CUEVAS DE ALTAMIRA

Cantabria is an autonomous region in the northern Spain, bordering the Bay of Biscay. The capital of the small province is the port of Santander. The area is best known for the Altamira caves discovered in 1879, which are among the most important sites of prehistoric rock paintings in Europe. The musicians of the Cantabrian formation Ibio also made of Altamira the theme of their 1978 debut studio album. Ibio, like many Spanish bands of the late of the 70's, incorporated regional influences into their music. And while the majority of these bands resided in Castile (Madrid), Catalonia (Barcelona), or in Andalusia (Sevilla, Cordoba, and Granada), Ibio represented the Asturias region. Much of this can be attributed to the new freedoms of expression after years of Franco repression, when regional pride was discouraged.

Ibio was a band formed in the end of the 70's, when the time where the progressive music was in decline but within what was known as the progressive rock with traditional roots. Ibio, as happened with many other progressive bands in those times, had a very short life. Together with some other prog compatriot progressive bands such as Triana, Los Canarios, Mezquita, Granada, Tarantula and Gotic, they were responsible for bring prog to Spain. Ibio released only one album at the time, "Cuevas De Altamira" in 1978. In 2006, Ibio released another studio album called "El Regresso".

Ibio performed many concerts in Spain. From the beginning they made music influenced by their land and the time where they lived, which made of them a reference in the musical currents at the time. The influence of the Cantabrian tradition in their music means they are regarded pioneers of the later folk movement of musical recovery in Cantabria.

So, "Cuevas De Altamira" is the debut studio album of Ibio and that was released in 1978. The line up on "Cuevas De Altamira" is Lily Alegria (vocals and bass guitar), Dioni Sobrado (guitars), Mario Gomez (keyboards, synthesizers, Mellotron and clavinet) and Ito Luna (drums).

"Cuevas De Altamira" offers a playful, classic slightly jazzy symphony dominated by the varied keyboard sounds of Mario Gomez, which provides a symphonic sonority to the rather solemn work of the rhythm section. From time to time there is a powerful singing in Spanish, but the band is mostly instrumental. The music here is very dense, varied and sonorous. A few folkloric touches can be discerned, but Ibio's music is much comparable to the melodic productions of Italian prog bands from the mid of the 70's. However, what particularly impresses me most of the band's overall style is their ability to fluidly combine the bright colours of the Northern Spanish folk and the somber ambiences of their sound.

"Cuevas De Altamira" has seven tracks. The album opens with the title track. After a short transition the main theme begins, featuring a lovely melody with synth and string effects. The vocals perfectly suit the music, very melancholy. "Romance Del Conde Lara" is a short and cheerful instrumental track featuring electric piano, synth, string synth and electric and acoustic guitars. The folk mood is much present here. "La Virulencia Del Ferrocarril" goes through several tempo and mood changes with great Mellotron, synth, electric guitar and bass. The explosive guitar solos sound nice and raw and the keyboards are pleasant and serene here. "Las Chicas De Laredo" is another relatively short track. It has several different sections. It's a romantic and melodious track nice to hear, especially due to the folksy factor where the band celebrates their musical roots. "A Lo Alto Y A Lo Bajo" is another relatively short track. As happened with the previous track, their folk musical roots are pleasant too in a stronger way. It's dominated by bass and drums played in a traditional Asturian's way. "Pastor" is one of the outstanding pieces. It features the return of the vocals as well as some synth lines pleasant to hear. It's strongly guided by the keyboards with some nice synth lines supported by the guitar work. "La Baila De Ibio" is another highlight. It's the lengthiest, heaviest and dramatic piece. The drums set the place for the duet between guitar and keys. The theme is simple but it's performed in a great blend of folk and prog density.

Conclusion: Ibio made a pleasant enough sound on their sole albumin the 70's "Cuevas De Altamira". It's a fine album with wonderful guitar leads and nice keyboards, including the Mellotron, which wasn't very common in Spain. Ibio, as happened with many other Spanish bands of the late 70's, like the bands mentioned above by me, incorporated regional influences into their unique brand of progressive rock. As also I mentioned above, much of this can be attributed to the new freedoms of expression after years of Franco repression, when regional pride was discouraged. Anyway, Ibio was able to bring to us a very original album that makes a very interesting fusion between the traditional music of Asturias with the progressive rock music. Somehow, they were able to do the same that Triana made with their fusion between the Andalusia traditional music, the flamenco, and the prog music. So, all in all, "Cuevas De Altamira" is a very decent, if not a great album, a classic prog album from Spain that will surely satisfy lovers of the melodic variant of keys prog.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

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