CARMEN

Carmen were a Los Angeles-based band, formed by guitarist/singer David Allen in 1970, featuring also his sister Angela on vocals and keyboards.They started as a seven-piece group and moved to London in early 73', reduced to a quintet and failing to find a contract in the US music market.After drummer Brian Glascock was replaced by Paul Fenton, the Goddess of Luck helped Carmen sign with EMI Records and eventually record their debut ''Fandangos in Space'' in 1973.

Having quite a daring sound for the time, Carmen blended the rock attitude with the charm of Flamenco music, creating an original mix, as Spanish bands had yet to show anything around the style due to the dictatorship in the country.Their sound was not only innovative but also fairly complex with plenty of interesting breaks, although the vast of time length is dedicated to the mix of typical Psychedelic/Heavy Rock with Flamenco.As expected the band mixed also English with a light dose of Spanish lyrics.To the music, this contains plenty of interesting and easy- listening arrangements, build around numerous shifting moods and led by the vocals and guitars of David Allen, ranging from electric poundness to acoustic softness, almost always driven by flamemco-flavored textures.The rhythm section provides an even cleaner sound of the style the band tried to promote.Angela Allen not only contributes with her lovely voice but she is also given some space to deliver good synthesizer and mellotron breaks.Another trademark of the band were the typical Spanish-sounding multi-vocal harmonies along with the strong amount of changing climates from explosive rock sounds to delicate acoustic structures.

''Fandagos in space'' should have been a masterpiece back at the time of its release, but just a few years later I can do nothing but admit that the Spanish bands did it a bit better regarding the style of Andalusian Rock and what more reasonable than this.Still the album sounds great even nowadays and deserves a strong recommendation both for its originality and its musical value...3.5 stars.

So I read about this band in an old prog magazine, and after a long time I was able to locate a copy of the album... and I must say I'm impressed by the great musicianship and the excellent blend between Flamenco and prog-rock. The guitars may re-utilize some of the themes trough the album but in general its tolerable. Of course some of the lyrics are in Spanish but that's not a drag because in its majority is English.

For a debut album its pretty good and you should check it out if you are into flamenco and (sometimes) bolero. Bulerias and Looking Outside (My window) are probably the best songs from the album but the rest is interesting too.

4 Stars!

Carmen were a band who fused prog and flamenco. Made up of both British and American musicians, including the brother and sister team of David Allen(vocals, guitar) and Angela Allen(keyboards, vocals, footwork). The most well known member here is bassist John Glascock who would later join Jethro Tull. The stomping and other sounds coming from the feet of Angela and Roberto Amaral is an important component of the music. This album was produced by Tony Visconti, best known for his work with David Bowie, but also working with Gentle Giant previously.

Some of the lyrics are in Spanish, and they talk way too much about Spain. I love Spain as much as the next person, but there is more to life than just Spain. "Bulerias" has a musical theme that gets reprised later on in the album. Begins with singing in Spanish, then English. Some good flamenco rock. In the middle the song changes and a guitar solo. Then footwork and celebratory voices. Acoustic part near the end before it goes back to the main theme. "Bullfight" is a more typical '70s rock song at first. Then a synth solo with percussion. After a different section. Ends with a vocal dominated part.

"Stepping Stone" is a more funky song. Features "do do do" type vocals. I like the synths in this song. "Por Tarantos" is an instrumental with great guitar playing. "Looking Outside(My Window" is the longest and best song. Starts off with the main theme from "Bulerias" briefly, then changes to a part with mostly Angela singing. Some vocals in Spanish before an acoustic guitar section. Then back to the main part now with dancing/footwork. More acoustic guitar and harmony vocals. After the bass solos for a bit. Music stops then a nice harmony vocal section; I like the part that goes "good it is to feel the sun".

"Retirando" starts with a great beat, I wouldn't be surprised if some hip-hopper has sampled this. Then some Mellotron and vibraphone. Some "badadada" vocals. Ends as a folk-rock song. The title track starts off sounding like Gentle Giant before it goes into a flamenco rock part. The two parts alternate. I like the guitar playing in the Gentle Giant-ish instrumental middle section. Later on some great footwork and piano briefly. Then a part with acoutic guitar, back up vocals and call-and-response vocals. Ends with an a capella section in Spanish. The last song "Reprise" has the main theme from "Bulerias" before a nice acoustic ending.

Fandangos In Space is the Carmen album I'm most familiar with, but I prefer the follow up Dancing On A Cold Wind. Never heard the third album. Not the proggiest album of the time but an original idea mixing rock and flamenco. A good effort, I'll give this 3 stars.

Something quite different. As I was told many times, as I believe, prog is about something new. And this blend of Hispanic influences (right?) and typical prog traits for its time. As every new thing, I mean so new, it leaves me quite puzzled. Yes, my reviews can be divided to those written after just one listen and those about well known album. "Por Tarrantos", why I feel like listening Andres Ségovia here ? Because this is one side of the album, Spanish guitar, flamenco, however you call it side. And prog on the other one. Most of songs are combination of these two, but I hear more of prog. Something like a lot of influences, one of the biggest would it our Spain-like one.

One thing is pleasant here (and in fact, on every record), songs differ greatly. When somebody said that Not of This World by Pendragon songs sounds very similar, I agree (but don't see it as a mistake). Well, this is opposite situation.

4(+) stars for such fusion.

If originality was everything in progressive rock or in music in general, CARMEN would crush the competition, as they really did define an Anglo American/British flamenco style hitherto and since largely unexplored, although I do wonder if BABE RUTH might have been Carmen fans. The familial angle covered by the Allen siblings is evident in the tightness of the vocal harmonies and arrangements, and the almost jerky yet confoundingly well synchronized vocal and guitar juxtapositions. John Glascock's bass provides a tenuous link to Jethro Tull, who were also to the folk side of prog, but whether his style can be recognized or not does not change his impressive work here and that of his rhythm counterpart Paul Fenton.

Part of my relative enjoyment of Carmen may stem from my inability to understand the over the top kitschiness of their material, or even divine a guess as to their level of "seriousness". This allows me to revel in the pan-cultural "Bulerias" and "Bullfight", as well as the compact "Stepping Stone" which gets full marks for inventiveness in a short time frame, while the Flamenco prowess of David Allen in "Por Torrantos" is another highlight. But repetitiveness of lyrical material can be problematic if the song is not particularly memorable, which is the case in "Sailor Song" and "Lonely House", even if the wordless vocal section of the latter is appealing. But "Retirando" is a better example of this technique and throws in a mellotronic massage for good measure.

"Looking Outside my Window", the longest track, is comprised of a collage of different song and instrumental fragments, deliberately juxtaposed in a seemingly haphazard way, which gives it a certain ragged charm. Still, any formula used will generally be overused at some point, which is the case here and there throughout this disk, and keeps me from considering "Fandangos in Space" to be an essential release at large, although people with a penchant for the flamenco mixed with hard rock and a sprinkling of psych may well turn cartwheels cross the floor over it.

Fandangos In Space part 2

I own this album as part of a two-for-one double CD on which the band's debut album, Fandangos In Space, makes up the first disc and this, their second album, makes up the second disc. This is really a great way to get both these brilliant albums! Putting these two albums together like this is also highly appropriate given that Dancing On A Cold Wind in many ways could be seen as Fandangos In Space part 2.

The first track Viva Mi Sevilla reprises a theme from the debut album. Namely, the 'give a woman a gypsy lover, and I promise she wants no other?'-theme. At first this quote disturbed me somewhat, thinking that they were apparently running out of inspiration after the masterpiece that was Fandangos In Space. However, my impression changed and now I think it is quite clever to quote an older work like that. Yes quoted a short passage from Close To The Edge on Tales From Topographic Oceans to similar effect.

Tracks 6 to 14 are thematically and musically connected to make up a 23 minute plus epic, apparently called Remembrances. However, these songs are just listed as if they were independent songs and there is no mention whatsoever of the title 'Remembrances' in the CD booklet or at the back of the CD box! This song cycle is the highlight of the album for me.

Compared with Fandangos In Space, it took longer for me to get into this album. At first I somehow felt that it was only a weaker copy of the debut album. But I changed my mind after further listens. Carmen progressed from their first album. There are more instruments on this album; more keyboards and some flutes, stringed instruments and percussion instruments. But overall the sound is still very similar to that of Fandangos In Space. There is again brilliant guitar work and vocal harmonies and strong melodies.

The energy and restlessness that I found so appealing on Fandangos In Space is not so strongly apparent here. As far as I'm concerned Fandangos In Space was a masterpiece of progressive music. Dancing On A Cold Wind is not, but it is a very good album nonetheless. It proved that Carmen were not one-hit-wonders.

Dancing On A Cold Wind is an excellent companion to Fandangos In Space. But my advice is to wait with Dancing On A Cold Wind until you have fully devoured Fandangos In Space because it can be a bit much to take in one go. Fandangos In Space is the stronger album, but if you liked that one, you will no doubt like this one too. I highly recommend getting the double CD with both albums.

Gypsies in space

This is Carmen's third - and sadly also their last ever - album. The Gypsies is a bit different compared to the first two Carmen albums, but it is still a very good album. The songs are generally of shorter length and each song stands on its own this time; the songs don't share any common themes or flow into each other like on previous albums. But make no mistake, this is still the unique, elaborated, very tasteful Flamenco infused Hard Rock we would expect from Carmen and there are still many sparkling acoustic passages, excellent Queen-like harmony vocals, gorgeous melodies and pleasant keyboards. However, The Gypsies is a bit less progressive and somewhat closer to Hard Rock compared to the previous albums. But it is an interesting, elaborated and eclectic Hard Rock! This album represents, in my view, a realistic 'progression' from where the band started a few years earlier, but it remains far behind the masterpiece that was Fandangos In Space.

The album opens with Daybreak which begins with exquisite Flamenco style guitar that is suddenly interrupted by electric guitars and strong vocals. The song has Spanish castanets and great guitar work and it is a good opener but not the most interesting song of the album. Shady Lady is also a reasonably straightforward Hard Rock song with a strong chorus and excellent acoustic guitar breaks. High Tide features a gorgeous vocal melody, keyboards and some bluesy guitar licks. The keyboards are mainly synthesisers and piano and even if they are often discrete they add great effect to the music. Songs like High Tide and Dedicated To Lydia slows things down more than we are used to from Carmen and I must admit that the fantastic energy and strong intensity of Fandangos In Space is somewhat lost. But these are still very good songs that keep the album reasonably varied.

Carmen reminds me of some of my favourite bands; Queen, Jethro Tull, Rainbow and Gentle Giant, yet they have their very own unique style. The very Gentle Giant-like Joy is very nice! This song also slightly reminds me somewhat of Beggar's Opera.

The energy and intensity returns with a bang on the excellent title track, however, which is the highlight of the album for me. This great hard edged song surpasses anything from Dancing On A Cold wind and is almost up to par with the brilliant material on Fandangos In Space! The electric guitar work is superb here and the Carmen trademarks are strong in this song; castanets, footwork, male/female vocals, acoustic/electric guitar interplay, synthesisers etc. Too bad the rest of the album is not of such intense quality.

The last few songs of the album are not very strong with such sing-a-long songs like Come Back and rather straightforward rockers like Sirens Of The Sea. These numbers are bound to leave any Prog fan underwhelmed.

Even if The Gypsies is a very good album that I thoroughly enjoy, it is not consistently excellent and it is certainly not the best place to start if you want to investigate this great band. I strongly recommend starting with the band's first two albums and if you like those you will certainly find something to like here as well.

Olé!

Most of the albums I have reviewed since I joined Prog Archives have been albums that I have had for a long time. This album, however, is a relatively recent find for me (and do I need to add that I never would have heard of it if it wasn't for Prog Archives?) I have now been listening to this album quite a lot for about six months and it is now safe to say that this is a masterpiece of progressive music. This is truly unique and brilliant music! It is quite different and I must admit that I wasn't fully convinced on the first couple of listens. But there was something that made me come back and hear it again and again. And now I cannot listen to the first track without listening to the whole album. It's strongly addictive!

The music can be described as progressive Hard Rock with many influences from Flamenco music and very strong melodies! This album is filled with good musical ideas, great harmony vocals (often reminding of Queen), a perfect mix of acoustic and electric guitars with occasional synthesizers and a discrete Mellotron in the background. Several songs also have those typical Flamenco hand claps and Spanish castanets. Unique and brilliant!

All the instruments are very well played and the guitars, bass and drums are all elaborated and compete with each other for attention. It is never the case that there is just a simple rhythm section over which a leading instrument can carry the music forward. All instruments carry the music forward all the time, which makes for a loaded and constantly interesting sound. The music is totally restless! This might be a bit tiresome for an untrained ear, but after just a couple of listens new layers reveal themselves.

The bass guitar is played by Jethro Tull member John Glascock. And there are a few similarities with Jethro Tull's music.

What I like most about Fandangos In Space is that there is an enormous sense of urgency in the whole album and not one second is wasted on filler and there are absolutely no weak moments. Every musical idea is exploited only to its full potential and then they immediately move on to the next one - they have so many! Some musical themes are featured in several tracks, making the whole greater than the sum of the parts. The whole album is really one long piece of excellent music where every track flows perfectly into the next one.

If I must choose a favourite moment I would pick Looking Outside My Window, which repeats the Bulerias theme but soon transforming into something brand new. Then a couple of minutes into Looking Outside My Window, there is again an acoustic part which could be Poor Tarantos part 2. This is a brilliant arrangement! The Bulerias theme returns again in the title track. And the Retirando theme also appears in more than one track towards the end.

The lyrics are predominantly in English but some lyrics are in Spanish. The lyrical themes of the album are also Spanish in that they sing about bull fights and 'lonely houses on hills in Madrid' (but the band is American/British and not Spanish, probably they have never even been to Madrid because there are hardly any lonely houses in such a major city, are there?). But it really doesn't matter where they come from or where they are going (into space?), it is just an image and slightly silly perhaps, but it really works!

The album features predominantly male vocals, but occasional female vocals are heard as well. In Looking Outside My Window the female vocals remind slightly of Babe Ruth (who also had some Hispanic influences in their music, but Carmen is extremely much better). Naming any favourite tracks from the album would be futile since I would end up listing all of them! This is a very consistent album that is great from start to finish. It closes with a beautiful acoustic outro.

The CD version I have is in total 45 minutes and 54 seconds and is part of a two-in-one 2CD package with the band's second album Dancing On A Cold Wind. The one listed above is only 37 minutes and 51 seconds! I haven't heard the short version, but I strongly suggest you get the long version in the 2CD set.

Fandangos In Space is a masterpiece of progressive rock and extremely recommended!

Carmen is a very intriguing english/US band that - paradoxally - have to be included in the wonderful prog- andaluz family. Curiously their first record to date, the now-mythic Fandangos in Space was released in 1973 when Triana or almost anything from Spain was still too far from seeing the light. So they came before and even if their sound wasn't really genuine, they managed to create an unicum in the prog scene of that time. Their most original peculiarity is the use of a a glamourish rock-mood a la QUEEN that is not what you could expect from a traditional andalusian band. Notwithstanding, musicianship, passiona and (sex) appeal are all excellent ingredients to intrigue the music market and they surely made something important to be well remembered. Not to talk of a certain John Glascock who became, after the short Carmen experience, a permanent bass player in JETHRO TULL until his sad death in 1979 during the recording session of Stormwatch. I always liked his style of playing in albums as Songs from the Wood or Heavy Horses so I was particularly interested in put my hands on his early output as Carmen member. And what a lucky day when both first and second releases were remastered and sold in a unique comfortably repackaged boxset.

Dancing on a Cold Wind, despite his lower rating in comparison with its more famous predecessor, has nothing to envy. On the contrary it opens within the most aggressive and powerful track ever recorded by the band: Viva Mi Sevilla. This one really shocks the listener. Above all bass playing is simply amazing. John Glascock brings his bass guitar to a more rougher and distorted sound as common in many contemporary bands (like the Zuffanti's style when play for LA MASCHERA DI CERA). In the same time, acoustic-flamenco guitar is exciting in particular when combined withing the more and more harder and vigorous tip tapping on a wooden floor (or is it a table?). This one is a pure classic, A real gem to be heard by any good prog lover, a must have if you are willing to investigate the pleasant prog-andaluz scene.

Other tracks from the album aren't at the same level but still excellent ones. Vocals are far from being morish and the most part is sung in english. It's strange, but I felt shiver when I thought I was listening to a PETER HAMMILL song... errr, that's was only my impression, obviously, based on a fragment of a single tune but it's interesting that such an album continues to allow me such intense emotions.

Carmen's The Gypsies is one of the most paradoxical albums I've heard. On one hand, it's an album that anyone could have recorded, and yet it still retains that old Carmen style. And, even though I usually try to shoot down so-called "sell out albums" (usually choosing my misguided own), I can fully understand why this is thought to be Carmen's pop album, even though Carmen was utterly incapable of selling out as a rule of thumb.

It's actually a really sad record as a whole. Partly is because of the atmosphere: as usual, Carmen belts out some pretty moody stuff. However and as usual, this has to do with the band itself. In case you didn't know, they were in bad shape by now. The various tours were collapsing, their various vans with their various instruments were exploding, various members were being eaten by horses (Paul Fenton! NO! Why? Why not Roberto Amaral?!?). Huh? Oh yeah, and John Glascock was being tempted into the fold of the diabolical Ian Anderson.

But here's the real problem: Carmen, since they were only really capable of creating (and recreating) one album, they had to add something to the mix each time. The first one rocked hard. The second one "progged" it up. The third? Er, well, it just tries to be quiet and pretty. And it does succeed, for the most part. But, in all sad honesty, it adds nothing to Carmen's legacy.

We open with "Daybreak," another pessimistic flamenco rocker. Except it opens with a nice acoustic introduction, that ALMOST turns into "Bulerias." Heh. Wonder if they threw that in for the fans (if you'll recall how the other two openers started)? Anyway, the rocker part is nice, if nothing we haven't heard before. Good guitar and cute keyboard noises in the background.

"Shady Lady" follows the pattern; sweet, acoustic intro, before turning into a harder number. However, it's not THAT hard. It's more like...flamenco soft rock. If you can imagine that. And I think you can. Gorgeous vocals, of course. "High Time" continues that trend, another soft flamenco rocker that's nice, but nothing new.

While it might not be the most instantly rewarding number, I swear that "Dedicated to Lydia" is the best song on the album. Just listen to that (again) acoustic introduction; it's absolutely Carmen, but I can imagine hearing it on a classic Genesis album or something. It's similar in feel to, say, "Lonely House," but quite different. And the ghostly, floaty vocals? Charming. Bittersweet lyrics, Carmen's goodbye. Great use of build too, love the keyboards and drums when they come in. Totally atmospheric, totally sad, too bad it ends so soon...

Of course, Carmen couldn't let us go without one duffer, so next is "Joy." Once again, the melody is decent, maybe good. But the stupid birthday anthem lyrics? "Without the kids next door, there'd be no laughter after the pain?" Ugh. Your arena rock is showing again Carmen...

Well, the title track should win back a little. "The Gypsies" is a sturdy song for sure, featuring Allen's last shot at true, finger flashing catharsis. Best guitar solo on the album, as well as proof that Carmen could still belt out a killer coda when they wanted. Well, in truth, the coda IS just the solo, but it's a cool solo! And then it fades back into the sound effects it started with. Neato.

"Siren of the Sea" is also a highlight, a desperate waltz with a nice, mandolin powered intro. Well, no mandolins credited in the album, so it must just be a guitar. Anyway, nice tune, very Queen-like (it seems to me). "Come Back" is no great shake. It's another flamenco soft rocker, although it's got a very nice, very noble guitar solo in it. Once again, getting the Queen image...

And we close with "Margarita," an instrumental. It is, once again, pure Carmen, but totally un-Carmen. It's not heavy. It's not technically shocking. It's just...pleasant. Acoustic and piano driven. Nice martial drumming. Pure atmosphere. And then...it fades...away...

I think that's half of what makes people call this the Carmen pop album, by the way. That the numbers are shorter and fade out rather than come to a definite conclusion (as it stands, the title track will probably please the proggier listeners the most). But, rather than some selling out, I'd wager that this has more to do with the band falling apart, little by little, and just not having the strength to finish the songs.

And this is not surprising at all. I mean, we all knew that Carmen couldn't last. And, once again, there should be no surprise that the album is a little softer. After all, Carmen had been experimenting with spacey synths on the last album, and the sound and feel here is much closer related to that than the heavy, showoffy Fandangos in Space. Heh. In fact, isn't that like the classic progressive genre in a microcosm? From loud and moody to spacey and synthy to keyboardy and poppy? I mean, you can only turn the sound so far if you lose the guitars...

But without any real classic numbers (although the highlights are all good, just nothing you haven't heard before...well, 'cept maybe "Lydia"), there's nothing to REALLY make the album. I actually don't see how they could have done worse; Carmen's understanding of melody and song structure is too pure to create something THAT gross. Unless, you know, they just started pumping out all kinds of synth driven arena rock. Even though this is certainly the worst Carmen album, it's also the most underappreciated...uh, if something like "appreciation" has ever actually been heaped on Carmen.

Still, Carmen decides to go out with a whimper instead of a bang. And, all things considered, it leaves me a little sad. And, after all, wasn't that the point?