9th December 2009

Audio with 3 notes

Coeur Magique - Madmoiselle Marie
The BYG Deal (Finders Keepers)

This new compilation of mainly French psychedelic jazz, rock, and jazz-rock from Finders Keepers Records is FUCKING GREAT.

The BYG Deal is described by the label as “the bona-fide sonic shrapnel of the ‘68 student riots,” but, for those unfamiliar with that historical event, here’s something that might be a bit easier to parse: BYG was a French record label that put out a lot of free jazz, experimental rock, and psychedelic pop, including records by such artists as Sun Ra, Brigitte Fontaine, Archie Shepp, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Freedom, Anthony Braxton, and Gong.  This record contains “early, rare, desperate, and covert recordings” from some of those artists, like Brigitte Fontaine, Gong, and Art Ensemble of Chicago, as well as members of Soft Machine, and several others I’m not even familiar with.

Tracks like Coeur Magique’s “Madmoiselle Marie,” found at the top of this post, include screaming, acid-drenched guitars, while others, like Brigitte Fontaine and Areski’s “Ca Va Faire Un Hit” feature intense female choir-vocals, and still others, like the cuts by Art Ensemble of Chicago and Alice are softer, yet still aggressive instrumental jazz pieces.

Finding a record like this is exciting, and I think you need to give this a spin.  You just can’t fail to find something interesting on it.

P.S. This record features extensive liner notes including a history of BYG and information about each artist and song on the record, if you’re into that kind of thing.