This spectacular Parisian nine-piece ensemble goes deeper into genre amalgamation while silently exploring themes of time, absence, and – of all things – UFOs.
Release date: October 30, 2026 | Cuneiform Records | Bandcamp | Instagram
Active in Paris since the now distant 2005, Ghost Rhythms is a very eclectic nine-piece jazz fusion ensemble, built around drummer Xavier Gelard and pianist Camille Petit. In a discography that now stretches to nine albums, they have explored a fascinating musical universe where jazz, rock, classical, and world music styles are constantly intertwined and amalgamated in a spirited and inventive way. Call them jazz fusion, avant-prog, or ‘post-genre‘ – as their label does – if you like, it doesn’t really matter. The how is more interesting than the what.
Guitars, violins, saxophones, flutes, pianos, accordions, percussion instruments; obviously, any band with such a rich arsenal of sounds and timbres can move between different styles/moods just by deciding which instrument will be in the spotlight at any given moment. Ghost Rhythms play this game very well. Throughout Missing Times, there is always a marvelous flow of richly textured melodies supported by a constant instrumental interplay, with the band being very clever about when and how to change things in order to keep the listener’s attention focused.
Within this sonic palette, I realised that two things stand out: firstly, the rhythmic backbone of the music, with Gelard changing grooves – sometimes in quite imaginative ways, like in the opener “Quinta Del Sordo” – in a manner that’s more suitable for a progressive rock outfit. Secondly, the presence of Alexis Collin’s accordion adds a delicious and quite unexpected flavour, that of Mediterranean music. I guess that, being a Mediterranean myself, these sounds evoke some personal familiarity but, beyond that, they create a wonderful contrast with the more ‘academic’ jazz/classical elements portrayed here. The same effect can be found in the use of congas by Morgan Lowenstein.
Missing Times is an album that is conceptually inspired – dictated even – by UFO mythology: alien abductions, time loss, time relevance, presence, absence; these are the underlying themes used by the band in order to create some coherence in an otherwise long and almost entirely instrumental album. Sometimes these themes succeed in making a strong impression to the music. For example, “Agatha” (inspired by Agatha Christie’s 11-day disappearance in 1926) has a truly irresistible film-noir aura; or “Aux Grands Absents” surrounds the story of a UFO abduction with a dark, enigmatic atmosphere. When the concept is felt behind the music, Missing Times is charming and exciting. Nevertheless, clocking in at almost 73 minutes, the album would definitely benefit if it was somehow shorter – even if it was to sacrifice some of its epic presence.
The impressive self-titled album closer creates some free associations with King Crimson but, for the most part, Missing Times doesn’t feel like a progressive rock album; on the contrary, I feel like it’s more connected with the Rock In Opposition tradition, and more specifically with bands like Art Zoyd, Miriodor, or even Univers Zero – some of the best fucking bands in the avant-rock world, if you ask me. The thought comes naturally because of the way chamber music elements are integrated here into a fusion environment, but Ghost Rhythms remain accessible and quite straightforward, throughout. This is not a ‘weird’ album but rather a light, colourful, and adventurous one.
Missing Times isn’t an album with modern angles, as it mostly focuses on musical styles that have been well explored in previous decades. But make no mistake, lack of modernity doesn’t mean lack of quality. Quite the contrary; Ghost Rhythms present an excellent and quite unique amalgamation of sounds, styles, and eras, in a fascinating manner. And while already 20 years into their career, the band’s vision still sounds fascinating and engaging. Deep in the underground hide some really spectacular ensembles mixing aspects of rock, jazz, and classical music – look for Quartet Diminished, Ogives, and Asceta – and Ghost Rhythms deserve to be in such good company.
Artist photo by Audrey Petauton
