"This is one of those records that you really can't believe whilst you're listening to it; maybe someone spiked your drink? Or maybe you are actually dreaming, it doesn't really exist? So you put it on again just to check, pinching yourself to make sure. Yep, here it comes again - insane guitar? Check, unhinged orchestra? Check, demented choir? Check. Haunted by the ghost of Gainsbourg this record is real, you really need it in your life."
JARVIS COCKER (PULP)

"J.C.V is a f*****g genius! To have that vision for originality, experimentation & soul at a time when technology was so limited is incredible... Thank f**k for people like FINDERS KEEPERS who have the lust & passion to track these esoteric works down & make them available to the general public... Go seek!!!"
DAVID HOLMES

"I believe Gainsbourg made his greatest record with Vannier and that Vannier was his greatest arranger. This is saying a lot when you look at the genius level of many of the other arrangers Gainsbourg worked with. Vannier's string and choral arrangements have a total sense of OTHERNESS and are indeed unlike anyone else's. And there is none more OTHER than his first LP which leaves your mind feeling like it was fried by THE ANTI-SUN."
TIM GANE (STEREOLAB)

"This kind of record could not be made today: who would pay for this brilliant suite of instrumental concrete madness?"
JIM O'ROURKE (SONIC YOUTH)

"It's the holy grail of psychedelic orch-rock, a crazy concept LP about a small boy who drowns enormous sentient flies in a lake of jam while an array of alarm clocks, a ghostly 140-voice choir and random bursts of accordian create aural mayhem... With the proper release, 33 years late, of "L'Enfant", Vannier finally emerges from Gainsbourg's shadow."
MOJO (MARCH 2005)

"Vannier scored the arrangements to Serge Gainsbourg's 1971 classic 'Histoire de Melody Nelson' before recording this; 'The Child Assassin of the Flies'. Judging by his intense psych-funk-choral vision, he is the 'French David Axelrod', albeit Axelrod in an insane asylum. Bells ring, people mumble and yes, flies buzz, while the music's dizzy extremity recalls such European astro-travellers as Aphrodite's Child. 4/5"
Q MAGAZINE (FEBRUARY 2005)

"Jean-Claude Vannier is the unsung French hero behind countless string-laden records for other artists. Although he's often associated with Serge Gainsbourg's productions (he arranged L'Histoire De Melody Nelson), Vannier also released solo material showcasing his unique arrangement skills. L'Enfant Assassin Des Mouches (Child Assassin Of The Flies) is lazily lumped into the concept album bracket by those who haven't heard it ­ concept meaning 'will scare the unwary and appeal only to people who like ELO'. There's some truth in this: it's thoroughly dark listening. But ELO fans will be very disappointed.

Over a leisurely 45-minute stroll, Vannier scratches beneath the shiny gloss of popular French music, revealing a stark monochrome of musical meltdown: the opening sounds of distant church bells and footsteps barely hint at what lies beyond. Alongside psychedelic attitude and classical musings married to Eastern sounds, sky-high strings and flowing jazz provide the soundtrack to a sojourn that never pauses to look out the window. Choirs, children's voices and electronically-enhanced atmospheres tug you deeper into a vortex of sounds. Musique concrete could never have been so all-encompassing, yet contradictory."
RECORD COLLECTOR MAGAZINE (FEBRUARY 2005)

"Jean-Claude Vannier was the man who arranged Serge Gainsbourg's records and backed Gainsbourg's erotic mumbling with sumptuous strings. Clearly though, he preferred to be the man who made psychedelic concept albums with timpani solos, accordions and the sound of his friends playing pool alongside his orchestra. Unsurprisingly, "Child Assassin Of The Flies" sounds ridiculous, but it also sounds funkier than anything David Axelrod ever made."
FLUX MAGAZINE (JANUARY 2005)

"The soundtrack to your strangest-ever evening in. It's prog! It's easy listening! It's jazz! It's mental! The spaced-out kitchen-sink production jumps from sitars and brass bands to celestial choirs, synthscapes and wah-wah wigouts, snapping from waltz time to shattering pots and pans along the way. 4/5"
RIP & BURN (MARCH 2005)

Alrite, I've uploaded this in lossless, so its a hefty file. But I wouldnt listen to it any other way

Jean-Claude Vannier- L'Enfant Assassin Des Mouches
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=A833BPMB

Um... holy shit. I can't wait to check this out.
Thread idea = way awesome, btw.

Alrite, I've uploaded this in lossless, so its a hefty file. But I wouldnt listen to it any other way

Jean-Claude Vannier- L'Enfant Assassin Des Mouches
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=A833BPMB

i'm a huge fan of french psych pop, so much so that i'm going to be dedicating my french major to its study

let's post great albums from this genre

France Gall - 1968

Listen to Jacques Dutronc and you won't wish you hadn't.

Anyway, I'd be interested to hear more about what you think of this album, and how this all fits in with your French major. What exactly does that mean that you're dedicating your French major to the study of French psych pop, by the way?

I wouldn't be less likely to listen to it if you said more

AMG (****): It's a little unusual for a band to release its most captivating work more than a decade into its career, but this is the case with Monade's Monstre Cosmic. The band's slow, subtle development has often been overshadowed by Laetitia Sadier's work with Stereolab, but while Socialisme ou Barbarie captured Monade's bedroom studio beginnings and A Few Steps More took a giant leap towards making Monade a full-fledged band, this album puts the finishing touches on Monade's transformation, revealing them as an elegant equal -- or at the very least, companion -- to Sadier's Stereolab output. More than Monade's other albums, Monstre Cosmic's songs boast clean melodic arcs that layer over each other, building with an almost architectural precision and beauty. "Etoile" is a study in contrasts, balancing bittersweet vocal melodies with warm, comforting basslines and shimmering keyboards, while "Lost Language"'s sleek yet elaborate strings and vibes wouldn't sound out of place on a Stereolab album. That goes double for "Tout en Tout Est Un"'s bossa nova-tinged interludes and "Messe Joyeusse"'s chiming, retro-futuristic chamber pop -- but they aren't exactly carbon copies of Sadier's other band, either. Monstre Cosmic's lavish arrangements echo Emperor Tomato Ketchup and Dots and Loops, but they're more streamlined and straightforward, even when "Regarde" switches from a lush melody to an astringent, single-note guitar solo, or when "Elle Topo" throws tympani and ticking watches into its spaghetti western theme mix. As with Monade's other albums (and truth be told, with Stereolab's work at times), the album becomes slightly samey as it unfolds, although "Change of Destination" closes Monstre Cosmic with effortlessly charming call-and-response pop. Even at its least inspired, the album floats by like a dream. With Monstre Cosmic, the gap between Monade and Stereolab may be narrower than ever, but Sadier's voice, melodies, and arrangements always make for an elegant experience, however she chooses to present them.

These negatives are confusing the hell out of me.

gainsbourg isn't 'psych pop' is he? dont know much french 60s jamz outside of him... doesn't seem that "psychedelic," although i'mdownloading this Vannier album to compare

Complètement Dutronc Vol.1 1966-1976 (CD 1)

CD 2 to follow.

Complètement Dutronc Vol.1 1966-1976 (CD 1)

CD 2 to follow.

I wouldn't be less likely to listen to it if you said more.

Jean-Claude Vannier- L'Enfant Assassin Des Mouches
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=A833BPMB

Again... confused, but if I read you correctly:
Singer songwriter. French guy. Been around a long time, making great stuff. At times reminds me of Ray Davies or Lou Reed. Excellent songs. First things that come to mind are nice little velvet undergroundish (sorry bout the broad, partially innaccurate generalizations, but that's all I got) little numbers like et moi, et moi, et moi and some great pop songs like jaime les filles (french spelling? probably wrong) and gentleman cambrilliour (again, spelling likely butchered).
Great artist def. worth checking out.

If I read you incorrectly, I'm sorry if I didn't made you not want to listen much less.