On Soleil 12, Forgas Band Phenomena blends jazz fusion with the ambitious scaling of progressive rock. The octet, formed by drummer Patrick Forgas, includes guitarist Sylvain Ducloux, keyboardist Igor Brover, bassist Kengo Mochizuki, violinist Frederic Norel, saxophonists Stanislas De Nussac and Denis Guivarc'h, and trumpeter Sylvain Gontard. While the horn charts and Brover's tasteful comping are particularly jazzy on "Soleil," Forgas's forceful drumming and Ducloux's spacey guitar textures impart an element of prog to the proceedings.

The band is at their most ambitious on "Coup de Theatre," a thirty-four minute long epic that is chock full of energetic episodes and solo turns from practically every member of the band; contributions by Norel, Ducloux and De Nussac are particularly fine. Norel also fiddles fierily on "Eclipse," and is matched note for stratospheric note by Gontard's overblowing trumpet and Nussac's soprano sax. After an atmospheric introduction, "Pieuvre a la Pluie" rounds the album out with a hot chart played with razor sharp coordination. - Christian Carey (2005, The Daily Copper)