ALUMBRAMIENTO

In the early Eighties I stumbled upon pivotal Chilean prog folk band Los Jaivas, I was blown away by their wonderful blend of symphonic rock and ethnic music, all those beautiful sounding Andean guitars and flutes! The last two decades I am very pleased with new Latin American prog folk bands like Supay, Flor De Loto and, last but not least, Cangaceiro, from Chile. In 1994 they started as a young six piece band, gradually their sound changed into a captivating blend of rock, prog and ethnic music.

On Alumbramiento (from 2009) Cangaceiro delivers a lof of variety and a lush instrumentation, with the focus on typical Andean folk instruments (charango, quenacho and quena) and Afro-Caribbean percussion (conga, bongo and timbaleta). As you can hear in the opener Festejo: a blend of folk (the atmosphere of La Bamba comes to my mind) and prorock (King Crimson) featuring acoustic instruments (percussion and guitar), wonderfully mixed with powerful saxophone, biting wah-wah driven guitar and a propulsive rhythm-section. This is topped with very pleasant Spanish vocals.

The other 7 tracks also deliver atmospheres with Andean flutes and guitars and Afro-Caribbean percussion. The way these instruments are blended with powerful electric guitar, fiery saxophone and strong drums is very exciting. Cangaceiro also surprise with nice musical ideas.

A jazzy Fender Rhodes electric piano in Secuestro De Una Doncella.

A captivating contrast between King Crimson-like scale acrobatics, warm Spanish vocals and a sultry bass solo in Sojuzgado Por Una Quimera.

A mix from fat guitar riffs and soaring Andean flutes in Diptongo.

And a classical guitar intro in Metamorfosis A Cuatica Cueca.

The running time on this CD is only 38 minutes, but here it's quality above quantity with Chilean Cangaceiro!

My rating: 3,5 star.