Lena Circus is a Parisian experimental outfit which has been playing with Butoh performers for several years. Originally formed as a duo in 1999, it now revolves around the core trio of Guillaume Arbonville (drums, percussions), Nicolas Moulin (guitar) and Antoine Letellier (guitar, flute, yukulele).

This is the band’s first proper CD after a dozen of self-released cdr’s. It features the multiple talents of Hiroko Tomiya who, in addition to singing, uses all kinds of percussions – from small bells to stones, bamboo, sand, leaves and sea shells. She is also known for making music for Butoh dancer Atsushi Takenouchi’s performances along with being a member of his Jinen workshop.

The music of Lena Circus is simply superb. If I had to describe it in a few words, I’d say it actually sounds like a musical translation of Butoh dance movements. Not only is it the perfect companion to such an art form, I’d go as far as to say it is one of the most accomplished expressions of music AS dance.

From the very first track, the band is able to create a remarkable sense of tension. The music shows a very strong presence right from the start as some delicate electric guitar lines are heard spiralling in the background, sustained by a very subtle set of percussions. Hiroko’s voice is hovering in mid-air, tracing some ethereal melodic curves.

The second track delineates a much darker atmosphere. It almost acts like the exact counterpart to the first one. The sound recording has an amazing clarity, yet the overall textures strangely feel... out of reach – as if they had been electronically-treated or carefully molded like clay (to use another simile). Both the sound engineer’s work and the band’s collective playing should be praised here as one of the distinctive qualities of this album is that it was actually recorded live – in one day – without overdubs and other effects. The resulting music is all the more stunning.

By the third track, we litteraly enter another world... full of conflicting sounds and colors. It’s as if the acoustic space was actually made of a series of dissolving walls that keep reappearing in the most unlikely places. This is what gives the music its unique sense of strength and delicacy. Every sound has the chance to breathe. The guitars become something else entirely, transformed as they are into abstract sonic devices (which often tend to sound like violas), while the muted screams + weightless percussions keep fluttering about in the most agitated manner. Our sense of time is now completely annihilated.

Tracks 4 and 5 are like short transitory pathways – the first one displaying a somewhat “free” approach, while the second one relies on a more relaxed, yet lively atmosphere, full on subtle, gamelan-like percussions.

Track 6 may be the most impressive of the whole set. It begins very quietly with a duo for percussions before the guitars begin to cast abstract sonic shapes whose level of intensity is only matched by the amount of gracefulness that is maintained throughout.

By contrast, the last track almost takes the opposite approach as it explores the sources of strength that may be found in a deceptively quieter environment. As the minimal chords played by the yukulele start to resonate through space, we are guided through a series of meditative, yet slightly chaotic soundscapes which are all the more captivating as they are able to produce a feeling of serenity in the most disquieting way. This is just breathtaking...

Like all great artforms, this music transcends its own medium by going right through the most expressive human gestures: music, dance, painting, poetry... By focusing on the subtle interplay that exists between the musicians, it also opens up a creative space that belongs to us all. Not only is this CD the most beautiful album I’ve heard this year, it really stands as some of the best music I have ever heard. Truly essential. 10/10 -- Francois Hubert (12 November, 2008)