CHERCÁN

"La Culpa" kicks things off with an energetic and exciting passage. The drums thump and roll, and guitar and sax lend some wonderful grit. The vocals are powerful, and the melody stands out above the complex backing. Things calm down as the song progresses, and they skillfully incorporate some significant jazz elements. Entering the final two minutes, the energy picks back up, building to an impressive climax.

Wobbly jazz influences are evident from the first moments in "Caen Las Hojas Blanca". The rhythm section displays amazing dexterity, and palm-muted guitar and sax add tension. The occasional blast of distortion or a metallic riff helps to keep the listener guessing about what may come next.

Following the squalling conclusion of the preceding cut, "Kalimba" provides a nice contrast, with the titular instrument plinking out a pleasant little pattern. Saxophone helps flesh out the somewhat minimal arrangement in this song's early moments, and strings and drums eventually join to add some more weight. Chercán again demonstrates their ability to gradually ramp things up, and the string arrangements are especially impactful here.

Following a brief interlude of strings, "Tiempos Paralelos" draws significantly from Chilean music. Gentle, pattering drums and subdued strings give this song's opening moments a pastoral feel. Gradually, distorted guitar makes its way in, and the song bursts forth into an emotive storm. The drum pattern does not change much throughout, lending a fantastic sense of continuity to this piece.

"Las Mientras Del Muro" has a more upbeat opening and has a groovy, funky infectiousness to it. Even in the song's mellower moments, its underlying energy is irrepressible. The conclusion is absolutely pummeling, and the guitar line sounds straight out of a doom metal cut. Mixed with the band's jazzy leanings, this makes it exciting and interesting.

What comes next is the two-part, 13-minute "Relato De Una Obsesión". Part one, subtitled "Quimera", opens with a sitar drone and some tabla. Wiry guitar and bass soon enough weave their way in, and the multilayered vocals give this passage a dreamlike quality. Things evolve slowly, but never does it feel like the band is dragging their feet or meandering. Those Indic touches linger throughout this first part, but guitar, sax, and strings all grow in prominence throughout it.

Part two, "El Orate", flows naturally out of part one, but a rock rhythm finally gains prominence. Distorted guitar and wailing saxophone firmly take the lead, and the vocals soar. The slow build of part one is paid off in this exhilarating second half.

Chercán's debut ends on "7 Colores". It's a mellow balm after the fiery conclusion of the last song, with gentle vocals, clean guitar, and violin predominating. The arrangement is still complex and dense, but it doesn't beat you over the head. This is a great way to wrap things up.

Chercán is a fantastic album that has immediately launched itself into contention for the top of my best-of-2025 list. The band does an excellent job of evolving the songs smartly, and the balance between bombast restraint.

Review originally published here: theeliteextremophile.com/2025/06/16/album-review-chercan-chercan/

The chercán is a very popular bird in Chile. It nests near houses and can always be seen around them, forming a kind of symbiosis with humans.

Chercán is also the name of a band here in my country, Chile, an experimental group with a very prog- influenced sound. Their influences include jazz fusion and avant-garde styles. They resemble many bands, but here I'm going to focus more on their chilean influences than the foreign ones. I can detect touches of Fulano, Fractal, and Akinetón Retard, along with a set of influences leaning more toward pop especially in the vocals, which sometimes remind me of Lucibel.

Chercán was formed in 2019 in Valdivia, Chile. Through their lyrics, the band aims to express the various concerns of its members: vocalist Martín Peña (guitar in 7 Colores), bassist Simón Catalán, guitarist Roberto Faúndez, saxophonist Matías Bahamondes, and drummer/percussionist Rodrigo González Mera. Their themes revolve around personal experiences, their relationship with nature and the environment, and the challenges of today's society.

It's hard to be a fellow countryman and criticize art especially progressive music in a country where there isn't much raw material, and few dare to attempt something like this. Not to mention how difficult it is to make music in Chile, where reggaeton and urban music are venerated. Rock let alone progressive rock feels like it comes from another planet. And if we do choose to listen to something, we often prefer it not to come from our own backyard. It's something idiosyncratic, and there's no time here to get into a deep social critique of Chile, which could easily fill several pages and multiple theses. The reality is that in Chile, this kind of music doesn't reach a popular level, and getting a project like this off the ground is extremely difficult.

That said, I hope I can say this without hurting any feelings: Chercán has made a very good and complex record, full of interesting passages. Unfortunately, it sometimes falls into repetition as if the album loops at certain points. In the middle of some songs, it can feel like the music is going in circles. But overall, it's a solid album. The fact that it's sung in Spanish and still sounds natural and fitting is an accomplishment in itself something rarely achieved outside of Argentine progressive rock, where the Spanish language doesn't clash with the musicality.

The album has wonderful production. Every instrument has its place, and the vocals are very well recorded and well delivered. Guest musicians like Benjamín Ruz on string arrangements and violins, Javiera González on viola, and Ariadna Kordovero on cello add extra color and beauty to the final result.

Behind the scenes, the work is equally impressive. Drums, guitars, and vocals were recorded at Estudio LeRock in Santiago by José Tomás Molina. The saxophone parts were recorded by Pueblo Obsoleto in Valdivia, while the bass was recorded by Simón Catalán himself in Valdivia. The string quartet was recorded by Benjamín Ruz and Eduardo Padilla at Estudios ZUR in Santiago, and the percussion by Rodrigo González Mera at Estudio El Pequén in Valdivia. Mixing was handled by Jorge Fortune at Telúrica Estudio in Coyhaique, and mastering was done by both Carlos Barros (known for work with Kalimba, Las Mentiras del Muro, Tiempos Paralelos, and 7 Colores) and Jorge Fortune (La Culpa, Quimera, Orate, Caen las hojas blancas).

The cover art deserves special recognition too, with its play of colors that seem to symbolize the plumage of the friendly chercán. The artwork was done by the artist Paulina Rosso.

In the end, Chercán is a great debut album. Despite its flaws, the record achieves what it set out to do. In my opinion, it may not be a masterpiece but it's certainly a strong ópera prima.

1. "La culpa" (6:51) a very powerful, well put together, dynamic song that sounds like a combination of Francesco Zago's NOT A GOOD SIGN and Norway's SEVEN IMPALE. Wonderful! (14.5/15)

2. "Caen las hojas blancas" (5:46) sounds like a combination of THIN LIZZY and BLACK MIDI's music with Alessandro Calandriello's vocals singing KING CRIMSON's "One More Red Nightmare" then taken to near-death metal extremes with growl vocals and heavy-riffing syncopation in the instrumental passages taking us out to the end. I also love the shrieking saxophone in this end section. Awesome! (9.3333/10)

3. "Kalimba" (4:54) yes, it's founded on some kalimba play (the instrument actually remains in the mix--though almost getting buried--throughout the song's five minutes.) This song sounds more like something from Alessandro Calandriello's other band, LA COSCIENZA DI ZENO--at least until the fourth minute when it goes instrumental, then it spills over again into SEVEN IMPALE territory. (Since I love all three of these bands, Chercán really can't go wrong!) Martín's singing voice weakens a little toward the end as he tries to maintain singing the many long notes at such a high-volume. (9.125/10)

4. "Desolación (En)" (1:10) a wonderful string quartet interlude (which turns out to be an introduction to the next song, "Tiempos paralelos," which it feeds into. (5/5)

5. "Tiempos paralelos" (5:13) way more delicate and sensitive than the first two songs: kind of like some of the beautiful music the band AISLES has done over the past 20 years. Here the band reaches back into their cultural traditions for some very Andean-flavored music; even the instrumentation choices reflect their native acoustic instrumental preferences. What's really cool about this song is the slow build in the middle--which is greatly assisted by the pounding big-drum percussion play--that turns into the awesome proggy crescendo and finale. It's also so beautifully engineered and rendered! This is a song with which I have great trouble finding any flaw. (10/10)

6. "Las mentiras del muro" (5:14) a percussion-dominated and -dictated soundscape that reminds me more of Spanish band, ZA!, over which Martín's raspy/scratchy voice yells and screeches (also losing a little strength the longer he is asked to maintain this intensity). It sounds so weird to hear the saxophone sounding so smooth and beautiful--moreso than Martín's voice! Also, it feels/sounds like an unusual type of saxophone that Matías Bahamondes is playing. I like it! Martín hits some very high notes around 4:30 as the tribal rhythms around him become amplified by the electric guitar power chords. (8.875/10)

7. "Relato de una obsesión. Part I: Quimera" (6:50) it sounds heavy and ominous from the start but it ends up being very smooth and steadying; I feel as if I'm sitting in a cave being guided by a shaman into/through some mind-altering ritual under the influence of psychotropic medicine. I love it! I feel drugged! And so happy for it! (14.5/15)

8. "Relato de una Obsesión. Part II: El orate" (6:04) The trip continues but in the first two minutes the shaman begins prepping his subjects for proceeding "solo"--untethering us with the loud, heavy SEVEN IMPALE-like music into a rollercoaster ride through a high-speed, high-powered wormhole of demonic overstimulation, confusion, and horror. (9/10)

9. "Colores" (4:19) brushed drum play rendered up close in my head-phoned ears sound wonderful as they open this song. Soothing guitar chords, arpeggi, saxophone notes, and wordless vocalese work their way into a beautiful weave that the band carries forward for about a minute before the music shifts to dreaminess for Martín's first worded vocals. So beautiful! The guitar and strings interplay so beautifully. The percussion play is so hypnotic, as is the sax play and the whole woven tapestry! Awesome! What a gorgeous, soothing end to an awesome, awesome album! (9.75/10)

Total time: 44:21

Martín Peña possesses a great voice and he not only really knows how to use it but does an amazing job of conveying perfect commitment of both feeling and genuinely-enthusiastic focus to each lyric. Whoever is doing the songwriting, they have a great feel for structure and flow. Whoever is doing the recording and sound engineering is world class. And the team doing the performing sound so well-focused, so "together" in their commitment and timing that I find myself in awe of the level of collaborative amalgamation I feel: these songs sound and feel as if they've been made by one organism not a band of separate musicians!

A/five stars; an indisputable masterpiece of full-spectrum progressive rock music. It has been a LONG time since I've heard a new album that is this good!