CINQ

Rejoice, mes amis, CHROMB! is back with a new album - and this is their best one yet!

When it comes to the contemporary prog stable (pun intended) of Dur et Doux, CHROMB! is one of my personal favorites. Thier previous 2020 LP "Le livre des merveilles" left me a bit disappointed, as it saw the band going more into melancholic and slow territory - which is fine, don't get me wrong; it's just that when I go to a CHROMB! record, it means I'm in the mood for some quirkiness, some weirdness, some lightning-speed fun.

And boy oh boy, does "Cinq" deliver exactly that!

At "Cinq", the band gather their strengths to deliver short, but very dense, dancey, peculiar cuts, and I'm all for it. It seems this time around there is a stronger emphasis on electronic elements, as heard with retro-style keyboards and electronic drums bits. The rhythm section is super tight here, providing some odd, yet so very dancey grooves, while quirky keboards and saxophone just blast away into weirdness galore. As expected, half of the record is drenched with tasteful short-time delay, which is a well-established characteristic of CHROMB!'s sound at this point. Not to many vocals this time around, but when they show up, they are as strange as ever. The more melodic parts (like on the last track, for example) do occur as well, and are a much appreciated moments of French sweetness. Every track on the album has a slightly different taste to offer, and it all comes together just sooo nicely!

In my eyes, "Cinq" is definitely the best CHROMB! album so far, and how could it not be? It's FUN, FUN, FUN, 100% FUN, 200% FUN, 300% FUN. Did I mention this album is FUN? Because it is!

I will dance to this one until I'm dead.

Who said RIO could not be fun? Here we have the fifth album from the wonderful Chromb!, again featuring Antoine Mermet (saxophone, synthesizer, delay, vocals), Camille Durieux (synthesizers, vocals), Léo Dumont (drums, vocals) and Lucas Hercberg (bass, vocal), and the major synth sound being used throughout sounds as if it has been lifted straight from Pacman! It is not a style of synth one often comes across, and to hear it being provided in a complex manner against a complex and uncompromising rhythm section is quite special. If a different tone had been used then it would not have had nearly the same impact as it is not just the notes but how they are coming across which makes it what it is. When that is combined with twee vocals as on "Roupoutoum contre Routoupoum " one really starts to wonder what is going on.

Dur et Doux are one of the most interesting and consistent labels around, releasing complex music which always needs to be listened to and can never be discarded into the background and Chromb! are one of the many highlights which can be found in their catalogue. This is their fourth album for the label and it is obvious this is where they belong as they have the freedom to do whatever they want, and even though it is the same line-up this is in many ways quite removed from their last release, 2020's 'Le Livre Des Merveilles'. Just when one thinks there is a path through the thorns everything closes in and we are forced into a very different direction with "Pauvre Brobre" being quite menacing with screams and strained vocals being brought together with horror and crashing cymbals and a repeated melody on a stylophone? It should never work but it does, as it is enthralling and like a car crash one cannot look away but stay engrossed until the very end. This is uncompromising stuff which has incredible depth and is truly progressive with huge elements of free jazz as they continue to go where they will, no matter what else is happening.