***In December 1976, Carpe Diem entered whacked-out recording wizard Jean-Pierre Massiera’s Azurville studio and recorded—on 16-tracks—and in just ten days—working sometimes from ten in the morning until three the following morning—all the material they’d written since their first album. The trademark Carpe Diem sound is here in full force: cosmic synthesizers, psychedelic-flavored guitar-led flights of fancy, fluid woodwinds, along with an astounding degree of harmonic sophistication. The highlight is the 21-plus minute suite, ‘Couleurs,’ which develops through a series of sublime melodic motifs. As should be expected, the musicianship is monstrous, the playing is tight and energetic, and the melodies veer from gorgeous to haunting. The remainder of the album is taken up by short tracks which present more concise takes on Carpe Diem's ideas. This vinyl reissue includes a fascinating bonus track: an excerpt from the never-released English language version of the album. Includes an insert with notes and lyrics. Pressed on transparent orange with black swirl vinyl in a hand-numbered edition of 150 copies.
LP $35.50
10/20/2023
***Formed in 1970, CARPE DIEM started out playing covers by the likes of East of Eden, King Crimson, Deep Purple, and Uriah Heep in clubs along the French Riviera. Original compositions made their way into the band's repertoire over the five years between their formation and the release of their debut album, En Regardent Passer Le Temps, in 1976. Little wonder then that the band sounds as magnificently tight, polished and mature on this classic debut, truly one of the gems of the French rock scene. The success of the album brought them dates with other major French bands like Magma and Ange, led to the recording of a second album, and then ultimately to the sort of nearly total obscurity which deserves to be undone with a reissue such as this one! “The album practically encompasses the diversity and inspiration of the French progressive rock underground. It is, easily, one of the finest albums to have emerged from that scene. At the risk of sounding like a raving fanboy, En Regardent Passer Le Temps is indeed a classic record for the ages.”—Greg Northrup, Progweed
LP $22.95
04/19/2019