Present

Present are a Belgian ensemble formed by guitarist/composer Roger Trigaux. In 1974 Trigaux founded the chamber rock group Univers Zero with drummer Daniel Denis. Trigaux left Univers Zero in 1979 to form Present with pianist Alain Rochette. Denis played in both Univers Zero and Present. Bassist Christian Genet played on the band's first LP, Triskaidekaphobie (fear of the number 13); Ferdinand Philippot played bass on the second LP, Le Poison Qui Rend Fou. After being dormant for years, Present was re-formed by Trigaux in the mid-'90s; subsequent lineups have included some of the band's original members as well as Roger Trigaux's son Reginald on second guitar and expat American drummer Dave Kerman of 5uu's, U Totem, and Thinking Plague. The music of Present has a dark feel similar to Univers Zero, but is often more relentlessly arpeggiatedand rock-oriented, despite the post-millennial introduction of varied instrumentation including cello and saxophone into the band. Present's recorded output has been released mainly by the Cuneiform and Carbon 7 labels, although 2010's impressive two-disc set Barbaro (Ma Non Troppo), featuring a CD with newly recorded (and re-recorded) material and a DVD featuring live festival appearances and archival footage, was released by Ad Hoc Records. ~ Jim Dorsch & Dave Lynch, Rovi...

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