CABEZAS DE CERA

It was memowakeman's interview with this band that reminded me about checking them out. I'm so glad I did, and memowakeman has reason to be proud of this Mexican band. An interesting blend of styles here, I thought they'd be listed under Rio / Avant but Eclectic is the better fit in hindsight.

"Veintiuno" opens with these different sounds coming and going including some deep bass. Drums then guitar follow with spoken words as well. It kicks in around a minute. The sax sound great 3 minutes in. It settles a minute later with bass then builds back to a heavy sound. "Gocxilla" opens with these explosive sounds that come and go before a minute then this scream. A powerful KING CRIMSON-like section then takes over. It settles before 3 minutes as sounds cry out. Clarinet comes in. It's raining after 4 minutes then it kicks back in heavily before 5 minutes. Amazing tune. "Encantador De Serpientes" opens with strummed guitar,percussion and flute. Drums join in as the tempo picks up.The tempo continues to shift though. Huge bass lines after 3 minutes. Sax before 5 minutes. "Un Pueblo Escondido" opens with some major fuzz. Who do they think they are ? A Canterbury band ? (Haha). The song kicks in around 1 1/2 minutes. I like the guitar and bass here. Some flute as well. Violin 3 1/2 minutes in. I hear children's voices before it kicks back in around 5 minutes with some nice violin and bass.

"Caravana" has a surprising Celtic flavour at times with what sounds like a tin whistle. Lots of percussion too then a blast of fuzz. Yes ! Drums and trumpet as well. Incredible sound. The song settles then kicks back in one more time. Great song ! "Pretexto A Un Texto Fragmentado" is experimental to start out and we get some spoken words which are contrasted throughout with a guitar section. "Gitana" features drums, sax, acoustic guitar and other intricate sounds. Fat bass 2 minutes in. "Frontera" sounds so good. The sax is fantastic and so are the bass and drums. "Al Aire" opens with spoken words and strummed guitar. Sax joins in as the words stop. They continue to take turns. Nice bass 5 minutes in.

4.5 stars for me. I find this recording to be so inventive and interesting. It's challenging yet enjoyable at the same time.