Off the rails

Zany group of 10 Frenchmen pay tongue in cheek homage to railway pionners with their live performance featuring a simulated steam engine wich appear to be some sort of a giant instrument.

In fact, Hors les Rails (Off the Rails) is more of a spectacle than a concert.

The audience follows the adventures of 10 engine drivers/musicians and comedians working on an apparently real locomotive that sings, smokes and rolls along it’s musical tracks…

During the final, the musicians lay tracks and beat out a tune with hammers on the tracks themselves. The sleepers form a giant marimba on which they play a melody with mallets ans sledgehammers.

Press

« Zic Zazou re-runs « la Bête humaine »-more real than life itself.

These railwaymen make music by tapping rails S prepare to be impressed ! A mind-blowing journey for the audience ! » Ouest-France – Daily broadsheet

« The Iron Lady turns up shrouded in a red sheet before being disrobed for the public S humming, majestic and spitting out plumes of white smoke. » La Montagne – Daily broadsheet

« Explosive, smouldering and diabolical, the bodywork of this machine from Hell was full of surprises. As for the audience this not, inventive and impressive performance had them all completely bowled over. » La Voix du Nord – Daily broadsheet

videos

Ouverture de Hors les Rails

zic zazou in graz (6)

A steam engine rolling in the street

La valse des sifflets

Sinksen 2010 "Zic-Zazou-Hors-les-rails" Kortrijk Grote markt

zic zazou in graz (7)

audio clip

Locafrobeat :

Terminus RailBand :

Avec : Hervé Mabille - sax alto, Patrice Boinet - batterie, Pierre Denis - trompette, Xavier Denis - tuba, Sébastien Van De Weghe - sax soprano, Bruno Hic - trombone, Frédéric Obry - guitare, François Trouillet - gags, effets spéciaux, Alain Graine - trompette, Michel Berte - basse, mise en scène : Alain Mollot et Hervé Germain, conception de la loco : Bertrand Siffritt, construction de la loco : Eloi Miehe - Les Ateliers de la Voûte et Stéphane Fauchille - Zèbre Création, régie spectacle : Thierry Boniface et Yvan Lombard, régie son : Jean-Luc Mallet, crédits photos : la Strada Graz et Michel Gombart.