FICTION

Despite a rather turbulent beginning where it would take ESKATON (formed in 1970 at the same time Magma released its debut) eight years to record what was supposed to be its first album in 1978 and then another two to record a second which would be released as the debut, ESKATON kept the world of zeuhl alive in the early 1980s just when the progenitors of the genre, Magma had taken a leave of absence while Christian Vander and friends were engaging in side projects such as the short-lived Fusion. ESKATON was just one of the revivalists who took the post-Magma zeuhl into new unthinkable worlds that would keep the unique avant-garde musical form alive and well in the French underground during the prog starved 1980s.

After releasing its intended debut turned sophomore release "4 Visions," ESKATON was propelled to the top of the French underground and praised for its wild and unhinged take on Magma inspired zeuhl only with a fresh energetic infusion of crafty ingenuity. The band had gone through more than a few lineup changes but retained the same lineup from "Ardeur" for its third and final album FICTION which was released in 1983. A fourth album was recorded and intended to be released as "Icare" but never saw the light of day and after guitarist / keyboardist Giles Rozenberg left the band in 1984, the band would disintegrate and fall into obscurity until the Soleil Zeuhl reissued the band's cassette only canon into the proper vinyl and CD formats.

While both "Ardeur" and especially "4 Visions" showcased an ambitious zeuhl band that displayed a virtuosity and creative edge above and beyond much of the competition, those two albums were very much steeped in Magma worship unfortunately often sounding like a Magma clone to my ears. The third album FICTION on the other hand showcased a creative new beginning (or ending as destiny would have it) that found the band deemphasizing the overt Magma influences and finding its own unique stamp on the world of zeuhl. While still delivering the bubbling zeuhl bass grooves, steady rhythmic drive and ecstatic and even giddy female vocal playfulness right out of the Stella Vander playbook, ESKATON delivered a strange mix of zeuhl that added the more contemporary sounds of new wave in the form of repetitive keyboard patterns, synthesized sounds and an occasional bouncy even danceable drive.

Despite the adaptation to the demands of the early 80s that favored catchy synthpop and pop punk fueled ear worms, ESKATON kept these tendencies in check by keeping the musical flow dark and mysterious with crafty even angular keyboard workouts, jazzy drumming outbursts and the unmistakable zeuhl-ish mix of a rhythmic drive and stentorian choir technqiues. The strangest and most unique part of the album surely comes from the dueling vocal performances of vocalists Amara Tahir and Paule Kleynnaert who together provide a sort of rapping technique to trade off vocals on such tracks as "Plus Et Moins" and "Le Cinema" which implant a primeval vocal rap similar to Debbie Harry's on the mega-hit single "Rapture" from Blondie. While that sounds like a recipe for disaster, this bold move is used sparingly throughout the album's run in between the oft instrumental or more traditional sounding zeuhl tracks.

The album also features more electronic based slow burners such as the short instrumental "Paranthèse" and "La More De Tristan," the latter of which even features a few nods to the Canterbury jazz keyboard sounds that had been nurtured into fruition by the likes of Soft Machine and Hatfield & The North. The results of all this fusion of traditional zeuhl with an infusion of contemporary craftiness makes FICTION perhaps the most innovative of all the three albums of its canon. While not nearly as technical and lacking the virtuosic display of fiery zeuhl action that "4 Visions" delivered in abundance, FICTION has unfairly taken a back seat to its more popular sibling however there is no doubt that FICTION is the most unique album of the band's all too short career and delivers just the right amount of new influences to make the album a very compelling listening experience although prog purists may cringe and call it pandering to the world of new wave which was dominating the music scene in 1983.

There are two very different versions of FICTION with differing track orders: the original version which emerged, and the 2005 Soleil Zeuhl reissue which for whatever reason displayed the album with tracks mixed up per the band's request. In addition the newer version also features five tracks that were supposed to comprise the "Icare" album which was slated to be the fourth ESKATON album however due to the band's proclivity to deemphasize the progressiveness of their music and veering into the watered down world of pop which FICTION does indeed point to, the more commercial tracks were scrapped leaving five extras that more or less followed in the footsteps of what was laid out on FICTION. Yes indeed FICTION does find a progressive rock band adapting to the 80s however ESKATON forged a unique bridge between two seemingly disparate worlds quite successfully and although the band would soon drift off more into the pop world before disbanding, FICTION is without a doubt more on the side of progressive zeuhl than anything remotely new wave. I know i'm in the minority but this is my favorite ESKATON album.