EL RADIO ESTÁ EN LA COCINA

This Venezuelan act's second offering might as well be one of the most amazing experimental prog recordings for the year 2005; definitely, kRé restates itself as a major prog force not only in the Latin American context, but also in a worldwide spectrum, giving proof that they can still impress prog audiences with yet another masterpiece after their impressive debut "Ruido Doméstico". "El Radio Está en la Cocina" finds the former trio turned into a quintet, with the incorporation of recurrent collaborating keyboardist Chemi Gutierrez and newcomer percussionist José Martínez as official members. But this is not the only novelty: the most fundamental one is regarding the stylistic evolution that the band has harbored, nurtured and craftily accomplished within itself for the new album's material. The incorporation of Latin jazz- centered rock (in many ways, similar to early Santana) and funky overtones within their own musical pallet allows the musicians to expand their musical vision, while keeping their tasteful sense of weirdness and sophistication (that is, preserving the influences from early 70s King Crimson, current post-rock and jazz-fusion that they so cleverly recycled for their debut album). The sequence of the first three numbers somewhat establishes some sort of canon for the album's overall trend. The fusion-esque of vibes of 'La Curva y el Humo' and the title track, and the eliciting funky grooves of 'Muco' transport the audience to a festive ambience refurbished under a moderately disturbing guise, which results from the well-ordained collision between the natural joy of tropical origins and the somber aura of psychedelia. D'Hers himself epitomizes this collision perfectly well with his Fripp-meets-Santana guitar flavours, while Gutiérrez indulges himself in his Wazinul-inspired loud, distorted electric piano input. No doubt that the rhythm trio plays a most crucial role at sustaining the whole thing with precision, while preserving the necessary exotic cadence to its purest essence. 'Columpio' goes to more remarkably ethereal places, with its minimalistic layers a la post-rock (a bit similar to GYBE! Without the string instruments): it allows the band to explore the realms of introspectiveness after the three-part fiesta that had taken place previously. But the fiesta has to go on, and so, it re-emerges in 'Entre 6 y 8', an exciting track which condenses the spirits of the first three tracks with a vengeance, making the casual and frivolous sound so tremendously serious and sophisticated: let me describe it as a sonic portrait of sheer joy with a proper touch of added neurosis. 'Eclipse Falcón' finds the band returning to the denser realms of post-rock inspiration, something like a dreamy vision among an unearthly fog: the second part is more lively, but not from a "happy" point of view, but from a "mechanic" one, more related to Neu! and 71-73 Can. The last two pieces are the longest ones. 'Exhalaciones' is a captivating amalgam of spacey ambiences that go continuously surrounding the listener's mind for almost 12 minutes. The closure 'Una Corriente Indefinida y Otra Finita' makes a sort or recapitulation of the most lively and darkest sides of the whole album, making them melt into a solid 13+minute sonic unit. The musical vision of kRé is, indeed, one of the most explosive and impressive expressions of contemporary avant-rock: their material is a real gem for the adventurous prog fan, and in a more specific note, "El Radio Está en la Cocina" is a masterpiece. It may turn out to be inscrutable to prog fans with incompatible inclinations, I understand and respect that, but to my ears this album deserves no less than the maximum Archives rating.