The first vinyl reissue of this legendary EP, released in 1981 on the Japanese "Chaos International Series" label and featuring the tracks "Toujours Plus à l'Est", "Before The Heat", and "Central Belgium In The Dark".
"Toujours Plus à l'Est", as the title suggests, is heavily influenced by the traditional music of Eastern Europe, particularly Bulgaria. It also pays tribute to the iconic catchphrase of Professor Calculus (Tournesol), the character from the Belgian comic series Tintin.
"Before The Heat", played live a few times, is an ambient composition by Andy Kirk, who is part of the EP's lineup alongside Daniel Denis, Guy Segers, Alan Ward, and Dirk Descheemaeker.
"Central Belgium in the Dark" is a live improvisation from a period when Univers Zéro dedicated part of their concerts to complete improvisation. What makes this recording unique is that one of Andy Kirk's effects pedals picked up and emitted the sound of a mysterious radio signal, seemingly coming from "nowhere," especially noticeable at the end of the piece.
The title of this improv is a nod to contemporary composer Charles Ives' work Central Park in the Dark. "Central Belgium" refers to the concert venue where the piece was recorded (Haine-St-Pierre).
This EP was named one of the greatest Belgian albums of all time by MOFO magazine in February 2000, a rock magazine from the '80s.
Univers Zéro is an instrumental progressive Belgian band formed in 1974 by drummer Daniel Denis. The band is known for playing dark music heavily influenced by 20th century chamber music. Even if the line-up changed a lot over the decades, the overall sound of U.Z. remained fairly consistent.
