LE PETIT VIOLON DE MR. GRÉGOIRE

Graduate with honours from the school of Ange-inspired French symphonic prog, Mona Lisa showed the world that they could surpass their masters in terms of both musicianship and musical inventiveness when they released their 3rd album "Le Petit Violon de Mr. Gregoire". Having recovered form a brief break-up period, all original members of the quintet except for guitarist Christian Gallas rejoined forces: newcomer Pascal Jardon, as a guitarist, managed to instill some fresh air and an increased sense of energy into the band's prototypical sound - in fact, I think that his work here is so inventive that it is no wonder that the ensemble feels so enthusiastic all throughout the new album's repertoire. Martin's arsenal is expanded in order to include more synth into the fold (singer/flautist LeGuennec plays some occasional synth, too), and indeed it proves quite effective when it comes to creating strong orchestrations, eerie textures, some solos which complement those performed by Jardon, and even some rhythmic ornaments that lay a bridge between Jardon's riffs and the drum/bass section. Speaking of which, Poulet and Martin interact tightly and cohesively. Last, but not least. Mr. Dominique LeGuennec plays his role as singer, master of ceremonies, story teller, grand court jester, poet, all along his singing lines, with incredible charisma and extravagant finesse. It seems like I've pretty much focused on describing the overall aspects of the performances. Now I'll say a few words about the repertoire itself. The opening instrumental 'Le Chant des Glaces' and the next one, track no. 4 'Solaris', show the band's ability to create effective melodies as writers and interact fluidly as instrumentalists - these two numbers were originally included in a brief multimedia show created by Mona Lisa one year earlier, inspired by the novella "Jonathan Livingstone, Seagull". The first sung number is 'Allons Z'enfants', which signals Jardon's debut as a music writer for Mona Lisa - a powerful, dramatic track, indeed, a perfect example of LeGuennec's charisma and performing skills. The following track, 'Le Publiphobe' is basically a soliloquy delivered by LeGuennec over solemn organ layers (somewhat similar to the closing section of PF's 'Saucerful of Secrets'), an appropriate moment of conscious reflectiveness before the explosion of joy conveyed in 'Solaris'. This brief instrumental bears a catchy set of tunes ordained in a merry fashion: the guitar leads are just gorgeous, properly complemented by the remaining instruments. Tracks 5-8 are but the four parts of the namesake suite, all of them written by Martin and LeGuennec. 'La Folie' and 'De Tout ma Haine' are mainly effective rockers with a moderate dose of complexity and plenty of fire. The fire is less intense, but the complexity is a bit more developed in part 3, 'Plus Loin vers le Ciel': the sing-along choruses bring an air of celebration among the overall density of this track. Finally, 'La Machine a Theatre', the instrumental closure that ends both the suite and the album, conveys an ethereal ambience of mystery and languid melancholy, beautiful, and very captivating. All in all, this as an excellent recording, a definitive highlight in the history of French prog rock - 4 stars, even 4 ½!