PEQUEÑAS ANÉCDOTAS SOBRE LAS INSTITUCIONES

After the enormous popularity of "Vida" and "Confesiones de Invierno", Charly García and Nito Mestre, leaders of Sui Generis, decided that the time had come to become more serious both in their musical offerings and in the subject matter that would accompany them, releasing "Pequeñas Anécdotas sobre las Instituciones" (1974). An album heavily influenced by the progressive wave coming from the British Isles, with a critical and contentious lyric regarding the complex social and political reality of Argentina at that time.

And it is with the protagonist incorporation of synthesizers (a primordial element in the sound structures of the genre) added to its mixture of acoustic folk and urban rock, when "Pequeñas Anécdotas Sobre las Instituciones" is nourished by an enormous palette of colours and textures exploited with mastery by the band. A proposal that is socially committed throughout its development, as with the scathing criticism of the rulers in "Instituciones", or with the sarcastic diatribe against censorship in "Las Increíbles Aventuras del Señor Tijeras', full of progressive swings marked by García's synthesizers and Mestre's acoustic intonations, or with the ironic representation of the happy marriage in the rock power of "Pequeña Delicias de la Vida Conyugal" with Juan Rodriguez's entrenched drumming, or with the stark contrast of classes in the tortuous and psychedelic intensity of "Música de Fondo para Cualquier Fiesta Animada" with García and Mestre singing a duet with superlative energy in one of the best tracks on the album.

And after the excellent instrumental "Tema de Natalio" with Jorge Pinchevsky's violins and Carlos Cutaia's hammond (both guests), Sui Generis recalls their most folksy sonorities with the acoustic nudity of the guitars and pianos of the melancholic "Para Quien Canto yo Entonces", a beautiful melody that brings the album to a close.

"Pequeñas Anécdotas sobre de las Instituciones" is, from a progressive point of view, Sui Generis' best work, and despite the critical acclaim, it received a cold reception from the public, who were probably expecting a work similar to those previously released. The frayed relationship within the band due to differences in the future musical approach, caused its dissolution, but not before giving a couple of legendary farewell concerts in Buenos Aires in 1975, which led to the release of the film "Adiós Sui Generis" and its respective LP.

Very good.

4/4.5 stars

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