Fantazio / The Sweet Little Mother Fucking Show

"Beats made by beasts"

The Sweet Little Mother Fucking Show is a hard album to review. There’s no use saying it reminds you of so and so as the usual genres and reference points go out the window for this one. The album feels a little bit like a traveling circus or a traveling experiment where anything goes. If the album where a film it might look something like ‘time of the gypsies’. It’s more of an experience and by the end of it you feel like you’ve been invited into another realm of possibilities. Central to the sound of the record is of course the double bass of Fantazio himself. Guitar, drums, saxophone, percussion and samples are some of the instruments and sounds which then flesh out the score of this gypsy-like extravaganza.

The SLMFS sets out to travel the globe. The voyage begins with opener 'Seven Days' where the singer wakes up in Rome and further travels then include Thailand, Japan and London. But the record doesn’t just travel lyrically it also travels musically. In fact some parts of the record sound like an ongoing improvisation. As though the traveling or improvisations are happening as we listen to them. Perhaps this is what Fantazio is alluding to when he sings on ‘Learn’, “help me to learn day by day how to catch the wind and let it fly away”. This voyage, perhaps like the improvisation, should have no end. It is the voyage itself and not the destination that is important. When you reach the destination you should let it fly away or you’ll never move forward again. This idea gets re-emphasized on track ‘Debarasse Toi’ where Fantazio puts the point across more crudely, “Debarrasse toi de tout ces idols et en invente des moins connes et têtue. Debarrasse toi des contractions bien figées et débrouilles toi de continuer un chantier”.

There are some great lighter pop moments on this record. ‘Adrile Dreams’ grooves along in a dub reggae kind of way with a twinkle of piano stuck in here and there. ‘El Docteur’ jumps and swings away nicely. It’s the kind of song that could even get mainstream radio play if it weren’t for the fact that the junkie in the song keeps wanting to “fuck his doctor”. It seems that popularity isn’t something that Fantazio is going to give into easily. On ‘La Musique Populaire’ he tells detractors advising him on how to attract more people to his concerts that their “pop and rock festivals” can basically go and fuck off. There is a real punk sensibility to Fantazio. You feel that he’s created his world on his own terms. Which may be why, on track 15, ‘Punks of London’ he sounds pretty disillusioned with the “official” punk philosophy which has evolved so little since the late 70’s. “Punks of London, they don’t know my name” he seems to shout reproachfully.

‘Sad times’ is a beautiful song which fittingly brings the album towards its end. I could imagine Lotte Lenya singing this. The SLMFS has taken us through the joys and tribulations of life and now this song touchingly brings the voyage to a close and celebrates death as a renewal rather than an end, “when these sweet lips are getting sad and over, another wind is coming right behind”. Fantazio assures us there’s nothing to be worried about since “les anges qui connaissent bien leur métier” will take care of us. The theme is repeated on the final, hidden track. It’s a jaunty and more upbeat song that comes over almost like a Hare Krishna chant. Fantazio sings cheerfully and repeatedly and rhetorically, “are you going to be living or dying” in this world?

SLMFS is a debut album but this sounds like it could just as well have been their fifth. This is a band with a cult live following and the danger was always that SLMFS would disappoint and sound tame. Nothing could be further form the truth. Fantazio and his gang sound like they’ve taken ten years of blood, sweat and tears and condensed it into a great 60 minute mother fucking show.

Venyce / Café de la Plage (12.12.05)

Last night I saw an excellent French Rock 'n Roll band. A band that probably have a lot of work to do if they're going to make it but at least they showed a lot promise. For one thing, they had a flamboyancy and playfulness which I rarely come across in other up-and-coming French bands. A lot of bands I've heard have an earnestness and seriousness about them which sometimes works but more often makes you wish they'd just loosen up and enjoy a good Rock 'n Roll ride. After all, you could be sitting in a call centre selling car insurance policies. You know, life could be a lot worse.

I've never seen the New York Dolls play live but for a minute while Venyce played their opening number, a cover of “These Boots Were Made For Walking” I thought I felt their presence. For one thing, their choice of cover showed a similar Dolls rock sensibility. For another, they really didn't give a shit whether you were going to like their version or not. You were simply going to get what they wanted you to get. The other thing is Venyce REALLY don’t care whether they get their English accents right or wrong. They may be singing in English but they’re still going to sing it THEIR way. Many other French bands try too hard to get the language right and forget to get lost in the song. Finally it has to be said, their singer has a real Johnny Thunders (morphed with early Rod Stewart!) swagger and flamboyancy about him which you can't help but lap up.

So the opener was an excellent rocking, stomping, ramshackle start which perhaps emphasised the showy "performance" side of this band rather than the purely musical one. It has to be said, throughout the gig, the "performance" aspect of the band did dominate over pure musical talent. However, you got the impression that when Venyce wanted to switch into a higher gear and when they found a really good groove they were a very talented and tight musical unit. It was during these moments that you heard a more heavy psychedelic sound. There were instrumental moments when the band appeared to put their flippancy aside and instead hit the audience with that heavy psychedelic wall of sound. It was during these moments that you could really get lost in their groove. And then they'd bring you back to earth again with another inspired cover version. In this case it was “Airbag” by Radiohead. They tore through this song like it had always been and could be nothing other than a "Punk ‘n Roll" song. Instead of playing up to Radiohead they brought them down to their own gritty, sordid level. It was like the band were reminding Radiohead what Rock ‘n Roll was all about before that band got lost in a cloud of their own pomposity.

Several times the second singer (the guy with the hat) brought his microphone into the audience and got them involved with the show. This is definitely not a band that wants to back away. They want to charge right into you and make you a part of their show. "Airbag" was followed by another impressive, heavy and at times hypnotic number. You can tell the guys are talented. The frontman sings on one song, plays guitar on another and then moves over to keyboards for the next. The gig ends with a rousing Beatlesque version of “Money”. At one stage the singer with the hat puts his mic down on the floor, gets down on his knees and sings (screams?) into the floor. Some bands can’t get away with doing stuff like that. This band just took it in their stride.

The band could probably present themselves even better given the attitude they have. Splash on some make-up and look a bit more punk and glam. The other thing is, have they got the songs because I heard at least 3 covers? All in all this was a great performance from a band that really could go far. They’ve certainly got the talent, attitude and more than anything else, a whole lot of heart.

(Thanks to Sugarflium for the photo)