CEI CE NE-AU DAT NUME

I took less than one minute to decide that I like it: the two guitars which start the first track have a touch of 60s Psychedelia. A quite Hypnotic track because of repetition, but the hard- rock sound of the lead guitar won't make anybody fall asleep for sure.

The intro to "Primavara" (Spring) reprises the fadeout from the previous track and it's absolutely rock. Its follow-up starts with a choir that's a demonstration of the dotted line who connects all the indo-european folk music. Listen to the "chanson de provence" or to some traditional celtic: only Romanian or Gaelic speaking people will catch the difference.

"Vara" (Summer) comes directly from the 60s. A very acid guitar, a distorted bass riff and vocals that remind to early Wishbone Ash. Unfortunately the quality of the recording is not very good. It's not clear if the bass has a distortion effect or is the recording itself to be distorted. It's an excellent song anyway.

"Toamna" (The Fall) is a fusion of Folk and Rock. The melodic line seems to come from the local popular traditions while the rhytmic part is rock. The acid guitar solo is nice even if the four chords below are everything but new: A-G-F-E.

Back to the seasons: "Iarna" (Winter) is again divided in intro and follow-up. 1 folkish minute and another minute of percussions and bluegrass-like guitar. Just an interlude.

"Nunta" (Marriage) is again based on a fusion of psychedelia (bass and drums) and traditional music (Vocals). It's one of the most interesting tracks with changes in tempo, impressive bass line and the omni-present acid guitar, a bit more Hendrix-like this time.

"Negru-Voda Balada" (Black Voda Ballad) I think Voda is a town, but I'm not sure. The longest track of this album. It's mainly a long jam session of blues-rock of the kind that can be found on "Colosseum Live". It's a very good jam indeed, but there was plenty of tracks of this kind during those years. This track is more proto-prog than prog-folk, but it doesn't mean that I dislike it. I'm comparing them to Colosseum, not to Phil C.

"Pseudo Morgana" is probably the most progressive track. The percussions are still from the 60s, the repetitive guitar harping and the bass give it a particular sound. Even if based on just two chords, it's highly enjoyable due to the hard work performed by the bass.

In summary, this is an excellent album with an important characteristic: they didn't try to clone any specific western artist. The influence of blues-rock and psychedelia are evident but this album comes from 1972, so it's natural. This is a band which tries to have an own characteristic sound and the fusion with traditional music gives it a touch of uniqueness.

It's a pity that the recording is not very clean, but it's not too below the standards of those years. Surely it's in line with the standards of the late 60s.

Stars? 4-

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