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Pedro
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Published on: 16 Dec 2006
I never heard about the Spanish progressive rock band Kotebel, until my good friend Pedro told me about them. After the first listen I was speechless.
Complex, different and fantastic, where the first things that came in my mind.
On this fourth album everything sounds just great, I think their albums are getting better every time. But that was my thought after their third album too. So watch out for the future albums.
The music is a fine combination of classical vocals by Carolina Prieto, flute by Omar Acosta and a fantastic guitar player called Cesar, who plays like a young Robert Fripp combined with Allan Holdsworth. Together with two keyboard players and a fine rhythm section, they make one of the best spanish progressive band I have heard so far. Influences from the seventies can be heard together with modern progressive rock and classical
The songs have a lot of variation and the song “Pentacle’s suite” is build up from six sections, changing moods in every part.
The song “Excellent meat”, where Cesar has a major part, is a bit more heavy than the other songs and showcases what a great guitarplayer he is.
If you liked the previous albums of Kotebel, you won’t be disappointed, this one is even better.
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Nuno
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Published on: 11 Jul 2006
Kotebel is rightfully considered one of the best contemporary Spanish progressive acts. Their main characteristic seems to me to be the constant search for new solutions when it comes to symphonic rock, though many times based on already well settled leanings, mainly from the 70’s anglo-saxon school but with small hints on the Italian school as well. Yet they incorporate many other influences on their music, and an extremely personal process of conjugating those influences in an own signature and peculiar identity.
Omphalos is the fourth act of this band, and it opens with a long operatic track that is simply amazing. The vocal work of Carolina Prieto is exceptional, and well seconded by the flute, piano and guitar appearances, along with an orchestral use of the keyboards. This track is undoubtefully a total winner, and transports this band to higher levels than ever before.
While decreasing a bit their level of inspiration in the heavier, more krimsonian second track, the band gets back on its better paths with the 30+ minute multi-movement track Pentacle’s Suite, where it explores all their musical ideas: atmospheric ambiances with crafted flute parts, operatic vocals, jazzy virtuoso guitar parts (sometimes à la Holdsworth) and bombastic keyboards. This is the track that best represents the dreamlike and idealistic musicality of the band, in a symphonic bliss that takes the listener to new grounds and emotional soundscapes.
If I had already been impressed by their 2003 release Fragments of Light, this new Omphalos just comes to better my high consideration for this Spanish band, and state them as one of the great contemporary prog rock bands when it comes to the most pure symphonic approach. A great band to listen to again or to finally discover.
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| TRACKS |
CREDITS
(click to view performer credits) |
PROGGNOSIS SELECTED DISCOGRAPHY (click to view Release Page) |
- Ra (13'10)
- Excellent Meat (8'51)
- Pentacle's Suite (I. Prologue) (1'36)
- Pentacle's Suite (II. Sun Pentacle) (5'20)
- Pentacle's Suite (III. Mercury Pentacle) (7'26)
- Pentacle's Suite (IV. Venus Pentacle) (4'22)
- Pentacle's Suite (V. Mars Pentacle) (6'38)
- Pentacle's Suite (VI. Epilogue) (4'49)
- MetroMnemo (4'15)
- Joropo (4'53)
- Omphalos (6'57)
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