GRIMACES

Mona Lisa

Symphonic Prog

3.54 | 49 ratings

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ZowieZiggy
Prog Reviewer

I have a certain tendency to appreciate the French prog scene from the early seventies.

Like the great "Ange" who covered a great song of one of the three most praised French speaking singer of all time (although Belgian ? Ma�tre Jacques of course), "Mona Lisa" does the same with the opening song which is a good interpretation of a Brassens song: "La Mauvaise R�putation".

The beat is on the heavy side for the next song "Brume" but the French theatric aspect gets back with more grandeur during "Complainte Pour Un Narcisse": fine fluting, eccentric vocals and great rhythmic make it a very good song indeed.

The first truly symphonic song is "Le Jardin Des Illusions" which starts as a KC moment: dark, mysterious and complex. Keys are jolly good, but the guitar is also in unison. It is a fine song by all means. Convincing vocals and a superb and dramatic finale certainly contribute to make a highlight of this song. I really like it.

I can't find any weak moment during these "Grimaces", but I might be biased. Still, weird lyrics (but not saucy as "Ange"), fluting and great musicianship are such good ingredients that I can only be very enthusiastic about this work ("Accroche-Toi Et Suis Moi" is another example). OK, this is of course no masterpiece, but good enough in my books to reach the four star level without any problem.

The title song starts as a troubadour piece of art: maybe that some of you might get irritated by the extremely theatric vocals and the similarity with "Ange" is very, very obvious. But with some sort of a personality. Another great song for sure. The same can be said about the closing number which is again a very good exercise in this style.

This album is a great combination of "Genesis", "Ange" and "King Crimson" with a personal touch. Not too bad I would say. Very good indeed: four stars.

ZowieZiggy | 4/5 | 2010-11-1

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