HALLOWEEN - LAZ - 1989

Halloween's second album Laz, originally released on LPl in 1990 - probably should have got the CD treatment in its first incarnation. The original album's seven tracks were split roughly between three outstanding instrumentals, and four vocal tracks with English lyrics adapted from the work of HP Lovecraft. The music throughout is their own unique brand of symphonic rock - eerie, dark and brooding, full of frightening imagery and foreboding melodies, very much in line with the band's moniker. Visions of demons abound, dark forests shrouded in fog, fear and death, the dark and sinister side of humanity condensed into forty minutes of music.
The four-piece lineup features keyboards, violin + guitar, bass and drums. Vocals are provided either by violinist/guitarist Jean-Philippe Brun or keyboardist Gilles Coppin, and are nothing special except that they are frequently electronically treated, adding to the music's sense of horror. Standouts include the two instrumentals "Iron Mickey" and "Blue Nightmare", the latter being a showcase for an extended solo by drummer Philippe DiFaostino - as well as the grotesque "Waltz" and the ten minute title track. For the CD reissue the track "Suburb" was added, with vocals in French. Overall, a good one, but nothing that measures up to later ones like Merlin and Le Festin.
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