FRANK DERVIEUX - DIMENSION "M"

A cult figure of the Quebec Prog scene, Franck Dervieux was the keyboardist of well-known singer Jean-Pierre Ferland.He was unfortunately diagnosed with cancer and once he regained his strength he went on to record a solo album completely dedicated to his doctors.''Dimension M'' came out in 1972 on Columbia with the participation of Yves Laferrière on bass, Christiane Robichaud on vocals, Michel Robidoux on guitars, Christian St Roch on drums, Terry King on violin and Michel Seguin on percussion.

The album kicks off with the bizarre eponymous Avant/Psych/Prog instrumental, which has a nice abstract organic sound before turning into a Psychedelic Rock guitar instrumental.The following ''Atlantide'' is simply beautiful, based on Dervieux'es work on grand piano and offering a starting jazzy flavor, before turning into complex Symphonic Rock with organ on the forefront and a solid rhythm section and ending with Robichaud's Parisienne wordless singing, as the singer grew up in Paris.''Hyperborée Civilization'' is another fast pace piano-driven fiery instrumental with some wordless vocals, featuring the great violin soloing of Terry King and Dervieux'es excellent performance on piano.The long ''Concerto Pour Les Mondes Perdus'' starts with a very haunting groove characterized by deep bass lines, obscure vocals, pounding drums and even harpsichord before melting into a soft Classical-inspired piano performance by Dervieux and lifting again up with King's stormy violin work and Robidoux'es psychedelic guitars.''Orejona, Mater'' is a smooth piece of acoustic instrumentals,filled with mellow violins, piano and vocal lines to calm things down before the closing grandiose ''Present du futur'' and its powerful organ intro, followed by a piano/organ interplay, having a strong Classical inspiration, and Dervieux delivering also some great electric piano parts, a nice track of Proto-Fusion stylings with a very rich and dynamic sound.

Sadly Dervieux did not make it, as he died shortly after, while his back-up band went on to form the progressive group Contraction.Several of Contraction's members were also part of the legendary Ville Emard Blues Band.

A nice early entry of the Quebec scene into Progressive Rock with a dark, haunting atmosphere for most of its part.Recommended for fans of VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR or GNIDROLOG but also to all lovers of demanding music trips...3.5 stars.