So I'm made it back to Boston after an excellent few days in France for the Rock In Opposition Festival in Carmaux. It was great to meet all the usual suspects again with a few significant absentees (Dave & Udi notably). The atmosphere was the familiar friendly and relaxed. Michel sensibly backed off the number of bands from last year so there wasn't the constant rush from small hall to big hall and back, or the inevitable decision to skip a band or two. Only two complaints on the venue were (1) the lack of ventilation in the small hall which made it very hot and lacking air during all the bands who played in there, and (2) the fact that the Audberge wasn't available to stay at on Sunday night due to students coming in meant I had to switch accommodation to Albi for Sunday, though that was a very nice hotel. The food was the same as last year with two tents and a mix of salads, crepes, curry, sausage sandwiches, and my personal favorite, duck.

A major shout out to all the Germans (even if they insisted on talking soccer, I was not arguing from a position of strength), Daggie, Debi, Peter, Erik, Helaine, Maren, Scandinavians, and various Frenchmen & Women, who were all very friendly.

Michel had a good mix of older and newer bands this year with a focus on the depth of talented young French bands playing avant music.

Friday
Les Orange Bleues - straight ahead jazz not really a good fit, mellow and ok but not really that interesting.
Artus - Indie Avant Rock with a Folky twist from using folk instruments, hurdygurdy, bagpipes, other contraptions. There are two Zaar members in the band. High energy & entertaining, the surprise of the day.
October Equus - Emsemble music from Spain focused on the guitar of Ángel Ontalva, were excellent when focused on group play, less so when featuring guitar solos which were a but aimless
Dr Nerve - my first time seeing DN and they were outstanding, major horn section belting out interlocking layers with Nicks guitar tearing it up. Had a wonderful improv section conducted by Nick in the middle and a crowd participation sing-a-long. They were outstanding and one of the top bands of the festival for me.

Saturday
Stabat Akish - really tight avant jazz combo featuring double bass, saxophones, guitar & drums. Clearly well rehearsed and very professional, excellent jazz set.
Caillou - Zeuhly Jazz tight, energetic, noisy & fun. Suffered the worst from the heat in the small hall, I had to leave after 45 minutes as the sweating was running in rivers.
Artaud Beats - Whole set was one long free improvisation with Fred Frith sitting in for most of the set. Band features 3 members of Henry Cow with Yumi Hara on keys. I don't normally go for this stuff but it really worked well. Mesmerizing stuff that captivated the audience.
Magma - My second time seeing Magma & I was a little let down to be honest. They played MDK which was terrific but the sound wasn't great were I was sitting. The keys were too loud and had a low buzz that masked the vocals and the drums were too high in the mix. It was Magma so it was stil lgood but didn't reach the heights of 2 years ago.
Ni - Great way to finish the day though starting at midnight meant I was beat going in. That soon changed when the started playing. Very punky, twin guitar attack that never stopped with masses of energy. Lots of humor. Played a terrific set.

Sunday
Chromb - another young band to open, keys, sax, bass, drums combo, lots of bouncy avant rock with weird vocal phrasing. Good fast & heavy start to the day.
Fred Frith - Solo improvisation with just a guitar a load of pedals and lots of 'toys' to play with, one long track with no breaks. Totally hypnotic and mesmerizing. I was totally zoned in on all the things that Fred could do. Wonderful set.
Le Silo - Totally bonkers high energy Japanese band. I'd call it zeuhl but they have no fuzz bass, otherwise they have similar traits to other Japanese bands. Masses of speed and hooks and sharp angles. They also had lots of humor and were clearly enjoying themselves. Massively good.
Offering - I'm going to be a little cruel here as this band really didn't work for me. This is Christian Vanders other band and it seemed like Magma Lite. Christian singing rather than drumming and singing some weird scat lines. No bass and lacking all Magma's heaviness, this sounded a lot more straight ahead adult rock with no real edge. I knew I was in trouble when we got a bongo solo 10 minutes in, seriously a bongo solo, yikes. Not for me though plenty seemed to enjoy it.
Young Gods - This felt like a booking misstep. Heavy Industrial noise featuring a drummer, a guy trigger effects from a keyboards and a singer. It felt more like karaoke than a band. I'd happily listen to this stuff on CD but live it just felt like someone singing along to a backing track. This was the other band where individual tickets were sold to increase the number of fans. I'm assuming that this is done to cover the financial needs of the festival but just like Arno 3 years ago this feels horribly wrong as a way to close a festival. Put these guys on Friday or Saturday if needed but don't have them as the last band as it kills the vibe.

So overall a wonderful mix of bands with a few missteps but not enough to detract from the excellent Dr Nerve, Artaud Beats, Fred Frith and multiple exciting young bands. A big thank you to Michel and all the organizers and staff for putting on another wonderful event. Already looking forward to next year.