Mon dieu, it’s time for the crazed carnival that is Pensees Nocturnes once more. Their last album ‘Grand Guignol Orchestra’ took us on a madcap ride on the waltzer and ended with the Magic Roundabout theme and this one starts with a cock crowing, waking us up from a night of stupor, drinking strange French aperitif’s the likes of which are advertised in the accompanying CD booklet which in itself is a delight to look through. I would use the word “read” but unfortunately for me it is all in French along with everything else to do with the album. What I can deduce is that ringleader and founding member Vaerohn seems to have adopted the name Léon Harcore this time around. Together with various assembled demented musicians he has once again constructed a unique album that is pure lunacy from start to finish. The touch of the green fairy is with us every step of the way and it is mere seconds that you will be dragged down into its ‘sweet mud’ of the title. To make a bit more sense of it all I lubricated myself and put on Jean Rollin’s circus escapade ‘The Escapees’ as visuals. I’m not sure if it helped make more sense of it all to tell the truth but it did fit well with the narrative and very drunken themes contained within.
Brass and hurdy-gurdy waltz away making you fully aware this is a far from conventional take on music as we know it. Our compere Harcore makes the vocal contributions completely tumultuous, swinging like trapeze artist with ease from baritone clean sweeps to rabid shrieks and taking in every other style in between. The music does the same and is equally schizophrenic, mutating like a trip into the sideshow tent and losing oneself in a hall of mirrors. I think we stop off momentarily into past times, the translated song title ‘What a dirty executioner’ taking us in the direction of the guillotine and the French Revolution with aristocratic panache but you are best off making up your own stories as you go along here. The black metal “Grotesque” of old surfaces with some of the more frenzied passages and throaty growls from our barker as he invites us to witness ever more weird and wonderful exhibits. There is a fair smattering of what can only be described as manic oompah music which replicates the sounds of wild beasts without any danger of PETA knocking at the door. If you think the likes of Finntroll and Trollfest are nuts wait till you get a brassy blast of ‘PN mais Costaud.’ Even if I can’t work out exactly what is going on between the scenes it is obvious that it is completely demented and delirious.
You will also find yourself suddenly immersed in melodies that are recognisable adding to the enjoyment as you try to work them out. Is that a flash of the danse macabre and what spice is the accordion player adding to the strange brew? Is that a poke or a polka? Time for some stew in the form of Brahms Hungarian Dance no 5 to soak up the booze. Its thick enough to dip your bread in it before the next round of drinks arrive. Actually, this all fits in quite well with the gastronomic excesses of the album which seem to be alluded to. Next time round I may stuff myself full (you feel that way just by listening to everything going on here) and put on La Grande Bouffe,’ head and stomach can both explode!
Describing even the most casual excesses of this musical deluge is near impossible. If you have never heard Pensees Nocturnes before and give them a shot I can guarantee it will be one of the most ‘out there’ musical experiences you have had. This is a zany nine-course feast and a highly enjoyable one, indulge yourself, pig out but have some indigestion tablets handy, you are going to need them!
(8.5/10 Pete Woods)
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