HOLOCAUSTO

This is the real Tantra experience. Great musicians and great ideas. Throughout all of Tantra's works, on this recording I found some of the best progressive rock sequences, matching those of genesis, yes, pfm, etc.. but in it's own way. Their influences are not so clear, but their compositions are of an amazing freshness throughout all of the larger themes. An essential album for any classic ProgRock Fan.

01. OM The top 'synthesized' already gives us a hint of what will come! A layer of copper keyboards all 'corners of the sound' (if that is the sound has corners). Ledo mistake! The introduction of the keyboard does not give us the real picture of what was, a high-technical prog (impressive battery of Tó Zé), then the voice of Manuel Cardoso melodicamente perfect enter into the proposal of the band. Excellent instrumental lines ... and if everything breaks again at the piano to take along all the 'sounds floating' possible, start this way, the staff was not kidding. Line bottom and back of sensational voice (which as I said in the release of Jose Cid who is also Portuguese, is wonderful to hear the voice in Portuguese native). The final section is full of broken and soils of keyboards and bass. This track is the guitar 'timid'.

02. Último Raio Do Astro Sol Apocalyptic! Those of creepy. Sparse guitars, drums beating and a lot of vocalization. Totally Yezda Urfa and the disconcerting that follows, I do not know where they took of all the madness. Then a voice pretty well, strange and bottom line of battery, and an almost classical piano in the background. The band has an impressive technical change in the question of time and melody of the songs, that is presented, and much! The keyboards have always timbre and Jasons. A little after the middle of the song guitar and keyboard solos divided almost in a duel, and once again the band radically changes as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Extremely competent and complex the instruments of the guys.

03. Zephyrus Zither and madness, some strange sounds that I have not the slightest idea of where you left! The zither come loose in the middle of the 'noise', battery Gong, and sets up a melody soturna, low solando next to the keyboard, and some background Vocalizations cause everything is even more bleak. And once again highlight the excellent work of Tó Zé Almeida on drums.

04. Talismã The guitar has a nice arpegio with the keyboard, while the band makes a house without walls arpegios pros of both. Here's the track that gives a guinadae turns into a race against time and the wind for a short time, the piano brings back the calm voice Pros (which are sporadic, but excellent!) The arsenal of keyboards for that signal is well used makes an enormous difference. The vocal melody that follows is emotional, at that low among highlights soon after. Peter Luis is the king of keyboards and ... unknown. SPT, SPT, SPT ...

05. Ara Here the guitars and guitars are a bit, just to face the initial voice is very nice. Plus a little dark (but this time with the guitars taking key role), a symphonic session without equal and around the original theme. Suíngue enter into a field, almost dancing with a nice timbre of keyboard and battery solando extremely broken, low? Of course it follows, and well, the battery. And he sung on top of it

06. PI This is the classic guy! Piano, guitar plates and a bow-and if I am not mistaken and suingado low but in a time very different from all the rest (Americo Luis miseries with Precision makes it), the falsetto voice in eternal are very good! Solo guitar and keyboard together! The band has a nice way to compose with two instruments solando in various parts. Here is the total quebradeira and jazz-fusion.

Tantra (and this disc) I drew much attention, because the disc is excellent and quality business. This disk has a face the same mixing several influences. The guys are good.

www.progshine.com

This was the second album by Portuguese prog rock band Tantra, and came out in 1979. By this time Tantra were widely regarded as the top prog band in the country, and had toured considerably. A very dramatic band, both in the music and in their live shows, they had also aided their popularity by performing all of their material in their own language, although they did switch to English after 'Holocausto'

It is very much an album of it's time, although given the state of the music scene at the end of the Seventies this would already have sounded very dated by then. They had taken influences from British bands such as King Crimson and Genesis, and brought in even more eclectic styles from Magma and PFM that means that now the music can at times sound self-indulgent and grandiose. But, when it works well this is quite an album. Yes the production and some of the keyboard sounds are very much of their time, and the interplay and solos can last for a fair while, but they weren't afraid to experiment and there is effective use of clarinet and even a sitar.

Even among progheads this is an album that will only be listened to sparingly, but to those who enjoy experimental trad prog then this is one from the vaults.

Originally appeared in Feedback #67, Apr 02