JEAN-YVES LABAT

Unlike the debut under M. Frog which was a bizarre mishmash of 60s bubblegum pop and crazy experiment electronic sounds, UNDERWATER ELECTRONICA ORCHESTRA adopted all kinds of genres. Basically a strange mix of mutant disco and progressive electronic, the album features danceable yet syncopated bass grooves but instead of guitar riffs, focuses on all kinds of strange quirky electronic sounds that range from the bizarre oscillating moog synthesizer to simple melodic runs that simulate vocals. Odd choices of tunes include "Little Drummer Boy" which means you can celebrate Christmas with an instrumental electronic version now! There are the occasional lead guitar lines that come from nowhere. Even a saxophone pops in from time to time and the stylistic approach is much more varied.

The album is really very strange as there are moments of pure electronic ambience with no grooves, beats or any traces of rock, disco or anything but then it will jump into dance floor friendly mutant disco complete with rapped lyrics in French. The bass becomes quite funky. The A side is pretty much instrumental while the B side features LABAT on vocals but he isn't singing but rather rapping before hip hop was a thing and probably about the same time Grand Master Flash was launching the rapping vocal technique into greater awareness. One of the strangest tracks has to be the near 8-minute "The Flight of Kromak" which eschews the usual electronic shtick and sounds more like a voodoo ritual with heft African drumming and what sounds like a voodoo priest exorcising the demons outa someone!

The album begins and ends with the same moogspoitation sounds of the "Matrix 16" which is pure unadulterated electronica but what lies between is all over the map with lush space ambience one minute and then freaky mutant disco the next and then who knows what! While very melodic for the most part with intricate rhythms and fortified with all kinds of interesting sounds, UNDERWATER ELECTRONIC ORCHESTRA may not be the below water rendition of a symphony that it insinuates but rather is one of those crazy freaky albums of the 70s that was just "too" something for everyone. Too avant-garde for the disco crowds. Too disco for the progressive electronic crowds. It's unlikely many even had the chance to heard LABAT's solo works as this was underground then and remains firmly so even today. The album has never seen an official reissuing beyond its original 1976 vinyl pressing.

Overall this is one of those artists that existed in a world of his own making. Where he was in total control and took elements of this and that and decorated his musical fortress in an idiosyncratic methodology that only he alone totally understood. While many progressive types will surely hate the disco aspects of this one, i actually love me some good disco and the freaky nature of this one coupled with the disco only makes it more freaky! Definitely one of those bizarre artists that should've been on the Nurse With Wound list. LABAT would release one more solo album before suffering an injury that prevented his musical career from continuing. A novelty for sure but if you're into the weird and unorthodox, this one is quite satisfying!

However neighboring France wasn't far behind with its own wild interpretations of where electronic music could venture but it would take a few years for class acts like Jean Michel Jarre, Heldon, Philippe Besombes and the legendary Pôle Records to emerge. Before any of that there was JEAN-YVES LABAT, probably best known for his stint as keyboardist in Todd Rungren's Utopia however just before his joining ranks of the Utopian team, LABAT was experimenting in the studio under the guise of M. FROG aka Mr Frog Labat or Frog & Roll. Under this moniker, LABAT released one little obscurity under the M. FROG persona in 1973 and then quickly moved on to bigger and better things.

Released on the same Bearsville label that would find both Todd Rungren and his Utopia in its midst, M. FROG was an early experimental electronic album that didn't just noodle around for the sake of crafting bizarre sound effects that have no Earthly connection but rather constructed a slew of catchy pop rock songs to serve as the foundation to wrap the electronic wizardry around. The result was a bizarre little album that was half anchored in the world of sugary bubblegum pop of the late 60s and the wild freeform world of progressive electronic that took the 70s into the space age. In many ways M. FROG was taking the stylistic approach of the 1968 approach of the American band The United States of America with a psychedelic pop foundation and then gong bat[&*!#] crazy in decorating them with moogsploitation run amok.

A strange little electronically fueled art rock to emerge in 1973, M. FROG self-titled stand alone album (LABAT would release two more album later under his own name), the album sounded a bit anachronistic with firm ties to 60s psych pop but also looked forward to the more experimental electronic albums that scrapped the training wheels and simply went spiraling into the world of total musical freedom. Featuring 10 tracks at just over 35 minutes of playing time, M. FROG dropped a bizarre little obscurity onto the world that still remains buried in the long lost artifact pile. While not the best known example of early progressive electronic, it certainly is a strange little novelty album that rocks the electronic in the context of catchy, often cheesy pop tracks that had lost their luster some time before.

With just as many funny vocalizations as weird electronic contributions, this album comes off as rather comedic sometimes. While this was the LABAT show with him playing every instrument and singing, a few tracks such as "Monkey People" feature an uncredited female singer. The album is actually quite diverse in its approach with many styles of embellishment accompanying the catchy pop songs with a few unexpected deviations from the rather orthodox song structures. The album is orchestrated quite brilliantly with sounds of theremin, faux horn sections and of course plenty of moog organ contributions that make this sound very much connected to the era it was released in. The album also showcases some pop free moments with the electronic meditation freakery "Welcome Home" which offers a respite from the regularly scheduled program.

While not exactly one of the prime examples of the world of progressive electronic in the early 1970s, if by chance you were smitten with the psych pop meets electronic experimentation style of The United States of America's 1968 classic release then you will find yourself loving this one as well. This is one of those albums that straddles two completely different worlds and yet finds clever ways to bridge them. That is the attribute i find most appealing about M. FROG's sole offering to the world. The pop songs are instantly warm and fuzzy and bring back that good old 60s feel good vibe whereas the dark electronic additions offer a bizarre contrast that Wendy Carlos never could have foreseen. Overall i like this one a lot and appreciate the bold leap into two completely different worlds and somehow finding resolve.