Jack Rabid Page

Living in New York, I'm always looking for a local band that stacks up, without boosterism or favoritism, against the groups I admire from the rest of the planet.
A decade ago the best such group was FLOWER, a loud, post-punk noise quartet that chiseled powerful songs out of the din, as much third album WIRE or MISSION OF BURMA as SONIC YOUTH. Their two strong LPs, Concrete and Hologram Sky, have been reissued together on one CD by the Simple Machines label as Concrete Sky. (now also sadly out of print; now if they'd only reissue it
again as well as the debut, kilter "I Regret" 12" EP on CD!)
That group split as the '90s dawned but has become a footnote since the two guitar players, the BALUYUT brothers ED and RICHARD, went on to form the popular indie-underground staple VERSUS, where they still reside.
But what happened to the other two members? Bassist IAN JAMES played in Geffen artists CELL, and likewise drummer ANDREW BORDWIN spent time in RUBY FALLS. But now James and Bordwin are back together where they belong in a
new band, FRENCH. They first appeared a year ago at CBGB but then disappeared, and I feared them D.O.A..
But they now have two self-titled mini-LP CD on Bear records, French I and French II, recorded as a trio, with James moved to guitar and MARIA OCANTO on bass (guitarist JAMES BALUYUT, brother of the old Flower bandmates, adds guitar on two songs). Fantastic songs such as "Bus Girl," "Strictly Dreamboat," "Fondly" and "SDBII" retain Flower's power, but lighten the tone and utilize sharper, more advanced melodies. And you should hear their stunning cover of GANG OF FOUR's 1979 Entertainment smacker "I Found That Essence Rare!" (They have also surprised audiences by covering the 1977 Clash.)
Catching them again live around the City with their new second guitarist LORNA POM-EROY, I was able to corner them backstage one night at Brownies to ask them why they'd vanished. James, who recalls me. from the Flower days, has a credible answer. "'Cause we lost our guitar player, Jimmy (Baluyut), who now also plays in Versus (with his brothers). After that, it took a long time to find Lorna. That and laziness!"
"But as far as playing shows, we are trying to make a conscious effort to string some shows together, now that we have our lineup set. It was real chaotic when Jimmy was in the band, we knew he would be leaving, so it was hard to bother. But with Lorna in, it really solidifies things in our sound."
"I have a feeling that if Flower had stayed together, we would be doing something like we are now, or a combination of French and Versus. But it's not really a continuation. It's nothing tike it was. Flower used to jam, and songs would come out. Whereas this band writes the songs out in advance and then tries to perfect them in rehearsal. The only thing that's the same is that me and Andrew still argue and insult each other all the time."
"I don't think familiarity hurts," agrees Mr. Bordwin, wryly.
Now that they are "back," I suggest a little "familiarity" on the reader's part with this superb new outfit. If you pardon my "French," they're f**ing great.

What Jack Rabid Has To Say About Us


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Living in New York, I'm always looking for a local band that stacks up, without boosterism or favoritism, against the groups I admire from the rest of the planet. A decade ago the best such group was FLOWER, a loud, post-punk noise quartet that chiseled powerful songs out of the din, as much third album WIRE or MISSION OF BURMA as SONIC YOUTH. Their two strong LPs, Concrete and Hologram Sky, have been reissued together on one CD by the Simple Machines label as Concrete Sky. (now also sadly out of print; now if they'd only reissue it again as well as the debut, kilter "I Regret" 12" EP on CD!) That group split as the '90s dawned but has become a footnote since the two guitar players, the BALUYUT brothers ED and RICHARD, went on to form the popular indie-underground staple VERSUS, where they still reside. But what happened to the other two members? Bassist IAN JAMES played in Geffen artists CELL, and likewise drummer ANDREW BORDWIN spent time in RUBY FALLS. But now James and Bordwin are back together where they belong in a new band, FRENCH. They first appeared a year ago at CBGB but then disappeared, and I feared them D.O.A.. But they now have two self-titled mini-LP CD on Bear records, French I and French II, recorded as a trio, with James moved to guitar and MARIA OCANTO on bass (guitarist JAMES BALUYUT, brother of the old Flower bandmates, adds guitar on two songs). Fantastic songs such as "Bus Girl," "Strictly Dreamboat," "Fondly" and "SDBII" retain Flower's power, but lighten the tone and utilize sharper, more advanced melodies. And you should hear their stunning cover of GANG OF FOUR's 1979 Entertainment smacker "I Found That Essence Rare!" (They have also surprised audiences by covering the 1977 Clash.) Catching them again live around the City with their new second guitarist LORNA POM-EROY, I was able to corner them backstage one night at Brownies to ask them why they'd vanished. James, who recalls me. from the Flower days, has a credible answer. "'Cause we lost our guitar player, Jimmy (Baluyut), who now also plays in Versus (with his brothers). After that, it took a long time to find Lorna. That and laziness!" "But as far as playing shows, we are trying to make a conscious effort to string some shows together, now that we have our lineup set. It was real chaotic when Jimmy was in the band, we knew he would be leaving, so it was hard to bother. But with Lorna in, it really solidifies things in our sound." "I have a feeling that if Flower had stayed together, we would be doing something like we are now, or a combination of French and Versus. But it's not really a continuation. It's nothing tike it was. Flower used to jam, and songs would come out. Whereas this band writes the songs out in advance and then tries to perfect them in rehearsal. The only thing that's the same is that me and Andrew still argue and insult each other all the time." "I don't think familiarity hurts," agrees Mr. Bordwin, wryly. Now that they are "back," I suggest a little "familiarity" on the reader's part with this superb new outfit. If you pardon my "French," they're f**ing great.		(2/21) FRENCH at CBGB; Brownies (3/31), Arlenes' Grocery (5/17), Mercury Lounge (5/30): Four more impressive sets from New York's best band, including ingenious covers of THE CLASH ("What's My Name") and GANG OF FOUR ( their "I Found That Essence Rare" sped up three-fold after the intro, with great results). IAN JAMES has quietly matured from his shier FLOWER days into one of the most compelling frontmen around, and his quartet sound more dense, yet more attack-minded than even their two excellent EPs suggest.


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