Cassette Review // Feu Follet "Lost Locust" (Blackjack Illuminist Records)

 

https://blackjackilluministrecords.bandcamp.com/album/lost-locust

One of the first things you will likely notice about Feu Follet is that every song has a feature and most artists appear on this cassette more than once.   "Lost Locust" begins with a song which has that new wave vibe to it, as is the Vlimmer influence, and it just feels like a gothic dance party.    This definitely carries on into the second song, which has Pat Aubier on it and is synth pop.   There is definitely a retro sound to this cassette, somewhere between the 1980's and early 1990's.  

"Living Without" comes on and has Isabelle B. Baumann on it.   This sounds like 10,000 Maniacs with the keys and then it also goes into a lot of electronics, those beeps and boops.  On the titular track, Vlimmer returns and so does that sound of the first song, only this time with magical synths.   Pierre Bastien only appears on "A Dream" and it has a distinct sound with the key tones and guitar lines.   Very groovy.  

On the flip side, Vlimmer opens things up again with "Fluid Bodies" and sometimes just comparing how these songs sound with the same artist featuring on them is fun.   "Fluid Bodies" definitely doesn't feel as dark as "Ghosts In The Machine", as the sixth song takes on more of an old school punk feel than the first song.   

Bumann returns on "Glitter Effect" which has a much more technical side to the electronic beat, a little bit like Ladytron.  It also just has this blissed out rock anthem way about it as well.  Aubier returns with "Road To Glory" and it's a very electronic focused rock song.   Baumann closes out the cassette with "As Ever", a melodic trance song which wraps up everything else within this realm of sound rather nicely.