My first question on being sent this CD to review was how have I not heard of Kloot Per We and in particular main man Per W before, he's been making music since the late 60's in the Belgian underground in among other bands, The Misters, Music For girls, Polyphonic Size and Chop Chicks. He is well known for his cover versions of songs by John Cale and a whole album of Velvet Underground covers called Inhale Slowly And Feel that should have been enough to get him onto my radar and into my record collection before now.
This is Kloot Per W's second French language album as Per W had previously mainly released his music in his native Flemish tongue, that may have limited his appeal, as it's hard for Flemish acts who don't sing in Dutch to break through in Holland, or even in his native Belgium and even harder to break out into France or further afield, which in this case is a real pity.
The album opens with the nicely insistent riff of Tu Me Troubles that has a good claustrophobic feel to it as the guitars start to worm there way into your brain as Per W's vocals work well with the backing vocals before the guitars really go to work to get you going.
Le Pays has vocals that are somewhere between Serge Gainsbourg and JJ Cale, although Per W is far more of a John Cale fan than a JJ Cale one, this has a breezy feel to it almost like a Belgian Divine Comedy.
Le Temps Cache as the smoky feel of being sung by a boulevardier whispering who knows what into some woman's ear and making her melt into his arms along to the instrumental break.
Girl On The Phone sounds like you're sipping a beer in cafe in Ghent down by the waterside gazing at a Girl whose on the phone and twirling her hair at the same time, this has a very gallic feel to with a chanson style edge to the vocal delivery and some very cool semi choral backing vocals working with the Nouvelle Vague style keyboards and acoustic guitars.
Arbre A Filles is space age noises whispered vocals and weird guitar lines that help to illustrate the Girls Tree Per W is singing about, what are they revealing and is it too much or not enough.
Super Likeur has a sleazy feel as we find out just what that Super Likeur is all about, just how drunk it makes you feel, of course what you do, once you've had enough Super Likeur to drink, I'm guessing they have been at the Pere Albert and maybe some Genever.
A La Fin De la Fin reminds me of the French singer Popincourt with its modern remaking of what sounds like a 1960'S French pop song, this is very relaxed.
La Naissance Du Rock appears to have misappropriated the piano lines on John Cale's Naissance De L'Amour into a far more urgent and intriguing song.
Il Y Aura has some great guitar stabs in among what sounds like a rather seductive song as Per sings his intentions and gets them sung back at him from the sultry backing vocalists as the guitar then makes its moves against the piano that seems to be resisting it, as the guitars get freakier and freakier.
Je Suis La Mort has a Gauloise beer in one hand and a Gauloise cigarette hanging from its lips as this tale of a life well led and heading towards its end unfolds over the collapsing piano and super charged riff and a sneaky Joey Ramone name drop among the ad-libs towards the end of the song.
Mon Dernier Mort is of course the last word in French language Belgian sophistipop chanson with elegance and a touch of morbid self-reflection on what I hope isn't the last thing Per W sings, but just a fond farewell until his next record.
Find out more at https://jezusfactoryrecords.bandcamp.com/track/arbre-a-filles??????https://www.facebook.com/KPWmusic/
