Le Syndicat.

Le Syndicat FactionVivante – Interaction Sociale – Aussaat – LP – Aussaat 08 – 2019

Side A.

Live at the Brellfest – Recorded in 2016 at Clisson/ France – 22m 07s.

Side B.

Live at HY! Festival – Recorded in 2017 at Copenhagen / Denmark – 22m 43s.

I am feeling the blog pressure, after I reviewed Entre Vifs and L’eclipse Nue on here for Aussaat, I got sent a vinyl of the new Le Syndicat Faction Vivante live album. This is my first free vinyl album (courtesy of Aussaat) for the blog, I feel special. The sophistication of some recent releases by Entre Vifs, Abysse and Tetsuo has really opened my eyes to new stuff from our French neighbours, I sure hope Brexit doesn’t happen as these little pangs of brilliance make me long for an (easier) visit to France. The blog got a little political there, I hope you all stay with me.

I know jack all about Le Syndicat (the syndicate), all I have is the excellent, choppy, violent tracks that are on this year’s main birthday present for me - the Broken Flag Box Set (2012). They have been releasing work prolifically since 1982, I also know there is a loose link with the amazing Entre Vifs whose cd I reviewed recently too. For this album they are ‘Le Syndicat Faction Vivante (The Living Faction Union.) This album compiles two live sets from 2016 and 2017.

The first set starts with churning repetitive noise as waves of wall like distortion and samples make things chaotic, causing a rise in intensity. Urgent, interruptions of noise and high-pitched squealing noise cut in and disrupt the prominent sounds. The work does cut itself up and shift into other areas rapidly, this functions to break the work up into different categories so monotony can’t cloud the proceedings. The work also raises in violence frequently and quickly falls to allow curious conversations of noise to occur, aside from being noise, there is an avant-garde quirkiness that overshadows the work.

The second set is a lot more murky, menacing and vocal; it uses some impressive digital sounding noise. The sounds are way more conversational with each other, vocal noises are inaudible but add to this. The work simmers in quieter regions a lot, taking it back into menacing territory when things get playful, this also frequently allows for minimal passages of sound to play out. There then seems to be a lot of dramatic shifts in speed and it seems as if noises are dragged backwards across themselves after they have played out, so that they can repeat in a different context.

This is a quirky, consistently interesting, strong live recording. I really like Le Syndicat, like other French projects in my radar, they demonstrate a unique, sophisticated approach to noise.

Choppy Noodles 2019.

Into the Abysse.

Abysse – Bulles Noires. 3” CDR. Limited to 10 copies. https://abysse1.bandcamp.com/ . November 2018.

Release link - https://abysse1.bandcamp.com/album/bulles-noires-2

1 – 002 [07’38’’]

2 – 003 [08’02’’]

Bulles Noires consists of two live sets by this one-man French noise project known as Abysse. There have been several releases on Bandcamp, some self-released and on other labels. The project is also linked to the French Street Art scene; as marker pan artwork features on this release and many of the others. This recording collects two live performances to small, select audiences. This is linked to other projects including - The HNW Quartet, Static Park, The Future and Figures of Solitude amongst many others. The 3” CDR format is presented in a Black pouch with a White capital A patch sewn into it.

Minimalism is the key word for these unflinching repetitions of sound, it juxtaposes up 4 discreet sound elements together. Bulles Noires sounds like a locked grove surrounded by pulsating waves of sound jarring against each other. The sound subtly intensifies throughout the track with interventions of hissing noise. It reminds me of some of the aggressive loops used on early 70s, Krautrock albums. There is a feeling of controlled points of malfunction spread across the performance that serve as uncomfortable points of silence where the sound doesn’t really start up again as it continues in your head throughout the silence. The subtle variations of intensity are assertive through their impact on the works atmosphere.  Rising levels of static hiss don’t allow for the silence to be repetitive, they vary it.

The repetition makes this function on the same principles as HNW as it doesn’t really let up, when it pauses it is too late as it is etched into your brain, even when it ends suddenly. Despite not being so obviously aggressive, it is, as it zones you into the sound and you’re stuck inside. This process is repeated on both performances, but little is revealed. I’d like to see how this process works on a whole album, over more tracks or a very long one. The little black pouch contains a brief happening of sound that is difficult and uncompromising.

Choppy Noodles 2018.