AKINETÓN RETARD

In a country with excellent sax players, don't be afraid to face a group with two guys on this instrument. Akinetón Retard has two permanent members taking turns on tenor, baritone, soprano and alto saxophone. And these are the instruments responsible for the highpoints of this album: making catchy and memorable tunes; performing very unique and surprising rhythmic passages; and puting together many sound layers, that transit through fusion, heavy and/or symphonic prog.

It's spectacular how the instruments complement themselves. The saxophones have lots of space to perform, and there's no passages with that irritating ? IMO ? sax solos that fight to and swallow the other instruments. The solution they figured out to avoid this was to make very short solos. That applies to the other instruments. I truly dislike the works that overwhelms themselves on instrumental solos. Sounds to me as lack of inspiration to elaborate the composition(s).

Many complex and varied tempos and harmonies are present, ranging from calm to wild musicianship very quickly. It can take you some time to get used to. The vocals, very performatic, and with a generous dose of humour. The guitar player masters several techniques and arrangements, and drumming is dynamic. Vocals has a constant moderate funny feeling. Nonetheless, they can go very intense in other parts, close to prog metal sometimes, almost whispering once in a while, and/or lyric and clean.

They were very wise and smart when selecting the musics to make part of this act. Among with the wild stuff, there are some more accessible tracks. Like Blues em Re, with its pleasent and smooth mood. The others that goes more intimate and calm are Cansancio; Hawai; and Cocodrilos com Martini. Now I'll comment one particular track, Gansos, Patos y Gallinas. It starts with a delicious narration of some kind of sport, before exploring that incredible style I've mentioned. And on half of this track, remarkable sax riffs fully captures my attention. It's a great example of a style that I chose to denominate heavy jazz-prog. On this same track, the participation of the audience is vibrating. Another splendid sample of this style is the track Copenhaguen Astorba; the vocals have some brief parts when it gets almost prog metal. In other snippets vocals have a funny taste. This humorous aspect, along with the kind and spontaneous interactions between the band and the audiences, brings an incredible liveliness to the audition.

4.3 on a five-star scale.

Following my series of reviews where I go through my CD collection today I have Akinetón Retard, band from Chile. I own Akranania (2001) since 2007 but for me is hard to get into Akinetón Retard's music. The Chilean band plays what we call 'Avant-Garde' or 'Avant-Prog' (there's even the RIO going on for some), which is a mix between the Jazz-Rock-Fusion style with more Prog Rock colors.

I would say that in Akranania (2001) Akinetón Retard has a big influence from Frank Zappa. But who hasn't in this area of Prog? This influence is heard most in track 2 'Recurrencias'.

The music in Akranania (2001) is very dynamic most of the time with drums and their 2 saxophones players playing a big role. Guitars are most of the time soloing away, but from time to time they appear more, like in the Rock N Roll track 'Survector'. One of my favorites.

Akranania (2001) was recorded in Chile and originally released by Mylodon Records. My version is the Brazilian one released by Rock Symphony, though.

In general is a good album, and certainly will please Avant Prog and Jazz Fusion lovers. But it's not really my cup of tea.

Key track: Survector

4.5 stars.The music here is taken from two live shows from 2004, one in their home country of Chile and the other in Brazil. A double cd of incredible music from start to finish.This is my favourite recording from the band and I have to say that when you mix their talent with their humour and Avant Garde style you have one heck of a live act.You can hear the audience laughing many times when one of the band members is addressing them, and at other times the crowd just erupts in applause at what they are hearing and seeing.This is music for the adventerous music fan without a doubt. I'll go through some of the highlights.

"Primogenia Satiria" is laid back with some nice bass early on.You just feel like they are going to break out any second here. Great sound 2 1/2 minutes in then it settles before kicking in with vocals,guitar and drums. Amazing ! Spoken words and cries follow.The horns are screaming after 7 minutes. "Viaje A Erlebnis" kicks in right away with horns blasting as multi vocals join in. Ripping guitar after 3 minutes. "Cansancio" sounds so good and the horns are very impressive. Angular guitar 1 1/2 minutes in when horns stop.They return after 3 minutes. "Mamut Y Miladones" has this intense rhythm with lots of horns. "Copenhaguen Schtorba" is intense as well with horns to start. Spoken vocals after a minute and some brief angular guitar before 2 minutes. Crazy vocals expressions a minute later as the bass and drums pound.The crowd is going nuts 5 1/2 minutes in. Great tune.

Disc Two opens with "Survector" and it kicks in quickly and the guitar is lighting it up. Killer sound before 3 minutes as the horns go insane. "Potenzia" sounds really cool when it settles down. Check out the sax solo around 2 minutes right to the end. "Senorita Depresion" opens with gentle guitar as a beat comes in and vocal expressions. It builds. Crazy stuff and I love it. "Cocodrilos Cod Martini" is a song that sounds incredible. "Akinitron" continues the fantastic second disc with great song after great song. Guitar and clapping to start as the drums and horns join in. "Cadoncia Urmana" has some more deranged horn excursions then it turns heavy before 2 minutes. "Hawai" is beautiful and laid back. "Gansos, Patos Y Gallinos" has vocals in it and I really like when the horns pulsate after 2 minutes.The guitar leads a minute later. Crazy vocals and drums take over at 4 1/2 minutes then it kicks back in with horns. Bass only 7 minutes in as the vocals join in in a GENTLE GIANT-like section where the crowd claps along. The final track "Dementia Absorbant" has some eerie vocals expressions. Freaky stuff.

This is a great place to start if you want to check these guys out. I highly recommend their first two studio albums as well.

This is the latest studio album from Chile's own AKINETON RETARD. I must admit that if this was the only album I owned by them i'd be giving it 4 stars, but when compared to their first two studio albums this one really does pale. And yes it's just my taste in music that is making me say this.The earlier ones are darker with more guitar and variety.This one is actually fairly predictable with the drums, bass and horns dominating the sound.

"Cadencia Urmana" opens with drums and blasting horns then it settles in. Well "settle in" might be a bit misleading. Horns, drums and a yell before 1 1/2 minutes. An unstable calm 3 1/2 minutes in. "Levitando" has a Latin vibe early on until the horns come in followed by a heavier sound.The interplay as usual is stunning. Vocals 3 1/2 minutes in are brief. "Piel Estatica" opens with bass and drums as the horns join in. It's fairly slow paced. The horns back off as the guitar comes in after 3 minutes. Man I wish there was more of this, it's so good. Horns return quickly though.

"Caldopatias" has guitar and drums to start before the horns replace the guitar. So much going on. "Mujer De Otono" is probably my least favourite. "Ansiedade" is a short drum and horn led piece. It picks up before 2 1/2 minutes to end it. "Ron Pimiento" opens with drums and horns.The guitar before 1 1/2 minutes is killer. Horns are back quickly though. "Roces Matutinos" has a Latin beat with some brief female vocals a minute in.The horns and drums lead the rest of the way. "Flagelo" is an excellent track with lots of dissonance and random drum patterns. The drums and horns stand out on "Sei Blok". Some brief heaviness 1 1/2 minutes in.

Like I said earlier this is probably a 4 star album but I can't rate it the same as the first two albums so 3.5 stars it is.

4.5 stars. Here's another album that is calling out for a 5 star rating, and down the road I may bump it up because this is amazing stuff. Think "Red" by KING CRIMSON and add some darkness and avant moments, then mix in some Jazz and Zeuhl and there you have it, a dish special made just for me.This might be my favourite AKINETON RETARD album. By the way the album cover suits the music that is inside.

"Copenhaguen Schtorba" opens with pounding drums and blasting horns. It settles in quickly until a minute in when the guitar and rough vocals take over, then back to the drums and sax. It settles again with guitar and bass as the drums continue. Horns after 3 1/2 minutes. Nice. "Primogenia Satira" has a brief but powerful guitar intro then the bass and drums rumble in as the guitar continues. Sax a minute in. Great sound here. Man this is so good. Vocal expressions after 3 minutes. Dissonant horns 5 1/2 minutes in. Some nice growly bass before 7 minutes then the vocals return. "Viaje A Eriebnis" has these Zeuhl inspired vocal chants that join the powerful soundscape. It settles with horns 1 1/2 minutes in.The guitar is ripping it up 3 minutes in.

"Blues En Re" is jazzy early on. Horns join in this laid back tune. Cool song. "Gansos,Patos Y Gallinos" has these crazy vocals as the tempo swings abruptly and often. It settles in before 1 1/2 minutes.The guitar solos beautifully after 2 minutes as the bass and drums rumble underneath. Horns are back before 4 1/2 minutes. A calm a minute later then the horns and drums lead to the end. "Mamut Y Milodones" builds with horns as heavy outbursts come and go starting at 2 minutes in. "Aquelarre Satiri Sarnaz" has some good atmosphere with the guitar, horns and drums standing out. It's heavier 3 minutes in. So good. A calm before 4 1/2 minutes. Check out the Krautrock-like guitar 6 1/2 minutes in, then he's lighting it up a minute later.

Another killer album from Chile. Highly recommended.

Akinetón Retard is, in my humble opinion, a major asset in the current Latin American avant- garde rock scene, a band that has appropriated a most peculiar way of combining energy, sophistication and humor in a unique musical voice where Zeuhl, fusion, hard rock and experimental jazz are cohesively melted. The band's third effort "21 Canapés" has an unusual format of several short tracks ? most of them had been written for theater plays and modern ballet pieces, but were eventually left behind, so AR decided to compile a selection of 21 unused compositions and make a whole album out of them. This particular album does not get to exploit the band's typically inflammatory power as their other releases do, but again, this must not be labeled as a shortcoming or some sort of failure: instead, this should be regarded as a specific signal of the casual nature of the entire album's inception, and as such I should be understood and enjoyed. In other words, AR exercises a level of constraint as demanded by the concise frameworks that encapsulate the tracks' individual developments. 'Akinefrón' opens up the repertoire with an exciting fusion flavor, with a rhythmic scheme fully sustained by guitar, bass and percussives, while the dual saxes gladly indulge in their ordained sonic flights, in this way completing the subtle architecture of warm sensuality. Also fusion-centered but relying more heavily on Central American folklore are the two 'La Vida Rota' tracks, which mostly expose the standardized vibration of Cuban bolero. In fact, the guest female vocalist on the sung version properly delivers that sense of passion usually attributed to Latin American love songs. 'Hawai' is an eerie snippet full of exotic colors, while 'Farmacologías' is a lovely exercise on introspective textures (perhaps my favorite rack in the album). Later on, 'Señorita Depresión' will reiterate a similar introspective mood. On the other hand, 'Obseso y Convulso', 'Potencia' and 'Pilotos de Califont' are clearly stated manifestos of the sort of weird aggressiveness that are by now an undisputed AR-patent. It is such a pity that 'Oruros' had to be so short, since its moderately dense atmosphere has enough appeal as to justify a more thorough expansion, of course, in the old AR way. The challenging nature of 'Desiertos de Lagos Transparentes' and 'Bipolaretxea' are also good examples of how well AR can still express their own genuine artistic madness in this concise scheme. Not the greatest AR album, but "21 Canapés" happens to be still a very good avant- rock album to be properly enjoyed by avant-rock lovers.

Acquired in a trade, this second album from the killer Chilean AR group (now a sextet with the addition of a percussionist) is the confirmation that their debut was no fluke. Indeed AR insist on black artwork (this time with a touch of red), as if they made an gothic obsessions, but the important thing is the music, which is darker, rougher and more dense at times

The Crimsonoïd spectrum of the first album is respected, but there is a harder more Avant aesthetics that is explored. Musically you might even draw up a comparison to a very serious X-Legged Sally, this due to the dual sax attack, but the Belgian absurd and Zappa-esque goofiness are completely absent. When the twin barrel sax-attack are not firing from all cylinders, than the guitar is certainly anchoring the group's sound in a powerful rock realm that can't be denied. The opening track seems to mix Morricone with Ornette Coleman as would the aptly -titled follow-up (recurrences), as it embraces the same musical realm.

Although AR is an (almost) instrumental group, it manages to deliver some messages loud and clear, beit musically or by naming their tracks. I won't go into politics, but it seems quite clear that the band's stance on religion is soundly left wing. Followed by a short hard-driving demented track, Survector, the track oscillates between pure hard rock and almost pure jazz and settling on a jazz-rock. In the same direction Soula is cvlose to standard traditional jazz with the full works, including rhythmic electric guitar, stand-up bass and very j Adderley-esque saxes. This leaves Nimboestrato (I guess they refer to the cloud types here) and the 12-mins finale Dementia Asorbante, which seems to be the centrepiece of the album despite being placed at the back of it. If the first boasts some UZ chamber rock influences, you'll find that the same can be said for the finale's first section, but in its middle section, you'd choose either Magma's Kobaian chants or Gong's cosmic whispers. If I kept these two tracks for last, it's because the former also has a macabre choir passage,, much like the closing track, when the rest of the album is without any other vocals.

Taking on an unexpected RIO turn after their mostly Crimsonoïd debut album, AR certainly made tAkranania an outstanding sophomore album, when many others experience a jinx, and despite the group's closing temporarily the gates in the ultimate seconds of the album, I'll be curious to see whether the doors they opened for themselves will lead them

I have been fortunate enough to have listened to a lot of great music from Chile, so when I decided to check out some Rio from this great country I had big expectations. I can say my expectations were met and then some. Man can these guys play ! The drummer, the bass player, the lead guitarist, and the two sax players not only play at an extremely high level, but the complex arrangements, and the instrumental songs they compose match their playing abilities.

"Morricoleman" opens fast and hard before some dissonant sax melodies arrive. This song has extreme tempo changes and lots of them. The rhythm section is fantastic. The sax solos run rampant. "Recurrencias" is a powerful sounding song with pounding drums, aggressive guitar, and the ever-present sax melodies of course. There is a killer section 3 1/2 minutes in with some good bass. "Fana Papal Y Monsenor Smegma Nazzi" is a short tune that is so impressive because of the interplay between these musicians.

"Survector" is my favourite track next to "Recurrencias". It opens with some ripping guitar as sax joins in this uptempo tune. The sax stops as drums, bass and guitar lead the way before the sax returns. The song changes direction with some dissonant sax as the drums and bass lay down some great lines. The guitar grinds it out for a while as the sax takes a break. The sax is back ! Nice bass solo before 6 minutes followed by a brief drum solo. Dissonant sax melodies return as the drums pound away. "Nimboestrato" features deep vocal melodies and some incredible guitar. "Soula" features double bass lines before we get a "Big Band" sound (with the sax playing together) that turns jazzy. More great bass 6 1/2 minutes in as the sax screams. "Dementa Absorbant" seems to start and stop but it still sounds good. There is an amazing melody after 2 minutes. For 7 minutes we get this music that is straight out of a horror movie. Very spooky and creepy stuff.

This was close to a five star album for me, but the last two songs knocked it down a notch. I still highly recommend this incredible album.

With their fourth studio effort "Cadencia Urmana", the excellent Chilean ensmble Akinetón Retard delivered one of the most proficient avant-garde prog albums in the year 2006. Keeping in mind the levels of sonic genius and adventurous spirit that had been displayed in their preceding albums, it is so great to learn that this band maintains its own high standards of musical creativity within their own realm, a realm where jazz-rock, psychedelia, fusion and Crimsonian neurosis melt into one unique polished style. In many ways "Cadencia Urmana" shows hints to the robustness and intensity of their sophomore album "Akrananaia", but in no way this is a repetitive offering - all in all, this album's repertoire is a perfect example of how nothing can go wrong when individual abilities are exploited in such a clever way that the whole finds an enriched totality instead of being just a harbour of constant pyrotechnics. The eponymous track kicks off the album with a rock solid attitude, bearing some almost-punkish vibe into thge overall fusionesque ambience of the main motifs. The presence of guests on extra brass instruments helps to build an aura of demented big band that effectively complements the band's performance. 'Levitando', being equally extroverted in spirit, bears a less dense mood, which in no small degree is due to its Latin-jazz structure. But be aware, some hard rocking adornemnts and slightly Magma-esque vocalizations will appear somewhere to add momentarily a dose of interesting variety, as well as some neurotic dual saxes' flourishes. After these two exiting pieces the sympathetic listener will feel the appeal and head happily for the assimilation of the remaining repertoire. 'Piel Estática' finds the band digging deeper into their taste for late 60s avantgarde jazz, which means that the fivesome will focus on the band's serene facet. Not for too long really, since 'Calodpatías' brings back the bizarre joy and easy-going dementia that make the best of AR at their most enthusiastic. If there's such thing as "typical Akinetón Retard", well, this might be one example of that. 'Mujer de Otoño' again brings a contrast since it marks a return to the serene side, but unlike 'Pile Estática', the contemplative vibe is full of gloomy nuances, like a solemn mistery that stubbornly refuses to let go of the secret hidden behind its veils. With 'Ansiedade' we come to teh album's second half, which is a sort of reiteration of the main ambiences of tracks 1 and 4. A similar thing happens in 'Ron Pimienta', only with a harsher vibe which is mainly provided by the guitar leads, insane indeed - perhaps one of the best interventions by Tanderal in the whole Akinetón's repertoire? 'Roces Matutinos' is the most humorous number in the album: getting started in a jazz-bluesy vein, soon things turn into a celebration of sexual satyre under a Latin-jazz-meets-funky guise. 'Flagelo' and 'Sei Blok' close down the album in a patently extroverted note, very much in accord with the album's overall spirit. 'Flagelo' is a sheer polyphonic climax of reeds and guitar that expands itself joyfully over a precise rhythm section, while 'Sei Blok', albeit exhibiting a more controlled mood, still delivers evidence of experimental intensity and extravagance. In fact, the abrupt climax of 'Sei Block' serves as a very proper closure for this catalogue of clever madness that is "Cadencia Umana". Well, Akinetón Retard did it again... I mean, a great album that glorifies the Latin American avant-rock scene, and this in turn means that Latin American prog bands should be paid more attention to.

Third release by one of Chile's most adventurous bands Akinetón Retard presents as the title assumes 21 little mostly very tasty little bits triggering the appetite for more. Unlike on their previous album dominated by aggressive saxophone and heavy guitar they were taking here a more reluctant at times acoustic approach using a broad range of instruments including violin and cello.

The 21 short pieces, mainly not longer than 1 - 2 minutes are very versatile and mostly in a jazzy vein with saxophone as the main instrument. Though there are quite a few ones being very enjoyable with a moderate degree of oddity and disharmony with "Enfermas enfermas", "La vida rota", "Potenzia", "Señorita depression", "Cocodrilos con Martini" and "Descargas" being the nicest tracks this disk is anything else than an easy listening. Ever present short excursions into Avant-garde territory are providing enough excitement and endeavour in between. Especially with the three ambient electronic experiments "Desiertos de lagos transparentes", "La vida rota karaoke" and "Transparencias de lagos desertos" which are moreover some of the longest tracks I've got problems to get used to and rather disturb my enjoyment I've to say. But anyway there's still enough enjoyable stuff on here like "La farsa gold" for solo violin and "La farsa platinum" for solo cello. The two already mentioned ones "Señorita depression" and "Cocodrilos con Martini" are as well fully acoustic, here dominated by guitar. Only two of the pieces have vocals (female, in Spanish language), "La vida rota" inspired by Latin-American folk and "Mosaicos" sounding a bit more oddly than the former one.

Overall this is an excellent disk with some unique and adventurous music providing a good picture of the versatility and talents of this great band. Possibly it might not be suitable for everyone but I'd highly recommend it to anyone looking for something different. Definitely a must-have one for fans of Avant Prog!