ROSTRO DEL SOL

A couple of years ago I discovered a new Mexican band whose sound immediately blew my mind, they are called Rostro del Sol, and I am happy to see them included in this site because they have brought an exquisite combination of old-school heavy psych rock with hints of also old-school prog rock, so their music will take you back to the 70s, however, they don't sound old-fashioned, they created a refreshing vintage sound.

Their selt-titled debut album consists of 6 tracks and a total time of 40 minutes. It opens with 'Effect of Creation', whose first 1:30 minutes are just like a somber and hypnotic background, then, an organ appears, reminding me a bit of Iron Butterfly, and later after 2:30 when strings and drums appear, a new and psychedelic sound starts to being built up and you will start to shake your head and move your body a little bit. The names of monsters such as Frank Zappa, King Crimson or Soft Machine come to my mind while listening to its development, the musicianship is amazing, the music is complex but gentle at the same time, truly enjoyable for anyone who loves old school psych and prog. Hypnotic bass lines, wonderful guitar and keyboard solos, and also a truly accurate sax that appears as both, lead and back. A hell of a track, a daring way to start this album.

Well, that was the longest track, and now it comes 'Solar Flare', which happens to be the shortest track. Its three minutes are full of vertigo and changes, the music never stops and it takes you to a magnificent psychedelic trip, in which we can enjoy great guitar solos. Seems the band greatly know each other, sometimes it sounds like they are just jamming and enjoying music, and maybe it is what they actually did, and its contagious!

'Backyard's Blues' starts with a catchy sound that reminded me a bit of Sabbaths' 'Iron Man', later they create a mixture of rhythms, of course the blues is totally present, however, I think rock, jazz and prog put also their grain of sand. I love the keyboard work, reminding me once again of those Soft Machine years in the 70s. Some wah wah guitar solos and also hints of Pink Floyd roots are also shared in this cool track, but it does not end there, because after 4:30 minutes you can also listen to some kind of funky tunes blended with afrolatin sounds. Delicious.

'Bop C Sketches' is an amazing track, once again we can notice the band's wonderful skills as composers and performers, I love the bass lines here and how that always accurate and fast drums are present. The music is again a mixture of jazz, psych, heavy rock and prog, with some Latin sauce on it that is present not only with the rhythm, but also with the Santan-esque guitar, which is wonderful. The 70's feeling is always here, but don't get me wrong, they are not a 70s-revival-band, they are actually a modern band using in a wonderful way, a bunch of elements and musical styles they know, they grew up with. The result, to my ears, is superb.

'Tales I-III' is a nice track divided in three, and I like how it starts, with a softer sound, calmer, and then it changes in mood and tempo, putting into my ears once again the name of Zappa. They later dare to use a mellotron sound that of course brings back the name of King Crimson, and wow, they play as long time maestros, as if this wasn't a debut album, because this sounds like the pinnacle of an experimented career. But remember, this is a new band, this is just the beginning, a debut album.

Last but not least is 'Cynical Mind' which immediately takes us back to the 70s, a bombastic sound that now reminds me of Allman Bros and Cream, but then they morph into a Crimson again, including that wonderful sax solo whose rhythm might be a hint or even a rendition to 'Pictures of a City', I don't know. The whole track is great, just as the whole album. I remember I truly became surprised and excited when I first listened to it, I asked myself who tf are these guys, and a big WOW appeared in my mind.

Rostro del Sol is an amazing and talented band from Mexico City whose music I really hope can reach more and more ears nationally and of course, worldwide, these guys rock and I have to bow down to them, because that exciting effect I had with my first listen, is the same I still have every time I repeat the album, and that does not happen always. Congratulations!

So please, go and listen to the album and if you can, buy it.

Enjoy it!