EN EL HOSPICIO

Is some difficult to explain what Pastoral really is for those who grew up, as i did, in the Argentina of middle seventies and first eighties. Those where terrible years for my country, years of violence and political chaos. Pastoral was a duet formed by Alejandro De Michele and Miguel Angel Erausquin. The first of both was the songwriter of the most songs and it would be and act of justice to name it as one of the best lyrics writers born in South America. His words are bleeding, aching, depressive.. some times near of poets like Rimbaud or Baudelaire. His words talk about death, madness, loneliness... or the mother womb. En el Hospicio is one of the best argentine songs of all times and tells about the story of a friend of Alejandro De Michele, who fell in madness and he was driven to a mental health hospital ´til finally he suicided falling down from a window. I hope to translate to english in the best way i can but is something like "i want to catch the sun into a desert wall... i feel such a free man that even i am being drowned by the idea... It makes me ill... the reality to know the dog is just a dog and nothing else... I want to unhook the sun... to run through the corridors.... to breathe my own loneliness and to look for the reality of knowing the dog is not a dog and nothing else... Real cage... mud cloister.. shadows... shadows... Why don´t they let me thinking of all that human people? And then, just to play, they tie me up against my bed... It makes me ill.. the realito to know the dog is just a dog and nothing else". That is the idea... Desperation, disolation, frustration... Terrible and poetic. If we attempt to the lyrics of ·Hurgando la Genialidad" (and asking for your understanding about my effort to translate it in the most correct way) De Michele writes "I feel tired of hearing you justifying silly phrases spoken by worn-out kings of the old chess game... I am tired of labeling the beautiful, prostituting each hour of nature light... Fool genius.. You are dying coz you are mortal..." Well, these examples could give you and idea about the topics and the language in the lyrics. Musically Pastoral is basically an acoustic duet with some influences of folk of latest sixties and early seventies, but with a personal style also... I think is perfectly and act of justice to include them in a site dedicated to prog rock coz they were all time into a prog attitude and they were always searchers of new ways of expression, even when the prog direction is easier to find in the following albums, specially the third (Humanos) and fourth (Atrapados en el Cielo), when they explored a lot of new musical horizons.

Among the most famous Folk bands in Argentina, the Patoral duo was found in Buenos Aires in 1972 by Alejandro De Michele and Miguel Angel Erausquin, making their first live appearance during the autumn of 73'.The same year their acoustic self-titled debut was released on Cabal, but without any kind of promotion it went unnoticed.For their second album though they were helped by Litto Nebbia and his supporting group, while Nebbia helped Pastoral also with the production of the album.''En el hospicio'' was released in 1975, again on Cabal.

Pastoral's music is based on delicate and deeply lyrical acoustic songs with an intense Latin atmosphere due to the constant presence of vocals.Nothing to do with complex arrangements or multiple instrumental ideas.This is a pure Acoustic Rock/Folk work, mainly headed for those capable of understanding the Spanish language, with little variations or changing moods.The music remains soft all the way, the atmosphere is overall melancholic and rather depressive, but both voices of De Michele and Erausquin are beautiful and warm with a sensitive touch, somewhat overcoming the music parts of the album.Some tracks present a richer sound, featuring short and smooth electric solos, light organs and pianos and the presence of Nebbia's rhythm section and the sound obviously comes a bit closer to Folk Rock.But even these are played under a very gentle and elegant atmosphere, although there are some space for instrumental parts.

Hard to judge this one.''En el hospicio'' is far from the fundamentals even for Prog Folk fans, but its unique atmosphere and fantastic lyrical content are hard to met.Recommended, especially if you like emotional acoustic soundscapes.