Les Nouveaux Mondes
Quadrifonic, 2022
9/10
Even though they’ve been on a hiatus for several years now, the French prog-rock legends Nemo decided to treat their fans to this 20th anniversary of their debut by re-recording it with their classic line up, i.e. Jean Baptiste Itier, Lionel B. Guichard, Guillaume Fontaine and JP Louveton.
“Abysses” starts the listen with a hazy atmosphere, before firm keys, thumping drums and swirling guitar enters the gritty yet melodic prog-rock, and “Dr Fergusson et les caprices du vent Vol.1 : Au dessus des toits” follows with a calm climate of expressive singing, where thicker layers and spacey ideas enter the unpredictable delivery.
“Dans la lune encore” lands at the halfway point, and it builds into a dynamic and flowing meshing of retro-rock, hard-rock and calm versus louder prog-bouts, while “Départ / Europe” moves with a quick pace of soaring and complicated rock that’s the best track included.
Approaching the end, “Nouveau monde” emits a dreamy tone that benefits from strategic keys and bursts of driving moments, and the 2 bonus tracks, “Africa” and “Bataille navale”, enlists Pascal Bertrand (drums) and Benoit Gaignon (bass) for some added music that only enhances the appeal of the reissue.
Nemo have released 9 albums of world renowned prog-rock, and here we’re brought back to how it all started. Since they haven’t officially disbanded, we can certainly hope their story isn’t over, but even if it is, the impact of their catalog has been a gift to the world that will forever be treasured.
Travels well with: Babal- Who Will I Be When I Leave?; Nine Skies- 5.20