Having successfully reissued French cult self-titled LP Marie Et les Garcons (FBK 001LP), Gonzaï Records now strikes back with another French rock UFO, never released on vinyl since it's beginnings in 1993: The Married Monk. Twelve years after it's first CD release (Ici d'Ailleurs, 2004), here comes critically acclaimed album The Belgian Kick, a French glam-rock goldies record recorded at Yann Tiersen's studio by Jim Waters (Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Missing Foundation, etc) with appearances on sax by Etienne Jaumet (Zombie Zombie), but also from Yann Tiersen on viola. Sounding like an impossible meeting between a Mark E. Smith with a cockney-disco accent and Ziggy Stardust lost in Paris, The Belgian Kick includes two incredible covers, "You Only Live Twice" by John Barry and "Observatory Crest" by Captain Beefheart, an improbable sample from Robert Palmer for the overture "Tell Me Gary" and a bunch of songs getting the weirdness of French rock at it's best. Never heard before, nor after, The Married Monk are maybe the best hidden French treasure from the past 20 years that you can discover. The Belgian Kick is presented as a double vinyl collector edition. Includes an inside sleeve and download code. Sounds likes: Shannon Wright, Tindersticks, Calexico, Yann Tiersen, Violent Femmes.
