An essential element of the Aquaserge collective, a searching mind soaked in lava-lamp goo, a collaborator of Bertrand Burgalat, Philippe Katerine, April March and Stereolab: this is Julien Gasc. Let’s tackle the question of Gasc\u2019s sometimes slightly dissonant voice head-on: we don’t give a damn, the overall result more than makes up for it, as it borders on near-perfect pop. In fact, on \u201cUndying Eyes\u201d, the last track of the album and the only one in the language of Sir Elton John (don’t trust \u201cWe’re so in love\u201d and \u201cGiles and Jones\u201d), Gasc hits those notes and makes them hauntingly celestial. It sounds like Sufjan Stevens!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gasc, then, is another French artist drining from the well of Robert Wyatt and Jean-Claude Vannier \u2013 not that we\u2019re complaining \u2013 to achieve an irreproachable, up-to-date glorification of the psychedelic prog-jazz aesthetic whose foundations were once laid by the aforementioned pair. Note the tropical incursion \u201cMacarabela\u201d, which suggests more the Macarana de Rio (the famous football stadium) than the Macarena of Los del R\u00edo. Also noteworthy is the splash of\u00a0 Americana at the end of \u201cPagode\u201d, in the form of a solid pedal steel solo performed by Harry Bohay. Worthy of note are Catherine Hershey’s exemplary back-up vocals, and the rhythm section consisting of drummer C\u00e9dric Monzali, bassist Syd Kemp and percussionist Eno Inwang are.And what does all this have to do with Jack London, given the album title\u2019s correspondence to that of the great writer’s most famous novel? A reference to the title of Gasc\u2019s own first solo release in 2013, Cerf, Biche et Faon<\/em>? We may never know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n