PROCRÉATION

This Quebec band started long before the great prog explotion of the mid-70's. Their first two albums under the name Morse Code Transmission (1971 and 1972) are psychedelic rock sung in English. La Marche des Hommes (1975) introduced their new style favouring organ, Mellotron and rhytmic complexity. The thick sound resembles the Nursery Cryme -era Genesis. The next album, Procréation, is perhaps more uneven, but it also contains the band's finest moments.

The instrumental opener 'Précréation' has those sharp Tony Banks -like organ notes and also a lot of room for guitar and flute. A promising start, if not yet anything very significant. The second track of under 5 minutes approaches more epic atmosphere on the unsung parts while the vocal parts stay less inspired. The brief instrumental 'Nuage' concentrates on the circulating organ melody without really taking off. 'L'eau tonne' (notice the word play; l'automne, autumn) is a melodic and light-hearted song, a curious mix of proggy instrumentation and a composition reminding of entertainment vocal music. For the vocals, I have to say that they lack any charisma. The hi-hi-hi-hi and ha-ha-ha-ha in the song 'Des hauts et des ha!' i actually irritating. Frankly, up to this point the album would hardly be worth three stars.

The real treat comes on the second side of the LP, the three-part title epic. In the sung first movement an instrumental passage already shows glimpses of something more impressive, but the song per se feels a bit uninspired. The rest of the epic wanders deeper into progressive unpredictability and wide dynamics. Now the little vocal parts succeed to increase the interest unlike earlier on the album. This is a pure prog epic in the vein of 'Supper's Ready', even if it naturally pales in comparison to such masterpiece. Oooh, that Mellotron sound! The final movement is the clear highlight, being very progressive in itself. A beautiful, meditative section starring Mellotron and flute is followed by a return to the grandiosity.

If only the whole album was as good as the second side... Unfortunately it isn't, and I feel that three stars is the most honest rating I can give. If you enjoy the French prog with the Genesis influences (Ange, Mona Lisa, ...), Morse Code is definitely worth checking out.