TRIANA (EL PATIO)

Triana's debut album was not a commercial success at first, but it really helped the band to reinforce the cult status they managed to create from day one (all three members were already veterans in both the rock and flamenco fusion scenarios): it wouldn't be long before posterior re-releases came around and sold out in record stores, just in the late 70s when Triana was a properly popular band in the whole country. The relevance of "El Patio" was also significant since it opened the door to the latent irruption of many flamenco- tinged prog bands that were emerging in many cities of Southern Spain. How about the repertoire itself? Well, it's astoundingly beautiful, emotionally captivating, and full of that special mystique that only flamenco folk has; and yet, it's not plain folk, but a progressive reinvention of flamenco, a reinvention based on a permanent dialogue between Spanish guitar phrases and keyboard (organ, mellotron, synth, piano) orchestrations and solos, compactly sustained by Palacios' flamenco-jazz drumming. The Spanish singing (accentuated in a cante jondo manner with such amount of passion, that it makes it unnecessary for the listener to understand the language or to be familiar with flamenco to let themselves be carried away by that uncanny fire). A special mention goes to the guest on electric lead guitar, which serves as a stimulator of the main synth solos and a source of powerful, rocky pyrotechnics, well adjusted into the flamenco-tinged stuff. 'Abre la Puerta' kicks off the album setting these rules clearly, and so is it continued on the next track, 'Sé de un Lugar' (my fave track from this album). Another masterpiece is the compelling symphonic ballad 'El Lago', something that can only be described as Paco de Lucia-meets- Dark Side Pink Floyd, with added touches of Crimsonesque emotional somberness. These three numbers alone are impressive enough to make the whole album shine in itself; but of course, the less ambitious songs are also quite brilliant. 'Luminosa Mañana' and 'Diálogo' are sheer beauty, while 'Todo es de Color' takes us back to the acoustic simplicity of the most relaxed side of flamenco, and 'Recuerdos de una Noche' lifts up the mood with a sense of naïve joy. The only minor flaw I find in "El Patio" is the lack of a major consistency in some arrangements (that would be solved in their following album "Hijos del Agobio"), but this small thing won't keep this record from being what it certainly is: a splendorous work of Southern Spanish prog.