This is a band who will probably be more missed than they know. Spanish heavy psychedelic rockers Arenna formed in 2005 in Vitoria-Gasteiz, part of Basque Country in Spain, and have announced that they’re done and that their impending third full-length is called off. Whatever stage of making it they might have been in, be it writing, recording or piecing together material in some other way, the prospect of being denied a follow-up to 2015’s Given to Emptiness (review here) and their 2011 debut album, Beats of Olarizu (discussed here; review here) — both issued through the esteemed Nasoni Records — is a sincere loss for the listeners who’ve been waiting for its arrival, and I count myself among that number.

Immediately my head goes three different places upon seeing their short mic-drop of a breakup announcement — literally, “Arenna is over and the new album won’t see the light.” First, as noted, bummer. Second, never say never. If we have to used the past tense about them, Arenna were a band that still had a lot to offer their audience, in the progressive breadth of their material, the warmth of their heavy psychedelic tonality and the serene pastoralism of their atmospheres. Maybe they’ll never be convinced to get back together and finish off what could’ve been, or maybe they will. This is rock and roll and even the most shut of doors can potentially reopen. History teaches us this again and again.

But for now at the very least, Arenna are done. Their final recording was the single “Οιδίπους 70º30´S (Cuidaos del Enigma)” that was included as part of Spinda Records’ sprawling Grados. Minutos. Segundos. split 7″ compilation (featured here) encompassing some of the Spanish underground’s finest acts. Arenna certainly deserved to be featured there as they were, and if indeed their third LP never surfaces, their capstone track is both a promise unfulfilled and well placed in the company it’s keeping among acts who no doubt have taken cues from them along the way. Their Bandcamp lists a show in October, but Bandcamp has its own mind about these things. The last show Arenna played was July 7 at the local festival Korterraza in Vitoria-Gasteiz.

The yet-unmentioned third place my head goes with this announcement is to wonder what happened to make them want to stop at all. This was a vibrant, creative band, who seemed to have more in the works and more to say. Whatever their reason for cutting their tenure short — and calling it “short” is saying something for a band who were together for 17 years — they will always have left an ellipses where that record could have been.

Their brief post follows, as seen on socials:

R.I.P.

2005-2022

Arenna is over and the new album won’t see the light.

Thank you to everyone who has been a part, helped and/or supported.

https://www.facebook.com/arennarock
https://www.instagram.com/arennarock/
https://arenna.bandcamp.com/
https://arenna.bigcartel.com/

Arenna, “Cuidaos del Enigma”

Arenna, Given to Emptiness (2015)

Arenna, Beats of Olarizu (2011)

So, it would seem Txus Dr. Sax, aka Doctor Sax, aka the vocalist of Arenna, is a big reader. Awesome. The world could probably use a couple more of them. Across three full-lengths under the moniker of Dr. Sax (or with “Doctor” spelled out; either seems cool), the good doctor has explored a world of literature from William S. Burroughs and Charles Baudelaire to Roberto Bolaño and, Rimbaud and Aldus Huxley. I might recommend he hit up some Toni Morrison, Margaret Atwood and Kurt Vonnegut, but beyond that, it’s hard to argue with the canon. It becomes particularly relevant to his new EP, Ellis, because up to now, all of his songs have been titled for authors’ last names: “Poe,” and “Wilde,” and “Arbulú” and so on. Ellis, which is the first Doctor Sax EP, would seem to depart from that approach.

That’s not a small change after three records, but unless “Sille” and its companion “Llise” — both anagrams of the EP’s title — are figures in literature I’ve never heard of, which is certainly possible, the EP looks to be Doctor Sax branching in a new direction. That notion further manifests in the arrangement of “Sille” itself, as Doctor Sax — who works with producers Koldo and Jabolo Sagastume as he did for 2016’s Vol. III —  explores a marked depth of arrangement involving cello and viola, percussion, harmonica and sundry effects around the foundation of acoustic guitar and vocals, taking the folk-style approach he’s brought to past material and expanding it outward in terms of atmosphere across the nearly-nine-minute song. “Llise,” at just under seven minutes, is somewhat more grounded and solo-feeling, but even that turns to looped guitar to develop a musical conversation with itself, its largely instrumental progression building as it moves forward to some vocals and tambourine late in the track.

In the video for “Sille” below, you can see Doctor Sax himself recording that part. It ends in laughter, which is fair enough. The whole clip seems to have been shot as the “Sille” and “Llise” were put together in the studio, and it captures the spirit of creativity at the heart of the material. It’s hard to gauge ultimately whether Ellis represents a new modus for Doctor Sax overall or is a kind of experimentalist one-off left-turn — the answer may indeed be at your local library — but there’s no denying the soul put into “Sille” and watching it unfold in the studio setting in the video below, the joy of its making is palpable.

Ellis is out Feb. 11 on Spinda Records, Cosmic Tentacles and Olarizu Records.

Hope you dig it:

Doctor Sax, “Sille” official video premiere

The EP is the fourth album by Arenna’s singer Doctor Sax:
‘Mantras Of The Rainy Night” (2012)
‘Vol. II’ (2014)
‘Vol. III’ (2016)
‘Ellis’ (2019)
Release date: 11th February 2019 (Spinda Records, Cosmic Tentacles and Olarizu Records)
Pre-order now available at https://drsax.bandcamp.com

Doctor Sax is:
Doctor Sax: Vocals and guitar
Guille: Percussion
Imanol Mtz. Hervias: Viola
David Sagastume: Cello and handclaps
Koldo Sagastume: Handclaps

Dr. Sax on Bandcamp

Cosmic Tentacles on Bandcamp

Spinda Records website

The Obelisk will sponsor the inaugural European tour of newcomer progressive psychedelic rockers Entropía, who head out supporting their debut album, Invisible. You’ll find the self-released full-length streaming in its entirety below courtesy of the band’s Bandcamp page, and with a piano-heavy style in flowing tracks like “Prisionera de la Expresión” and “Invisible,” they want nothing for class or soul or a sense of mastery for it being their first record. In instrumental sections as well as their verses and choruses, frontman/keyboardist Jon Bellido helps provide a foundation for the material on which guitarist Roberto Nieves, bassist Lasto and drummer Andoni Penela build outward. Invisible works in varied passages to evoke a diverse sense of mood and an engaging scope that’s both immersive and demanding attentive interaction. It’s not an album to get lost in so much as converse with, and that conversation only offers more reward with each return.

Entropía — who also stylize their moniker all-lowercase: entriopía — have played local shows in Spain and their native Basque Country and are looking to head out on their first round of tour dates between Sept. 20-30. They have shows booked for the first three nights but are still working to fill out the rest of the tour. If you can help out, help out. Wombat Booking is handling the reservations, and you can see what’s already confirmed below. Very happy to be involved in getting this one out there. Make sure you dig into the record as well.

Have at it:

We are happy to announce that the Psychedelic Progressive band from Vitoria – Basque Country (North Spain) – ENTROPIA will embark on this Rock adventure around Europe presenting their latest effort “Invisible”.

Entropía is a Spanish band from Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country, formed at the end of summer 2014. Their music has its roots in alternative rock with clear psychedelia and space rock influences. The band is formed by four young musicians: Jon Bellido (keyboards and vocals), Roberto Nieves (lead guitar), Lasto (bass) and Andoni Penela (drums). Up until now, they’ve given more than thirty concerts, most of them in local bars, but also in Madrid, as well as in Sopelana, Portugalete, Aramaio, Bilbao, Pamplona or Logroño, and at the Mendialdea Music Festival (MMF) in Maeztu. They’re winners of Gazte Talent 2016, and they were also awarded ‘Best Demo’ by the University of La Rioja in 2017, going on to represent this university in the 2018 edition of the national competition ‘G9’.

They’ve recorded their first self-financed long-playing album (LP) named Invisible, which was released in February 22, 2018. They don’t belong to any record label, but for the edition of this album they’re working with the alternative labels Cosmic Tentacles of Vitoria-Gasteiz and Nooirax of Madrid. They’ve also shared the stage with other bands with a similar musical style, such as Astrodome, The Soulbreaker Company, Arenna, Wicked Wizzard, the Bostonians Dyr Faser and the Australians James McCann & The New Vindictives.

September is the time to enjoy the road.

September 20th to September 30th

Already confirmed:
Sept 20th Bordeaux
Sept 21st Toulouse
Sept 22nd Tarbes

Entriopía on Thee Facebooks

Entriopía on Instagram

Entriopía on Bandcamp