SNEGS

Formed in São Paulo in 1970, Som Nosso de Cada Dia were a trio that performed an adventurous kind of heavy rock music drenched in all manner of keyboards, that frequently diverted into extravagant extended instrumental soloing and more overtly `proggy' touches. Performed in Portuguese (although little moments here and there slip into English) with often coarse lead vocals and lulling group harmonies, their debut `Snegs' from 1974 is a underrated minor gem that mixes hard rock with symphonic, blues, folk and space music, and in parts reminds of everything from Casa das Maquinas, Rick Wakeman, Atomic Rooster and even German bands like Birth Control and Eloy.

The group cover a lot of ground alone in six minutes of opener `Sinal da paranóia'. It's a plodding rocker powered by churning Hammond organ, jangling acoustic guitars and spirited group vocals with moments of sweeter falsetto in the lead, before the piece not only drifts into a spacey interlude but straight into a frantic searing violin thrash over chugging upfront bass, wild rattling drumming and plentiful synth wig-outs! `Bicho do mato' is an infectious Birth Control-like Hammond organ dominated gutsier pop-rocker that bounces along with a boisterous vocal and a foot-tapping momentum with an early Eloy-like spacey finale, and `O som nosso de cada dia' is unpredictable and darts in several directions at once, offering everything from delirious keyboard bombast, softer dreamier passages and treated wafting sax in the final minutes.

The lovely and deeply dreamy `Snegs de Biufrais' opens the second side with chiming guitars, soft flute and soothing group vocals, but `Massavilha' dials the prog up to eleven with a extended intro of bubbling Moog explosions and cascading synth spirals along the lines of Rick Wakeman's first solo disc `The Six Wives of Henry VIII' before it settles into a more romantic tune with soothing harmonies. The melancholic and mysterious `Direccion de Aquarius' swaps the energetic instrumental moments for ambitious multi-part harmonies and murky ringing electric guitars that retain a darker grit and unease overall, and closer `A outra face' fuses lengthy bouts of mellow Hammond-flecked jazzy sauntering ala Atomic Rooster, drifting mellow bluesy reflective guitar soloing and Raw Material-like billowing sax.

So the vocals can be a little unlovable in a few spots, and in some parts the playing is more exciting and memorable than the actual tunes, but `Snegs' has a melodic toughness without being obviously radio-aimed, and is overloaded with endless spacey keyboard colour, making it an attractive yet overlooked little obscurity with so much going for it from a cool band. Definitely one for those prog fans looking to fill their collection with rarer and underappreciated efforts that often slip through the cracks, and the recent Moshi Moshi Produtora reissue from this year means the album has never sounded better!

Three and a half stars rounded up.