COLOURS CAFFÉ

In the hopes of receiving some international attention for their music, Romanian proggers Yesterdays sent out their music to reviewers around the world. As you would not have guessed; I was one fortunate enough to receive one of their albums at my doorstep. Barring their enigmatic metal scene, I cannot say I am too familiar with the music of Romania, and Eastern Europe for that matter. Regardless, I have enjoyed 'Colours Caffé' for its variety and charm. Yesterdays aren't breaking down any barriers that prog rock didn't already pummel through years ago, but they have an enthusiasm in their sound that sets 'Colours Caffé' a step above your run-of-the-mill prog record.

A minute into listening to 'Colours Caffé', a listener will have a strong idea of what the band is all about. The music is upbeat, with light synths, straightforward rhythms, and a focus on melody that's brought forth strongest by vocalist Bogáti-Bokor Ákos, a singer with a friendly and pleasant voice. To the Western listener, the most exciting element of Yesterdays may be the fact that their lyrics are in Hungarian; although I am used to hearing prog sung in English and Italian, hearing the new language is an interesting experience of its own. The phonetics of the language sung don't always seem to fit the music perfectly, but the optimistic emotions break the language barrier, despite the fact I can't understand a word being said.

If I understand correctly, Yesterdays' first album was more complex, and this is a poppier, more melodic take on their music. Although 'pop' is often an evil word when speaking of progressive rock, Yesterdays' focus on melodies over complex composition works very well. That being said, there are still some fairly adventurous elements to the music of this band. Tracks three through five make up a twenty minute 'epic' of sorts, although only the gorgeous fourth track seems to take the ambition of an epic to heart. 'Nemafilm' is the highlight of this album, although as a whole, the album gets better as it goes on. At the beginning of 'Colours Caffé', the pop elements are most pronounced, but it starts to yield to a couple of surprises along the way. By the end of the album, a listener will have heard some great flute solos, 'vocorder' vocals, and a variety of different tempos and angles from which Yesterdays approaches their music. Nothing is out-of-the-box enough to feel misplaced, but 'Colours Caffé' has enough variety to it to be consistently enjoyable.

Mixed by Ty Tabor of King's X, the production values on this album are quite high, although the way the vocals are recorded sometimes feels plain. Although the album cover implies that Yesterdays are attempting to recreate the 60's and 70's with their music, 'Colours Caffé' is not a totally 'retro' effort. The melodies sound well-planted in modern music. Yesterdays should have a bright future ahead of them if they keep developing their sound, and while I would not yet say they have a unique identity, there is more than enough talent floating around these guys to leave the opportunity wide open.

Share this YESTERDAYS review

Social review comments () BETA

---

---

Review related links

• Send comments to Conor Fynes
• Report this review (#604219)
• Buy YESTERDAYS music online with PA partners
• Show all YESTERDAYS MP3/Stream
• Go to YESTERDAYS page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
• Go to Colours Caffé page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
• Search the Forum for YESTERDAYS related discussions