A crisp, spellbinding intro sets the mood for the first song on ‘Maintenant Jamais’,Population II‘s third album. With the guidance of producer Dominic Vanchesteing (Marie Davidson, Chocolat, Peter Peter), the turbulence of the bands previous releases is structured and refined. The result is a sophisticated rock album that surprises with its languorous grooves, as heard on “Le th est prt”, while staying true to the raw power for which the band is renowned, as demonstrated on vigorous tracks such as “La Trippance” and “Rdemption naturelle”.

The album follows with “Prvisions”, a song that ripples with finesse before abruptly transitioning into the instrumental number “Macavlique rock”. While “Haut-fond” and “Cardinaux” are true feats of elegant prog rock, “Mariano (Jamais je ne t’oublierai)” and “homme toil” prove that Population II is also endowed with a profound melodic sensibility capable of creating catchy and explosive hooks.

On this new album, the trio fine-tunes the distinctive style theyve been developing for several years, thanks in part to a fusion of shared influences from Soft Machine to MC5 to L’Infonie but also to a rare complicity that can only blossom between such close friends. This creative chemistry is what makes the band’s complex songwriting seem so fluid and supple. Population II breaks through their previous sonic frontiers while remaining true to their roots. Therein lies the achievement of ‘Maintenant Jamais’.

Street date 3/28/25