UNIVERS ZERO — Heatwave (1987) Two Version | FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

For years after its release, Heatwave was presumed to be the Univers Zero group finale, until the band re-emerged over a decade later with The Hard Quest in 1999. On Heatwave, the transition from acoustic chamber music to electric rock is complete, and the somewhat uncertain steps of Uzed, Univers Zero's previous release, have become purposeful and confident. Almost all the Uzed musicians have returned for this date, together with Andy Kirk on keyboards and original Univers Zero violist/violinist Patrick Hanappier. Perhaps the only criticism that could be levied against the first three tracks on the CD is that they fall a little too comfortably into the prog rock genre, although they compare favorably to the best (and darkest) of King Crimson. However, Andy Kirk's long final track, "The Funeral Plain," is something else altogether, and demonstrates that the band was still capable of stunning originality. Kirk opens with some eerie alien raspings on synth, followed by high-pitched drones and then a quiet but relentless two-note piano pattern. Hanappier joins in with a pensive viola melody, as does Dirk Descheemaeker on clarinet and then Hanappier on violin. Daniel Denis and Christian Genet weigh in with some ponderous unison drum and bass work, tension builds, the tempo increases, and then everything stops. The original alien scrabbling returns, except this time with a relentless, clock-like rhythm, new themes are introduced, and tension builds once more through the skilled use of unresolved chord progressions, continually changing key signatures, and the ultimate wild wailing of synths and electric guitar. The tempo changes to a dirge, then staccato bursts, and finally subsides with the desolate sound of dripping water. Kirk dedicates this piece to "all living hardships that lead into self-awareness," and like the best of Univers Zero elsewhere, it transcends prog rock or any other known musical form, occupying a unique niche all by itself. William Tilland  
Tracklist :
1.     Heatwave 8:34
Composed By – Andy Kirk 
2.    Chinavox 4:49
Composed By – Daniel Denis
Voice [Additional Voice] – Chantal Smets
3.    Bruit Dans Les Murs 8:25
Composed By – Daniel Denis
4.    The Funeral Plain 20:24
Composed By – Andy Kirk 
Credits :
Bass, Performer [Nailskake] – Christian Genet
Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Soprano Saxophone [Soprano Sax] – Dirk Descheemaeker
Cover [Cover Artwork By], Artwork [Cover Artwork By] – Marie-Noëlle Dufromont
Drums, Percussion, Voice – Daniel Denis
Guitar – Michel Delory
Piano, Synthesizer, Voice – Andy Kirk, Jean-Luc Plouvier
Violin, Viola – Patrick Hanappier

UNIVERS ZERO — The Hard Quest (1999) Two Version | FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

Reunion albums often face the hazard of turning out lackluster, and, unfortunately, The Hard Quest is no exception. The instrumentation, percussion, and arrangements on The Hard Quest are tasteful and seamless. Technically, the playing is there; the violinist chooses some lovely moments, for instance. Univers Zero is a tight band and make music that would be lovely and pleasing if it had any heart. The music could be described as "medieval Gothic" if it wasn't so gentle and, ultimately, non-committal; the album comes off as one long prelude. The changes and shifts in The Hard Quest's compositions are never unexpected -- each new musical element enters after four or eight measures -- resulting in none of it making much of an impression. It is over-produced, sounding thin and smoothed over; it is too dissonant and dark to be new age, too lacking in energy to be rock. listening. Joslyn Layne
Tracklist :
1.    Vieux-Manants    2:50
Composed By – Daniel Denis
2.    Civic Circus    4:38
Composed By – Daniel Denis
3.    Affinité = Affinity    5:52
Composed By – Daniel Denis
4.    Rouages = Cogwheels    5:50
Composed By – Daniel Denis
5.    News From Outside 3:24
Composed By – Daniel Denis
Lyrics By – Daniel Denis
Recorded By [Harmonium Recorded By] – Alain Neffe
Voice – Daniel Denis
6.    Rébus (To All Children) = Rebus    2:46
Composed By – Daniel Denis
7.    Kermesse Atomique = Atomic Kermess    5:33
Composed By – Daniel Denis
8.    Succès Damné 4:18
Composed By – Michel Berckmans 
Piano – Michel Berckmans
9.    L'Impasse Du Choléra = Cholera's Deadlock 1:48
Composed By – Michel Berckmans 
10.    Xenantaya 10:34
Composed By – Daniel Denis
Voice, Acoustic Guitar – Réginald Trigaux
11.    L'Oubli = Oblivion    1:46
Composed By – Daniel Denis
Credits :
Bassoon, Oboe, English Horn, Melodica – Michel Berckmans
Clarinet, Bass Clarinet – Dirk Descheemaeker
Co-producer [Co-Production] – Art Zoyd
Drums, Keyboards [All Keyboards], Percussion, Melodica – Daniel Denis
Electric Bass – Réginald Trigaux
Violin – Igor Semenoff

UNIVERS ZERO – Rhythmix (2002) Two Version | FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

In their 2002 incarnation, Univers Zero were mainly a vehicle for composer/drummer/keyboardist Daniel Denis, who continued his trend of toning down the hellish stuff heard to scariest effect on Heresie over two decades previously. Heresie was Univers Zero at their darkest, featuring low demonic chanting, wheezing harmonium drones, and a track called "Jack the Ripper." On 2002's Rhythmix, the doom and gloom are more subtle, Denis preferring the drama of multi-layered percussion and orchestral textures with a foundation of deep, sometimes mechanistic beats. Rhythmix is punchier and more varied in its instrumental palette than 1999's The Hard Quest (much anticipated after a ten-year band hiatus), and comparatively "Dense" (to borrow a track title from Ceux du Dehors, still a highlight of the group's discography). The sympathetic production is by Didier DeRoos (Uzed, Heatwave), and the core band is now a quartet, in addition to Denis featuring original Univers Zero member Michel Berckmans on oboe, English horn, and bassoon as well as Eric Plantain on electric bass and Bart Quartier on marimba and glockenspiel. Former bandmember Dirk Descheemaeker appears on only one track (with uncharacteristically skronky and squawking bass clarinet) and various guest musicians on trumpet, cello, flute, and accordion are featured elsewhere.
Denis seems to prefer drums the size of water tanks and cymbals as big as flying saucers, so one might expect a percussive onslaught or two to rattle the windowpanes. Denis complies on "Rouages: Second Rotation," revisiting the "Rouages" theme from The Hard Quest, but here the medieval sounds of oboe, acoustic guitar, harpsichord, and church organ are overwhelmed by pummeling percussives and hissing synths, giving the impression that a cavalcade of knights and fair damsels is about to be crushed by a panzer division. Working in the album's favor is the comparative brevity of tracks (six minutes at the longest with a number of pieces in the three-minute range); compositions are therefore over before they become too repetitive and start wearing thin. Yet Denis' signature composing style, the moody and atmospheric interludes offering moments of respite amidst the driving full-ensemble pieces, and the consistent production across the 13 tracks provide the overall arc of a lengthy suite. There are touchstones to previous Univers Zero outings too; for example, the initial maddening minimalist rush of "The Fly-Toxmen's Land" gives way to a dramatic keyboard and trumpet flourish (featuring Belgian avant-prog trumpet mainstay Bart Maris) recalling "Bruit Dans les Murs" from Heatwave. Quartier's tuned percussion is noteworthy throughout Rhythmix, crisp and lively yet somehow not working against the ominous and unsettling undercurrents of Denis' music. Rhythmix might not conjure up the demons of Heresie-era Univers Zero, but the album is still far better suited for soundtracking a haunted house than a day at the beach, unless there's something lurking beneath the waves that you wouldn't want to mess around with. Dave Lynch   
Tracklist :
1.    Terres Noires = Blacklands 6:06
 Daniel Denis 
Accordion – Louison Renault
Acoustic Guitar – Christophe Pons
Cello – Aurelia Boven
2.    Rêve Cyclique 5:53
 Daniel Denis 
Flute, Piccolo Flute [Piccolo] – Ariane De Bievre
3.    Rouages: Second Rotation = Cogwheels: Second Rotation 3:38
 Daniel Denis 
Acoustic Guitar – Christophe Pons
4.    The Invisible Light 3:09
Composed By, Arranged By – Daniel Denis, Michel Berckmans
Recorded By – Alain Neffe
5.    Phobia 5:31
 Daniel Denis 
Acoustic Guitar – Christophe Pons
Cello – Aurelia Boven
6.    Zorgh March 3:23
 Daniel Denis 
Trumpet – Bart Maris
7.    Zébulon 3:09
 Blixa Bargeld / Mark Chung / Daniel Denis / F.M. Einheit / Alexander Hacke / N.U. Unruh 
Bass Clarinet – Dirk Descheemaeker
8.    Forêt Inviolée = Secret Forest    2:19
Composed By, Arranged By – Daniel Denis, Michel Berckmans
9.    Shanghaï's Digital Talks 4:48
 Daniel Denis 
Cello – Aurelia Boven
10.    Emotions Galactiques = Galactical Emotions 5:47
 Daniel Denis 
Trumpet – Bart Maris
11.    Waiting For The Sun    3:16
Composed By, Arranged By – Daniel Denis, Michel Berckmans
12.    The Fly-Toxmen's Land 4:50
 Daniel Denis 
Trumpet – Bart Maris
13.    Rêve Cyclique (Reprise)    0:50
 Daniel Denis 
Credits :
Drums, Percussion, Keyboards [All Keyboards], Harmonium – Daniel Denis
Electric Bass – Eric Plantain
Marimba, Glockenspiel – Bart Quartier
Oboe, English Horn, Bassoon, Voice – Michel Berckmans 

UNIVERS ZERO – Implosion (2004) Two Version | FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

Building on the artistic success of their last CD, Rhythmix, Univers Zero returns almost entirely to their acoustic roots (no howling electric guitars here), and with a refined and tempered equivalent of the relentless, prolonged gloom of early releases such as 1313 and Heresie. Pieces are shorter and more varied, with some taking the form of almost jaunty medieval dances. The only electric instruments are Eric Plantain's electric bass, plus some discrete sampling and synth keyboards from drummer and leader Daniel Denis, who currently writes all the group's music. Michel Berckmans (oboe, English horn, bassoon) and Denis are the only remaining original members, although clarinetist Dirk Descheemaeker played on several of the later Univers Zero recordings in the mid-'80s. But even with a number of new bandmembers, the group's chamber music instrumentation (saxophones, cello, trumpet, marimba and violin), together with Denis' intricate writing and the very tight ensemble work, is enough to deliver the signature Univers Zero sound. Overt but short gothic/industrial elements, with titles such as "Suintement (Oozing)," "Miroirs (Mirrors)," "Ectoplasme," "Bacteria" and "A Rebours (In Reverse)," serve as bridges between songs and maintain the haunting, sinister edge that initially established the group's reputation. These five pieces, all roughly one-minute-long, display Denis' skillful use of sampler technology; the muted clanging, scraping, dripping, rumbling and squealing seems to emerge from obscure mechanical devices of unknown construction and purpose. A longer piece, "Partch's X-Ray" is an obvious homage to American maverick composer and instrument-maker Harry Partch It uses metallic-sounding tuned percussion, insectoid twittering from the strings and a rhythmic crow-like cawing to create a deliciously malevolent atmosphere. Likewise the shorter "La Mort de Sophocle (Sophocle's Death)," which employs mournful legato strings and percussive crashes to promote a feeling of oppressive gravity. The long closing piece, "Meandres (Meanderings)," also has some of the stabbing dissonance of early Univers Zero as it moves restlessly from one theme to another, although a middle section shows uncharacteristic restraint. The aura is hardly new age, but it is thoughtful. Other pieces such as "Falling Rain Dance," "Rapt D'Abdallah," "Mellotronic," "Out of Space 4" and the two untitled "Short Dance" tracks demonstrate Univers Zero's strong connection to medieval court music (and anyone who has listened to authentic re-creations of this music knows that it can be both melancholy and powerfully rhythmic). Another piece, "Temps Neuf," by virtue of its deep rhythmic groove and bursts of dissonant trumpet, could almost be regarded as a kind of gothic jazz-funk. Univers Zero's excellence lies in its continuing ability to synthesize medieval forms, instrumental prog rock and modern classical dissonance with a splash of jazz and a taste for the suggestively macabre. The group continues to produce creative, highly inventive music, and plays it with precision and panache. Highly recommended for the adventurous listener. William Tilland  
Tracklist :
1.    Suintement = Oozing    1:13
2.    Falling Rain Dance    4:14
3.    Partch's X-Ray    5:21
4.    Rapt D'Abdallah    3:01
5.    Miroirs = Mirrors    1:18
6.    La Mort De Sophocle = Sophocles' Death    3:11
7.    Ectoplasme    1:07
8.    Temps Neufs    4:56
9.    Mellotronic    4:04
10.    Bacteria    1:28
11.    Out Of Space 4    2:52
12.    First Short Dance    0:42
13.    Second Short Dance    0:41
14.    Variations On Mellotronic's Theme    3:04
15.    À Rebours = In Reverse    1:56
16.    Méandres = Meanderings    9:38
Credits :
Acoustic Guitar – Christophe Pons
Alto Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Saxophone [Sopranissimo], Performer [Tubax] – Serge Bertocchi
Cello – Aurélia Boven
Clarinet, Bass Clarinet – Dirk Descheemaeker
Composed By [All Music], Arranged By [All Music], Drums, Percussion, Keyboards [All Keyboards], Sampler [Samplers], Accordion, Guitar [Cheap] – Daniel Denis
Electric Bass – Eric Plantain
Marimba, Glockenspiel – Bart Quartier
Oboe, English Horn, Bassoon – Michel Berckmans
Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Bart Maris
Violin – Igor Semenoff

UNIVERS ZERO – Clivages (2010) Two Version | FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

The umpteenth Univers Zero release on Cuneiform, 2010's Clivages is bookended by two of the disc's four Daniel Denis compositions, the opening "Les Kobolds" and the closing "Les Cercles d'Horus," pieces that should gladden the hearts of aficionados who have followed UZ along their well over 30-year history. "Les Kobolds" will push all the right buttons for those enamored of the band's sound, with chamber instrumentation and electric bass and keys driven by Denis' inventive percussion, all in service to melodies and countermelodies with a somewhat Renaissance or Baroque feel, but with harmonic and textural shifts in ominous directions, as expected. UZ listeners have definitely heard this type of thing before, and in its construction and performance it recalls any number of prime Denis pieces: "Dense," "Toujours Plus à l'Est," "Presage." Likewise, the closing "Les Cercles d'Horus," with its funeral dirge drums and underlying doom-laden keyboards and bass, tips its hat to the similarly dark "Bruit dans les Murs" from 1986's Heatwave -- speaking of which, Clivages signals the return of keyboardist/guitarist Andy Kirk to the UZ fold for the first time since Heatwave; Kirk is featured as guitarist on two pieces here, most notably his own "Warrior," a 12-plus-minute composition with relentless escalating tension wholly in keeping with Kirk's Heatwave title track or "Funeral Plain" opus (with Kirk's guitar akin to that of Heatwave's fiery axeman, Michel Delory).

And yet Clivages is so much more than a mere revisitation of past UZ glories and nightmares. For example, despite all the explosive energy of the '80s-era band (check out the Relaps live collection for evidence), one crucially lacking element back then was the signature sound of Michel Berckmans' bassoon, and he is all over Clivages, including a face-off with Kurt Budé's bass clarinet on "Warrior"'s buildup. With Berckmans' presence, "Warrior" becomes a sort of unholy meld between the Ceux du Dehors and Heatwave groups, and what could be better than that? Plus, Berckmans contributes three compositions, his first since UZ re-emerged with 1999's The Hard Quest: "Vacillements" is a neo-classical chamber piece for bassoon, clarinet, and violin (played by Martin Lauwers) that recalls Berckmans' work in Julverne; "Retour de Foire" is beautifully somber with a delicate touch; and the brief "Apesanteur" is a comparatively subtle groover, with Denis driving a cruising rhythm on hi-hat and crisp percussives, the reeds and violin in unison themes or spirited counterpoint and keyboardist Pierre Chevalier sprinkling jazzy embellishments over the top. But the biggest revelation has to be Budé. The reedman first appeared on 2006's Live, his soaring clarinet a highlight of that disc's version of "Toujours Plus à l'Est," but here he has been truly unleashed -- or perhaps in the case of this band released from the dungeon -- both as player and composer. His Clivages compositions include the disc's longest opus, the nearly 14-minute "Straight Edge," which places his multi-reed acumen (including some bass clarinet overblowing suitable for any avant-garde jazz band) in a driving, ever-evolving, and even occasionally maniacal piece of classical/jazz-rock that instantly rises to the level of a UZ classic. And so, thanks go to Daniel Denis, the drummer/composer for all these years whose work distinctively marks Clivages -- but this album proves that Univers Zero reach their highest pinnacle as a truly collaborative outfit. Dave Lynch  
Tracklist :
1.    Les Kobolds 4:15
Written-By – Daniel Denis 
Accordion – Philippe Thuriot
2.    Warrior 12:10
Guitar, Percussion, Written-By – Andy Kirk 
 3.    Vacillements    3:35
Written-By – Kurt Budé
4.    Earth Scream    3:11
Written-By – Daniel Denis 
5.    Soubresauts 7:59
Written-By – Daniel Denis 
Guitar – Andy Kirk 
6.    Apesanteur    3:40
Written-By – Michel Berckmans
7.    Three Days    5:53
Written-By – Michel Berckmans
8.    Straight Edge    13:57
Written-By – Kurt Budé
9.    Retour De Foire    7:42
Written-By – Michel Berckmans
10.    Les Cercles D'Horus 3:45
Written-By – Daniel Denis 
Accordion – Philippe Thuriot
Cello – Aurelia Boven
Drums – Nicolas Denis
Credits :
Bassoon, English Horn, Oboe, Melodica – Michel Berckmans
Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Alto Saxophone – Kurt Budé
Drums, Percussion, Sampler – Daniel Denis
Electric Bass, Fretless Bass – Dimitri Evers
Keyboards, Glockenspiel – Pierre Chevalier
Violin – Martin Lauwers

THUMBSCREW — Never Is Enough (2021) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1    Camp Easy 6:41
Tomas Fujiwara
2    Sequel to Sadness 6:14
Mary Halvorson
3    Never Is Enough 6:54
Michael Formanek
4    Through an Open Window 5:33
Tomas Fujiwara
5    Heartdrop 4:47
Mary Halvorson
6    Emojis Have Consequences 5:55
Michael Formanek
7    Fractured Sanity 5:43
Mary Halvorson
8    Unsung Procession 6:25
Tomas Fujiwara
9    Scam Likely 8:36
Michael Formanek
Credits :
Double Bass, Electric Bass – Michael Formanek
Drums – Tomas Fujiwara
Guitar – Mary Halvorson

UNIVERS ZERO — Ceux du Dehors (1981-1992) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The third full-length release from Univers Zero (disregarding the limited-release Crawling Wind EP, which Cuneiform re-released with bonus tracks in 2001), finds the group continuing to evolve. Group members may have realized that their previous release, the perversely brilliant Heresie, was a dead end of sorts, because on this new recording they ease up on the unremitting gloom and return to the more general and varied chamber music sound of their first release, 1313, except with more precision and skill. The tricky charts of percussionist Daniel Denis and new keyboardist Andy Kirk are executed with great panache. The labyrinthine compositions are typically filled with unexpected twists and turns, and angular repetitions of jagged riffs that accelerate, decelerate and mutate in passages of acute tension or quiet but ominous dread. Instrumentally, Michel Berckmans' bassoon and oboe, Andy Kirk's harmonium, and Patrick Hanappier's viola and violin can sometimes give the music a decidedly medieval quality, and pieces like Kirk's "Combat" are dark but also rhythmically vibrant. Too serious for rock and too tightly orchestrated for jazz, Ceux du Dehors sometimes suggests a darker and more complex version of the motorik minimalism of classical music contemporaries Philip Glass and Steve Reich, although it is doubtful that they were a conscious influence on the Univers Zero sound at the time of this recording. William Tilland   
Tracklist :
1 Dense 12:23
Bass – Guy Segers
Bassoon, Oboe, English Horn – Michel Berckmans
Drums, Percussion – Daniel Denis
Harmonium, Organ, Piano, Mellotron – Andy Kirk 
Viola, Violin – Patrick Hanappier
Written-By – Daniel Denis
2 La Corne Du Bois Des Pendus 8:38
Bass, Voice – Guy Segers
Bassoon, Oboe, Voice – Michel Berckmans
Drums, Percussion, Voice – Daniel Denis
Guest [With], Hurdy Gurdy [Hurdy-Gurdy] – Jean Debefve
Harmonium, Organ, Voice – Andy Kirk 
Recorded By [Children's Voices] – Röbel Vogel
Recorded By [Organ] – Eric Faes
Viola, Violin, Voice – Patrick Hanappier
Written-By – Daniel Denis
3 Bonjour Chez Vous 3:48
Bass – Guy Segers
Bassoon, Oboe – Michel Berckmans
Drums, Percussion – Daniel Denis
Guest [With], Violin – Jean-Luc Aimé
Organ, Piano – Andy Kirk 
Viola – Patrick Hanappier
Written-By – Daniel Denis
4 Combat 12:50
Bass – Guy Segers
Bassoon, Oboe – Michel Berckmans
Drums, Percussion – Daniel Denis
Guest [With], Vocals – Ilona Chale
Harmonium, Mellotron, Organ, Piano – Andy Kirk
Viola, Violin – Patrick Hanappier
Written-By – Andy Kirk 
5 La Musique D'Erich Zann 3:25
Composed By – A. Kirk, D. Denis, G. Segers, J. Debfeve, M. Berckmans, P. Hanappier
6 La Tête Du Corbeau 3:08
Bass – Guy Segers
Cymbal [Cymbals] – Daniel Denis
Guest [With], Cello – Thierry Zaboitzeff
Harmonium, Electric Piano [Yamaha CP 70 Piano], Glockenspiel – Andy Kirk
Violin – Patrick Hanappier
Written-By – Guy Segers
7 Triomphe Des Mouches 5:34
Bass, Clarinet, Voice – Guy Segers
Harmonium, Drums, Percussion, Voice, Violin – Daniel Denis
Harmonium, Piano, Organ, Voice – Andy Kirk 
Written-By – Andy Kirk, Daniel Denis 

UNIVERS ZERO — Heresie (1979) RM | Four Version | APE + FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

Univers Zero's debut recording, 1313, may be somber, but it's a walk in the park compared to their second release, which features more or less the same lineup as the first (oboe, bassoon, viola, violin, bass, guitar, keyboards, drums), except for an additional and prominent contribution of cathedral organ from guitarist/keyboardist Roger Trigaux. Studio overdubbing sometimes gives the five-man group the sound of a much larger chamber ensemble. Extremely dissonant and emotionally bleak, Heresie is sometimes quite close to the industrial and gothic genres -- which didn't really even exist for another five years or more. A Magma influence is readily discernible on the long opening track "La Faulx," which includes the guttural chanting favored by Magma's Christian Vander. (In the early '70s, Univers Zero drummer Daniel Denis was employed as a second drummer in Vander's group.) "Jack the Ripper," the second long piece, maintains the oppressive atmosphere, and after a long, brooding introduction, introduces the nervous, jabbing ostinato patterns which were to become a Univers Zero trademark. This music on this CD might have little to do with rock, and might also be a massive downer, but the quality of the writing and playing is extremely high. Michel Berckmans' solo work on oboe and bassoon work is magnificent, and Patrick Hanappier's string playing (violin and viola) also demonstrates the precision of a trained classical musician, along with demonic avant-garde scraping and howling on "Jack the Ripper." Best of all, Univers Zero never cheapens the effect of the music with any of the stock cartoon licks which are associated with the gothic genre today. Group members sound deadly serious about what they're doing, which might call their sanity into question, but which makes for an incredibly powerful listening experience. In fact, Heresie is a stunning one-of-a-kind item that has never been duplicated by anyone -- including Univers Zero. [The Cuneiform label's 2010 remastered edition includes the nearly 12-minute previously unreleased bonus track "Chaos Hermétique."] William Tilland  
Trackslist :
1. La Faulx (25:18)

2. Jack the Ripper (13:29)
3. Vous le Saurez en Temps Voulu (12:56)
Total Time: 51:43
- BONUS TRACKS - on 2010 Remaster:
4. Chaos Hermétique (11:51) *
* Previously unreleased, recorded in 1975 and recovered from MC
Line-up / Musicians :
- Roger Trigaux - Guitar, Piano, Organ, Harmonium
- Vincent Motoulle - Keyboards (4)
- Patrick Hanappier - Viola, Violin
- Michel Berckmans - Bassoon & Oboe (1-3)
- Guy Segers - Bass, Vocals
- Daniel Denis - Percussions

UNIVERS ZERO — Uzed (1984-1988) Two Version | FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

Regarded by some as the least successful recording of Univers Zero's early years, Uzed is still well worth hearing. The CD starts quite impressively with "Présage," which has one of those haunting Univers Zero themes, equal parts lyrical and dramatic, and is certainly the equal of anything else in the Univers Zero oeuvre. Subsequent tracks, though, are rather nondescript. One problem is that the band, with only drummer Daniel Denis and bassist Christian Genet left from the original lineup, is beginning to move away from the acoustic chamber music of prior releases (especially those immediately preceding Ceux du Dehors) and toward a more contemporary progressive rock sound, with electric guitars and prominent synthesizers. All compositions are penned by Denis, and the usual Univers Zero precision is evident in the execution of the scores, but the instrumental voicings seem a little tentative and the mix is somewhat muddy, even on the excellent first track. The last long track, "Emmanations," also has its moments, but on the whole, Uzed lacks a full measure of the high drama and musical tension that are so much a part of the Univers Zero sound. William Tilland   
Tracklist  :
1 Présage 9:48
2 L'Etrange Mixture Du Docteur Schwartz 3:52
3 Célesta (For Chantal) 6:55
Guitar – Michel Delory
Violin – Marc Verbist
4 Parade 6:37
5 Emanations 15:43
Credits :
Bass, Balafon, Guitar [Bowed Guitar], Tape [Tapes], Whistle – Christian Genet
Cello, Alto Saxophone [Alto Sax], Voice – Andre Mergen
Drums, Percussion, Synthesizer, Composed By [All Compositions By] – Daniel Denis
Electric Piano, Piano [Acoustic Piano], Synthesizer, Performer [Piano Strings], Percussion – Jean-Luc Plouvier
Soprano Saxophone [Soprano Sax], Clarinet, Bass Clarinet – Dirk Descheemaeker

UNIVERS ZERO — Univers Zero (1977-2008) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Some very peculiar rock music hybrids emerged in the 1970s, but none was any more peculiar than Univers Zero, a classically influenced group of primarily Belgian musicians. Sometimes compared to the slightly earlier and enormously influential King Crimson, Univers Zero was actually much more extreme. While Crimson used Robert Fripp's lead guitar and Ian McDonald's Mellotron to approximate a symphonic rock sound rooted in the 19th century romantic tradition of Richard Strauss, Mahler and Wagner, the earliest versions of Univers Zero were not only more purely classical in their instrumentation (bassoon, violin, viola, cello, harmonium, spinet piano), but much more contemporary in their musical appropriation of the dissonant, jagged 20th century classical styles of Stravinsky, Bartók, Ligeti, and Penderecki, among others. The other constant and distinguishing quality of Univers Zero was the longtime preoccupation of drummer/leader Daniel Denis with the early 20th century fantasy/horror writer H.P. Lovecraft -- as indicated by the names of his two predecessor bands, Arkham (the mythical town where most of Lovecraft's stories were set) and Necronomicon (a mythical Lovecraft book of forbidden secrets). Some critics regard Univers Zero's music as pretentious and gloomy, but it's never pretentious in the easy, predictable manner of most progressive rock, and as for the gloom, there's actually a kind of jaunty gallows humor in many of the pieces on this debut -- particularly in the two by guitarist Roger Trigaux, which feature march rhythms somewhat suggestive of Shostakovich or Prokofiev. The rhythmic energy and dissonant riffs, the distinctive sound of the bassoon and strings, and the tricky, fragmented time signatures make for a challenging and highly distinctive listening experience. William Tilland 
Tracklist :
1 Ronde 14:45
Written-By – Daniel Denis
2 Carabosse 3:40
Written-By – Daniel Denis
3 Docteur Petiot 7:25
Written-By – Roger Trigaux
4 Malaise 7:42
Written-By – Roger Trigaux
5 Complainte 3:18
Written-By – Daniel Denis
Credits :
Bass – Christian Genet
Bassoon – Michel Berckmans
Guitar – Roger Trigaux
Harmonium, Spinet – Emmanuel Nicaise
Mixed By – Christian Genet, Daniel Denis, Roland Herrero
Percussion – Daniel Denis
Violin – Marcel Dufrane
Violin, Viola, Cello – Patrick Hanappier