Francois Thollot is a very talented man,who on his first album played all the instruments,the bass,drums,guitar and piano.On this one he calls in some friends to help out,namely Phillipe Bussonnet on bass(MAGMA) and Daniel Jeand'heur on drums(ONE SHOT).From the very first listen i loved this album,and the love has grown.Imagine Robert Fripp playing guitar in a Zeuhl band with a very accomplished Zeuhl bassist, and a drummer who recalls the great jazz drummers.This is dark but not sinister in any way.The piano is such a key ingredient as well.It sounds more like a keyboard to me,and it adds to the melancholic vibe found here. "Ascension" is such an amazing song.The angular guitar melodies with piano, and one of the best rhythm sections i have heard in a while.It's cool when the guitar and piano play the same notes 3 1/2 minutes in,and listen carefully to the way this guy plays drums.Impressive. "Histoire Triste" is more laid back with some beautiful guitar melodies,light drums and piano.Just a great sound.The song does speed up before reverting back to the original melody with those mournful guitar melodies. "Promenade Urgente" features some great bass lines while the drums pound away and the guitar grinds out some melodies.There is a brief calm before the magic comes back. "13e Parallele" opens with intricate guitar melodies that are joined by the piano playing the same melody.Nice.The bass is fantastic and the sound is heavy.The guitar is angular and dark,just the way i like it.Check out the bass later on as well.What a song! "Etude Plombee" made me say to myself "This guy can really play bass".Then i thought "Francois can really play guitar".You know what? They are all incredible musicians.The guitar is firing off some angular solos while the bass continues to boggle my mind.Hey the piano and drumming is wonderful as well. Great track! "Blues Du Crabe" has a jazz vibe to it,the bass is relentless, and there are lots of cymbals.As the guitar comes in the jazz flavour goes away. "Cyclopede" has more angular guitar with some great drum patterns to enjoy. "Leon Le Herisson" is an uptempo tune with Fripp like guitar and piano.The bass playing really shines late in the song. "Cabanon Oriental" features some heavy bass and drums as the guitar plays slowly over top.Nice. "Indefiniment" is the only song with synths,and they arrive 2 1/2 minutes in.The drumming is impressive as usual,as the guitar joins in to create a terrific melody.The guitar to end the song is a highlight. I had no idea what to expect with this record,but i didn't consider that it would become one of my favourite records. It has.
:::Review by sinkadotentree:::
François Thollot – Contact (2002)
1. Ascension 6:03
2. Histoire Triste 4:30
3. Promenade Urgente 4:18
4. 13e Parallèle 5:38
5. Etude Plombée 4:11
6. Blues Du Crabe 4:00
7. Cyclopède 4:39
8. Léon Le Hérisson 3:36
9. Cabanon Oriental 3:39
10. Indéfiniment 4:35
Musicians
- François Thollot / guitar, keyboards
- Philippe Bussonnet / bass
- Daniel Jeand'heur / drums, keyboards
:::try it:::