THE HARD QUEST

After a 13 year rest Univers Zero rises again from its ashes. Daniel Denis had put the band to rest in 86 and went off to a solo career (two albums much diserving inclusion on this site) and a collaboration with their friends/mates Art Zoyd (coming from the small industrial city of Maubeuge just across the Belgo-French border) that will last ten years. Actually, Art Zoyd was instrumental to the rebirth of U Z and this album was recorded and produced in Art Zoyd's studios. For the reunion , Michel Berckmans (an original member) came back and the son of another original player Roger Trigaux, Reginald (both father and son are in Present, another seminal and influential Belgian band that had made its triumphant return a few years before) joined on guitars.

The music on this album pretty much picks up where the group had stopped some thirteen years back adding up some ever somber drama to a very descriptive chamber rock . Again Bartok and Ives are the most audible influences here . However this album and its follow- up will remain unplayed on stage for a while since U Z will remain a studio band until start of 2004. The violin does not make a great impact on the music and the 10 min+ Xenantaya is the highlight . Whatever vocals are on this album are strictly voices and recitations - no actual singing - in case you were wondering.

For the people unfamiliar with U Z 's works , I suggest their third album (Ceux du Dehors) for their embryonic stage , UZed for the second and different chrysalidic stage and Implosion for the reformation stage.