Le projet est séduisant: le Quatuor Bozzini interprètant une œuvre de Jean Derome et Joane Hétu. La crème de la musique actuelle rencontre la crème des petits ensembles contemporains à cordes. Sublime! dirait-on? Pas exactement. Cette crème-double ou ce double-crème (c’est selon) dérange le palet. L’idée d’y incorporer un lot de citations de grands penseurs révolutionnaires (ou moins grands) lues par les interprètes-mêmes (en italien, français, anglais et allemand) était probablement intéressante sur papier, mais, par l’amateurisme de ces orateurs (en matière de spoken word), elle vient constamment interrompre l’écoute de la trame musicale. Par moment, on croirait écouter une version pour enfant du dernier Godard. Reprise donc du Michel Gonneville: Hozhro (Collection QB, 2009) où le quatuor intégrait déjà la lecture de texte de façon un peu brouillon. Dommage, car la thématique imposée par Hétu et Derome de la «cohabitation des différences» est brillamment interprétée par les musiciens, qui jouant dans un contexte beaucoup moins scripté qu’à l’habitude, y offrent de loin, un de leur meilleur disque. Mais, ne perdons pas espoir. Avec chance, quelqu’un produira un DJ cut instrumental question d’y permettre le remixage dans les clubs. Et nous, simple mortels, aurons enfin une raison d’explorer ces boutiques qui vendent des 33 tours dans des jaquettes sans images.

For decades now, the SuperMusique crew have been poetically transforming the minutiae of daily life into the magical. These warm hibernal tales arrive just in time to render winter doldrums obso­lete. With captivating images of the geometry of snowflakes, disappearing roads and cabins in the woods (bilingual translations included), you almost forget that you are listening to some of Montréal’s top avant jazz musicians — Jean Derome, Scott Thomson, Diane Labrosse, Alexandre St-Onge, Pierre Tanguay — as they toss angular snowballs around the winter wonderland. 9/10

A long-standing member of Montréal’s extremely fertile experimental music scene, Jean René has lent his skills to many of his contemporaries. He can be found alongside Michel F Côté in Mecha Fixes Clocks and has augmented Jean Derome’s Dangereux Zhoms core with his viola on the amazing Plates-formes et Traquenards. For his solo debut, René has selected a group of compositions that feature both his work on the viola (electric and acoustic) and his outright intriguing electric guitar work. When playing the viola, René chooses a pure approach to the instrument, relying on a looping pedal fairly sparsely. On the guitar, he manages to evoke downright sinister tones that speak in a nearly industrial language that stands apart from his neo-classical background. From a player of lesser pedigree, this may signal a lack of direction; in René’s skilled hands, Fammi comes across as a daring, idiosyncratic album.

Montréal-based trio Pink Saliva produce music that’s at once intensely deep and readily accessible. Accessible because drummer Michel F Côté lays down earthy rhythmic patterns that sound beamed to the planet through a reverb-y, distant mix. Intensely deep because trumpeter Elwood Epps (aka Gordon Allen) puts so much passion and focus into each and every sound, from kissing lip smacks to achingly beautiful single notes, suspended over the insistent thrumming of Alexandre St-Onge on either bass or laptop. All the musicians are technically ultra-adept, but you won’t find displays of ego or pyrotechnic showing-off. Mood and atmosphere are carefully created and sustained with attention to sonic salience. Amour, Amour, Amour begins with a lo-fi, rubbery vamp opening into a vulnerable trumpet cry that just stops dramatically. Eros Turannos features loose lips and cracking Harmon mute split tones and a reaching bass solo over multivalent drum motifs. This is a highly individualistic take on ambient music that’s rewardingly listenable.