TZOMBORGHA

The least we can say is that this group is not giving much in terms of hints to listener to grab on to the music on this album! I have no idea if the other albums they made are similar to this one, but the least we can say is that outside excellent musicianship (are there any RIO groups who are not excellent in that department), but this kind of musical niche is getting quite crowded, and the sad fact is that most of these bands are starting to sound alike. In the case of Ruins, we can talk of a harder Mr Bungle or a softer Guapo (the first version of the group where they were almost hardcore RIO). They do not have that round edge (almost danceable) of Miriodor or X-legged Sally, but they are in their slower and quieter moments quite nice to listen to and their vocals are very correct. One of the highlights is Wanzhemvergg, where they pay a small tribute to Wyatt's typical scatting. What will intrigue the proghead, though is the last tracks being a tribute to Mahavishnu Orchestra or the medley of Black Sabbath's early stuff. While the latter (BS) brings a smile (especially on Iron Man) but the former (MO) is rather bothersome since they bring out MO's virtuosity even more than originally, but they fail to let us know which track they attempted.

This is the kind of album whose music is probably meant to be interpreted with the artwork (depicting Far East Asian ruins and the "five" elements), but personally this reviewer failed to understand the link between the two. But I must admit that their almost hardcore sound (imagine a RIO version of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers) does not allow much space for reverie or even imagination. For devoted RIO fans, who appreciate a slightly funky sound and a group who meanders a lot, but is not sure it has that much of a musical propos. On this album, anyway!