| # | Artist | Song (click to play) | Album | Year | CD label |
| 1 | Etron Fou Leloublan | Face A L'Extravagante Montee Des Ascenceurs, Nous Resterons Fideles A Not re Calme Determination | 43 Songs | 1979? | Musea |
| As Johnny Carson would say - "this is some weird, wild, schtuff". The music is highly original which is oftentimes very complex and sublime. And at other times, they go cookoo for Cocoa Puffs and get pretty whacked out. For the track here, I tried to pick one that was not at either extreme, but, gives a taste of both elements. (All?) of their studio albums are available on the Musea re-issue box which is on 3 CDs and contains (5?) albums. There are no liner notes and the album names are not noted on the CD re-issue, so it is difficult to know exactly what I have here. Etron Fou is considered to be one of the prime examples of the Rock-in-Opposition (RIO) style. If you like your music nice and pretty, then stay away from Etron Fou! | |||||
| 2 | Francois Breant | Les Journaux Annoncent La Guerre | Sons Optiques | 1978 | Egg (LP only) |
| This album is hard to pin down as it has many different sounds and approaches. It is all very enjoyable, though! There is a mixture of acoustic piano and electronics with additional musicians including the ever present Didier Lockwood. There are reportedly other members of Magma on this album, but, I am not familiar enough with those names to identify which ones. One piece on this album is like a miniature version of Todd Rundgren's "A Treatise on Cosmic Fire". Other bits remind me a great deal of Jan Hammer's "First Seven Days" including the track featured here. | |||||
| 3 | Zao | Ronach | Z=7L | 1973 | Musea |
| I have only heard this single Zao album, so far. The music is of the Zeuhl school with a jazzy feel. The vocals are of a jazz vocal nature - that is, not words, but, sounds and inflections. Which is okay sometimes, but, sometimes I think it gets a little silly with all the "doi-doi-da-doi-doi" stuff. To tell you the truth, though, the more I listen to it, the less the weird vocals bother me. Two members of this band are ex-members of an early version of Magma. There are many other lineages related to Zao, including Didier Lockwood, who was a member for awhile. Also, many members of the band went on to play in other important prog and fusion bands. This album is generally regarded as Zao's best album. | |||||
| 4 | Catherine Ribeiro & Alpes | Jusou'a Ce Que la Force de T'Aimer me Manque | Paix | 1972 | Si-wan |
| This album is of the psychedelic folk/prog ilk. I am not well versed in folk rock music, so I am at a loss as to what it is comparable to. But, I do find some similarities in the feel of the songs to early Moody Blues, both in the instrumentation and melodies. It is quite nice if you listen closely and immerse yourself in the music. There are some interesting long instrumental psychedelic excursion in addition to the more folk/rock elements. | |||||
| 5 | Grime | Cauchemar (part 2) | Grime | 1981 | Musae |
| Grime's sole release is a decent album, similar in style to Ange and Mona Lisa. The vocals are sometimes wild and out there, but, most of the time are very delicate and refined. The CD re-issue includes 5 bonus live tracks which are also quite excellent, 3 of which are new songs not on the original album. It is not one of my top French prog albums, but, it is definately a keeper. | |||||
| 6 | Potemkine | Tango Panache | Nicolas II | 1972 | Phaeton Records (LP only) |
| This is Potemkine's 2nd of 3(?) releases. It is instrumental fusion that has a sound similar to McLaughlin's fusion of the mid to late 70's. The first song on the album, which is featured here, actually reminds me of Allan Holdsworth's "Velvet Darkness" album more than anything. | |||||
| 7 | Art Zoyd | Simulacres | Symphonie Pour Le Jour | 1976 | Mantra Records |
| Art Zoyd is another RIO flavored band, but, tending more towards Neo-Classical than rock. The instrumentation includes: piano, viola, cello, trumpet, saxophone, violin... I believe that Art Zoyd would appeal to fans of Univers Zero. The bulk of Art Zoyd's material is available via 2 double disk compilations: Archives 1 & Archives 2. As their earliest albums are considered their best, Archives 1 is recommeded as a good starter. It contains all of their first 3 albums plus lots of additional material that you may not find anywhere else. The track featured here is from their first album, via the Archives 1 compilation. | |||||