Marseille, April 1914

The impresario adjusted his tie as he went down the stairs that led to the great room. He slipped himself between the tables on which chairs had been returned. Two maids, brooms in hand, were washing the floor from which a strong smell of fragrant lavender soap were emanating.

Sitting at a table in front of the stage, Petru Sim?oni, undisputed Godfather of the local underworld , was sipping a coffee while watching -with an expert eye- the dancers repeating the evening show. The four young women were reharsing their figures and sequences without music. Only heels resounded on the boards of the stage. The impresario stopped on Petru?s right and cleared his throat. The Godfather, without a glance, motioned him to sit down.

- Hello Dominique, says the Godfather, you bring me some good news, don?t you?
- Yes, Boss, said the impresario swallowing painfully.
- Well, I'm listening. You have my attention , ?made?? Petru with a disturbing smile.
- The band is called WHISPERING TALES, They?re local. They have formed in 1910, but the musicians played under another name since 1906?. But it doesn?t matter. It is composed with Lucie V?tel? as vocalist, Stephanie Fenu as pianist, Jeremie Chabod and R?mi Ruffe as guitarists , Stephane Castelli plays the bass and Bruno Stagliano does drums.
- Okay, Cut Petru, Presentations are made. What have they done?
- Well, in 1911, they produced a 78 rpm entitled " Echoes of perversion ," which is distributed by the label Brennus . It comes with a small novel (je sais pas traduire "nouvelle") ... " Les reflets de la Perversion ."
- A what? Wondered the Mafia.
- A small novel? a story? which, moreover, is set to music!
- Hey, that?s uncommon?
- Yep Boss, but that is their trademark. Their music, their words form the stories they tell . This is ...

The impresario pulled a sheet of paper from his pocket and read what was written on it.
- This is a conceptual approach !
- You don't say!
- They then walked the main planks of southern cabarets to present their songs. In 1912, one of their guitarist, Ruffe , left the area . Before leaving, he wrote , with Stephane, a 30 minutes piece, discussing the Inquisition in history, "Ad Abolendam ". It is distributed free of charge and you can still obtain it now by going to their stall. They then continued their performances up north and they end their tour occurring in Lausanne in early 1913. Then they retreated into their studio to work on their second 78s. They use the Loran Saulus Deven Prod - studio production and allocate the services of Anthony Da Silva, to develop the orchestral parts and Michel Bacci, who sings a country air .
- The Godfather smiled.
- It's not common... And there is still a story?
- Sure, Boss. This time the songs illustrate a novel! A plot that happens downtown here in Marseille... It seems that there is action and mystery to spare!
- You've caught my curiosity, Dominica. You'll manage to bring them in, won?t you?
- But of course , sir. Their work is to be released on May 24th. It's called "Mechanism" .
- Do you think you can get a copy ?
- It should not be a problem. But you can already order it by visiting their store

Source : Stephane Castelli, Bassist of the band