LE CRI DE LA TERRE

In their fourth studio release "Le Cri de la Terre", Eclat delivered their apex as members of the international progressive rock community. This album released in 2002 confirms guitarist Alain Chiarazzo as one of the most proficient ones in prog rock for the last two decades, with enough muscle and enough sensitivity as to lead the ensemble as a whole through a solid kaleidoscope of sophisticated rock. The robust dynamics elaborated by the rhythm duo of Ramousse-di Mondo and the combination of polishness and versatility provided by Thierry Masse on keyboards (as if he were a meticulously applied pupil of Watkins, Hammer and Bardens), the sonic spectrum of Eclat manages to be inventive to a very impressive degree. The namesake track kicks off the album with a fluid mixture of punch and catchiness: Cghiarazzo's guitar inputs fills the center stage most of the time, but Masse's keyboards do not pass unnoticed at all with its elegant synth layers and well- ornamented solos that alternate jazzy moods and classical tricks. With the equally powerful 'Eternité' (whose energetic vibe directly echoes the opener's) and the jazzier 'Tri- un', the listener is entitled to grasp an accurate idea of the dominant progressive particularity to be expected from teh remaining repertoire. The latter of the two aforementioend pieces features teh violin as a guest instrument, which adds an effective dose of extra color to the main melodic development. 'La Vie du Sonora' starts with a distant howling and soon reveals itself as the first sung track. Its main mood is one between standard jazz-pop and 78-81 Camel. It ca nalso remidn the listener of contemporary Minimum Vital, but the fact is that Eclat creates a more authentic progressive framework to the instrumental scheme. Ramousse states stunning bass flourishes somewhere in the middle, a thing tha tenables the track to feed its own musicality. 'La Porte...' starts with footsteps and a door opening, and then a cropuscular piano solo delivers a contemplative sonata; onca teh noise of birds in teh forest emerges, we witness the start of 'Mr. Z', a jazz-rock slow piece that makes the band certain about the need to explore their romantic side. Among Chiarazzo's excellent solos, there's some room for alternate synth and bass solso as well. 'Energies' is a piece that keeps true loyalty to its very title - it brings back the electrifying fire that the band had deliverd in fastastic terms on the album's first two pieces. It lasts 3- minutes, it really feels too short, but it is exciting to listen anyway. Are those Messrs. Jan Hammer and Allan Holdsworth duelling during the last minute? No, they are no ther than Masse and Chiarazzo. For those who couldn't get enough of the explicit intensity of 'Energies', next is 'Horizon Poupre', which provides a refreshing combination of symphonic prog and jazz-fusion in a manner that is Eclat's specialty. Once again, the guest violinist comes to help with the compeltion of the composition's sonic framework. The album's closer moves to a very different direction, a trend os progressive space-rock featuring cosmic synth layers and an eerie guitar solo. the oniric nature of this closing track brings an unexpected yet conveniently relaxing epilogue to this great album: "Le Cri de la Terre" is the culmination of Eclat's maturiry as a progressive voice of its own.