les traces des fees" (emotional vocals), "Le nain des Stanislas" (catchy rhytm with powerful guitar/organ and a bombastic finale with a great synthesizer solo), "Fils de la lumiere" (beautiful interplay between swelling keyboard and fiery electric guitar) and a warm version of "Hymn a la vie". This CD also includes a bonus: an unreleased interview with Christian Decamps by Bruno Versmisse from French progrock magazine Harmonie. If you compare this CD to "Tome VI" you will miss the typical vintage keyboards like the Mellotron and string-ensemble but the music is so moving and powerful that I'm sure it will please many progheads! SUPERBE!!