Art Rock Show – Present – This is NOT the end (Week 31)

Ondanks de titel is dit inderdaad de laatste release van de legendarische Rock In Opposition band Present, omdat oprichter en componist Roger Trigaux overleed tijdens de opnames. Het eindresultaat is een verblindend precies werk van gesyncopeerde instrumenten, die allemaal uit verschillende hoeken lijken te komen, maar uiteindelijk samenwerken als een samenhangend, zij het krachtig overweldigend geheel.

Janne Yliruusi van Pienemmat Purot: “But Trigaux never stopped composing. Trigaux’s friend and manager Michael Besset managed to lure Trigaux back to Present in 2018. According to Besset, Trigaux had spent the last years of his reclusive life in his small apartment in Brussels with composing new music as almost his only activity. (…)

All in all, This Is NOT The End took five years to make. Trigaux died in March 2021, leaving the completion of the process to keyboardist Chevalier and soundman Koomran in particular. They deserve a lot of credit for finishing the project.

Encouraged by Besset, Trigaux then re-launched Present after a long break and the recordings were largely made with the same core group that had been responsible for the previous album Barbaro (ma non troppo). The rhythm section is still led by the powerful duo of Keith Macsoud (bass guitar) and Dave Kerman (drums), while Pierre Chevalier still plays keyboards. François Mignot has replaced Roger’s son Reginald Trigaux as the new guitarist. Mignot is known from the ”Lyon scene” bands ni and Scherzoo. Liesbeth Lambrecht plays violin and saxophone and clarinets are played by Univers Zero veteran Kurt Budé. Trigaux himself only plays some keyboards and sings. The sound engineer is still avant-prog trusted engineer Udi Koomran who has again done a great job with the sounds. This Is NOT The End sounds massive, but still dynamic. (…)

As far as I know, Trigaux did not make much music outside Univers Zero and Present, so his life’s work in terms of studio albums is ten studio albums. It’s not a lot but Trigaux’s powerful and intense music is definitely greater than the number. Trigaux’s Present will always be remembered as one of the giants of avant-prog.”

Naast Present (This is NOT the end), Cheer-Accident (Q-Pop), Guapo (Five Suns), Aksak Maboul (Ex-Futur Album), Univers Zéro (Clivages), Thinking Plague (Hoping Against Hope) & Magma (Kãrtëhl).

• Thursday/Donderdag 12.00 – 24.00
• Friday/Vrijdag 12.00 – 24.00
• Saturday/Zaterdag 12.00 – 24.00