The first live album from French avant-pop ensemble
Aquaserge consists of recordings made throughout 2016 and 2017, surrounding the release of
Laisse ça être, the group's first studio full-length for Crammed Discs. Four tracks from that album are reworked here, as well as three from older releases and an easy but not too easy cover of "My Funny Valentine," sung in French. Dazzling as the group sound on record,
Déjà-Vous? suggests that
Aquaserge shine even brighter in concert. The album begins by transforming
Laisse ça être highlight "Virage Sud" into a ten-minute monster, building up from a drone to a galloping rhythm, and then flying high with a cornucopia of instruments soloing in an erratic time signature. "C'est pas tout mais" seems a lot looser and funkier here than in its studio recordings, almost sounding like proggy Afrobeat, and it concludes with a stretch of instruments playing in reverse before launching into "Travelling." Also far longer than its previous recorded iteration, the song starts out like the soundtrack to a tense crime scene, with racing drums, darting fuzz guitar melodies, and suspenseful horns. Halfway through, the group seem to have escaped certain danger, and are freed from the rhythm for several minutes until they segue into a brief rendition of "Tintin on est bien mon loulou." This begins by sounding like an avant-garde mutation of "Whole Lotta Love" before being twisted into a chaotic horn freakout. The musicians are incredibly tight and focused while maintaining a sense of spontaneity and unpredictability, and their live energy is well-captured on this recording. ~ Paul Simpson