Contrevent - "Jeu de Paume" (1985)

Contrevent was the theme a couple of weeks ago, and today I take a look at their first album, Jeu de Paume as my Quebecan theme continues. The album's title refers to an old French ball game that resembles tennis a little bit. Readers with a good memory may recall that Marc Vallée, the founder of Contrevent and its principal composer, gave me two records as a parting gift when I returned to Sweden from Quebec. Jeu de Paume was the second of these, and this one was also unopened. When I last night cautiously opened the plastic that enclosed the LP and let it out to taste the world it was almost like giving birth to a baby. (Yes, now I think I know how it is to be a woman).

It was then a very special feeling to put the LP on the turntable, knowing that it had been enclosed in its packaging for 26 years and never felt the sharp tip of the pickup. This was a moment to remember. I think the LP was happy to finally spread its sound across the universe and losing its virginity. Maybe it was disappointed that it was beig played at a cheap Pioneer amp and an even cheaper Sony turntable, on the other hand, it had nothing to compare with.

The music on Jeu de Paume is hard to define. Contrevent consisted of five members who played bass, guitar, drums, cello and vibraphone (Marc was responsible for the guitar) which means it's a special and unique sound. All the songs are instrumentals and I experience the music as very gentle. The cello, the vibraphone, and (usually) an acoustic guitar create a soundscape that's relatively soft. Marc Vallee has composed all the songs, except D'eau which François Beausoleil has written, but just like on the album Youkali Marc is in no way dominating the album. On the contrary, I would say that if any instrument often is dominating it's the cello or the vibraphone. I think this shows Marc's humility as a musician and as a human being, which also is the impression I got from him on a personal level. It also suggests that it was the music that was in focus for Marc during his time in Contrevent, not being the star. The song L'Inachevée gives us the honor of hearing Marc perform a song by himself, though.

There is no doubt that the members of Contrevent were all very talented musicians, and some of them have had a continued musical career. If someone forces me to define the music perhaps it would be jazz-prog-world-fusion, which of course is a perfectly clear term. An alternative term could be progressive elevator music, as it's pretty easy going but at the same time fairly complex. It is a diverse album with many good songs. As mentioned the sound is quite gentle and no one will be provoced by what is heard. However, I think many may be impressed by the songs and the musicians' skills.

It may be mentioned that the Jeu de Paume was the only Contrevent record as drummer Michel Dufour participated on. In the following Youkali he was replaced by Charles Paradis.

Today Marc composes a lot of music for plays and television productions in Quebec, he is also a member of Beatles Baroque, an ensemble that plays Beatles songs on classical instruments. They perform regularly in North America. He has also released an album with Marc Vallée Trio. The ones interested can read more on his website http://marcvallee.ca/marc_vallee/welcome.html

Conclusion: Jeu de Paume is another album from the city of Quebec that can be recommended. I am very pleased that it is part of my collection. Congratulations to those who find it!


Tracklist
Side A
1. Acoustifunk 3:30
2. Jeu de Paume 6:40
3. L'Inachevée 7:00

Side B
1. Crème de Menthe 4:19
2. La Chanterelle 4:50
3. D'eau 4:15
4. Brum et Glace 5:06

Theme Quebec 

 

Beau Dommage – ”Beau Dommage” (1974)

I’ll continue my theme on music from Quebec, today the region rather than the city. As in my last post, the emotions connected to this LP is more important than the content, even though the content is really good.

When I arrived in Quebec city in the summer of 2009 I knew no one, I had neither relatives nor friends. Since my life was staying at home with the kids, I had no colleagues to hang out with. All I had as adult company was my wife (and we all know how exciting that is).

In September my son started school and I picked him up on a daily basis at 3 o'clock p.m. After a while I started talking to a woman who also picked her son up every day, a boy who had started to play with my son in the playground after school. Every day we stayed in the playground for an hour and talked about this and that. It was a very friendly woman, and sometimes her partner showed up and picked up the son. He was a teacher and never worked later than 1.00 p.m., and he worked only four days a week (yes, that’s how it is to be a teacher in Quebec). To make a long story short, me and this man began to hang out and he became my best friend in Quebec. Countless times we have played soccer or ice hockey with our sons in the park and discussed various important issues. Since he, in addition to being a teacher, also was a musician, music was a topic that often came up. He teached me a lot about Quebecan music.

After two years had passed, it was time to say goodbye to the city and its people and return to Sweden. At this time, I felt a connection to the city of Quebec and liked my life, so this farewell meant some sad feelings. On one of the last days in town my friend gave me a parting gift in the form of two vinyl records, since he knew I had an interest in those. Beau dommage was one of these records, a classic Quebecan LP you had to bring home, according to my friend. He described the album as the music all the hippies in Quebec listened to. I wonder why he thought I should own a record like that?

Beau dommage is an old expression from Quebec and corresponds to absolutely in English. Pierre Huet and Michel Rivard started the art group Quenouille Bleu in 1970, the site was the University of Quebec in Montreal. Robert Léger then joined, and later Pierre Bertrand, Réal Desrosiers and Marie-Michèle Desrosiers at different times during the first two years (in 1975 Michel Hinton joined the band). In 1973 the name was changed to Beau Dommage. The album Beau Dommage was the band’s debut album and hit sales records, it also gave them the Jeune Chanson prize awarded in Cannes. They had a serie of hits from the album and the band sold more than any other Canadian band during the years of the mid-70s. The debut album, for example, sold 250 000 copies. It can be added that the follow-up sold platinum on the day of its release which was the first time this happened to a Canadian band.

The band of course toured in Canada, but also a lot in Europe. 1978 Beau Dommage broke up since some members wanted to focus on their solo careers. But in 1984 they returned and did two concerts with a subsequent live album. 1994 they were reunited once again and made a new album with the same name as the debut album. They then carried out a tour in Quebec 1995.
They are today regarded as a legendary band in the region of Quebec.

The music is very Quebecan, I think, and I recognize a lot of it from more modern Quebecan bands. It is easy to hear how bands like Beau Dommage or Harmonium has affected the music scene in Quebec, the echoes from these bands can still be heard in much of today’s music. Of course the French language puts its mark on the music but the sound is pretty typical, too. One thing that is often heard in Quebecan music, as on Beau Dommage, is the nylon stringed acoustic guitar that gives the records a rather soft and gentle sound. On Beau Dommage the songs are quite often sung in beautiful harmonies, usually in major. Yes, overall, the songs on Beau dommage are quite nice and soft, there are no neurotic anxiety-filled nightmares that are offered. Yes, maybe it's hippie music, what do I know? I like this album anyway – there are beautiful songs, I can train my French and the music reminds me of two nice years in a different part of the world. For those who are curious about music from Quebec I really recommend this album.

Tracklist

Side A

1. Tous Les Palmiers 3:20

2. À Toutes Les Fois 4:17

3. Chinatown 3:05

4. La Complainte Du Phoque En Alaska 5:15

5. Le Picbois 3:25

Side B

1. Harmonie Du Soir À Chateauguay 3:06

2. Le Géant Beaupré 4:02

3. Ginette 2:35

4. Ung Ange Gardien 2:56

5. 23 Décembre 2:14

6. Montréal 4:44

 

 

Theme of the month: Quebec
As a tribute to the city where I have lived for the past two years, but now have left.

Contrevent - "Youkali" (1989) 

Some albums in the collection have a higher value than others, usually this is not about the musical quality of the record. Maybe it’s some kind of rarity, it might be a record you've been looking for a long time, you may have received it as a gift from someone special or the music might be associated with some special event - that adventurous summer 20 years ago or the winter your first child was born. It’s an emotional value you give the record, something that often is more important than the music itself.

This is such a record. It has been in my collection just over a month, and just like when you look at your one month old baby the same feelings of warmth, joy and pride arise. "I can’t believe I have this album in my collection ...."

I have the past two years live in the city of Quebec, Canada. These years were very special, they were a departure from my regular gridded life and instead I got to spend time in a new country with a new language and new, friendly people. In addition, I took a break from my job and spent two years at home with our youngest daughter who was ten months old when we arrived in Quebec. Two special years that brought me closer to both my daughter and my older son, but also resulted in exciting new friends.

One of these new friends was the neighbour I had in the apartment above the first year. His name was Marc Vallée and he was a musician. A very friendly man who it was always nice to talk to. Usually we met in the street when he took a bike ride or when we both were going somewhere on foot. As a musician, he had a lot of exciting knowledge and thoughts about music and different bands, and often we discussed these topics.

A few days before I returned to Sweden he invited me to his apartment and we went through his very interesting vinyl collection. I must admit that his collection in both quality and quantity beats my own and it was a whole bunch of records that I jealously noted should be a part of my own. As a farewell gift, he gave me two records of which Youkali was one. This gift made me very happy and warm inside and without even listening to its contents it had immediately a very special place in my collection. And my dear friends, the record was sealed and still is. This may be my most important economical investment so far.

Why did Marc give me a sealed copy of Youkali with a band called Contrevent? Why did he own such a record? The answer, dear readers, is that he owned several, Marc was the founder of Contrevent and the principal creator of the band’s music.

Marc created Contrevent while he was studying music at the Université Laval in Quebec, the other members were fellow students to him. The first album was released in 1985 and the third and final in 1993. It’s always difficult to define music but Contrevents music is defined in different internet sites with words like fusion, jazz and progressive. Marc himself thinks the music leans more towards jazz-fusion than progressive.
Youkali was the band's second album and the music is very unique since the band had a rather unusual crew with cello, guitar, drums, vibes and bass. This gives a very special sound with interesting touches of musical spices. The instruments used might remind you of Gentle Giant but the music is generally a little more accessible than GG's creations. However, the musicians in Contrevent (just like in GG) are very talented and virtuosos on their respective instruments. The album is mostly instrumental, a female vocalist can be heard but the song Trapézoïd.

The record has a fairly timeless sound and could probably have been recorded today. When I listen to it, I get the feeling that it was great fun for the musicians to create the music. Although Marc has written most of the songs a lot of room is left for the other musicians. We hear both vibraphone and cello solos, in addition to Marc's guitar. I would even say that the guitar in no way dominates the sound, but that the responsibility is nicely divided between the different individuals in the band.

Some of you might wonder how I could have listened to a still sealed record. The answer is that Marc was kind enough to also give me an (unopened) CD of Youkali. This one I have opened and let my stereo do its work on it. The vinyl can remain unopened and thus continue its existence in mint condition.

A detail in this is that the song order on the vinyl is different than on the CD. Marc explains that someone at the record company thought, when it was time to release the album on CD, that a changed song order would get the record to sell better. This man had the idea that the record would "grow" - it would start to calm and slowly increase in tempo. In other words, the more fast-paced songs were saved to the end of the CD.

Initially, I mentioned that a record can hold various emotional factors, Youkali has many of these. It was given as a gift from a friend in Quebec and is a reminiscent of these special years. It is also something of a rarity because it’s almost impossible to obtain. Furthermore, the content is really good which increases the value further. In conclusion, this is a record I’m very happy and proud to own. It can be hard to come by but if someone succeeds I say congratulations. I highly recommend Youkali to all.

Marc Vallee has his own website:
http://marcvallee.ca/marc_vallee/welcome.html

The section on his website about Contrevent:
http://marcvallee.ca/marc_vallee/Contrevent_english.html

I did an interview with Marc, which was published on the blog UniversumNoll.com:
http://www.universumnoll.com/2011/05/marc-vallee-svarar-pa-9-fragor.html

Tracklist:

1. Mallorca (7:43)

2. Mémoires de perles (6:59)

3. Youkali (5:03)

4. Café noir (3:11)

Side B

1. Une main qui se pose (3:42)

2. Anti-statique (3:23)

3. Le Bois de la Cambre (3:25)

4. Trapézoïde (7:39)

Line-up / Musicians

Marc Vallée / guitars, synth, piano
François Beausoleil / Vibes, Kat, Perc
Russell Gagnon / cello
Gerard Paradis / bass, contrabass
Charles Paradis / drums