MUDANÇA DE TEMPO

I really would like to say O Terço is the great brazilian Progressive Rock band of all times. But unfortunatelly I can't, and part of the reason I can't is albums like this one.

Mudança De Tempo is the last 70's album by the band and at that time, they seemed really lost, they seemed not know what direction take from that particular time to the future.

What we've got here is a mix of their own Progressive Rock sound mixed with a lot of brazilian influences, which isn't the bad thing, the bad thing is the unity, that isn't showed.

It seems like songs just thrown on the album, and from my point of view it kills an album. Especially for Progressive bands like O Terço.

Examples of the brazilian music can be heard on songs like 'Hoje É Domingo', 'Gente Do Interior', 'Pela Rua' and 'Minha Fé', including some Santana moments here and there.

Of course the album has its fine moments like the opening track 'Não Sei Não', the instrumental 'Terças E Quintas' and specially on the title track 'Mudança De Tempo'.

But all in all it's just an ok album with ups and downs, and that's the reason I can't give it the better rate I really would like to. Unfortunatelly.

Mudança de Tempo means a change in the weather in portuguese (a cryptic commentary about the changing times in the political situation in Brazil at the period), but it also meant for the group quite a change in musical style as well. Flávio Venturini, the keyboards player, singer and songwriter of their most progressive stuff had left after the recent tour to promote Casa Encantada. It was a major blow that deeply affected the band and its sound. With him gone were not only the symphonic prog element, but also the folkish ones and the beautiful harmony vocals. The band tried to counterbalance those losses hiring back ex member and close friend Cezar de Mercês back to the band (he also wrote several of their hits). Sérgio Kaffa filled in the keyboards department.

The results were far from satisfactory. Mudança de Tempo was different and showed the group trying to bring in some brazilian rhythms into their repertoire, like the opener Não Sei Não and Pela Rua. The prog parts were few and far between: only the CD´s two instrumentals can be said to have something vaguely symphonic, specially the second part of Terças E Quintas, where Kaffa does emulate some Tony Banks timbres of the period. Decolada was not bad either, even if it is more on the jazz-rock/fusion category than prog´s. Their audience was not particularly enthusiastic either by Cesar de Mercês´ growing infatuation with black music. There are soul (MInha Fé), blues (Blues Do Adeus) and funk (Hoje É Domingo) tunes. Even bassist Sérgio Magrão tried to write something, but his only contribution (Gente Do Interior) is just a pale, failed attempt to recreate their folk-rock trademark sound when Venturini was around.

The only real good song is the title track and yet it is not great and too uncharacteristic to bring up anything too appealing to their fan base. Small wonder the band folded not long after this album was released. It would take four years before O Terço was heard of again (this time only guitarist Sérgio Hinds remained from the classic line up). Mudança de Tempo marked a sad end for the group in the 70´s. Weather (and the times) did change in 1978.