It was on a cold, cold evening that I made my way to watch Franck Carducci & The Fantastic Squad at Venue 229 in Central London on their The Answer Tour. I needn’t have worried about being cold, as once I had experienced the unique and effervescent Frenchman himself, I was feeling on fire! Carducci oozes flamboyance, stage presence and charisma - and on that stage is where he truly shines. What a show, led by the showman himself along with his squad of four fantastics, Barth Sky on guitar and backing vocals, Cédric Selzer on keyboards and backing vocals, Léa Fernandez on drums and finally the wonderfully exuberant Mary Reynaud on vocals, acoustic guitar, theremin (an instrument I’d never seen in action before) and percussions.
The support act came in the form of Dec Burke - Burke is a former guitarist/vocalist with acclaimed U.K. progressive rockers group, Frost*, an English neo-progressive rock supergroup. As well as his work with Dilemma, Audio Plastik and Darwin’s Radio, Burke is establishing a strong solo career, and released the album, “Life In Two Dimensions” in 2021. He certainly got the room wide awake and alive with his impressive set, and I was especially taken with the track “Energy” an edgy explosion of exquisite songwriting, and the title track from the album “Life In Two Dimensions” was also an emotional, musical gem!
Now it was time for Carducci and his Fantastics to step up onto the stage, and with bucketloads of energy and a firey spirit boldly step onto it they did! With just the right amount of glittery eye makeup, black nail polish, sparkly flares and partially opened silk shirts to spark my intrigue, Carducci and his squad treated us to some of his greatest songs and we had the impressive “Love Is The Answer” one of my absolute favourites - an amazing progressive rock tune. There are definite layers amongst this ProgRock genre of spell-bounding folk music and it wasn’t just a musical extravaganza but a light effects one too! From green lights to reds to pinks, to purples, this really was a show to entertain and stimulate the senses! When it was time for the captivating Reynaud to sing a song she composed herself “The Angel” - she was exquisite. We also had her leave the stage and treat the audience, who were encircling her to a sensual and mystifying dance routine. The way she incorporated her magnificent LED-light-up-angel-wings costume into the dance had everyone entranced. It was a magical moment in time. Reynaud is particularly impressive and exquisite on the theremin (an electronic music instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer) and certainly wowed the audience with her impressive skill and physicality with the theremin, a particularly difficult instrument to master. When Carducci was leading the ceremonies on stage we were treated to more musical delights such as “Mr Hyde & Dr Jekyll” and as Carducci himself says this one is about people with a double personality, sometimes nice to you, sometimes really not. “Torn Apart” which is the title track of Carducci’s 2015 “Torn Apart” album, (and also features special guest Steve Hackett (Genesis) on a track on the album “Closer To Irreversible”) is an absolute Prog Rock dream! You really have to immerse yourself when watching Carducci and his Fantastic squad, a rock ‘n' roll circus where we’re all invited to be our true selves and I would say each and every audience member was thoroughly enjoying every single moment. It was my first time seeing this band, however I would definitely go and see them again and many of the audience members I spoke to were true die-hard fans - this was an intimate gig, which for me makes it all the more special and connecting. There was a lovely moment where the audience sang a cappella a bit of Pink Floyd along with Carducci “How I wish you were here, we’re just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl”
The band played so well together - you can really tell they are enjoying their time up on that stage and have the audience in the palm of their hand at every note! It cannot be highlighted enough the talents of the troop as a whole, Sky on his guitar was a true artiste and entertainer and extremely talented on that guitar to boot. Selzer, although a little more reserved in his showmanship on the keyboards, still thoroughly entertained and certainly had stage presence, Fernandez on drums was so watchable - she created a warmth and likeability with her drum moves which were spot on, and her understanding of musical timing is just perfect! Finally, Reynaud really impressed with her multi-talented creativity. I really liked that Carducci gives time for his Fantastic Squad to really shine in their own light - a true team player! Back to Carducci himself and meeting him briefly before they played, he is just as I imagined him, warm, witty, energetic, very French, charismatic, quirky, engaging and a true entertainer. The walls were literally shaking at this gig and I am so glad I have experienced the one and only Franck Carducci & The Fantastic Squad, a musical and creative journey, a fantasy, where no audience member can escape from being fully captivated!
The support act came in the form of Dec Burke - Burke is a former guitarist/vocalist with acclaimed U.K. progressive rockers group, Frost*, an English neo-progressive rock supergroup. As well as his work with Dilemma, Audio Plastik and Darwin’s Radio, Burke is establishing a strong solo career, and released the album, “Life In Two Dimensions” in 2021. He certainly got the room wide awake and alive with his impressive set, and I was especially taken with the track “Energy” an edgy explosion of exquisite songwriting, and the title track from the album “Life In Two Dimensions” was also an emotional, musical gem!
Now it was time for Carducci and his Fantastics to step up onto the stage, and with bucketloads of energy and a firey spirit boldly step onto it they did! With just the right amount of glittery eye makeup, black nail polish, sparkly flares and partially opened silk shirts to spark my intrigue, Carducci and his squad treated us to some of his greatest songs and we had the impressive “Love Is The Answer” one of my absolute favourites - an amazing progressive rock tune. There are definite layers amongst this ProgRock genre of spell-bounding folk music and it wasn’t just a musical extravaganza but a light effects one too! From green lights to reds to pinks, to purples, this really was a show to entertain and stimulate the senses! When it was time for the captivating Reynaud to sing a song she composed herself “The Angel” - she was exquisite. We also had her leave the stage and treat the audience, who were encircling her to a sensual and mystifying dance routine. The way she incorporated her magnificent LED-light-up-angel-wings costume into the dance had everyone entranced. It was a magical moment in time. Reynaud is particularly impressive and exquisite on the theremin (an electronic music instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer) and certainly wowed the audience with her impressive skill and physicality with the theremin, a particularly difficult instrument to master. When Carducci was leading the ceremonies on stage we were treated to more musical delights such as “Mr Hyde & Dr Jekyll” and as Carducci himself says this one is about people with a double personality, sometimes nice to you, sometimes really not. “Torn Apart” which is the title track of Carducci’s 2015 “Torn Apart” album, (and also features special guest Steve Hackett (Genesis) on a track on the album “Closer To Irreversible”) is an absolute Prog Rock dream! You really have to immerse yourself when watching Carducci and his Fantastic squad, a rock ‘n' roll circus where we’re all invited to be our true selves and I would say each and every audience member was thoroughly enjoying every single moment. It was my first time seeing this band, however I would definitely go and see them again and many of the audience members I spoke to were true die-hard fans - this was an intimate gig, which for me makes it all the more special and connecting. There was a lovely moment where the audience sang a cappella a bit of Pink Floyd along with Carducci “How I wish you were here, we’re just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl”
The band played so well together - you can really tell they are enjoying their time up on that stage and have the audience in the palm of their hand at every note! It cannot be highlighted enough the talents of the troop as a whole, Sky on his guitar was a true artiste and entertainer and extremely talented on that guitar to boot. Selzer, although a little more reserved in his showmanship on the keyboards, still thoroughly entertained and certainly had stage presence, Fernandez on drums was so watchable - she created a warmth and likeability with her drum moves which were spot on, and her understanding of musical timing is just perfect! Finally, Reynaud really impressed with her multi-talented creativity. I really liked that Carducci gives time for his Fantastic Squad to really shine in their own light - a true team player! Back to Carducci himself and meeting him briefly before they played, he is just as I imagined him, warm, witty, energetic, very French, charismatic, quirky, engaging and a true entertainer. The walls were literally shaking at this gig and I am so glad I have experienced the one and only Franck Carducci & The Fantastic Squad, a musical and creative journey, a fantasy, where no audience member can escape from being fully captivated!
Reviewer - Mary Fogg
on -10.12.22
No comments:
Post a Comment