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French TV - Pardon Our French CD (album) cover

PARDON OUR FRENCH

French TV

RIO/Avant-Prog


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PROG REVIEWER
4 stars FRENCH TV, a very underrated american band. Quite odd since they provide the more 'bearable' kind of RIO/Avant prog mixed with some jazz/fusion elements. Furthermore their style also includes a lot of classical prog elements besides obvious influences of Zappa shining through every now and then; something that makes them stand out from other RIO bands. Something I have to give credit for is that they respectively take the positive aspects of every genre and leave out the chlichés, what remains is pure vitality and delight in playing.

In 2004 main composer Mike Sary brought up the big guns again, Pardon our French advanced to one of my favorite albums of it's genre. True to the motto Everything works in Mexico the first song mixes spanish/mexican rythms and melodies with stunning violin solos and Sary's overwhelming bass work. After a mellow break with some quite piano runs the sharp violin and keyboard appear again, leading over to a spanish acoustic guitar part accompanied by the violin. Sekala Dan Niskala offers asian rythms and melodies in the first half, turns rather melancholic, but not for long, it actually turns to a pretty weird song. Fripp like guitar and hand-clapping in the end, nice. Now it is time for something special. With their Pardon Our French Medley FRENCH TV created an own composition by covering some french prog bands. CARPE DIEM, ATOLL, PULSAR, ETRON FOU LELOUBAN, ANGE & SHYLOCK (I don't know all of them) are the ones to suffer for a great, independent appearing longtrack. Mike Sary really contrives to wrap those tunes up to the typical FRENCH TV sound. Anyway, this track is definitely more classical prog than RIO. Tears of a Velvet Clown abducts us to an amusement park, flute, trompet and tuba, blitheful melodies...now accordion & marimba, welcome to the circus...then applause & laughter in the background and the roller coaster ride begins. Very humorous before the music is about to change to a rather melancholic prevailing mood. Comparing the first half of the song to it's second may give an account of the song title. A weird song with an odd atmosphere, but definitely my favorite song on this album. When the Ruff Tuff Creampufss Take Over, unfortunately the last song, features a great, very deep bassline in the beginning. Altogether very slow in tempo but definitely not less in it's looniness and humor. Some improvised jazz parts are adumbrated but they are bridled and never really break out. Instead, the song gets wilder in the end and Mike Sary really pushes the envelope regarding his bass playing. A mind-blowing finish.

FRENCH TV proved again that they're a band to reckon on. If you're not familiar with RIO/Avant Prog, or have poor relations to the genre you should check out this album. It can perfectly introduce you to the genre and simultaneously be very revealing. It's engrained in the genre but mingles it with various other influences. The band takes each impact with a pinch of salt and adds a lot of humor, disguised and obvious. It may also meet with the approval of Zappa fans. But for all that I still think that Pardon our French definitely is an excellent addition to ANY prog music collection.

Strongly recommended !!!

Report this review (#37246)
Posted Wednesday, June 22, 2005 | Review Permalink
4 stars Pardon Our French is the title of French TV's eight album. After a long time, they decided to do covers again (they already had a cover of a Van Der Graaf Generator song before) and show that the name French TV is well deserved. Namely, they chose to do covers of only French artists - Ange, Pulsar, Shylock, Carpe Diem, Atoll and Etron Fou Lelouban. So, basically a wet dream for any fan of French progressive rock and a nightmare for normal people.

The line-up is again based around the bass player, Mike Sary, who is again surrounded by the right people to share his extraordinary vision. Again, they managed to create that perfect French TV organised confusion, chaos that makes sense. They must have made their fans and female fan very happy.

The first two pieces are typical of French TV. It's a typical mixture of avant-garde and the occasional symphonic rock. Once more, we see some "unusual" influence, like Mexican and oriental music. They manage to create pieces that are fluid and unforced. They decided to cover their favourite French artists on the third piece (they are French TV after all). We can hear artists like Ange, Pulsar and Rock in Opposition legends Etron Fou Lelouban. The covers are great, the female vocal replaces the male excellently, only the French accent perhaps isn't the most convincing (but it adds a certain charm, a certain je ne sais quoi) - the lack of nasals is especially noticeable. For the end, we have two more French TV classics, which again show how unpredictable the men can be with their mixture of tragic and comic, dark and humorous.

French TV are exceptional musicians with a very specific style, but they still manage to surprise with an unexpected ingredient on every album. Pardon Our French is also full of such elements. Besides that, the album is also masterfully played and produced. This effort might suit people who are more into classic prog (if for nothing else than the covers) and can serve as a good introduction for all people who aren't that into the more experimental styles. Anyway, French TV cook up a feast again and you don't feel deprived of anything at any moment.

Report this review (#204311)
Posted Wednesday, February 25, 2009 | Review Permalink

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