Beekstraat 1 - B-2640 Mortsel - Belgium

UNIVERS ZERO: Implosion

Release

Style

www.univers-zero.com

Dear foreign reader, behold the truth: Belgium is not an organic nation but an artificial one, sheltering three cultures and languages: Dutch (Flemish), French (Walloon) and German. That’s the reason why Belgians are rarely chauvinistic. And the few exceptions, like Tintin, Hercules Poirot and French (!) fries, are often claimed cultural heritage by the French (no offence intended). But if you are looking for something Belgian that is really worth checking out, it must be Univers Zero. Since its inception in 1974 a mainly French speaking ensemble, it nowadays consists of diverse Flemish musicians who are related to the scene of Contemporary and New Music. But the central character in the UZ story remains drummer ‘extraordinaire’ Daniel Denis, watching over the band’s integrity.

In 2004, due to their 30^th anniversary, Denis wrote sixteen new pieces, thus shaping the new album ‘Implosion’. As to its experimentation and instrumentation, it continues in the vein of predecessor ‘Rhythmix’ (2002). This means integrating electronics and samplers in their originally acoustic sound. Like King Crimson, Univers Zero follows the evolution in music technology and uses from it when interesting. In fact, there are more parallels to draw between KC and UZ. They’re both on the darkest and most experimental side of prog. In the seventies, UZ were hailed as a band similar to legendary Henry Cow. The latter pioneered in the so-called Rock-In-Opposition or RIO, blending instrumental complexity, instrumentation that is unorthodox in rock, and politically left-wing lyrics. UZ displayed in those days dark and haunting ‘chamber rock’ on classic albums such as ‘Heresie’ and ‘Ceux Du Dehors’, which are widely considered their masterpieces.

On ‘Implosion’ however, the elegantly crafted art-rock based upon obsessive rhythms is in good shape, but their notoriously captivating climate of danger and menace and their nightmarish vision make room for melancholia. It seems their haunting days are over. Musically, it is still challenging though. The influences drawn from 20^th century classical (especially expressionistic) music are still here. ‘If Stravinsky had a rock band, it would sound like this’, someone once described UZ. A pity though, that the meaning of some (short) electronic tracks is slipping my mind. This record comes well executed and produced, the sound recording is both warm and clear. But if you haven’t heard of them yet and would like to get to know this legendary band, I recommend their earlier work.

Musicians

1. Suintement (Oozing) (1:13)
2. Falling Rain Dance (4:12)
3. Partch’s X-Ray (5:21)
4. Rapt D’Abdallah (3:01)
5. Miroirs (Mirrors) (1:18)
6. La Mort de Sophocle (Sophocle’s Death) (3:11)
7. Ectoplasme (1:07)
8. Temps Neufs (4:56)
9. Mellotronic (4:04)
10. Bacteria (1:28)
11. Out of Space 4 (2:52)
12. First Short Dance (0:42)
13. Second Short Dance (0:41)
14. Variations on Mellotronic’s Theme (3:04)
15. A Rebours (In Reverse) (1:56)
16. Meandres (Meanderings) (9:38)

1313 (1977)
Heresie (1979)
Ceux Du Dehors (1981)
Crawling Wind (1983)
Uzed (1984)
Heatwave (1986)
The Hard Quest (1999)
Rhythmix (2002)
Implosion (2004)

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Last updated: 20 augustus 2005 .
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