CUAC!

Cuac! is the funny duck-related onomatopeia that this experimental rock band from Spain chose as a name. This ensemble includes a member of Senogul (one of the brightest Spanish prog acts nowadays) on the keyboardist's role and another one as an occasional guest on sax. But mostly, the progressive credentials of Cuac! rely on their ability to fuse jazz-fusion, funk, symphonig prog, Indie rock and psychedelia in a musical statement that is equally diverse and coherent. Their eponymous debut album was released by Disconsonancia, a label created to release material by bands connected to Senogul. The album opens up with 'No te conocía ese jersey', a track that elaborates a moderately intense sort of jazz-pop with fusion textures: Pire's singing is sweet yet with a slight touch of neurosis. The guitar solo in the middle is very Frippian, which makes the latent weirdness of the song come right forward; meanwhile, a lovely but too brief synth solo reminds us of the Pete Bardens pattern. 'Anika Pistophen' follows on a bossanova note, in a way perpetuating the opener's evocative mood albeit in a more dreamy manner. For that matter, the sax solo helps quite a lot. 'Nun' takes things to a much grayer mood, almost like Portishead with slight Crimsonian adornments; the song's coda delivers a powerful symphonic climax. One of the greatest pieces in the album, indeed! For 'Voleybol para adultos', the band brings back its penchant for refined, soft jazzy nuances in an art-rock framework while 'Heliocenrismo' is a beautiful exercise on eerier symphonic prog: written by keyboardist Salueña, it shows in the way that his input occupies the central spectrum of the instrumental development. After this exposure of sophistication comes something lighter - that is 'ExBeachIt', a very warm jazz-pop number. This is a spot of sunlight tha tdoesn't last forever, since the next track, entitled 'Vomitina', displays a mixture of Portishead, Tortoise and "Furure Days"-era Can. The musical amalgam is totally controlled, but it certainly hints at an undercurrent tension that never gets to the surface. 'Fuagrás' is a second exhibition of jazz-pop, even more joyful than 'ExBeachIt', while '¡Que alguien haga algo!' (what a title: somebody do something!) states a vital set of psychedelic moods that neve gets to aggressive realms. 'Marlene' is a humorous exercise on German 20s cabaret; on the other hand, 'Abimo' bears a soft melodic development whose deceitfully relaxing appearance hides a mysterious restlessness that occasionally stumbles out. The latter also includes what is arguably the best guitar lead in the album. 'Tumbaos' returns to the jazz-fusion area with abundant Latin colors. Due to its agile mixture odf jazz-ock and symphonic prog, the closer 'Corredor en el filo' serves as the most appropriate epilogue to this album's consistent ideology. Cuac! is a band to pay attention to among prog rock fans, seriously.