ZEUHL

3.5 really

Eros from 1981 is one of the most famouses zeuhl albums in history of the genre. Dun was a band from France who released only this album who become very soon a cult release. Eros is a concept album inspired by Frank Herbert's classic Dune, has only 4 pieces, but each in quite lenghty. To me was a good trip in their sound, quite complicated zeuhl with nods towards jazz fusiuoin and in places some avant prog appear. Is not easy to get inside and under the skin only with few spins, this is the type of album who definatly is a grower. First track Lepice is to me the best from here, turbulent musicianship and damn great passages. The album is all instrumental so the musicians had enough room to show us how skilled they are and how easy they play. This is quite good album, I'm not particulary big fan of the genre, but from time to time I discover some excellent lost albums in this zeuhl field, Eros is one of them who desearves atention. Fans of Gong, Magma, Eskaton and others, might listen to this one because worth it, one of the legendary albums in this field. To me only 3.5 , still great to listen from time to time.

This album has the quietest beginning of any that I have ever heard; I had to turn the volume up to make sure that there was something going on! Dreamy layered keyboards then gave way to a much more Hawkwind style space rock attack, but that also didn't last for long.

This is an album that refuses to stick to any particular style, and there are hints of Magma, King Crimson and VDGG as well as an unusual singing style from Roberto Goddardi. This is the third album from the Italians, who were formed in 1988. This is music that is challenging, and often defies description. Just when I think that I can understand what is going on they change tack totally.

The result is an album that is going to alienate all but the most devoted progressive fan. That in itself is not a bad thing; especially as so many progressive bands these days are nothing of the sort. This harkens back to the days of the early Seventies when the word 'progressive' really did mean that. It may not be easy listening but I got a lot out of it.

Originally appeared in Feedback #60

Second and much awaited album after their tremendous debut album called Cycle 1, although it was a slower process than originally announced. Although not named as such, Gu'rison delivers what was promised as most of the album is related since the opening 3- movement suite is named Cycle II. The group is now only a quintet (KB-man Goulay is listed as a guest), but numerous guests are contributing, the better-known being Benoit Widemann on the minimoog. This is not the only surprise as this album contains vocals (not just chants), but not the sublime Natacha voice present on the debut, replaced by Yannick Duschene, who also takes part in the mixing and mastering (along with the ever- excellent Udi Koomran). As for the artwork, it looks like some tantric 'sand painting' and the back cover feature a wink to the five musicians in stylised silhouettes.

Opening on the 10-mins Cycle II, the album takes off where its predecessor had left things at, with a delightful and serene Zeuhl music (we're nowhere close to Magma's oppressive climates). The following three-part 8-movement Triptyque, of which the first part is surprisingly dedicated to Supertramp's Roger Hodgson, but fear not, it's only in the spiritual mode, not in the musical realm. Nevertheless, the lengthy 26-mins suite plunges deep in the inner throes, while remaining fairly lightweight, the JR/F moods being never far away.

The closing 15-mins Gu'rison (Healing) suite presents slightly different soundscapes, sometimes passing through the Canterbury-ian counties, with some delightful Kentian meanders and detours - most notably the fuzzed organ is track 14. The two bonus tracks are a bit awkward, the Parasite bit being mainly a drum solo (from the Gu'rison suite), while Hymne Au Soleil (from the first Triptyque piece) is mainly a Rhodes and vocals thing. While both bonus tracks don't clash with the album proper, they do sound and feel a bit less thought-out as the three main suites.

The logical continuity of their first album, Gu'rison just doesn't repeat the formula, but expands on the universe developed before. Easily as good as their first effort, hopefully, they'll concentrate on the main Setna project, instead of spreading themselves a bit thin on side-projects like Xing Sa.

The influence of Shub-Niggurath, coming from one of that band's founders, the guitarist Frank Fromy, makes this debut album very dark. Respect to the last unlistenable effort of Shub-Niggurath (Note: I thought it was the last, but after their 3rd album there's another released in 2009 I wasn't aware of) this album is very well played and arranged, so if you are in the right mood for this kind of sci-fi inspired dark and obsessive music, with jazz and classical elements fused together, this is a very good one.

The music is dissonant but not noisy, and even if dark, not horrorific as Shub-Niggurath were.

The track titles give the impression of a sci-fi concept,but of course, without lyrics this is hard to say.

"Mesozoic Cities" may be referred to the "Old Ones", and one of those cities could be R'Lyeh. The music is able to suggest images of chaos and weirdness, but it doesn't appear to be improvised. Each passage seems to be carefully planned, and this is more evident with "Ombos". I don't think one can improvise on that kind of signatures. Ombos was effectively an ancient city, known in ancient Egypt as "Nubt" on which there's a great necropolis.

"T'l't'" has a funky start and becomes dark when the guitar enters. Bass and drums play perfect Zeuhl in the Magma tradition. I don't know what the title means, unfortunately.

"Sargasso Sea" reminds to Lovecraft but also to "Le Bateau Ivre" by Arthur Rimbaud. A sea covered by algae on which ships can't move because of the absence of winds and any kind of possible monster behind the surface. This is one of the most rock tracks, easier maybe, but this doesn't subtract anything from its goodness. The guitar is remarkable on this track.

Few seconds of dark ambient can give the illusion of something relaxing, also because we are in "Outerspace". This is one of the most uptime tracks instead, with an incredible signature underlined by the slapped bass, but with a very good keyboard layer and the guitar which in some moments sounds like Andy Latimer (in terms of sounds, not of notes). For me the best album's track.

"Humanized Fish From Encelade" is the most chaotic track in terms of melodies and signatures, and Philippe Haxaire makes an excellent work with his drum kit. I'd like to see this performed live.

"Home Of Nowhere" transports us to the depest obscurity. Here the Shub-Niggurath imprinting is strong. Drums and keys are the main elements. It's so dark that the following "Magnetostriction" can appear "pop" in comparison. Surely it's more rock-oriented, more August Derleth than Lovecraft if this can give the idea.

"Holocene Extinction" is even relaxing. The music seems to describe a desert world after the extinction happened, but it's only for about 30 seconds, then drums and bass bring in some rhythm.However this is not "tragic" as the title could suggest. I must remark that Holocene is the current geological period so this is about "our" extintion, nothing to do with dynosaurs.

"Shambala" is more structured. After a Floydian beginning it becomes jazzy with bass and drums on fusion rhythms. The tempo is quite slow. I think this is the easiest track of ths album. Less challenging but being challenging is not a must.

I don't know what "three Eyes" should mean, but the dark environment is completely restored. If it wasn't for the guitar which plays long struggling notes, it would have a free-jazz flavor. Less than three minutes of crazyness.

"Subdeath" closes the album in a horrorific way. This track reminds me of the Shub- Niggurath debut. It features the only lyrics, a bass pitched speech, of the whole album. I don't understand what the speaker says but I would be curious to know it, also to understand if my interpretation of the music's meaning (if there's a meaning) is correct or not.

It's an excellent addition for who likes the darker side of Zeuhl, not for everybody. In my opinion is a 3.5 stars album which I round up because of the excellent musicianship of the band's members. It's a debut. If tehy won't loose the way as Shub-Niggurath have done with their third album, we can expect exciting things.

The late 1970s and early 1980s were a tough time for prog-rock. Disco was king, punk was hot and new-wave was on the horizon. Many great prog bands broke up (E.L.P. and VdGG, for example). Others tried to change with the times (E.L.O., Gentle Giant, Genesis etc...), often infuriating hard-core fans. Magma ultimately did both. "Attahk" would be Magma's last album of new original material for several years.

This album is often bashed by hardcore Magma fans, however it contains all of the elements that made Magma so interesting: a great rhythm section with bizarre vocals and prog-rock flourishes. The musicianship is great and the piano, bass and drums really drive the music.

Yes, the album does lag a little bit in the middle, but it gets off to a great start with "The Last Seven Minutes", which is downright funky. "Spiritual" is a bit of gospel flavored fun. "Rindae" is very slow and plodding, and is just okay. "Lirik Nekronomicus Kahnt" is a funky, fusion jam with complicated and bizarre vocals. Closing out the album are "Mahnt", "Dondai" and "Nono". "Mahnt" is fun and frenetically paced. "Dondai" is mid-tempo and has a nice groove to it. "Nono" builds up to a frantic pace, has a catchy chant and closes the album in style.

"Attahk" is not a cohesive album which flows seamlessly or hangs on a single concept like many of Magma's other albums. However, most of the songs taken on their own are very good and a lot of fun. This writer still feels that this album is very enjoyable and is funkier than anything Magma has ever done before...or since. While this album may not be among the very best that Magma has to offer, it is still quite good...especially if one considers how many of their British, Italian and American counterparts were in decline in the late 1970s. "Attahk" does not sound like a band in decline, rather it sounds more like an exploration of new territory. Unfortunately the market for this album was pretty slim. Hardcore Magma fans abandoned it, while it was not nearly mainstream enough to attract new fans. However, from the music to the H.R. Giger album cover, this listener considers it a minor masterpiece. 4 stars easily...

You've probably heard the story before: Magma is a tough band to swallow at first. I've had a hard time trying to "get" their music. My first album of theirs was Mekanik Destructiw Kommandoh and, to be honest, I didn't understand what was happening. The vocals were too grating, the beat was too repetitive and the music sounded too chaotic. Magma scared me. It took me a lot of time to understand what they were doing, years, to be a bit more precise. But one day it clicked. I don't know how to explain it. One day I played it and it all made sense. The jazz-rock, that I didn't even realized at first because of the shock of all the music, grooved throughout the whole album and I was chanting gibberish and dancing all the way until the end. The chaos in their sound started to take form and everything, even the vocals, were necessary for it to click. The repetition made it all more intense and engaging (it'll grab you, alright, and it won't let you go.) Before I knew it I was downloading albums like crazy. I was hooked on Magma like a junkie. To be fair, some albums weren't as good, but I still went through.

But if you, reader, want to get into Magma, don't do as I did, don't start with MDK. Heck! Start with K.A., since everything sounds so crisp, pounding, aggressive compared to the studio version of MDK. But if you really want to know what all the MDK fuss is about, then you should do yourself a favor a get this live album. MDK is a beast! For starters, the studio version of MDK gives more importance to the orchestration and it drowns the sound of the band. In Retrospektiw the sound is evenly balanced. The rhythm section, which is the driving force behind Magma, sounds crystal clear and up front. This is the important thing here and it does make a difference, since THEY are the band, not the orchestra. The music sounds more organic and less polished, though not less tight. Magma needs to sound gritty for it to be effective. The other composition, Theusz Hamtaahk, is no less interesting, though it is a bit less explosive. The middle section of Theusz will put you in a trance and you'll end up nodding your head without even knowing it.

All in all, this live album is a must for Magma fans and for people trying to get into 70's Magma. Considering that you're knowing what you're getting yourself into, this album will deliver, and how it delivers!

4.5, but I'd rather give it a 5 than a 4. It deserves it, and you deserve this album, too.

"Trimegisto" is the eccentric debut from Runnaway Totem. The album is truly strange. There are points in this album where I feel that they have substituted the quality of their material for the quirky weirdness of their sound. But the experience is unique and some points of this album are exceptional.

The musicianship here is quite good. While I do think that the band could have worked for some more interesting material, they have crafted quite an interesting debut. There are points in this album that I find very unnerving, which is probably why I have not liked this album more. I do not think that this is a bad thing, in fact I commend the band on creating such a chilling mood.

The two best tracks on the album are Sancta Santorum and Ala Di Corvo. Sancta Santorum is a chilling track, with a very catchy melody and excellently arranged instrumental parts. Ala Di Corvo is a fast paced track with some excellent guitar work. Both tracks stand out as excellent, and I suggest them as introductions to the album.

I like this album, even though I am still not quite used to it. I recommend to those looking for a dark and unique progressive experience.

After the release of his first album (a double) in 1980 called "Strave" the band just sort of faded away with all but one musician ( and Serge) moving on to other things. Enter ART ZOYD guitarist Alain Eckert who played on those early classic ZOYD albums ( and live with NATIONAL HEALTH in 1979 as heard on their "Playtime" recording) who asked Serge if he'd consider joining his project called the ALAIN ECKERT QUARTET. Serge did so playing drums and adding sax just like on his "Strave" recording. Then in 1981 Serge was putting a new lineup together for his next record and contacted Eckert about playing guitar on it. He obliged along with the bass player from the Eckert Quartet. The trumpet player and French horn player from the "Strave" lineup returned and Serge hired a second bass player. Also the vocalist from the debut returned and Serge hired a new sax and vibraphone player. So like the first lineup we get nine players (they counted ten on the debut but that included an alto flute player who performed on one track only). So to simplify, this new lineup has no violinist like the debut did as he was repleced by the guitarist, and a second bass player is here instead of the trombone player.

Compared to the debut this is in the same style but is harder edged and certainly more compact as it's a single album and not a double like the debut. I do like this one quite a bit better. By the way many compare this record to MAGMA's "1001 Centigrades". Certainly Bringolf and Vander are both incredible drummers and composers. Bringolf was influenced the most by Tony Williams though.

"Vision" opens with vibes as drums and vocals join in. This is melow and relaxed as the singer repeates the line over and over and then backing vocals help him out. A change before 3 1/2 minutes as the vocals stop and the music becomes more passionate. Man this guy can drum ! Vocals are back after 4 1/2 minutes and the horns help out too. Things are ratcheted up a notch around 6 minutes. Amazing ! Eckert starts to rip it up on the guitar before 7 minutes. Nice. In the liner notes they say this song hints at "Kobaia" instrumentaly and ZAO's debut becaue of the scat singing. "Plus I" is a short piece where the horns blast in a dissonant manner on and off throughout.

"Plus II" is where the drums kick in leading the way along with the basses and a bass horn. After 3 1/2 minutes these high pitched vocal expressions join in. I'm reminded of Zeuhl here because of the prominant bass. The horns then join in. So good ! "Plus III" is an intense piece with the drums standing out along with the chanting. Horns and more help out as well. "Ma-Ho. Peneta" is the final and also longest track at almost 13 1/2 minutes. Horns, chants and drums lead early then it settles some as the bass growls. This sounds so good. The chants will come and go.A change 7 1/2 minutes in as the sax will start to solo at will over top. Vibes replace the sax after 10 minutes as the guitar lights it up. It's the vocals turn before 12 minutes then the horns return.

I wasn't expecting this to be so good. A must for fans of both JRF and Zeuhl.

In 1994 Runaway Totem entered their so-called Cronos phase.It comprises of significant line-up changes, the main being the departure of the Golin/Buttiglione rhythm section and the arrival of Germano Morghen aka Tiphereth on drums and Dario Gelmetti aka Nezah on bass.The most significant though was the return of Men of Lake's Renè Modena on guitars and synths.In 1996 a new album entitled ''Zed'' was released, distributed by Black Widow and featuring several guest singers and musicians on wind instruments and keyboards.

Runaway Totem continue to perform their dark and mysterious Progressive Rock, now delivered through two very long compositions.The 22-min. title track, which opens the album, is almost entirely built around heavy dual guitar attacks and offering plenty of different groovy parts, always in a dark Prog attitude, accompanied by strong breaks by the rhythm section.The guitars are quite heavy with some powerful riffs and often a CRIMSON-ian approach, while the keyboard parts are measured but always displayed with a symphonic mood.Among the instrumental madness there are lots of male and female operatic vocals and actually the middle section offers a lengthy and quite harmonic vocal performance of sheer beauty by the band.The even longer ''Mnar'' suffers from a lengthy psychedelic intro, clocking at over 4 minutes, but the rest of the track ranges from decent to masterful.Lots of complex guitar exercises, more evident use of keyboards, pounding grooves with great guitar soli and emphatic vocals produce a track, which scans the territories of complex Prog, Rock Opera and even Gothic Rock.The atmosphere remains haunting and even more grandiose, the musicianship is powerful and bombastic and the mix of Classical influences with Heavy Prog and smoother Orchestral Rock works very good.

Runaway Totem is certainly a unique group and ''Zed'' is another proof of the fact.The Italians did it very well on creating two long and tight epics and if you are after some trully atmospheric Prog with lots of haunting themes, this album was created for you.Strongly recommended...3.5 stars.

This chamber theatre is not fictional but too realistic to be visualized.

After a short cynic raised perpendicularly, we can meet persistent sound mixture between a violin-based Zeuhlic tragedy upon the former part, a keen guitar violence merged with improvised rhythmic horrorvision upon the middle, and a deeply ethnic plus massively risky percussive extension created by fire and water palpitation upon the latter. Each part seems estranged from other at a quick listen but don't be deceived ... we can understand they should link together smoothly by listening again and again. Realism might be said via such a connection I imagine? This phenomenon can be heard in the following track, that consists of toxically randomized improvisation and melodically refined string conversation. Yes it's confrontation and let me say, at the same time, harmonization amongst heaviness, tragicness, and random access.

Female voices sound more enthusiastic, more sensual, and more magical, founded with artistic electronics, synthesizers, and strings ... all of that collapse drastically in pieces. On the other hand, drumming and guitar shouting, improvised aggressively, knock explosively and continually. In every material, classical elements (also phrases) or theatrical messages have got introduced directly or indirectly, which could be digested for its nutrition, amazingly. Honest to say, each track title cannot be linked with dramatic soundscape directly, and I guess we cannot hit the mark for their real intention without watching their (especially Jyoji's) visual material featuring dance performance and colourful dress / veils flying here and there on stage.

Obviously inspired by Magma but they should have grabbed more Japanesque articles like Kamikaze, strong miracle wind bringing luckiness for us and kicking against enemies. Such a perpetual change upon the scape can be called as Kakusen (fiction) but this soundscape be not imitative nor unsettled but intensive and perfect as a fusion amongst avantgarde progressive rock music, kaleidoscopic visual art, and Jyoji's sincere mind-games ... yup like the quiet one-minute drama upon the last part of "Shizuka Na Mahiru", really crazy moment. Recommended for all progressive music (including progressive rock) fans and all artistic concrete fans.