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Belgium! According to some, the worst swear word in the entire universe. A country famous for Tin Tin, chocolate, waffles and a great motor racing track. Music? Nah! Plastic Bertrand, right? What about Deus? Remember Stef Carlens offshoot band Moondog Jr.? What became of them? Spotted in a Brussels record store and craved for its cover, should I buy it? Is the 'Top 50' sticker an incentive and how much is 695 Francs? The song titles alone are great. Song for a Dead Singer, Rabbit Field and About the Successful Emotional Recovery of a Gal Named Maria. An earlier album had a sign saying 'Formerly Moondog Jr, and I was running for the till. The record was all the cover suggested. Enigmatic, intriguing, confusing and strange. Beck, eels, The Sugarcubes and The The collide in the Grand Place and find that they get on fine. Whichever way you turn a different sound beckons. Infuriating, sometimes. Bewitching, sure. Rewarding, absolutely. Samples, drum machines and pedal steel greet each other in true European spirit, devoid of pretensions and refreshingly honest. The drawbacks? You have to go to Belgium to get it is the biggest. Sure, some of it niggles and Stef's voice can be irritating at times, but the overall sound and feel sets it apart from the usual eurotrash, so head for Belgium and let Zita Swoon revive you.

Laurence Arnold
CWAS #4 - Winter 1998/9 - The Lost Issue

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