SI ON AVAIT BESOIN D'UNE CINQUIÈME SAISON

With this album I was finally able to overcome my "language bias," and I'm so glad I did. This album is simply beautiful from beginning to end. While not very complex, the melodies and mood changes are abundant and lush, and atmospheres and soundscapes it creates are equally remarkable. Musically this is a perfect combination of folk and symphonic music in a progressive context. It puts to great use some classic prog instruments such as flute, keyboard, and especially mellotron to create some truly stunning music.

The opening 'Vert' has some vocals and acoustic guitar along with a bit of flute throughout to give it a really folky sound. But the keyboard touches also give it that symphonic edge.

'Dixie,' as the name implies, is a very Dixieland-sounding song. It is fast, exciting, warm, and busy, very much like the summer season.

'Despuis L'Automne' perfectly conveys the feeling and atmosphere of autumn. It is mostly happy, but you can taste a bit of solemnity in the crisp sound. The mellotron use in this song is absolutely stunning, and extremely well done. As atmospherically proficient as this, there are still a few cool melodies, especially the one starting about seven minutes in.

'En Pleine Face' emulates the somberness of winter with its relatively more melancholic nature, but is still serene musically.

'Histoires Sans Paroles' represents the fifth season, which has a combination moods and soundscapes throughout. The opening is pretty folky and has a very positive vibe with flute and acoustic guitar. But the song quickly gains a symphonic edge with a substantial use of mellotron. The music gains a rather ominous mood by five minutes with the flute. The mood changes to joyful again around eight minutes when the piano and wordless vocals come in. This changes yet again to a more somber mood with gliding flute and sax superimposed over mellotron and acoustic guitar before ending on a gracefully positive note.

10/10