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Why do most German, Skandinavian and
Polish progressive rock bands choose to sing in English? Probably
because it’s the most obvious language to go with rock. This is why
I was tempted to lay Prélude à la ruine aside when I first
heard it. French is just not convincing enough to carry a
progressive rock album, I thought.
Knowing this is a lousy reason not to give anyone any credit I
listened to the album again… and again.
I learned that it is very versatile.
Combining heavy bass with intelligent percussion and alternating
synthesiser and guitar solos, Nemo offers real progressive rock.
They are not restricted to one style as they combine Pat Travers-like
guitar playing with obvious Yes influences (in Les yeux
fermés it seems as if Steve Howe were playing the
guitar), and then switching to some ELP or Deep
Purple (in Tous les chemins the guitar and Hammond organ
solo strongly remind of Child in Time, including the sudden
break into silence, giving way to a bluesy guitar).
I still keep saying that it’s a pity
the lyrics are in French. It’s as if the wrong instrument was chosen
to be added to the other instruments. The only track in which the
marriage between music and language seems to successful is Eve et
le genie du mal. The guitar, plenty with effects, seems to speak
the same language as the singer in a beautiful ballad which one way
or another seems to have its roots in the French chanson. A bit
weird but beautiful!
As if Nemo were aware of the ‘language
problem’ themselves, they experiment on singing in English in the
bonus tracks on the single (Eve et le genie du mal). Bad
idea, because the singer (whose voice is rather average I must say)
sings the most lousy English. When think is pronounced as
sink, this is funny in series like ‘Allo allo’ but not on
a rock album. In that case one should certainly keep one’s hands off
a masterpiece like the Beatles’ Strawberry Fields Forever.
It
would be unfair though to end this review in such a negative way,
because the music on the full cd is really good and worthy of the
progressive rock label. So good that one even learns to live with
the imperfectness of the vocalist. Perhaps Nemo should look for a
native English singer with an excellent voice. I’m sure they would
make records that would be wanted by many. |
