V/A Thesaurus, Vol. 7 2xLP
Cameleon continues to dive deep into rare and/or unreleased French tunes and share their spoils with the world. Here we’re treated to 30 such tracks from 25 different artists, all originally recorded between 1978 and 1986. As you might expect, there is a big variety to digest here, and while not every track is an absolute highlight, all are at least pretty good or interesting. The comp starts with a few straightforward punk numbers, veers into some great post-punk moments, and even throws in a live cover of the RINGS’ “I Wanna Be Free.” It feels silly to dig into specific bands and songs when there are so many on the comp, but a big standout for me was “Pay The Bill” by MOKOS—a fantastic track with tinges of power pop all over the sub-two-minute runtime. The songs seem fairly split down the middle between being sung in English and in French, which also helps keep things fresh when presented with so many tracks. Cameleon often reinforces their strength one rescued 7” at a time, but this comp serves as a pleasant reminder that they can please at length just as easily.