RHESUS O

Rhésus O was a short-lived French band that made only one album. I found out this band existed after realizing that one of their bassists, Francis Moze, had played on not only Magma's first two albums (three if you count the Unnamables) but also Radio Gnome Invisible by Gong. The direction somewhat carries some of that influence, but they are in reality a jazz and rock band. Their eponymous debut record blends together experimental and progressive horn work and keyboard instrumentation while adding in classic jazz-sounding drum beats and rhythms. All this combined with the use of multiple bassists keeps the songs fresh and smooth while also branching out into more complex music. I will admit, they can sometimes sound a bit dry when they play this strange style of an almost post-bop for the whole album. Maybe if they added in more variety, energy, and a more ferocious take on their songs, it could've been more interesting and pushed my rating higher.

The opening two songs on side one, Ciguë and Maldonne, kind of act as one song. I like the cool and casual feel they have going into each other, and it just overall sets a baseline for what should be expected on this record. I will say, though, Préambule is probably my favorite track on the album. It has fast-paced switches in tempo and control that really enhance and excite the listener. It has emotion and depth while also having dynamics between bombastic and wild playing with low and smooth jazz, and just overall it's a great song with tons of fun fusion elements mixed in with all the other influences these guys had. The rest of the numbers in this record are pretty chill and relaxing, not really boring, but not as exciting as I would hope. Especially when you get deep into the album, you can hear the band begin to lose its creativity, although you do hear a splurge of insane craftsmanship every once in a while. Moving on, some of the other compositions I enjoyed were Eveil and Parcours, which have a more quirky yet thrilling extension in their exploration in the structure and technicality. I do wish some of these were at least a little longer, though, because sometimes it feels like the band doesn't have enough space to truly have room to breathe.

In conclusion, this is overall a record that, while it has no bad parts, has some merely average parts with some really good sections. It just doesn't bring enough of a punch to have much of an effect on me, and while I do like listening to some of the music on here as just songs in my playlists, I just wish they could've put more of an energetic performance, because the general focus they were going for is very much noticeable. I'm feeling between a 3/5 and a 3.25/5 for this record.

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