THIERRY MAILLARD: « MOOG PROJECT »

Nothing will stop the bulimia and the hyper-activity of the pianist, composer, and label director Thierry Maillard, able to record and produce several discs a year, and especially capable of surprising us each time and of dazzling us most of the time by the strength of his talent and the singularity of his projects. This exciting and delirious "Moog Project" is no exception to the rule, where after a luminous and soothing solo acoustic piano album ("Une Larme de Pluie"), Thierry Maillard goes in a totally opposite direction. This new project is dense and rich, resolutely electric, and electronic, driven by pop melodies, as well as a rhythmic energy that is totally rock and a fervor that makes you want to dance!
It all started with the desire to revive a mythical vintage instrument, the Moog synthesizer, which comes in several models: the Modular, the mini-Moog, the Polymoog, the Multimoog or the Prodigy. When he started his professional career in 1994, Thierry Maillard received a mini-Moog as a gift (offered by Pierre Papadiamantis) which he enjoyed practicing in addition to the piano. He then put it aside, although he continued to listen with a great deal of interest to the fascinating sounds that his heroes, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, or Joe Zawinul, were able to produce with the instrument.

His great joy was to rediscover, almost thirty years later, not only this instrument, but a range of about twenty electronic instruments (like a painter with his palette of colors) where each moog has its specificity and precise use, much like Herbie

Hancock who surrounded himself with synthesizers at the time of the album "Sunlight" (1978).

This reference associated with music from the late 70's is very important. At that time, one did not use loops, sequencers, or other digital loops. Everything was performed live and in analogue. It is this practice of the "live" performance that Thierry Maillard absolutely wanted to capture, without "cheating", without using the process of re-recording and digital tools. A demanding and complex process which allows him to fully adapt to the scenic experience, where jazz musicians are used to playing without a safety net, taking all possible risks.

The nostalgia for the late 70's and the beginning of the 80's is also reflected through a musical memory linked to a very strong emotion, when as a young teenager, Thierry Maillard discovered and bought with his pocket money the album "Breakfast in America" by the band Supertramp. The formidable melodies of the songs of this English pop group completely fascinated the budding young musician. A period when Supertamp used mostly Wurlitzer electric pianos, but not yet synthesizers. It is precisely for this reason, but also to pay homage to the jazz-rock keyboardists of this time (Hancock, Corea, Zawinul) that Thierry Maillard had the idea of arranging several famous songs by Supertramp, based on an instrumentation with synthesizers, but also an acoustic piano and a real drum (especially not a drum machine). There is no bass player in this group because Thierry Maillard uses with great effectiveness and with his left hand, bass synthesizers, in the middle of his moog set.
It is thus a rather atypical trio, where our leader is accompanied by his favorite drummer who appears in most of his projects: the impressive Yoann Schmidt. Wanting to focus exclusively on the use of electronic keyboards, Thierry Maillard also wanted the sound of an acoustic piano by calling upon a brilliant jazz pianist, very comfortable in swing and bebop, the pianist from Toulouse Amaury Faye (graduate of the Berklee School of Boston and spotted in the Initiative H ensemble).

Thierry Maillard did not limit himself to reworking famous Supertramp songs such as Breakfast in America, Dreamer, or Logical Song, by removing the lyrics and arranging them for his "electro-jazz-rock" trio. He also wrote four personal compositions (such as the emblematic Towards the Moon with its reference to the Apollo spacecraft) and entrusted two compositions to Yoann Schmidt (Kristelle and Le Bagne), who also arranged the famous standard All the Things You Are in a surprising version that anchors this project in the world of jazz.

Fans of Supertramp will be happy that their favorite band is featured on such an innovative and ambitious project, as well as lovers of the English pop melodies that Supertamp was inspired by (The Beatles in particular). Fans of jazz-rock keyboardists will be seduced by the effective use of moogs from a melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic point of view. Jazz fans will love the interaction and the freedom of the three musicians. Rock fans will appreciate the energy and dynamism of this power trio. Fans of electronic music will also enjoy the brilliant use of machines, played "live".


Thierry Maillard’s "Moog Project" is a crazy, singular, and unclassifiable album, while remaining consensual, because a wide range of different audiences can find themselves in it, reaching out to all generations, like most great musical works!

Lionel Eskenazi