HUMANOS PERO NO TERRESTRES / HUMANS BUT NOT TERRESTRIALS

In 2001 Ovni release their first live album ''La Experiencia''.This was also meant to be the trio's farewell recording, as Mauricio Alfaro and Kristian Calderon parted ways with Rafael Alfaro, who was left alone behind.However he recruited new musicians to continue the idea of Ovni and these would be bassist Javier Gomez, keyboardist Jorge Lara and drummer Octavio Salman.The fresh line-up recorded the concept album ''Humans But Not Terrestrials/Humanos Pero No Terrestres'' in 2004, released on Fragile Producciones.

For the first time Ovni would choose English as the main language of their lyrics, propably aiming to a wider recognition, with only a few tracks sung Spanish.With the new album a more focused and solid style by Ovni comes in evidence, like a heavier version of THE FLOWER KINGS and close to another Latin-American group, ANIMA MUNDI.Ovni's sound has become more symphonic, the arrangements more elaborate and the grandiose side of the group is fully revealed in the long epics of this work.Three out of the nine tracks are over the 12-min. mark, showing Ovni at their best, combining modern symphonic vibes with heavier and more furious textures and a bit of Neo-Prog aesthetics.Deep orchestral passages and sharp synthesizers along with diverse guitar themes, ranging from melodic to even jazzy vibes, combine for soundscapes, that can be ethereal, atmospheric or more aggressive.The vocals, provided by Rafael Alafaro, are pretty great with a clear color and nice tone range.YES, KING CRIMSON and even some GENTLE GIANT influence in the multi-vocal lines are the more obvious inspirations from the Classic Prog era with MARILLION, SPOCK'S BEARD and THE FLOWER KINGS being more recent sources of inspiration.Rich instrumental themes, atmospheric breaks and a strong sense of melody are the basic elements of the new adventurous Ovni sound.The six remaining and rather short cuts present the already familiar side of Ovni, a sound that balances between Prog and Heavy/Melodic Rock, twisting from refined rockers with catchy choruses and solid music structures to sensitive rockin' ballads with a more emotional content.In general the sound of Ovni has a wide range of music performances: One foot has fully stepped on symphonic-inclined Progressive Rock with polished and demanding arrangements, the other being a tribute to Melodic Rock with both atmospheric and easy-going lines.

Another strong work by Ovni towards the right direction.It lacks any sign of personality, but these are certainly some 70 minutes of well-played, passionate and interesting music.Recommended.