Every time yours truly thinks he knows every mestizo band out there, a next one turns up to prove us wrong. Les Barbeaux is a band from the area around Béziers in the French Languedoc region and was founded in 2003 by Pascal 'Keren' Tenza, accordionist, song writer and voice of the band, and violinist Philippe Boutet. The music of Les Barbeaux, in addition to a lot of echoes from other genres, contains influences from rumba catalana, punk and elements from French folk, with Philippe Boutet's violin taking a central role. On their third long player 'Soleil', one moment Les Barbeaux sound as the French answer to The Levellers, but songs like 'Guerillero' or 'Pastilleros' are more reminiscent of Les Négresses Vertes and Mano Negra. Les Barbeaux is a great party orchestra, to be enjoyed, like the title of this album suggests, under a radiant sun enjoying a nice glass of pastis!