El Reloj - II

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RELOJ, EL - El Reloj II (aka Al Borde del Abismo or Segundo Album)

Bio by Iván Melgar Morey

If I had to say which is the quintessential band of Argentinean Progressive Rock, I would say without doubt EL RELOJ (The Clock), they were the ones who opened the door for the prolific Progressive movement in this South American country despite the fact they were never a pure Symphonic band which was always the preeminent style.

The band, mainly inspired in DEEP PURPLE with a clear Symphonic structure and style was originally formed by Eduardo Frezza and Willy Gardi in 1970 from the ashes of two bands called “LAGRIMA” (Tear) and “LOS ANGELES SALVAJES” (The Wild Angels) from a small city called Rosario, EL RELOJ made their debut in a movie theater called “El Monumental” with the record of 1,100 seats and a lot of people in the street who wasn’t able to reach a ticket.

The original lineup was formed by Luis Valenti (Keyboards and vocals), Willy Gardi (Guitar), Osvaldo Zabala (Guitar), Eduardo Freza (Bass and Vocals) and Juan Espósito (Drums), soon joins Eduardo “Tucata” Suarez as second guitar who leaves the band and is replaced by Gregorio Felipes.

Before a very importants concert in the Olimpia Theater, Gregorio Felipes is killed in a car accident by a drunk policeman officer who escapes, despite their grieve, the band still makes the show as a tribute for their partner before 1,500 souls and abandon the stage for a long period of time.

Is not until 1973 that they release their first single “El Mandato” (The Commandment) and “Vuelve el Día a Reinar” (The Day Reigns Again) which was a moderate success. The next year they release their biggest hit “Alguien en Quien Confiar” (Somebody Else To Trust In) and “Blues del Atardecer” (Sunset Blues) that sold more than 100,000 copies, a record for a native Rock band in those days.

In 1975 they release the first LP called “El Reloj” with clear Deep Purple influence but listening again after some years I noticed they had more of the Uriah Heep’s mystic and proggy sound, even Luis Valenti sounds pretty much like David Byron. 

This album contains old and new material by the band but as in most South America it was hard to get sponsored when you were a local band, so that’s the reason it had to wait so much, the budget was so tied that they couldn’t afford the art cover with “The Melted Clocks” by Dali.

In 1976 their style changes dramatically and they approach to a Symphonic sound with their second LP called “El Reloj II” which rises the popularity of the band incredibly but also is the starting point of tensions inside the band so after two concerts in a full “Luna Park” and long tours through Argentina they dissolve.

In 1983 they join again to release a new LP called “La Esencia es la Misma” (The Essense is the Same) but the band was not accepted this time so they decide to split again but not for ever because in 1989 they join again for a short period and again the economic problems cause their separation.

Anybody else would have quitted but the guys were really stubborn and in 1993 they reunite the original lineup and release the LP called “Santos y Verdugos” (Saints and Hangmen) with a clear Iron Maiden influence but adding old hits. 

In order to make the story short, after several periods of activity and separations they managed to release two more albums “Hombre de Hoy” (Man of Today) in 1999 and “Mercado de Almas” (Market of Souls) in 2003, all oriented towards Prog Metal but with less success than their early albums.

They are about to release their first Live CD but this time without Luis Valente who died in 2004 of a heart attack if I'm not wrong.

I’m sure this is not the last thing we will listen from EL RELOJ one of the pioneer bands of Argentinean Prog.

Iván Melgar Morey – Perú

Reviews of the album:

 Ivan_Melgar_M 
(Iván Melgar-Morey) 
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR
Symphonic / Neo Prog Specialist 
 The iconic Argentinean band EL RELOJ had been playing for over 5 years, they already had personnel changes, one dead member and were only able to release one previous album called "El Reloj". Despite this circumstances they managed to get a very large fan base not only in Argentina but also in all South America and mainly in Perú, something I witnessed.
This fan base was mostly interested in a Hard Rock approach close to a blend between Deep Purple and Uriah Heep with a slight touch of the Symphonic Argentinean personality and their debut album was a compilation of all this years recordings.
But it was time for a change, but not of name because their second release had exactly the same name as the previous "El Reloj", that's why it's known as "II", “Al Borde del Abismo” or "Segundo Album", but the style surely changed, they became a heavy Symphonic band, keeping the influence of the first release that gained so many fans but at the same time they went for a more challenging sound with a certain approach to King Crimson's first two albums and a bit of Italian Symphonic School.
They took the risk of loosing all the popularity they earned through the years so they kept alive the original rough atmosphere and the result was excellent for the band, they became more popular than ever, I would dare to say that "El Reloj II" is probably the grandfather of Latin American Prog Metal and at the same time a Symphonic album.
The songs that describe best this collision of styles are:
"Al Borde del Abismo" (The album is also known by the name of this song which was a successful single prior to the LP Release), still with a clear Purple influence but this time with dramatic changes all along the track, making clear reference to King Crimson, the guitar tandem of Willy Gardi and Osvaldo Zabala is simply outstanding specially for the rhythm guitar often powered by a strong rhythm section and David Byron influenced vocals.
"La Ciudad Desconocida": A dramatic Symphonic Power Ballad very close to Italian School but still with some remembrances to Deep Purple, the vocals sound better than ever showing some similarities with songs like "July Morning" or even "Stairway to Heaven"
Another single "Harto y Confundido" also made it’s path to the LP but two other excellent ones “Camino al Estucofen” and "El Hombre y el Perro" released after the first LP were not included in the original release for reasons I ignore, mistake that has been repaired in the remastered edition.
If you love Latin American Prog and want to know the evolution from Heavy Rock to Symphonic Prog in one album, you must get El Reloj II ( "Al Borde del Abismo" "Second Album" or however you want to call it) because it's a great addition for any Proghead and essential for any Argentinean Prog fan.
Four solid stars for a very solid album. 

Posted Tuesday, September 12, 2006 | Review Permalink 

Sean Trane 
(Hugues Chantraine) 
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR
Prog-Folk Specialist 
 One of South America’s better groups, El Reloj had an all too brief recording 70’s career and just two albums, their debut being in a much harder rock vein in the Purple line. This one is much proggier and is in my top ten South American records. Just like its predecessor’s reissue, the album starts out with bonus tracks (which I always found rather unsettling and non-respectful of the album itself. Fortunately this occurrence is rare enough in prog (I can only think of Germany’s Parzival with an even stranger set up where bonus tracks bookend the album tracks.
Nevertheless these bonus tracks are worthy of the album’s quality even if they do not sound like they came from the album session, but this is minor and they actually extent the disc length to acceptable duration. And this album is rather unlike a lot of other Argentinean prog album, which have a tendency to sound Italian Symphonic-like prog rock. It is rather more in the line of Bubu’s superb sole album, with plenty of power, demented music a bit of a cross between Crimson and ELP, but without Emo’s doodlings. The line-up is your standard prog quartet with an added guitarist/violinist, but unfortunately, the violin is not used enough, but the group does not really need it to sound original and unique.
While over half the tracks are sung, the vocals are not overly present and plenty of space is given to the music. If most tracks are rather short (except for an 11-min slightly flawed epic) remaining around the 4-min mark, the album is a very even affair with all tracks being eventful and energetic, if not frantic. In this light, it is rather hard to find one track that is a highlight, so if I must risk myself, it’ll be a trio: Tema Triste, Harto Y Confundido and Egolatrio. A real must if you want to check out what Latinos can do in prog, but it is not really representative of their country’s output. Nothing wrong with that , on the contrary. Rounded to the upper unit. 

Posted Tuesday, January 23, 2007 | Review Permalink 