Gérard Manset-La Mort d'Orion,LP,1970,France

Manset, a self proclaimed "lifelong rebel and eternal failure," released his debut album in May of '68, just as the students were manning the ramparts. But it wasn't until La Mort D'orion was released two years later that he really began to enter the public's consciousness. It is a thrillingly ambitious concept album of orchestral psych for which the self-taught Manset wrote all the music, lyrics, and arrangements. The opening title track alone runs nearly 25 minutes long, and it has an epic sweep that seems to encompass and distill all the finest French modernism has to offer, from Mallarme and Nerval in its literary pretensions to the sonic advancements in studio sound pioneered by the likes of Pierre Schaffer and Pierre Henry. Moments of seemingly normal French chanson give way to subtle and psychologically disorienting manipulations of orchestral trappings; at other times he'll simply eschew trap drums for booming timpani to provide the rhythmic propulsion. The results are very dark, very beautiful, and quite unlike anything you'd expect from French popular music. And while I do think it will certainly appeal to fans of Histoire de Melody Nelson or the recent Jean-Claude Vannier reissue, it must be emphasized that there is next to no kitsch appeal to this release. La Mort D'orion is a serious work that probably deserves to be approached as such.

For more infos go here

I was shocked and remained speechless for about half an hour , the first time i heard this gem.Creepy in some parts "serious" psychedelic/avant prog ,with much orchestrated dark atmospheres .A masterpiece!

get it here