TRANSFORMATION

I finally got a chance to spend some time with an AURORA CLARA record. "Transformation" was released in 2019 and is in fact their debut. They have since released three more albums, pretty much on a yearly basis after their sophomore release. They are a five piece band based in Spain, but they are truly a multi-national band with all five musicians being from different countries. They are led by virtuoso guitarist Raul Mannola who was born in Brazil but has spent his life living in Finland before recently moving to Spain. And it's so cool he got to spend some time playing with the legendary jazz guitarist Jukka Tolonen who also hails from Finland.

Raul released a solo album back in 2002 called "Aurora Clara" which of course is where the band's name came from. He is a major John McLaughlin fan which comes through in his style but this man is a diverse player. Many of these musicians have a flamenco background and have accompanied various dancers before arriving in this band. The biggest surprise for me is the abundance of flute on here. I'm not big on his style. Very fluttering and dancing. I prefer it when the keyboards or guitar are soloing. Just my tastes.

It must have been a dream come true for Raul that violinist Jerry Goodman guests on the opener here. The band's very first song actually has the incredible talents of a MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA member! Raul adds in the liner notes "My gratitude to the Master of masters, John McLaughlin-to whom "Song To John" is dedicated-for giving me joy and inspiration for so many years." This is a 56 minute album with six tracks. And the opener "Aktur" certainly has a different flavour with the added violin from Goodman.

This is an extremely melodic recording that is very well played. My favourite musician on here is drummer Marco Anderson from England. The man has been around, playing in various musical styles. All I know is that he is incredible at what he does. The joy of this album is the playing of it's five members. I can just focus on any one of them and be impressed. Even the flautist, who isn't always dancing around with his flute. This is a mature release to say the least. In fact that closer is maybe too mature as they end the album with a ballad, my least favourite song on here. Lots of piano and acoustic guitar on it.

I really enjoy the keyboardist on here. He plays mainly piano and synths and does both extremely well. That electric piano especially. According to RYM this debut here is by far their highest rated of their four albums, with the next three dropping in value with each release. So yes get this one if you can. My favourite track is probably the opener with Goodman on it, but this is a fairly consistent recording other than the closer. If you're into jazz fusion this really needs to be heard. A solid 4 stars.

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