CRO MAGNON

RIO/Avant-Prog • Belgium

From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

Tour & shows updates
Press & news updates
Forum discussions
Videos (Youtube)
Buy music
Discography
Reviews
Official website

Cro Magnon biography
CRO MAGNON define their style as "urban chamber" with folk influences. With faint echoes of early ART ZOYD, MIRIODOR, UNIVERS ZERO and JULVERNE (a weird, early 80's Belgian band that blended rag time, old jazz tunes and lounge music of the 19th century), their sound draws on classical music and also a bit on jazz, folk, and rock. They are essentially drum less but still rhythmically very powerful. The quintet have two albums to their credit, released in 1992 and 1997 respectively.

"Zapp!", with its revolutionary rhythms, Central/Eastern European flavour, classical bits and unusual harmonies, will certainly take you very, very far into unexplored territories. Call it acoustic, eclectic, atomic or electric, it is at times funny and intense, at other times surprisingly relaxing. "Bull?", their second album, is more dynamic and even more unique. With one foot in the classical world and the other in urban arrhythmia, its compositions are well worked out and played very spontaneously; it also features cello, snare drums, trumpet, French horn and clarinet. As one smart alec put it, it's advisable to listen to these albums 1/3 at a time (for fear of sonic disorientation, no doubt).

If you're already a fan of ART ZOYD, UNIVERS ZERO or The PENGUIN CAF� ORCHESTRA, this band will certainly put a smile on your face.

: : : Lise (HIBOU), CANADA : : :

CRO MAGNON Videos (YouTube and more)

Showing only random 3 | Search and add more videos to CRO MAGNON

Buy CRO MAGNON Music

DOUG LARSON IMPORTS — Buy prog rock music and rarities (Free shipping on orders over 10 CD's)
AMAZON.COM — Best-selling prog vinyls

CRO MAGNON discography

Ordered by release date | Showing ratings (top albums) | Help Progarchives.com to complete the discography and add albums

CRO MAGNON top albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

3.52 | 19 ratings

Zapp!
1992

4.00 | 9 ratings

Bull?
1997

3.13 | 5 ratings

Cro Magnon & (Bub): Brosella Suite
2003

4.00 | 1 ratings

Floww...
2017

CRO MAGNON Live Albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

CRO MAGNON Videos (DVD, Blu-ray, VHS etc)

CRO MAGNON Boxset & Compilations (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

CRO MAGNON Official Singles, EPs, Fan Club & Promo (CD, EP/LP, MC, Digital Media Download)

CRO MAGNON Reviews

Showing last 10 reviews only

Studio Album, 1992
3.52 | 19 ratings
BUY

Zapp!
Cro Magnon RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by apps79
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

Another entry from the traditional Avant-Prog scene from the Flemish lands, Cro Magnon were a five-piece group from Ghent, led by multi-instrumentalist Geert Waegeman.The line-up featured two violin players, Stefan Coltura and Rik Verstrepen, along with bassist Rudy Mollekens and sax player Koen van Roy.Often these bands had no drummer and Cro Magnon were no exception.Their debut ''Zapp!'' from 1992 was released on Carbon 7,a label led by Univers Zero members Guy Segers and Alan Ward.

The album consists of 13 mainly short instrumentals with the first tracks being a fantastic combination of dark Chamber/Classical music ala UNIVERS ZERO and the melodic often jazzy quirky style of MIRIODOR.Of course it all comes up to the huge sound of the violin string section and the beautiful approach of Van Roy on saxes, accompanied by the piano lines of Waegeman.After the middle the album tends a bit more towards Classical Music in the vein of JULVERNE with double violin sections on the forefront, still piano and saxes play a major role.The atmosphere changes radically from haunting themes to pleasant passages in a blink of an eye.However this group knew how to match the dissonance of Avant/R.I.O. musicianship with some delicate harmonies here and there to present a good, balanced and more appealing package.

The band stated playing ''Urban Chamber music'' and that is pretty much what's going on ''Zapp!''.But you can add the final optimistic feeling you get after listening to this release.A nice recommendation for all fans of Jazz, Classical and Chamber music and a must-have for fans of Avant-Prog...3.5 stars.

Studio Album, 1992
3.52 | 19 ratings
BUY

Zapp!
Cro Magnon RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by gmikolajczyk

Zapp !is real Belgian world music. The Brussels metropole is transformed into music by a contemporary folk-orchestra that mingles traditional elements with electronics. Different areas of the capitol where a source of inspiration : the African quarter, a busy boulevard, a trainstation, a slaughterhouse, the quarter of the poor,....The result is a colourful and exciting cd were bagpipes are combined with saxophones, synths, accordeon, violins, guitar, drums,...and an electric mandolin gives the whole a ritmic and sunny push. The melodies happen inside an imaginative and stimulating soundworld. There are some links with e.g. the Penguin Caf� Orchestra, but the music is anyway very particular, might have been a soundtrack for a movie. A Brussels movie.

An essential

A Must !! Formidable Musicians !

Studio Album, 1992
3.52 | 19 ratings
BUY

Zapp!
Cro Magnon RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Rainer Rein

Belgium has (or had) quite lot of this kind of urban-chamber-rock bands. This genre had become typical there maybe because of The Greatest of The Chamber Rockers - Univers Zero were (and are) from Belgium. But I'm afraid that anyone of these bands can reach near the artistic qualities of UZ. This urban-chamber band Cro Magnon has existed in this world about fifteen years and they have released three albums (the last one is recorded together with their collegues from Netherlands called BUB). Zapp! is Cro Magnon's first effort from 1992 and released at quite little recording company Carbon 7 led by ex-Univers-Zero-members Guy Segers and Alan Ward. Actually I like Cro Magnon's second album Bull much better than this first one because of more richful choice of instruments and guests. The most interesting (and often quite funny) on this recording are sax and violin parts. Keyboards and samplers are often unfortunately too sterile (on their next - Bull?-album fortunately the keyboards are absolutely OK). Anyway I found some favourites from this item - Sahib, Cleo and Jacues Tati (hommage to the great filmmaker?). Quite interesting to discover but I'd recommend firstly their next one - Bull?

Studio Album, 1992
3.52 | 19 ratings
BUY

Zapp!
Cro Magnon RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Dan Yaron

Cro Magnon is a band from Belgium that plays RIO chamber stuff like Univers Zero and Art Zoyd, but Cro Magnon is jazzier and lighter than those bands. However, this does make em a cheesy band. Their tunes aren't really catchy. The band offers some fine tunes that will certainly be liked by fans of chamber RIO. Violins are mostly noticed, but so are saxophones. The style changes from folk to classic. In short, if you are in favour of RIO chamber like the bands mentioned above, you should absolutely obtain this record. You shall not be dissapointed!

Cro Magnon & (Bub): Brosella Suite by CRO MAGNON album cover

Studio Album, 2003
3.13 | 5 ratings
BUY

Cro Magnon & (Bub): Brosella Suite
Cro Magnon RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Sean Trane
Special Collaborator Prog Folk

3,5 stars really. This third album is a colaboration between Cro Magnon and Bub in honor of the free & open air Brosella festival (one day for folk and the second for jazz) organized each year in the park nearby Brussels's Atomium. We go back taowards the first album as this is very acoustic and has many World music influence (mainly Gypsy or eastern European) and well within the RIO realm but also veering towards classical music at times. All of the tracks are written about the atmospheres opne can find in Brussels streets with its incredibly multi-cultural aspects. All titles are named after neighborhoods , streets, buildings or even a streetcar. The finale is a pun on a brawl that would take place in Cental Station. However , if you were happy with the energy developped with their second album Bull, you might be in for a small disappointment, as this is much quieter and contemplative.

Studio Album, 1997
4.00 | 9 ratings
BUY

Bull?
Cro Magnon RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Sean Trane
Special Collaborator Prog Folk

Well, just by looking at the sleeve , you know that whatever humour was lacking in their debut will be present here. Actually , they try to reach the typical Belgian Surrealism (for those not familiar with that you might call it Conscient & Uncontrolled Absurdism - are sure you are following me on this?) expressed musically. Not that this sort of music has any kind of publis acceptance as their concert were rather rare and not well publicized even in Central Absurdia (that would make it Brussels). Again , the music is not far off Univers Zero but the electric instruments make this closer to Miriodor. Much better (but very different ) than their first.

Studio Album, 1992
3.52 | 19 ratings
BUY

Zapp!
Cro Magnon RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Sean Trane
Special Collaborator Prog Folk

Another typical Belgian-sounding band doing RIO and Chamber Rock .This is mostly acoustic stuff , very energetic and resembles a bit Univers Zero cross-over with some gypsy jazz band and have some GMO tendencies with some of those Cuneiform RIO bands such as Miriodor or Alamaailman Vasarat. It also reminds of another Belgian band called X- Legged Sally. This album is rather austere both with the sleeve but also on the fun. Try the much different follow-up.

Thanks to ProgLucky for the artist addition.