Exposé Online banner

Exposé Online

Not just outside the box, but denying the existence of boxes.
Covering music from the fringes since 1993.

Reviews

Olgoj — A Place to Rest
(Bandcamp Baboon Fish BFL22, 2025, CD / LP / DL)

by Peter Thelen, Published 2025-12-27

A Place to Rest Cover art

A Place to Rest is the debut release by the French four-piece Olgoj, from the Baboon Fish Label that also brought you the two recent releases by Rhùn (Tozïh and Tozzos), reviewed in these pages not too long ago, and Noziroh by Spectrum Orchestrum. On initial hearing, one might be tempted to apply the math-rock tag to what they do, but vocal harmonies play a big role in their sound, which pulls it all closer to a more ear-friendly sound that has a degree of commercial viability, which in this case is a very good thing. They don’t really sound like anyone else, although some influences can be detected within the walls of their grooves, most prominently 90s King Crimson with Adrian Belew, but it’s just a stylistic similarity — nothing is borrowed or stolen. The band is Samuel Anger (vocals, guitars, bass, arrangements), Matthieu Noblet (drums and arrangements), bassist Ronan Bedo, and backing vocalist Frederic Gablin. In addition Klara Anger provides backing vocals on one track (“Collision”), one of the standout tunes on the album, if only due to its oft-repeated refrain “...Are we getting there.” If the Bandcamp page is to be believed, all of the mixing and production was done by Samuel Anger and Matthieu Noblet, the lyrics are by the former, and the music on all nine tracks was group written. That said, everything at hand is compositionally artful and arranged to be likeable on first play. The opener “Galaporella” features a catchy rhythm, great hooks and some superb guitar lines all intertwined, while the group slows the pace down a bit on the follow-on “Second Skin” while simultaneously ramping up the energy slowly. The title track begins with a catchy pattern and harmony vocals, then bursts into a powerful rock about a minute in, while “Frequencies and Everything” is probably the most Crim tune in the set, flashing back and forth between snarly, fortified rock energy and some superb vocal harmonies that balance things out wonderfully. A Place to Rest is a poweful debut, hopefully a follow-up is currently in the works.

Filed under: New releases, 2025 releases

Related artist(s): Olgoj

More info
http://baboonfishlabel.bandcamp.com/album/a-place-to-rest

 

What's new

These are the most recent changes made to artists, releases, and articles.