LES MOUETTES S'BATTENT

Perhaps the GWENDAL equivalent of MALICORNE's "Almanach" in terms of venerability, "Les Mouettes s'Battent" sees the group fully embrace the inclinations that would make them singularly irritating, specifically the overuse of ostinatos in an effort to extract significance, and wrapping a 4 to 7 minute track around them. What saves, justifies, and even elevates this particular release is the nature of the arrangements that lasso those obstinate figures, effortlessly whipping jazz, reggae, and hard rock into the trad Celtic mix, even if I've never understood the point of live drum solos longer than 15 seconds. While I think GWENDAL would have been far more effective if the group had any personnel who could or would sing, I can't rebuff the mesmerizing escalation of the title cut, the audacity of "Le Reggae gai de Gueret", the pastoral grace of "My Love is a Band Boy", and the occasionally overdone sprawl of "Je pars a Noyac" which leaves little doubt of Youenn Le Berre's leadership through this phase. You can almost see and hear the seagulls fighting over the delectable scraps strewn about here with near joyous abandon.