CONTRACTION

4.5 stars. This was love at first listen. Jacques Blais is such an interesting story. He's a self taught guitarist from Quebec with his own unique style. He fascinated audiences, and soon fellow musicians and those in the recording business were coming out to see him play and sing. It wasn't until 1974 though that he got down to business and recorded his songs. He was so impressed with CONTRACTION's debut that he asked their bass player Yves Laferriere to produce his first record. It wasn't long before the CONTRACTION band were part of the recording process, backing him up. This is a Jacques Blais solo album called "Themes" to be clear.

"Le Theme" opens with Jacques' wordless vocals and acoustic guitar and soon Christiane is adding her wordless vocals as Jacques starts to sing. Beautiful is the word and I'm reminded of HARMONIUM. Such a good contrast when the drums, bass and electric guitar kick in at 1 1/2 minutes. No vocals here. A calm with piano before 4 minutes as Christiane returns vocally and it's so moving before 5 1/2 minutes. I didn't mention that two of the musicians play solina on this record which adds atmosphere and more.

"Sept Quatre" explodes out of the gate with wordless male vocals, nervous guitar expressions, along with bass and drums. Lots of energy here. Some ripping guitar on this one. "Les Matin" features Christiane's brother on flute. Tender vocals and a folky vibe for around 2 1/2 minutes, then electric guitar, drums and more arrive, again providing a great contrast of sounds. "Ascencoeur" opens with solina floating along before the guitars take over. Yes we get acoustic and electric together and man this is impressive.

"Vrai Ou Fou" opens with guitar that can only be described as avant sounding before it turns melodic and fluid with vocal expressions in tow. Back to the experimental guitar as drums kick in this time. So good as they are on fire here after 3 minutes. "Ta's Des Nuages" is good with the vocals and strummed guitar to start, along with bass and drums. Mid-paced with some piano and vocal melodies. "Bord En Bar" has these vocal expressions from Christiane as well as active drumming with guitar and bass. The closer has wordless vocals from Jacques crying out. Earlier the guitar and piano solo over that rhythm section.

I'm not sure exactly why I'm so into this album, but the guitar is different and I like wordless vocals. Having the CONTRACTION band here is huge as well. This is my favourite of the CONTRACTION and related albums.

"Dimension M" was Franck Dervieux's only solo album, released in 1971. Franck was a keyboardist from Quebec playing in Jean-Pierre Ferland's band, playing a sort of pop/chanson style of music. You see pictures of Jean-Pierre usually holding his acoustic guitar, and this guy released his first album in 1959. A lot of ballads apparently. Sadly Franck came down with cancer during his stint with Jean-Pierre but got better, so he made this solo album with the help of six other musicians. These musicians decided to continue as a band calling themselves CONTRACTION after Franck got sick again, with the cancer eventually taking his life in 1975. He was in his early forties. So yes this record has connections to CONTRACTION but this is not a CONTRACTION record.

So yes a seven piece band with female vocalist Christiane Robichaud playing an important part with her wordless vocals and causing some reviewers to associate this with Canterbury. Not me. The violin is a really nice flavour on here, and it's electric. Franck on keyboards is the focus though, mostly piano and organ. He also produced and arranged all the music while composing most of this, he also got some help composing the final two tracks. We get a drummer who is very good plus a percussionist. The bass player is upfront and quite prominent throughout, often with the piano. Guitar is almost an after thought, it's just not standing out very often.

This is a very proggy album with lots of twists and turns, tempo changes and more. My top three include the opener, closer and the longest piece called "Concerto Pour Les Mondes Perdus" at almost 9 minutes. But I want to mention "Hyperboree Civilization" for that urgent rhythm section, I mean they are getting down to business here. Again this is all over the place, really enjoyable. The opener and title track eventually gets into an uptempo groove with those wordless vocals over top. I like that piano/percussion dual sometime after 2 minutes. It builds then kicks in around 5 minutes.

"Concerto Pour Les Mondes Perdus" opens with organ, bass and piano as wordless vocals join in. This is good. It all picks up before 2 minutes and I'm really enjoying this. Violin arrives. We get a couple of quiet sections before it kicks in with some energy, excellent drumming here. The closer "Present Du Futur" is an impressive instrumental display, the drumming once again comes to mind but lots of organ, piano and bass with some vocal melodies as well.

Without question this was an influential album in early seventies Quebec, inspiring a lot of musicians and bands. I've got 4 stars.

Contraction is a new find for me, but one that I will be including in my regular rotation. This collective of Quebec musicians shines in their debut album. The musicianship is top notch and a diversity of instrumentation is candy to my ears. While the album is heavy on jazz/funk themes/grooves it is nonetheless easy to feel the band reaching beyond those genres to create something unique from the rest of progressive music emerging out of Quebec. Highly recommend it to any serious prog-lover, particularly those looking for fem-foward outfits - Christiane does not disappoint. This obscure and complex album deserves more reviews and notoriety in my opinion.

Contraction was a band that formed out of the ashes of a previous project spearheaded by Frank Dervieux. It is said that his album "Dimension M" is one of the most important in Québec prog history, and his back-up band were the folks that made up Contraction. When Dervieux became ill, Contraction released an album of their own in 1972, and when Dervieux finally succumbed to his illness, Contraction dedicated their second and final album to him, borrowing some of his original material which they had performed and reworking it.

Contraction are a difficult group to describe. Like many bands of the Rock Progressif Québécois scene, there's a strong jazz influence and some classical in the piano department. But Contraction also have a funky side that stands out in some of their more grooving moments, like "Sam m'madown". At times the music doesn't seem as technically complex as some bands, but there's a layering going on with each instrument working to create its own thread of sound or working in tandem with another instrument while leaving others to do their own thing. Though lyrics are reserved for a couple of tracks only, Christiane Robichaud provides vocals that sound either like a jazz singer going funk or a funk singer going jazz. She has a way of starting a word on a lower note, then launching that syllable high into a vibrato whisper that's almost nasal before swooping back down again. There is a definite 70's French quality to her voice that I have not heard elsewhere but somehow seems familiar enough to me having spent my childhood in Canada in the 70's. There are two drummers here and others doing extra percussion, so the possibilities for multiple percussionists working on a single track are exploited when it suits. Catch the Crimson- esque work in the closing track "L'ame a tout faire" both in guitar playing and double percussionists at work.

The album is divided into an overture and a "fermeture" (closure) with a couple of songs and an instrumental sandwiched in between. Then there's a barely-over-a-minute instrumental followed by the 18-minute title track and then another instrumental. What I find remarkable is how on some of the shorter pieces the band manage to fill them with a lot of action. "L'alarme à l'oiel" and "Jos Coeur (ouverture)" are excellent pieces of prog rock but quite short. "Claire Fontaine" is a slower and beautiful track with a pretty flute melody and Christiane's beautiful vocals.

The title track I had high hopes for. It comes in three parts basically with a first part that follows the mood of the album very closely. In the middle there's a classical piano solo part with Christiane joining and then the rest of the band. I find this part is where my mind starts wandering. The song returns to its groovier beginning for the finale. Overall a pretty good piece of work but less captivating than some of the other tracks.

At first I was thinking to award this only three stars but I have taken the time to re-evaluate the album and I feel four stars is a more suitable rating.

In Canadian progressive rock scenery from the 70's certainly, CONTRACTION are "framed" in the same style of another Canadian band OCTOBRE. However, this "La Bourse Or La Vie" ( that I consider their best work) isn't not in the same level from "Survivance" ( in my opinion the best album from OCTOBRE), neverthelessi is a good work, full of beautiful female vocals and some jazzy influences. The best tracks are: track 2 "L'Alarme À l'Oeil" ,track 5 "Joes Coeur (fermeture) and track 7 "La Bourse or La Vie!" the most really progressive tracks . My rate is 3 stars -Good but not essential- with the reservation that this album figures in my collection !!!

A cult figure of the Quebec Prog scene, Franck Dervieux was the keyboardist of well-known singer Jean-Pierre Ferland.He was unfortunately diagnosed with cancer and once he regained his strength he went on to record a solo album completely dedicated to his doctors.''Dimension M'' came out in 1972 on Columbia with the participation of Yves Laferrière on bass, Christiane Robichaud on vocals, Michel Robidoux on guitars, Christian St Roch on drums, Terry King on violin and Michel Seguin on percussion.

The album kicks off with the bizarre eponymous Avant/Psych/Prog instrumental, which has a nice abstract organic sound before turning into a Psychedelic Rock guitar instrumental.The following ''Atlantide'' is simply beautiful, based on Dervieux'es work on grand piano and offering a starting jazzy flavor, before turning into complex Symphonic Rock with organ on the forefront and a solid rhythm section and ending with Robichaud's Parisienne wordless singing, as the singer grew up in Paris.''Hyperborée Civilization'' is another fast pace piano-driven fiery instrumental with some wordless vocals, featuring the great violin soloing of Terry King and Dervieux'es excellent performance on piano.The long ''Concerto Pour Les Mondes Perdus'' starts with a very haunting groove characterized by deep bass lines, obscure vocals, pounding drums and even harpsichord before melting into a soft Classical-inspired piano performance by Dervieux and lifting again up with King's stormy violin work and Robidoux'es psychedelic guitars.''Orejona, Mater'' is a smooth piece of acoustic instrumentals,filled with mellow violins, piano and vocal lines to calm things down before the closing grandiose ''Present du futur'' and its powerful organ intro, followed by a piano/organ interplay, having a strong Classical inspiration, and Dervieux delivering also some great electric piano parts, a nice track of Proto-Fusion stylings with a very rich and dynamic sound.

Sadly Dervieux did not make it, as he died shortly after, while his back-up band went on to form the progressive group Contraction.Several of Contraction's members were also part of the legendary Ville Emard Blues Band.

A nice early entry of the Quebec scene into Progressive Rock with a dark, haunting atmosphere for most of its part.Recommended for fans of VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR or GNIDROLOG but also to all lovers of demanding music trips...3.5 stars.

"During the Winter of 1974, CKVL-FM presented a Progressive Rock concert series entitled "Performances", recorded live at Studio Tempo in Montreal.That night, we shared the bill with the British group GENTLE GIANT. It was a memorable evening. Due to technical problems having delayed the English group's concert,we only began to play at around 1:00 AM in the morning, in a state of advanced fatigue !" I really enjoyed their studio album called "La Bourse Ou La Vie" in fact I would rate it better than this live release and I noticed that Hugues has the same feelings. It's not that this live performance isn't a good one, but I do have issues with it especially early on. Christiane the singer reminds me a little of Joni Mitchell and she sings in French and English during this concert. My problems with the early part of this concert is that she seems to get show-cased. It's all about the vocals until the fifth track, and that's disappointing because I love the instrumental work of this band which seems to be more the focus on the studio album I own.

"We Made It" is one of those songs with the focus on the vocals but we do get some nice relaxed guitar led sections. "Chat Bruinne / Star-Child" is another mellow tune with Christiane taking the spotlight. "Solid Shine" is more of a pop song. "Le Temps Fuit Comme Une Ombre" is led by vocal melodies and guitar early before the drums and piano join in. It turns jazzier after 6 1/2 minutes.This is the first track that I really enjoy. "Trois Ou Quatre" is even better and a top three for me. It comes to life after a minute and we get a great sound 3 minutes in.This is more like it ! This continues right to the end. Nice. "42 Nord" is a short pastoral track with vocal melodies. "Pixieland" is a top three as well with the prominant bass to start as it builds quickly.Guitar and piano lead a minute in. Excellent sound here.

"Sagesse" is like the earlier tracks with the focus on the vocals. "La Bourse Ou La Vie" is the almost 18 minute closer and my favourite.Vocal melodies come to the fore 1 1/2 minutes in and the guitar follows leading the way with piano and drums.The guitar is lighting it up before 4 minutes. It then settles back 5 1/2 minutes in but then slowly builds. A calm before 8 minutes as a laid back sound with vocals comes in. Another calm 11 1/2 minutes in then solo piano takes over.Vocal melodies join in at 13 1/2 minutes. It starts to kick back in after 15 minutes. A nice ride.

I think fans of Folk would like this one a lot because there's so much laid back music with the focus on the vocals. Like Hughes I have to give 3.5 stars.

CONTRACTION are one of the many incredible bands to come out of Quebec in the seventies.The band was formed by singer Christiane Robichaud and bassist / composer Yves Laferriere, both of whom had been part of Frank Dervieux's band.The significance of this was that Frank's album "Dimension" was considered by many to be the first Progressive album to come out of Quebec as it was released in 1971. Franck had sadly been diagnosed with cancer hence these two going out and forming this band called CONTRACTION.This is their second album and by this time Frank had passed away so they dedicated this record to him. Lots of female vocal melodies in this melodic yet sophisticated and intricate release. This was a pleasure to listen to.

"Jos Coeur (Overture)" is a short intro track with vocal melodies. "L'alarme A L'oeil" is a mood altering track because it's so upbeat and has plenty of those vocal melodies too. A change after 1 1/2 minutes as piano joins in then it settles after 2 minutes with more vocal melodies.Themes are then repeated. Cool. "Claire Fontaine" is very laid back with sparse piano and faint vocal melodies. A light beat and intricate guitar joins in.Vocals 2 minutes in. Nice bass when she stops singing. "Sam m'Madown" puts more emphasis on the vocals and she puts on a show. "Jos Coeur (Fermeture)" opens with faint sounds then it starts to come to life before a minute.Vocal melodies follow then it picks up around 3 minutes with the guitar leading.Vocal melodies then return. "Vent Du Sud" is a short dreamy tune.

"La Bourse Ou Le Vie" is slow to get going then vocal melodies arrive 1 1/2 minutes in before it kicks into gear. Great sound here with drums, guitar, bass and keys standing out. It settles after 5 minutes but it's still powerful. It picks back up at 7 minutes. A calm before 8 minutes as reserved vocals, bass and piano take over. It picks up some 10 minutes in. A calm again 12 minutes in with piano only.Vocal melodies before 13 1/2 minutes then vocals before 15 minutes as the sound builds. Nice guitar before 17 minutes. "L'ame A Tout Faire" has a good heavy sound to it to start. It settles right down before 2 minutes with vocal melodies then she starts to sing words as it builds. It kicks in again after 3 minutes.

If your a fan of the Quebec Prog scene of the seventies (who isn't) you need to check this band out.

As previews reviews have stated , this is not the album that would have gotten Contraction into PA's database. Indeed, having bought the LP and listened to it a number of times before I wrote this review, I had to come back & read their bio page and the other reviews to see just what was so prog about the group.

It's not before the 4th song (if you start from side 1 to side two) , Trois ou Quatre, that you get to a somewhat prog track. And even at that, it seems like a pale, kind of jazzy soft rock version of Pink Floyd's Great Gig. Although a buddy of mine joked that it sounded like music that you found on a soundtrack for a 70s porn film .

Pixieland comes across as a Steely Dan throwaway without the hired hand guitar virtuosos that the Dan employed on their albums.

Most of the rest , well ... if I may ... the best that I can say is to imagine Karen Carpenter fronting a 70s soft rock outfit with that era's mediocre jazz rock noodlings.

Interesting only as a document of the emerging RPQ scene, and for its' membership. And worth all of the $3 that I paid for it, if you take into account the $1 I got back in cash when I sold it back to Spin-It.

As you know I am a huge fan of the 70's Prog Quebec scene and certainly one of the greats were Contraction. "La Bourse ou la vie" (money or life) was their second release and further expanded Contraction's sound into a more progressive camp. On this album is also wrote and recorded a superb 18 Mins epic title track which in itself is worth the admission ! Fans of Harmonium and Beau Dommage will love this album. Contraction blend ethernal flutes, with great guitar and great bass and drum interplay and mixed in is the lovely voice of Christiane Robichaud. Musically this band offer some great musicanship and creative song writing which will please all prog rock fans.