Les trois fou's perdégagnent (Au pays des...) / Les trois fou's perdegagnent (Au pays des...)

The full title of Étron Fou Leloublan's second album is Les Trois Fous Perdégagnent (Au Pays Des...), which could translate to "The Three Fools Lose'n'win (In the Land Of...)" — granted, it doesn't make more sense in English than in French. On this opus from 1978, Francis Grand picks up the saxophone where Chris Chanet (aka Eulalie Ruynat) had left it. Despite his inventive growls and screams, he simply cannot tame the devastating rhythm section (and madcap creativity) of Ferdinand Richard and Guigou Chenevier. This album is a studio construction, filled with overdubs and intro/outro collages. The group has gained better knowledge of the possibilities offered by a recording studio, but still operates on a shoestring budget. The writing marks a step forward in cohesion, excitement, and zaniness. Instrumental tunes and passages are complex and fast (the opener, "Face à l'Extravagante Montée...," makes a good example). The songs absolutely make no sense, part Henry Cow circa In Praise of Learning, part pataphysical surrealism and circus freak show (the Mothers of Invention meet Camembert Electrique-era Gong). The album culminates in "Le Désastreux Voyage du Piteux Python" (The Disastrous Journey of the Pitiful Python), a loosely knit narrative backed by illustrative music and dominated by the many voices of Chenevier. French proficiency is not that important to appreciate Étron Fou's provocative Rock in Opposition, but you'd better have a sense of humor. ~ François Couture, Rovi