KOEN DE BRUYNE

With three pieces of PLACEBO in the line-up the sound here is somewhere between Jazz Rock and Funk with some strong Fusion interactions, making up for a pleasant atmosphere, relying much on the double horns of Sabbe and Rousselet and marked by De Bruyne's keyboard and piano parts.There are some straight links to Jazz with piano and bass in evidence, sometimes without any supporting personel, but there are also some impressive parts with beautiful changes from piano-based to synth-drenched jazzy experiments.Heavy trumpet lines and soft grooves combine for a quite 60's-flavored Psych Jazz, while the addition of Maessen's voice in ''Pathetic dreams'' delivers some ethereal tunes in the vein of compatriots COS.Some moments in here sound a bit directionless and the mood is sometimes a bit softer than expected, but there are decent ideas on jazzy executions, highlighted by some great bass parts and De Bruyne's omnipresent piano.The synth-based passages are likely the ones closer to Jazz Fusion, having a neurotic and dynamic sound and maybe their use should have been more pronounced.''Unanswered questions'' features also the psychedelic flute work of Adelson Defrise, offering another charming variation of De Bruyne's sound.

The following year De Bruyne became a member of the short-lived Jazz Funk act Mad Unity and, of course, he was a regular contributor in the works of his brother Kris.In 1978 he composed the soundtrack of the film by Jan Gruyaert ''In Kluis''.Sadly he passed away shortly after the album's release.

Ethereal and very jazzy album of funky and Fusion ideas.Maybe too mellow in certain parts, but still well-played and warmly recommended.

The synthesizer effects really sounds great, the piano and keys are majestic and the idiot trumpet duo playing random riffs in the first track (the song titled Here Comes The Crazy Man) sounds like a couple of ugly animals raping each other, both drunks in a birthday's party, and that's just awesome. This album has one of my favorite album covers ever. The tracks easily changes the mood, and even the freakest point of this album was done with caution, so the music is full of beauty, of classical touch, mainly in the piano leading phrases, different than usual experimentalism , that sounds weird and hard listening for any "normal person" (I know, there's no "usual" experimentalism, but I think you will get my point). Just take a look at Pathetic Dreams, or Unanswered Questions, or any of the four tracks, and you will understand what I am talking about. The song is full of freak passages but the melodic background and the female vocalization leaves no strangeness, and make the music feeling satisfy you in a symphonic way. Now, I think the last track will really satisfy symphonic prog fans. To break the equality, every track has something different going on. Like I said, the third track has some female vocalizations. The second track features a jazz quick drum solo, and the last one is florid with flutes.

This album, this right one that I'm talking about, Here Comes The Crazy Man, from 74', is what Koen De Bruyne left to the world. And I'm saying, he did a good name for himself with this.