HABLO DE UNA TIERRA

GRANADA (from Madrid..) was the musical project of multi-instrumentalist Carlos Carcamo: flute, violin, acoustic - and electric piano, mellotron, clavicordio, 12-string guitar, percussion and vocals! The debut-album "Hablo De Una Tierra" (1975) is their most original album in my opinion and a good example of the original Spanish approach towards progrock. The six compositions sound very varied (from rock and bluesy to Latin and symphonic) with strong Spanish vocals, powerful guitar (some biting solos), pleasant keyboards (many beautiful Mellotron waves) and IAN ANDERSON inspired fluteplay. The titletrack includes a splendid and very unique duet from the Mellotron and flamenco guitar of guest-musician Manolo Sanlucar, goose bumps!

3.5 stars...

Short-lived but worth hearing,GRANADA were the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Carlos Carcamo,who started this project in 1974 in Madrid.Musicians would come and go,before Carcamo found a stable trio for the guitar/bass/drums section,while he was responsible for the vocals and the rest of the instruments,including violins,keyboards,accordion and flutes.

''Hablo de una tierra'' came out a year after GRANADA's formation and it is an album of pure progressive rock with different influences and sounds.In this work mellotrons and pianos battle with Spanish folklore through flamenco guitars and accordion,while a jazzy feeling tries to capture the symphonicism of the album.Carcamo does an excellent job,especially his mellotron playing is dreamy and nostalgic,while he also handles the flutes in a fine way,sometimes in a softer style,while others he marks JETHRO TULL's Ian Anderson as a big influence.I'm not really sure if he is also responsible for the flamenco guitars,but this blending of Spanish sounds with nice keys and backing vocals is also very attractive,not far from what co-patriots TRIANA were trying around the same time.Besides this flamenco stuff,the album contains also a fair amount of acoustic passages with backing mellotron and flutes and a balanced dose of vocals to make it even more interesting and worth searching for,while several Italian bands of the same style come to mind (PREMIATA FORNERIA MARCONI, BLOCCO MENTALE, OSANNA,QUELLA VECCHIA LOCCANDA).This is absolutely fascinating Spanish flamenco-tinged symphonic rock with tons of romanticism and a relaxed but atmospheric dimension.Recommended!

"Unique prog from Spain"

The musical brainchild of this highly acclaimed Spanish prog formation is multi-instrumentalist Carlos Carcamo, he plays flute, violin, Grand piano, electric piano, the Mellotron and clavicordio, 12-string guitar, percussion, and he also does the vocals. Granada released 3 albums between 1975 and 1978, I would like to focus on their first album, my favourite one.

The music on Hablo De Una Tierra is a wonderful and captivating example of eclectic progressive music. It contains a lot of elements that made Spanish progressive music so unique, from bands like Smash, Gualberto, Iceberg and Franklin to the unsurpassed Rock Andaluz (from Triana to Medina Azahara). The variety in the six tracks range from rock and blues to Latin- American and symphonic rock featuring powerful vocals, harder-edged guitar (some venomous soli), tasteful work on keyboards (including lots of Mellotron waves) and flute play that has strong echoes from Ian Anderson.

My highlight is the title track, it delivers a mindlbowing duet between the Mellotron and the flamenco guitar, performed by Manolo Sanlucar (a famous and prolific composer in Spain who wrote music for Montserrat Caballe, known for her work with Freddy Mercury). This exciting Rock Andaluz moment epitomizes the unique and captivating, often overlooked world of the Spanish progressive rock.

A world to discover.