Eugene Chadbourne/Rene Lussier

Rene Lussier is likely one of the few guitarists who'd risk entering Dr. Eugene Chadbourne's office, instrument in hand. On this album made from two live duo performances (Paris 1998, Victoriaville 2002) he proves himself to be an exemplary patient. Tracks jump back and forth between the two shows effectively, and rightly, breaking up the flow of each performance. In Victoriaville it's clear Chadbourne is the star, charming the audience with his humour and playing to their sensibilities by choosing to adapt Doug Sahm's "Louis Riel" and Quebec fiddler Eddie Poirier's "First Day of Spring." The Paris parts are more electric, featuring the duo’s improvisational interplay that bridges manic picking and stacked feedback noise. What comes across in the overall is the fun these two are having, which is a refreshing departure from the often stone-faced world of musique actuelle.