SPACES

4.5 stars. What I love about this Brazilian band is how warm and beautiful the music is. Their "Volume 7" album is one of my all time favourites, it's so uplifting and emotional. The followup to that "Espectro" got away from that vibe quite a bit but it was still a very solid album while this the latest "Spaces" is a return to form in a way, but still a different shade in many ways as well. Fabio's voice and guitar remain the constant thankfully, along with that floating organ. I can't get over how much this grew on me as well, it wasn't instant love by any means.

Imagens" is a top three for me as we get 12 minutes of the warm music I was talking about. Drums and organ standout in the intro before it settles into a groove very quickly. Some nice prominent bass here as the organ floats along and the guitar plays over top. Electric piano and drums lead for a while then the organ and bass are back out front. A calm around 2 1/2 minutes in, man this is good. Vocals for the first time just before 4 minutes. The vocals step aside as the organ and picked guitar take over before 6 1/2 minutes. It turns spacey around 7 1/2 minutes then these driving drums kick in with synths and more. Keys only after 10 minutes before the drums, guitar then organ return.

"Kevinland" has a light soundscape of strummed guitar as reserved female vocals join in along with piano. There's a feel good vibe from this one and the bass is upfront too. "Parallax T- Blues" features synths galore, in fact this is Electronic music all the way. I've not heard them do this before but I like it. This goes on for over 2 minutes when a driving rhythm kicks in out of nowhere. And I'm thinking CAMEL here! What? Maybe early GONG. But with spacey synths over top. So good! The guitar starts to solo over top after 3 1/2 minutes. A top three for sure.

"Imagens(Reprise)" is a short piece consisting of some intricate guitar sounds. "Flowers On The Moon" hits the ground running and with vocals too. Very "Volume 7" like right here as the organ floats over top. A bright and enjoyable track that brings me joy. "A Painter Of The Mind" opens with a guitar melody as the vocals join in and I'm smiling as we get the same mood as the previous tune. A calm before 3 minutes but it's brief as it kicks in again but no vocals this time until 3 1/2 minutes in with floating organ and more.

"Cidade Extinta" is my final top three and it opens with some very busy drum work as organ and guitar light it up. It calms right down with floating organ and reserved vocals join in. Nice bass 1 1/2 minutes in. Check out the sound a minute later as the vocals stop and the guitar, bass and organ impress. Synths follow as the drums continue to pound away. Vocals are back then we get this great sounding instrumental section with driving upfront bass lines, drums and organ. It settles after 5 minutes with melancholic synths and mood, my favourite part of the album and it lasts until after 7 1/2 minutes when it brightens back up. Another calm with piano, bass, organ and drums 8 1/2 minutes in and reserved vocals join in as well.

Without question one of my favourites from 2016 and for me their number two recording after "Volume 7".

Violeta De Outono, since 2007, has been releasing fantastic records, one after the other. It is an undeniable fact that the band compose and release albums at a very slow pace (this is their fourth album since their return in 2005), but we have to take into account that Fabio Golfetti has been touring with Gong, before and after Daevid Allen death, and he is now an official member of the band, having release a record and touring with them.

That aside, Spaces (2016) comes packed with the wonderful trademark sound of the band, the kind of sound that is influenced by the Canterbury Sound and bands like Caravan and Camel. But its psychedelic early-career essence, dating back to early-Pink Floyd records, are still present, and that is what makes Violeta De Outono so unique.

It is good to see Gabriel Costa (bass) getting more space and to see his soloing in the opening track ('Imagens'), it is also good to see that the organ of Fernando Cardoso is still the essential skeleton to the band's music. But of course Fabio Golfetti remains the face of Violeta De Outono with his calm and soft voice and his atmospheric guitar.

Overall it is difficult to review an album like Spaces (2016), not because it is bad, on the contrary, but because the tracks pass through your ears and get etched into your mind, making you fall into a trance, and at that moment you see yourself shaking your head to the rhythmic sound of José Luiz Dinóla's drum beat (paired with Gabriel's hypnothic bass lines) while the floating sounds of the organ and guitar simply take you to another dimension.

'A Painter Of The Mind' is a perfect example, I prefer Violeta De Outono singing in Portuguese, but this song, sung in English, is the perfect example of what I said above. However it is quite possible that 'Cidade Extinta' is my favorite track of the album. The track is highly Progressive but with that melancholy 'a la' Caravan, while still having the DNA and soul of the band.

Highly recommended album for any lover of a good 'old-vintage' Prog.