70's French

pantacruelgruel wrote: eugene wrote: I am not sure if I understand exactly what you mean, but why wouldn't you yourself serve it a bit better?   If you don't mind me asking - what is "communally agreed "pantheon" ??? and why it should be better as a starting point ???   I personally like what I know from 70's French scene, and keep exploring it and finding hidden treasures all the time with the help of this particular site.   Do you have any suggestion/recommendations apart from Ange, which I know and love already, or what is the purpose of your post?. I think what I mean to say is that for a neophyte, the proverbial beginner looking to get his/her feet wet, that it is easier to start with more commonly accepted "leaders" or "stars" (I don't mean celebrities, just generally better known acts) in a scene. Most reviews, if they make comparisons, don't tend to compare one group to a more obscure band. For example in the RPI ( which I think means Rock Progressivo Italiano), you may see names like PFM, Le Orme, Banco often along with ELP as reference points. So from there, you may get into Loccando, Maxophone or Alphataurus. These may not be slavish imitators, heck ,they may be way off base comparison wise, but once you have some knowledge of some groups, you can start to explore lesser known groups who may share similarities with those you have started out with. & as you go along, you may stray into more eclectic or experimental genres, as your "connaissance" of comparisons increases. So if you come upon Area, & you see their name mentioned in other reviews, you likely stand a better chance of enjoying the new discovery, if you progress with a certain knowledge of musical kinship among the two artists (if you will). My point is not to say that we slavishly adore or stick to the "big" names, but a "newbie" may find it easier to understand a reference to, say Pink Floyd or King Crimson, than to Farthog Smellingsby (not an actual group), if only for the fact that they are more likely to have heard these groups before.  And so, odds are better that they will "get" into that new group than if they simply go by reviews that fawn over the critic's favourite group, without being able to describe the music. WHich you can't do. An MP3 sample will give that info. Words are relatively ineffective. Comparisons, while limited, at least give you a hint, again starting point in helping determine what new treasure you want to explore.

a chance for someone to show off their knowledge... what can anyone tell me about the group Alice... I guess I can look it up. I'd rather see who knows what, if you know what I mean.

I am not sure if I understand exactly what you mean, but why wouldn't you yourself serve it a bit better?

70s france is poo...

































































































































Compared to 1981 france (Dun - Eros).






EDIT: Oh, wait, forgot about Magma...   


I'm actually well behind where I wish I was in the French prog scene of the 1970s...

Edited by inpraiseoffolly - March 23 2007 at 11:29

oliverstoned wrote:  (1974)

Wonderful band. Wapassou's most beautiful masterpiece is their second: Messe en re Mineur imo:



And this one by Dashiell Hedayat:





Edited by Rocktopus - March 23 2007 at 10:26

oliverstoned wrote:        Le château d'Hérouville : a mythical place

Being from Canada, I did a double take when I saw Herouville. For a moment I thought you had missed the X at the end of Herou. As if that Quebec village wasn't already in the news enough lately

intreresting write up oliver....  not sure if I can find here in Italy as I'm hitting every album shop I can find hahhaha.. but keeping my eyes open for it.  Going to Milan next week where I here they have some great prog album shops.

That's a pleasure dear Bryan to share with you.

The "Eden rose" album is a big classic and is sold
at very high price in vinyl conventions.

More obscure bands...

LE SYSTEME CRAPOUTCHIK

EPTA

EGREGIE

ALEPH

EDEN ROSE

MAYA

NATO

TRIPTYQUE

VOYAGE

BERENICE

CHECKERS

JEAN COHEN-SOLAL

CRISTAL

KISS

FRANCOIS WERTHEIMER

IRIS

MELODY MAKERS

OPHIUCUS

SUBSTANCE

GROUPEMENT CULTUREL RENAULT

SOLUTION

ATHENA

ORION

CRYSTAL EYES

ZEUGMA

METABOLISME



Eden rose (1970), featuring JP Alarcen



"Tracklist: On The Way To Eden (5:09), Faster And Faster (3:05), Sad Dream (4:09), Obsession (4:24), Feeling In The Living (4:19), Travelling (3:26), Walking In The Sea (5:29), Reinyet Number (4:34), Under The Sun (2:30) (Bonus Track)
Under The Sun was not featured on the original album but was the B-side to the single Travelling

Musicians: Jean-Pierre Alarcen (guitar), Henri Garella (keyboards), Michel Jullien (drums), Christian Clairefond (bass))

All tracks were composed by Henri Garella. The album was recorded in Paris (Seine, France) at the studio located at 10 Washington Street in March 1970.
Produced by Katema
Artistic direction by Richard Gachner

For starters one should stress the fact that On the Way To Eden is an instrumental album which has its main focal point the Hammond organ which immediately gives away the period when this album was recorded. Bands termed as proto-progressive such as Procol Harum had pushed this unmistakeable sound forward and Eden Rose, though not very similar to Procol Harum could be coined as such a band. However, they seem to do away with complexities and go straight for the jugular delivering their various tunes in short sharp pieces. At times the music sounds too cliche and almost kitsch-like in nature - yet most of the times it works.

The pieces are well executed, so much so that at times one tends to feel that he has heard some of the tunes beforehand. However, one could split the tracks into two distinctive sections. There are those pieces that have a languid feel with the key tune being played out over and over again - literally ramming it down your throat. These are the pieces, such as the opener On the Way To Eden and Walking In The Sea, that somehow do not do it for me. However there are some cleverly crafted works on this album that definitely deserve a mention.

Faster And Faster, as its name implies is a well paced piece that has the Hammond and guitar really jostling for the frontline, exchanging licks in between the occasional bass run. Sad Dream is the complete opposite of Faster And Faster. Opening with the theme to children's tune Frere Jacques, this piece is possibly the closest the band get to Procol Harum with the Hammond set to the background as the piano and guitar come forward with plaintive solos, giving the album one of the more dramatic pieces. You could see this piece placed in the soundtrack of one of those tear-jerker films!

Pieces like Obsession, Feeling In the Living and the album single Travelling are the reasons why this album is indeed a gem of a release. Here the band seem to let loose playing in a controlled frenzy allowing the various members to express themselves within a concise time frame revolving round a clear melody line. The more I hear these pieces, the more I feel that should this band have had a quality vocalists, they could have gone places. Also featured on On The Way To Eden is the B-side of the only single released by Eden Rose, Under The Sun, which is one of the more psychedelic pieces on the album.

Musea have managed (once again!) to unearth a true Forgotten Son. "On The Way To Eden" is not one of those masterpieces that is a must have for progressive rock fans and one has to admit that the music sounds very dated. On the other hand it is an interesting look into the way progressive rock evolved, and indeed how Sandrose came to be.

Nigel Camilleri "

...especially the long piece "Underground session chorea...", the most progressive.