UNIT WAIL

It really isn't until the final two tracks which happen to be the longest ones on here that I feel the band returns to more of that sound that I like. A lot of the music is dark and metallic you could say and while the trumpet does add quite a bit I just wasn't that impressed overall. A lot of atmosphere here and I like the electric piano when they use it. Let's look at the two I like beginning with "Le Sas" at 7 1/2 minutes. A drum intro gives way quickly to guitar, bass and more. It calms right down around a minute in but it's very cool sounding with the drums and atmosphere. It turns experimental then a change as drums and guitar take over. Electric piano replaces the guitar but the guitar is back quickly. Nice bass here and I like when they amp it up around 5 1/2 minutes.

"Le Monde D'en Dessous" ends it at 8 1/2 minutes and my favourite song on here. Fromy opens with his inventive guitar leads before it settles in with lots going on. It's heavier after 2 minutes then trumpet arrives before 3 1/2 minutes. It kicks in again at 5 1/2 minutes plus the tempo picks up and this continues for the next 3 minutes to the end and it's my favourite section on the album.

I highly recommend "Retort" my favourite from this band where Franck does all the guitar work. The debut is next with a bit of a Zeuhl flavour followed by "Beyond Space Edges" then this one.

1. "Kakodeamon" (3:40) great opener! What a pace! Let's me know how these guys have grown: far more cohesive King Crimson-influenced Zeuhl. A top three song. (9/10)

2. "Peregrinatio" (4:11) kind of a continuation and variation on the opener with more synth and lead guitar inputs and more prominent "lead" bass. Mellotron is much more prominent--and ubiquitous--on these songs than on Pangaea Proxima. (8.5/10)

3. "Tertium Comparationis" (3:33) It's like that bass is talking to us! Electronica synth and Fripptonian guitars. After 90 seconds there is an unexpected quieting while TOBY DRIVER-like effected lead guitar plays some notes in the background. Then Mellotrons drench the scape as we return to the opening weave. Interesting. Perhaps this is where Toby got some of his impetus for turning back to 1980s techno-soundscapes. (8.5/10)

4. "Concupiscentia Effrenata" (3:28) sounds like a mix between OZRIC TENTACLES and some of jazz-rock fusion's more adventurous keyboard explorers (Herbie Hancock, Jan Hammer, Chick Corea, Edgar Winter, Moogy Klingman). Very jazzy. A top three song for me. (8.75/10)

5. "PumaPunku" (5:35) very CRIMSON-like. My other top three song. (9/10)

6. "Numinosity" (4:03) surprisingly sedate and straightforward (for a King Crimson-inspired song). (8.25/10)

7. "Agathodeamon" (4:07) love the 1970s-like harpsichord hits! Very cinematic with it's long start-n-stop first half and brief passages into fifth gear--like a car chase scene. (8.5/10)

8. "Coincidentia Oppositorum" (3:47) (8/10)

9. "Fixatio" (4:20) I still get a kick out this band's use of the "harpsichord" sound--especially when the music turns so dark and CRIMSON-like as it does here. Then there's the Jaco Pastorius tribute in the middle. (8.25/10)

10. "Aqua Permanens" (6:46) more harpsichord! More cerebral, methodic and NIL-like in its Zeuhlishness. I like the Jaco display in the middle of this one much more than on the previous song. (13/15)

Total Time 43:07

I don't know why, but bass and drummer Adrain Luna and Philippe Haxaire, respectively, are much more tame in this collection of songs than on the band's debut. As a matter of fact, the entire album's collection of music seems more sedate and controlled (and Mellotron-dominated) than the display of wild on-the-edge reckless abandon that Pangaea Proxima put forth. It's as if the band recorded the songs of Retort after the one night of wild amphetamine abuse explored on Pangaea Proxima.

I really have trouble rating this next to its predecessor as they are two completely different animals, wild and tamed--and yet only one year apart!

B/four stars; another very nice contribution to the 21st Century Zeuhl renaissance and a nice show of growth and maturity from this energetic, creative band. Highly recommended for lovers of Zeuhl and 2nd incarnation King Crimson (1972-5).

Line-up / Musicians: - Franck William Fromy / guitar - Philippe Haxaire / drums - Adrian Luna / bass - Vincent Sicot Vantalon / keyboards - Emmanuel Pothier / synthesizers

1. "Mesozoïc Cities" (3:22) more like Red-era King Crimson! They've got that polyrhythmic thing going on (though I'm not sure it always works). (8.5/10)

2. "Ombos" (3:39) paced a little more humanely to allow for proper brain processing, this one has some melody! (8.5/10)

3. "Télété" (2:41) drum and bass on display! Interesting use of harpsichord sound and 'tron! (4.25/5)

4. "Sargasso Sea" (4:03) atmospheric effects joined by TOE-like drums, ominous electric guitar strokes and Mellotron. (8.75/10)

5. "Outerspace" (4:57) almost European techno-dance music! Very creative synths, guitars, and bass. Great drumming--except it almost doesn't fit the mood of the rest of the musicians. (8.25/10)

6. "Humanoïd Fish From Encelade" (2:23) a very bizarre spliced-feeling purveyed by unusual sounds created by bass, guitars, and keys all played over the usual frenzied drumming. (4/5)

7. "Home of Nowhere" (4:31) slow and menacing, like a damaging walk through Tokyo by Godzilla. Awful bass solo in the fourth minute! Now this one could've used the drummer's usual wild drumming! (8/10)

8. "Magnétostriction" (2:38) angular guitar soloing over relatively slow and stable music. (4/5)

9. "Holocene Extinction" (3:35) The innovative bass sound on this catchy song is almost MICK KARN-like. (8.75/10)

10. "Shambhala" (5:15) the interplay of the Outer Limits-like lead synth sound and the wild MICK KARN-like bass sound and play definitely incurs smiles (and is impressively creative!). (8.5/10)

11. "Three Eyes" (2:23) more angular guitar soloing over a rather wide range of styles and paces (including prominent piano presence) makes for quite a multiple personality disorder. (4.25/5)

12. "Subdeath" (4:43) it does sound funereal--as if one were marching alongside Charon on one's entry into Hades. Nice use of demonic male voice in narration. (8.25/10)

Total Time 44:10

Very impressive musicianship throughout--especially from the drummer and bass player though the keyboard maestroes and guitarist are very creative. The problem comes from the gradual disconnect that I hear and feel between the music being cast by everybody except the drummer (which is very creative and spacey) and the homogeneity of the drummer's very aggressive sound and style.

B/four stars; an impressive debut and highly recommended listen for any prog lover--especially if you're into 1. the Red-era King Crimson style and sound palette, 2. into frenetic drum-centric music, or 3. very creative sound-making.

A 12 tracks release which in themselves contain mini-structures which can turn loose to recover themselves in different creative ways. So let me mention that this ways can turn from syncopated guitar Rock to Electronic Jazz tainted with Prog Electronic details and slapping or deep bottom basses marching along a frantic but masterfully unobtrusive drumming.

As told the use of minor chords and irreverent musical solutions impeccably performed exalt its obscure songwriting directions which of course are, if taggings permitted, a perfect trip between the Rock in Opposition, Avant Garde and Zeuhl sub-genres, all surprisingly tied and wrapped, most of the times, with the raunchiest and mostly undercovered inventive electric guitar I've have heard for a while. At close distance this effort's real deal is how well each member brings their best not only performance wise but amazingly by contributing in its music structures composition.

Expect a dark colored thrill, expect chaotic but controlled fun and mostly let yourself go!

****4 "too irreverent to praise for too good to ignore" PA stars

The lavish CD booklet reveals, by way of Martin Peronard's surreal and bent illustrations, a baffling story of space travel that the music presents, and with that burst of colour on the front cover, it shouldn't be surprising to find Unit Wail's most colourful release to date. The opening few seconds of `Imminent Take-Off', with its tease of Fromy's droning guitars and ambient synth trickles soon gives way to eerie and Mellotron moodiness, electric piano tip-toes and thick murky upfront bass throughout the mysterious and edgy `Niggurat on the Moon'. `Through the Wormhole' is an up-tempo thrash of Adrian Luna's chunky bass constantly leaping forwards and retreating back to the shadows, Phillipe Haxaire's skittering drums, rippling electronics and grungy guitar tantrums, the 'Tron taking on a maddening infernal evilness. Equally lightly psychedelic, jazzy and even gothic, `Psycho-Active Atmosphere' is a ghoulish delight that shimmers with pulsing and playful devilish bass and guitars that jangle with an 80's Crimson sheen, and `Deep Inside Megalopolis' towers with a gothic symphonic imposing grandness, mud-thick guitars and mucky bass delivering filthy grooves amongst phasing synth skies.

The album takes an interesting detour with the more genuinely Zeuhl-styled `Polymorphus the Wise', a creeping gothic nightmare with a twisted, mock-operatic guttural male wordless vocal from guest Sam Benzo slithering through murmuring stuttering bass convulsions and strangled guitars. `Crash on Planet X' plods with menacing danger, and the spacey `Terelithic Spaceship' bristles with ballistic bass eruptions alongside Emmanuel Sicot-Vantalon's shimmering synths and even some welcome (if fleeting) lighter themes. One of the longer pieces at over six minutes means `D.N.A.A.T.M' offers more of a sustained mood, moving back and forth between careful unearthly ruminations and wild manic outbursts, and it's mix of building and crashing drums, buzzing electronics, and guitar and bass distortion is very disorientating and satisfying, nice creeping organ too! `Engage Mutation' is simply a killer rock-out that proves quite accessible, and the disc closes on a further lengthier exploration, `I See Earth' with guest Ana Carla Maza's groaning cello and scratchy demented violin, a vacuum of distortion, electronic trickles and unnerving harpsichord. It's another interesting diversion that oddly doesn't really build to a suitably exciting climax, but hopefully the band continues to explore sounds like this on future albums.

This is a very solid and frequently thrilling new work from Unit Wail, with endless energy and constant manic tearing instrumental displays, and Adrian Luna's bass playing is easily some of the absolute best to appear on a progressive-related release in 2015. Comparing it to their previous albums reveals a bit of repetition and a feeling of `same-old' in just a few stretches, even if it still all sounds satisfyingly wicked and shows great variety overall. Perhaps the band could soon explore longer, drawn-out pieces more often and opposed to so many blasting little fragments that come and go in an instant (the majority of the tracks here run just over the three minute mark)? But `Beyond Space Edges' is a successful crossover of everything from Zeuhl, avant-garde, goth and psych, Mellotron freaks will love the orgasm of 'Tron dripping over every inch of the disc, and it proves a very addictive and hypnotic album that crawls under your skin and begs to be played over and over!

Four stars.

"Imminent Take-Off" has plenty of atmosphere to start then it kicks into gear just before a minute. "Ziggurat On The Moon" has a haunting mellotron intro as other sounds start to come and go. Things start to pick up but there's still lots of mellotron as the drums, bass and guitar impress. Some angular guitar lines 3 1/2 minutes in then the bass, drums and mellotron lead to the end. "Through The Wormhole" features lots of complexity as they start and stop on a dime. A change before 2 minutes as the mellotron rolls in. The tempo picks up a minute later as that complexity returns. "Psycho-Active Atmosphere" has lots of intricate sounds coming and going as the mellotron sweeps in and out. Sounds echo at times and check out the bass before 2 1/2 minutes. "Deep Inside Megalopolis" has some nice drum and guitar expressions. Some crazy electronics too at times. It's intense after 3 minutes.

"Polymorphus The Wise" has more of that high pitched guitar sounds as the bass and drums support. This is dark and ominous. Some strange vocal expressions before 2 1/2 minutes. When the vocals stop the mellotron and guitar offer a spacey soundscape. "Crash On Planet X" features more treated guitar, random drum patterns, mellotron and more. "Teralithic Spaceship" is my favourite. I really like the mellotron along with the keys and that dark sound. Some killer guitar work follows then back to that earlier sound. "D.N.A.A.T.M." has a cool sounding soundscape before it kicks into gear before 2 minutes. The guitar is so technical later on. "Engage Mutation" has some killer drumming and guitar work as the mellotron comes and goes. "I See Earth" has cello early on and it's quite experimental. It picks up before 2 minutes. Some nice bass before 4 1/2 minutes with spacey sounds and more cello later.

I still feel that "Retort" is their best followed by the debut then "Beyond Space Edges" which for my tastes just doesn't measure up to their other two recordings.

"Kakodeamon" is dark with intricate sounds to start as the mellotron rolls in. Here we go! Killer bass right here man, and throughout actually. A calm before 3 minutes with plenty of atmosphere as we get random drum patterns to the end. "Peregrinatio" has some incredible drum work early on as the mellotron waves crash the soundscape along with the ever-present bass lines. The tempo continues to shift. This is so good. More mellotron choirs after 2 minutes. It's quite intense a minute later with the guitar and bass killing it then the mellotron is back! "Tertium Comparations" might be my favourite track. Cymbals and some inventive guitar expressions to start as the mellotron arrives. It then turns fuller as the guitar grinds away. When it settles back it sounds amazing, then the guitar returns again grinding away as it builds. Contrasts continue and I have to say Franck is outstanding on this one not so surprisingly.

"Concupiscentia Effrenata" opens with dark piano along with drums and some atmosphere as the guitar joins in. The guitar is quite jazzy sounding surprisingly but not for long as it all turns more powerful. It's dark after 2 minutes. "Pumapunku" opens with what sounds like hurdy-gurdy as the mellotron choirs bring in a haunting element. Scary is the word. It starts to pickup before 2 minutes and some cool guitar sounds follow as the bass digs deep. It's so intense 4 1/2 minutes in then that hurdy-gurdy-like sound returns to end it. "Numinosity" has such an amazing bass/drum intro as the mellotron storms in. The guitar again impresses me so much. What a thumping rhythm on this one.

"Agathodeamon" has a nice drum intro as the bass joins in followed by mellotron choirs. So good! I like he guitar before 1 1/2 minutes and the band is kicking ass before 3 1/2 minutes to the end. "Coincidentia Oppositorum" features some ground shaking bass lines and the drumming is incredible as the mellotron joins the party. "Fixatio" opens with guitar, bass and drums standing out then the mellotron starts to soar before a sudden change as fast paced drums and mellotron lead. It does settle back quickly though and themes are repeated. Some angular guitar 3 1/2 minutes in. "Aqua Permanens" is the longest track at almost 7 minutes. What a composition! Again the mellotron, guitar, bass and drums impress. This song possesses many shades and textures I must say.

Without question this is a top ten release from 2013. There's this dark energy that seems to be associated with Franck Fromy that to be honest scares the hell out of me. Enjoy!

Energetic and twisting, dark Avant Prog is Unit Wail's proposal on this release, fairly complex, extremely adventurous and very intricate stuff all the way.You should ask how such a group with two keyboardists on paper would sound, but the answer is easier than you should expect, as things appear to be pretty balanced in here, no apparent dual keyboard/synth deliveries, Vantalon and Pothier rarely get in each other's way.What's really unique is the constant presence of a Mellotron around, combine this with the haunting and robotic guitar plays of Fromy and you will often think that the ghost of old KING CRIMSON was present at the time of the recordings.Now, the album contains three quarters of an hour music divided in 12 short cuts and the material is trully compressed and dense in ''Pangaea proxima''.Complex rhythmic patterns, switching tempos and schizophenic bass work and drumming meet Vantalon's powerful Mellotron and the synth exercises of Pothier, stuff is usually fast-paced with rich and dynamic executions and a little atmosphere in some of Fromy's background, almost spacey solos.There is a certain French Zeuhl taste in the throbbing grooves, but this is more of an Avant Prog offering, comparable sometimes to YUGEN's most complex ideas.

Cool Heavy/Avant Prog with a certain direction and well-constructed pieces.Non-mystified should stay away, this one should be a great entry for all lovers of frenetic, complicated musical adventurues.Recommended.

Up first is "Mesozoic Cities" where the first sounds we hear are of Franck's distorted guitar crying out as the rest of the band join in but the guitar stands out most. It picks up speed and I must say I like the drumming here as it seems sporadic. Keys replace the guitar before 2 minutes with background synths giving the song a different vibe although it's still dark. The guitar is back to end it. "Ombos" is haunting with some jarring sounds bringing UNIVERS ZERO to mind. The guitar comes in playing angular melodies over top of the darkness. Check out the drumming after 2 minutes after the guitar fades to the background. Sounds like electronics joining in as well.

"Telete" opens with drums and bass before we get some brief mellotron. I like this a lot. The mellotron is back and the bass and drums are so intricate here as the guitar is strummed. "Sargasso Sea" takes us back into the night then suddenly it all speeds up and the distorted guitar plays over top with mellotron waves in tow. great stuff ! It settles back again but the tempo will coninue to shift. Insane guitar late. "Outerspace" blows me away because the synths sound so much like PORCUPINE TREE. Who would have thought ? It opens with electronics and when it kicks in i'm thinking of the psychedelic period of PT. mainly because of the tone of the guitar. Man this is so good ! The drums are aggressive and the bass is digging very deep. My favourite tune right here, very impressive.

"Humanoid Fish From Encelade" is different with a multitude of sounds coming and going. Mellotron comes and goes. "Home Of Nowhere" is the darkest yet as we get this creepy and ominous soundscape then the mellotron joins in just to add to the fear they are creating. "Magnetostriction" is fairly uptempo and fuzzed out. Nice. "Holocene Extinction" opens like we are in a dream then it kicks in before a minute. Contrasts continue. "Shambhala" is the longest track at almost 5 1/2 minutes. Piano, bass, drums, guitar and mellotron before it all picks up. There's so many things I want to focus on here. A very interesting track to say the least. "Three Eyes" opens with ominous guitar sounds then the tempo picks up with some killer playing by all. It settles back as the contrasts continue. "Subdeath" like the previous tune features some dark sounding guitar expressions but with a marching styled beat like we're heading to the grave. Piano joins in as the guitar cries out. The spoken words before 3 minutes sound like the are from Death himself welcoming us to our final abode. It starts to get frantic or is that me. What a way to end the album !

Just a great start for this band and I must say that after hearing the followup "Retort" recently these guys are only getting better.

`Retort' is filled with a terrifying dark intensity, the band kicking up an almighty racket that is constantly aggressive and attacking. There's not much room for improvisation, instead the band favour concise and tightly composed instrumental rock/Zeuhl pieces that also incorporate industrial, gothic, jazz, electronic experimentation and a subtle RIO tone. Most of the Zeuhl flavour comes from Adrian Luna's fluid bass that is mixed so thick and upfront. and his performance dominates the entire disc, easily some of the best bass playing on any album this year. Drummer Philippe Hazaire plays like a man possessed, whipping up a ferocious dirty fury that tears through the compositions. Keyboard players Emmanuel Pothier and Vincent Sicot Vantalon ply the most haunting and intimidating Mellotron over so much of the album, the instrument never sounding more frightening and intense than it is here. There's no let up, and when the band calms down for even a second, even the few quieter moments are filled with a lurking, eerie tension. This is definitely a modern type of prog, noisy and intense, very likely of interest to fans of heavier music - this is certainly not your Dad's prog band!

Tracks like the thrashing `Kakodeamon' fills you with a clawing dread right from the start, quickly ripped apart with brooding rolling percussion, tip-toeing piano, glistening imperial Mellotron and endless punchy snarling bass. Rippling electronic crackles, malevolent piano and a ghostly Mellotron choir beats the listener into submission on `Peregrinatio', and both `Tertium Comparationis', full of invading alien hostility with loopy swallowing bass and bubbling synth effects, and `Concupiscentia Effrenata's jazzy drumming and dark drama recall the sci-fi Zeuhl of Italy's Universal Totem Orchestra.

`Pumapunku' starts as a doomy Mellotron choir funereal procession, before running through a range of tempos and strident beats back and forth over strangled guitar wailing. `Numinosity' quickly descends into a distorted deranged funkiness, and founding member Frank Fromy's guitars throughout the darkly grooving and scratchy Mellotron fuelled `Agathodeamon' take on a serrated Adrien Belew of King Crimson intensity. The menacing and stalking `Flixatio' is like a race for survival, taking in sections of heavy brooding haunted house atmosphere and frantic chaotic drum storms over harsh guitars. Closer `Aqua Permanens', the most complex, varied and challenging composition on the album, quickly claws under your skin, full of jazzy bass, floating synths, spontaneous piano, grinding buzzsaw guitars and driving drums racing through a varied range of tempos.

The inside of the simple CD booklet offers unsettling and cryptic descriptions of what each track is about, and these vivid words compliment the unease brought on by the music perfectly. At first you'll simply be stunned by Unit Wail's level of power, but repeated plays reveals the subtle complexity to the compositions as well as the variety, skill and talent of the musicians, the whole band playing with so much confidence. `Retort' is easily one of the best Zeuhl albums of 2013 along with Rhun's `Fanfare Du Chaos' and Setna's `Guerison'. Only time will tell if this stunner gets to sit alongside such classic albums of the genre as Dun `Eros' and Serge Bringolf's `Vision'.

Four and a half stars.