First released on LP in late 1983, Fin du travail (Version 1) documents Montréal guitarist René Lussier’s formative years between the disbanding of the avant-gardist folk-prog outfit Conventum in 1979 and the inception of the record label Ambiances Magnétiques in 1983, something that would generate dozens of releases with Lussier’s name on it for decades to come. Actually, Lussier founded Ambiances Magnétiques with Jean Derome in order to support the release of this album — that’s why it bore the catalog number AM 000, something that stuck when it was reissued on CD in 1996. The seven tracks included on Fin du travail are a chronicle of Lussier’s activities between 1979 and 1983, from the Pouet Pouet Band (“Manifeste”) and André Duchesne’s 1980 project Clockville (“Fête Fatale,” “Clockville”) to the first 1982 Derome-Lussier “Ambiances Magnétiques” concert (“Worksong”). They have been recorded under various conditions and with various musicians but Derome’s presence is the most important. Lussier’s unique sense of humor (well, maybe not so unique since Derome shares it) can already be experienced in the album title: “End of Work (Version 1)” — if it’s finished, why call it “version 1”? — and his carnivalesque references heard in Fête fatale. This aspect of his work, which will develop considerably within his duo Les Granules with Derome, is presented in full contrast with his more serene, soft and textural folk approach inherited from his days with Conventum and the cinematic quality of his writing, the result of numerous soundtracks written for documentaries. The acoustic guitar is more important than the electric and he even plays mandolin on one track. From complex prog rock-derived numbers to avant-folk atmospheres and circus numbers, Fin du travail was the work of a man searching for new means of expression, a quest that would become easier with the creation of Ambiances Magnétiques and his encounter in 1986 with Fred Frith.

Vous rêvez de découvrir un compositeur mélant dérision, inventivité et sens de l’orchestration. Vous êtes prêt a passer une petite annonce utopique pour trouver quelqu’un répondant à ce profil rare: un inclassable aux idées larges et au style unique. Vous alliez même engager un chasseur de têtes… êcoutez donc René Lussier. Il campe, sur la photo du livret CD, assis sur un banc à côté de son vélo, prêt â partir. Son sourire est malicieux et plein de sympathie. Fin du travail, c’est le titre de son premier album. C’est incroyable comme ses compositions faites de séquences et d’orchestres forment un monde cohérent, en dépit du nombre exponentiel d’idées qui traversent ce disque. Vous aimez Hugues le Bars, Albert Marcoeur, vous attendiez un renouveau chez Comelade, vous aimeriez que la musique contemporaine fuse en éclats de rire. Ecoutez René Lussier qui campe â côté de son vélo!

Fin du travail (Version 1) hoovers up some old recordings of theatre music (1980-83) and casts an interesting light on Lussier’s later work. The cues are surprisingly disciplined, with a European flavour and a touch of 1970s art rock played by a medium-sized and relatively low-tech ensemble that again includes Derome. An interesting bit of tapecupboard clearing.

René Lussier protagoniza nada más y nada menos que tres de las nuevas producciones del sello canadiense DAME. La primera es, además, una reedición de su primera obra en Ambiances magnétiques realizada en 1983 y descatalogada desde hace tiempo y que, no sorprendentemente, inicia el catalogo de rcediciones de esta compañía. En Fin du travail, titulo de esta obra, nos encontramos al René de siempre, quizás un poco más alocado que lo que aparenta en sus últimas producciones. Cóctel multigenérico que abarca desde la sugerencia ambiental hasta el ruido, Fin du travail mezcla con furia y volubilidad elementos de la más heterogénea procedencia. Estructuras complejas del R.I.O., melodias ingenuas, improvisación y mucho humor, casi siempre socarrón, convierten a Fin du travail en un disco prodigioso aunque, debido a la salvaje confluencia de estilos, no apto para paladares sibaritas. Junto a Lussier, que interpreta guitarras, clarinete, bajo y mandolina, están Jean Derome y nueve músicos más. Muy recomendable

Reedição do primeiro álbum do guitarrista e multi-instrumentista René Lussier, foi tambem a primeira edicão pela etiqueta Ambiances magnétiques, em 1983. É um trabalho elaborado sobre improvisos e rigor, caos e harmonia, alimentado por curiosidades despertas por novas experiêncas e por reencontros com ambientes ja conhecidos, por barulhos fragmentados e por melodias. Feito com prazer e senedade, é um disco certamente a redescobrir com abertura de espirito compativel.

Fin du travail is a reissue of guitarist René Lussier’s first album (it was also the first release by the independent Montréal-based musique anuelle label Ambiances Magnétiques). It features Lussier’s compositions played by a group of musicians that include multi-instrumentalist Jean Derome (who co-composed two of the pieces here), pianist Pierre St-Jak, bassist Pierre Cartier and drummer Mathieu Léger. Highlights include the centrepiece of the record, Manifeste, which ranges in feeling from raw intensity to reverentially reflective meditation, and the wistful, warm and fuzzy Pour toujours tant que ça dure. 3,5/5

Reedipao do primeiro album do guitarrista e multi-instrumentista René Lussier, foi tambem a primeira edipao pela etiqueta Ambiances magnétiques, em 1983. É um trabaiho elaborado sobre improvisos e rigor, caos e harmonia, alimentado por curiosidades despertas por nvas experiencias e por reencontros com ambientes ja conhecidos, por barulhos fragmentados e por melodias. Feito com prazer e seriedade, e um disco certamente a redescobrir com abertura de espirito compativel.