Scaladei for neo prog

Scaladei is a Spanish progressive rock band originating from Catalonia, and based in Salou (Tarragona) founded by Enric Pascual on drums, keyboards & Mellotron and Santi Calero on guitar, both musicians being former members of HARNAKIS, and Enric Pascual also being a former member of another Spanish progressive rock band called DocTorNo (originally spelt as Dr. No).

They released their debut album 'The Swing Of Things' independently as a digital album in February 2020, and in physical format (CD) in June 2020, with Samuel Calero contributing bass on the title track to provide the additional depth which at times was somewhat lacking on the rest of the debut album. An earlier version of the album, with the title of 'Dangerous Bends' and consisting of five tracks rather than seven, was released on Bandcamp in December 2019.

The band takes its name from the Cartuja de Escaladei, an ancient monastery located in Morera de Monsant, which is the subject of the artwork on the debut album's cover. The debut album was recorded at the band's Normen Studios in Salou, with their listed influences including traditional progressive rock bands such as Yes, Camel & Genesis.

More recently, the band has been signed by 5 Lunas Producciones, a record label based in Málaga specialising in Spanish progressive rock and Prog Andaluz, and Samuel is now fully integrated as an official band member. An overall improvement in the production and sound quality of the band's sophomore release 'School Of Pure Soul' has resulted in a much more dynamic and fresher sound than that of the debut.

The band's second album was released via 5 Lunas Producciones on March 16th 2023, and both albums contain plenty of neo-progressive influences from the likes of Leviathan, IQ, and early Marillion or Genesis, with significant use of Mellotron coupled with some tasteful melancholic guitar work.