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SAMSARA

Seven Reizh

Symphonic Prog


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Seven Reizh Samsara album cover
4.14 | 79 ratings | 5 reviews | 37% 5 stars

Excellent addition to any
prog rock music collection

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Studio Album, released in 2006

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Encore? (1:03)
2. Soñj (4:48)
3. Ay Adu (5:56)
4. O Redek (10:04)
5. Qim Iydi? (6:34)
6. Awalik (3:49)
7. An Tourioù (4:17)
8. La Longue Marche (6:43)
9. A-raok? (5:18)
10. Vers Ma Maison? (5:15)
11. All Loen? (3:11)
12. Perdue Au Loin? (2:50)
13. Kouezhan (5:42)
14. Samsâra (7:40)

Total time 73:10

Line-up / Musicians

- Claude Mignon /guitar, mandola, keyboards, sampler, narrator, composer, arrangements
- Gérard Le Dortz / sampler, narrator

With:
- Farid Aït Siameur / vocals
- Marianne Le Dortz / vocals
- Doro.t / vocals
- Charlotte Chassang / backing vocals
- Marine Crouzevialle / backing vocals
- José Larraceleta / Classical & electric guitars
- Ronan Hilaireau / piano
- Patrick Raffault / accordion
- François Pernel / harp
- Adrien Toupain / bagpipes
- Erwan Le Gallic / bagpipes
- Ronan Griffon / bagpipes
- Meven Le Donge / bagpipes
- Cyrille Bethou / bombarde
- Gilles Le Guillou / bombarde
- Yolande Bodiou / bombarde
- Gwenhaël Mével / bombarde, whistles
- Sonia Fernandez Velasco / clarinet
- Jean-Pierre Derouard / trumpet
- Cyrille Bonneau / flute
- Geraldine Chauvet / flute
- Monique Le Prev / violin
- Annie Gaudois / cello
- Lucie Louis / cello
- Olivier Carole / bass
- Philippe Savre / drum
- Thierry Soursas / drum
- Gurvan Mevel / drums, percussion
- David Rouillard / percussion
- Marius Le Pourhiet / percussion
- Thierry Chassang / percussion, sampler, mixing
- Lionel Lefournis / timbales, drum

Releases information

CD Yaka ‎- 0906 (2006, France)

Thanks to ProgLucky for the addition
and to Quinino for the last updates
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SEVEN REIZH Samsara ratings distribution


4.14
(79 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(37%)
37%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(41%)
41%
Good, but non-essential (15%)
15%
Collectors/fans only (6%)
6%
Poor. Only for completionists (1%)
1%

SEVEN REIZH Samsara reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by erik neuteboom
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Seven Reich is a French musical project featuring the duo Claude Mignon (keyboards, guitars, compositions) and Gérard Le Dortz (graphics, story, voice and samples) along many guest musicians. This CD is the successor of the album Strinkadenn Ys that was released in 2001, a while ago. Somewhere on Internet I read that Seven Reich intends to make a trilogy, well, I am looking forward to that because Samsara is a very captivating and often compelling blend of ethnic music and progressive rock (with hints from Pink Floyd and Camel) with the emphasis on ethnic. In the huge booklet (20x20 cm) you can read about the story, the lyrics and the wide range of instruments, these are blended in a wonderful way into the 14 compositions. The climates are in general dreamy with a sultry undertone and we can enjoy great female and male vocals in French (Breton), English and Arabian (the North-African Berber language). The songs flow into each other and are all small jewels, so beautiful and warm, from the short opener Encore (melancholical violincello with twanging guitar and a mellow trumpet sound), Soñj (compelling contrast between fragile piano, flute and soaring vocals and bombastic keyboards and propulsive guitar chords) and the breathtaking Ay Adu (Arabian vocals, Scottish bagpipes, a wonderful solo on classical guitar, followed by powerful electric guitar) to Qim Iydi... (a lush sound with piano, violincello, accordeon and moving interplay between piano and howling electric guitar) and A-roak (a slow rhythm featuring organ and a bombastic part with again howling guitar). It was a real treat to listen to all those ethnic instruments, from the Scottish bagpipe and the Celtic harp and tin-whistle to the Arabian udu along the bodhran, duduk, flute traverse and tambour, to name a few!

If you are up to a captivating musical adventure on the borders of folk and prog, I am sure you will be pleased with this wonderful album, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO PROG FOLK FANS!!

Review by tszirmay
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Talk about progress! French band Seven Reizh's debut album was universally applauded by many prog aficionados throughout the planet and meritoriously remained in my personal elite list and probably will never leave. The ingredients were an intoxicating brew of Breton influence (French Celtic from Brittany) both instrumentally and lyrically with some heady doses of outright prog in terms of succinct guitar forays and great rhythm work. This was a true masterpiece that would be hard to emulate or repeat. So they didn't even go there and opted for a complete change of course in all aspects. Firstly, "Samsara" comes with a hefty book of assorted paintings and photography that hankers back to Greenslade's "The Pentateuch" and has a sticker price that will scare off the used CD hunter/collectors. Secondly, the Gaelic flavor is now twinned with a Kabyle slant (The Kabyles are the original inhabitants of North Africa, particularly Algeria, before the Arab invasion) that merges very well and also encompasses some of the realities of modern France. This decidedly "Eastern" influence alternates some male vocal contrast to the similarly detailed lilt of the female Breton language (a distant Gaelic dialect), maintaining the powerfully plaintive use of bagpipes and considerably toning down the once crunchy guitar solos. "Samsara" is therefore an infinitely more elusive progressive animal, veering into ethnic/world territory without the saccharine fluff. From the opening sway of violin, flute and piano with "I Have a Dream" samples in the background, a languid female vocal unites in spirit with choir mellotron and some ravishing synthesized trumpet. "Ay Adu" offers up the first glances of the Saharan influence with the male voice setting the tone in a cascade of half-notes, led by the magic violin and clashing gently with the serene blasts of the Celtic bagpipes, various percussive effects and an almost Andalusian acoustic guitar solo. Délicieux! The tumultuous "O Redek" retains some of the debut album's recipe with the powerful "cornemuse"(French bagpipe) weaving suavely with brash electric rhythm guitar, a tremendously invigorating epic arrangement with more plaintive female arias, fluid piano tinkling and tons of polyrhythmic folly. An explosive finale with a stop and go electric solo really cuts to the chase and convincingly stamps these nearly 10 minutes as an album highlight. "Qim Iydi" serves up a simply mind blowing lead vocal, part Kabyle, part French that sizzles fervently, a haunting melody led by sweet violin and piano. "Awalek" is another Kabyle lament, somewhat more atonal and tentative (hinting at a quasi Deep Forest experimentation), chock full of synthetic effects and reverbs. "An Touriou" starts off like Pink Floyd's "Welcome to the Machine", before the feminine voice takes this elsewhere altogether, with a high spiraled chorus that hints at a very ambient Kate Bush. Interesting audacity! "La Longue Marche..." is probably the most blatantly gentle track here, with an angelic Breton lilt softly dueling with the male voice, a sensuous flute and whistles , clouds of effect organ, some French lyrics, an intense mélange that just relaxes the battered soul. From here to the end is where this album swivels away completely , yearning towards music akin to This Mortal Coil : "A Roak" prefers a darker contrast, an funereal impression that's heavy on the sorrow (plaintive, almost somber organ), not far from an almost Dead Can Dance feel, a seriously extended schizoid lead guitar adds even more angst to the proceedings. In the fine spirit of always keeping the listener off guard, "Vers la Maison" is a high-pitched infantile lullaby morphing into serene Celtic sonics, a strangely odd disparity with the flow, maintaining an eerie sense of peace. Next track is an outright yet brief spooky affair, once again chock full of dissonance, as if Eno recorded something in Damascus! Bees Are! The following piece maintains a momentary sense of unease, featuring a poetic mournful French voice before ushering in the majestic tour de force "Kouezhan" with its repetitive urgency and a extremely restrained Fripp/Pinhas style guitar meandering into strange uncharted territories, exploring odd meters and frenetic wailing. The titled epic introduces some fine fretless bass noodling, putting Percy Jones of Brand X fame to shame (well not quite but close), a scowling womanly vocal loaded with vibrato and passion, , a booming percussion display, a lovely piano-led main melody, most definitely the finest and most complex track on this rather ballsy record. "Samsara" will turn out to be a completely different kettle of fish from "Strinkadenn Ys" (though still their best in my book) , way more subtle and detailed, much more personal and requiring a deeper sense of musical acceptance. It's a challenging listen; you have to be in the mood, candles lit and incense aglow. But definitely prog ! 4 far bretons.
Review by kenethlevine
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Prog-Folk Team
4 stars Celtic and prog really don't mix that frequently or that well. Don't get me wrong - I could name a lot of great albums that combine the two, but the proportions are off, or they are too self consciously one way or the other. The Celtic component might be used more for flavour and sound more quaint than anything, or the progressive aspects represent mere accents. SEVEN REIZH seems to be one of those rare bands whose genetic spirals enslave both, with lineage to Breton greats like ALAN STIVELL but also to the modern neo prog movement. Moreover, they have chosen to dovetail the suspenseful aspects of all these genres into some of the most riveting musical storytelling around.

Their sophomore effort is another ambitious, lavishly packaged production in service of often breathtaking themes. Orchestral, rock and traditional Breton instrumentation blend with diverse voices and clash rarely. The piano of Ronan Hilaireau is especially enjoyable in the longer cuts like "O Redek" and "Samsara" (with its lovely contrabass redolent of CAMEL), providing a respite from the sometimes raunchy guitars, savage rhythms, and skirling Breton instrumentation. "Qim Idi" combines cello with eastern European styled vocals like those in DEEP FOREST's "Boheme", but more acoustically based. The chanting of the brief "Awalik" is drenched in dramatic and melodic inspiration.

If you enjoy LOREENA MCKENNIT's knack for bridging the Celtic and middle eastern worlds but wish she could escape her ethereal mists once in a while, you will enjoy "La Longue Marche". The lone hard rock moment of "A Roak" conjures FLEETWOOD MAC's cult classic "Sisters of the Moon" right down to the furious closing sequence, even if its pace barely breaks with the slow tempo on most of the album. The keyboard work near the end of the title cut sounds like something out of SATELLITE's "Evening Games", and Doro alternately recalls ANNIE HASLAM, KATE BUSH, SALLY OLDFIELD, MAGGIE REILLY and CRANBERRIES, as well as the vocal styles of EMELIE SIMON in the French language version of "March of the Penguins". The net is cast widely and the take is bountiful.

"Samsara" is a wandering and worthy follow up to "Strinkadenn Ys", more reflective and subtle perhaps, but also with a potentially more lasting footprint.

Latest members reviews

5 stars This is wonderful pacage, a beautiful book and a discful of amazing music! A really dynamic album, best listened with a lots of volume and concentration. Not a single weak track but full of highlights and hooks. If I have to say some weakness, it's that the tracks and album ends too soon :( Ev ... (read more)

Report this review (#102100) | Posted by | Friday, December 8, 2006 | Review Permanlink

5 stars It comes with a book full of four coloured pictures and lyrics in three different languages (including english) and the story of Enora (sadly not in english). The overall atmosphere of the story is warm beauty with fantastic vocals of Doro (and Farid). Occationally it explodes with powerful dr ... (read more)

Report this review (#101656) | Posted by | Tuesday, December 5, 2006 | Review Permanlink

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