Moura earned a pretty deep cachet in my mind with the heavy, psychedelic, progressive and Galician folk-informed textures, gorgeous melodies, spacious reach and thoughtful, passionate craft of their 2022 sophomore LP, Axexan, Espreitan (review here). Enough to account for my being excited that their follow-up is an 18-minute three-songer EP intended to serve as a soundtrack for a short film co-written by their drummer? Abso-friggin’-lutely, yes.

I’ll go further and admit I’ve heard the impending Fume Santo de Loureiro, which the Spanish six-piece recorded in Portugal with Marco Lima (Libido Fuzz, Les Nadie, Telea Jacta etc.), and in addition to the version I listened to having an intro that perhaps didn’t make the final cut — okay, so 17-ish minutes, then — those lucky enough to have taken on Axexan, Espreitan will find the new songs driven by the same sense of individualized traditionalism and open creative pulse. If that’s you and you’re bumming out that it’s an EP and not a third full-length right away, sit tight. There’s at least a single LP’s worth of scope in the eight minutes of “Contra os Males de Aireada,” and the keys later in “Canto de Berce,” coupled with the dual vocals and a bit of march in the snare, feel like a Morricone reference well suited to the occasion. With the six-minute “Agoiro / Pranto” leading off by shifting through proggy organ contemplations en route to not-the-EP’s-last percussive jam, I hope you’ll take my word for it that there’s plenty enough depth for you to dive in and not worry about hitting your head.

Fume Santo de Loureiro is due out May 31 on Spinda Records. No audio from it yet, but the last album is at the bottom of the post here, and in a spirit of friendship I urge you to hear it, whether or not you have before. There are few acts I’ve heard in the last couple years who most make me want to chase down doing another radio show, but sometimes you just have to hear a thing.

So please:

MOURA announces new EP ‘Fume santo de loureiro’

After their self-titled debut, the stand-alone single “Muiñeira da Maruxaina” (included as part of compilation boxset Grados. Minutos. Segundos.), and their second studio album ‘Axexan, espreitan’, the band Moura, renowned for their commitment to exploring and preserving Galician tradition, is pleased to announce their upcoming studio EP titled ‘Fume santo de loureiro’, set to be released on May 31 with Spinda Records. This new conceptual EP has been conceived as the original soundtrack for the short film ‘Nai’, directed by filmmaker Tito Refoxo, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Brais do Rei, the band’s current drummer.

The title of this new multidisciplinary project involving members of Moura originates from exorcising and healing expression used in various Galician rituals, which aligns perfectly with the storyline of ‘Nai’. In the short film, a family from the village of Rois (A Coruña, Spain) becomes entangled in a dark tragedy with the disappearance of the little one of the house. Shocked and desperate for answers, the family members are compelled to come together in an attempt to unravel the mystery that has cast shadows over their lives.

MOURA
Fume santo de loureiro

TRACK-LIST:
1. Agoiro / Pranto
2. Contra os males de aireada
3. Canto de Berce

RELEASE:
May 31, 2024

FORMATS:
digital / streaming
compact disc
vinyl

For this project, the band moved to Hertzcontrol Studios in Seixas (Portugal), with the collaboration of producer and engineer Marco Lima. The mastering was handled by Álvaro Gallego, who has been involved in all of Moura’s studio albums to date.

On May 31, 2024, ‘Fume santo de loureiro’ will be available on all streaming platforms, as well as on CD and in a limited and numbered vinyl edition under Spinda Records’ ‘Trippy Series’. The artwork, by Hugo Santeiro (band’s guitar player) represents a significant difference from previous releases; amidst loss and darkness, it opts for a white aesthetic.

The release of the single “Contra os males de aireada” is scheduled for April 25, which will also mark the opportunity to pre-order this new EP by Moura.

Band photo by Leo López.

https://www.facebook.com/moura.banda/
https://www.instagram.com/moura.banda/
https://eiradamoura.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/moura.banda

https://www.facebook.com/SpindaRecords
https://www.instagram.com/spindarecords
https://spindarecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.spindarecords.com/

Moura, Axexan, Espreitan (2022)

I readily count Viaje a 800 among the most criminally undervalued heavy rock bands Europe has ever produced, so maybe if you’re looking for an impartial assessment of Spinda Records‘ do-it-up-right Coñac Oxigenado: Deluxe Edition reissue of their 2012 swansong (review here), I’m not the one to provide it. They were never super-prompt on output, but between 2001’s Diablo Roto Dë… and 2007’s Estampida de Trombones, the band that in 2010 would record as the trio lineup of bassist/vocalist/keyboardist Poti, guitarist/backing vocalist J. Angel and drummer Andres, fostered a style of heavy rock that was utterly their own and represented not only influences from the Californian desert, but from classic progressive rock as well as Andalusian folk melodies, flamenco rhythms and percussion, and a resulting atmosphere that was ahead of its time.

As the culmination of Viaje a 800’s original run, Coñac Oxigenado pushed their craft as far as it would ever go (to-date; never say never) into those proggy leanings, and from its 12-minute opener “Oculi Omnium In Te Sperant Domine” through the in-English cover of “What’s Going On” originally by Australian heavy-’70s rockers Buffalo, the fluidity, depth and presence they were able to establish in this material still feels innovative 12 years after the fact. And it may well be that having such an individual sound is part of the reason they’ve been so undervalued – I’m sure out there somewhere is a German band who’ve got handclaps in a song like those in the purpose-declaring, scorcher-solo-inclusive jammy middle of Coñac Oxigenado’s lead track, but I wouldn’t expect it to work as well – but even from an outsider’s perspective, it’s easy enough to read an element of cultural discrimination in how isolated the Iberian heavy underground for the most part is even today, beyond whatever language barrier may or may not apply to a given act as it might here.

Thus Coñac Oxigenado: Deluxe Edition — which arrives coinciding with a return to the stage for limited live shows this year — feels something like an 88-minute love letter to Viaje a 800, whose original 1998 demo, Santa Agueda, also saw release through Spinda in 2019, and its 3LP presentation captures an archivalist impulse, preserving a complicated narrative of the recording and of the band more generally. In addition to the five-song/51-minute original tracklisting, the ‘deluxe’-ness manifests in four additional cuts, three of which are alternate versions — “Oculi Omnium In Te Sperant Domine,” “Tagarnina Blues” and “Eterna Soledad” — and the last of which is the previously-unreleased “Todo es Nada.” To my understanding, none of these recordings have surfaced before (the difference being that a re-recorded “Todo es Nada” didn’t make the final 2012 LP), and that lineup changes were part of it — anybody looking for a probably-wrong complete retelling of Viaje a 800‘s lineup history here? I didn’t think so; moving on — but with 15 years’ distance from the original 2009 sessions at Seville’s Doghouse Studios with Curro Ureba, the previously-lost tracks present a new look at the scope of the band’s sound.

A full rundown of the changes between the 2009 and 2010 recordings — the latter of which became the album released in 2012 — would be academic and (again) probably wrong unless I was cut and pasting factoids like Orthodox‘s Marco Serrato guesting on vocals for the ’09 session or the guitar contribution from 2010-version producer José María Sagrista to “Eterna Soledad.” Neither of those is irrelevant, but neither gives much of an impression of the differences most resonant when setting the tracks in question side-by-side. While the finished, non-prequel Coñac Oxigenado presented itself as Viaje a 800‘s fullest-sounding recording in the low end, and the band always had a brooding element in their vocal melodies, the 2009 versions feel closer to chasing an ideal based on live performance, and so come through as both rawer in their basic sound and brighter in tone.

The acoustic strum of “Eterna Soledad” feels more direct in its folk lineage without the keys accompanying the transition from the initial verses to it, and “Tagarnina Blues” hits with more punch in its snare as it makes ready to shift into the solo, and as anyone who’s ever sat in for a mixing process can tell you, a lot can be done to change the personality of a song in minute adjustments to the balance of its component elements. As they perhaps inevitably would, the 2010 recordings feel more realized and considered in terms of the transitions from one to the next, and there’s a smoother overall sound to their production. Does that mean that the force with which 2009’s “Oculi Omnium In Te Sperant Domine” hits doesn’t work. Oh no. It absolutely does. But it’s fascinating to hear Viaje a 800 working toward two different goals in style with the same material, and where the lushness of Coñac Oxigenado became a marked example of how the band had grown since Estampida de Trombones half a decade before, Coñac Oxigenado: Deluxe Edition broadens the appeal further by showcasing a heretofore-unheard side of these songs. And frankly, they rock.

I won’t say they were wrong to trade out “Todo es Nada” for “Ni Perdón, Ni Olvido” for the 2012 release, not the least for the movement the latter enacts across a similar seven-minute runtime from a riff I likened in the original review to Megadeth to the psychedelic build that leads into its later charging chorus and multi-stage crescendo, but through its start-stop repetitions, semi-spoken lyrics and the procession it undertakes into crash and vocal effects, “Todo es Nada” offers a bleaker ambience than anything that did wind up on Coñac Oxigenado while still holding to a progressive structure and in its vocals-over-drums ending, capping Coñac Oxigenado: Deluxe Edition with an invitation to speculate at what they might have done had they kept going into the 2010s.

Does it matter? I think so, but again, I was a fan of the original Coñac Oxigenado, of the band generally, and of outfits like Atavismo and Mind! that Poti went on to found in Viaje a 800‘s wake. And if you don’t care about art or music or those who’ve made contributions in service to either, yeah, a 3LP reissue of a Spanish heavy band’s record from 2012 might not be the birthday present you’re asking for this year, but the very, very least I can tell you about Coñac Oxigenado, deluxe or not, is that it holds up, and if you’ve never engaged with the band before, these songs are a world waiting for you to find your place in them. I don’t know if Coñac Oxigenado: Deluxe Edition will be how Viaje a 800 come to receive a modicum of the respect they deserve for what they accomplished during their time, but it’s a big piece of why they deserve that respect in the first place, and this revisit is a celebration well earned.

Viaje a 800, Coñac Oxigenado: Deluxe Edition (2024)

Viaje a 800, “Todo es Nada” official video

Viaje a 800 on Facebook

Viaje a 800 on Instagram

Viaje a 800 on Bandcamp

Spinda Records on Facebook

Spinda Records on Instagram

Spinda Records on Bandcamp

Spinda Records website

Barcelona trio Maragda will release their sophomore full-length, Tyrants, on May 8 through Spinda Records. At the bottom of this post, you’ll find two versions of the title-track premiering — the album version of the song and a live-in-studio take as if to demonstrate, “yes, we really can pull this off.” And so they can. And hopefully will for much of the rest of this year on tour in Europe.

Officially, that’s the point of this post. Between you and me, sitting comfortably having a friendly chat together about the things in life that make it tolerable, I’ll tell you that I’ve had the chance to dig into the record and that the hooky proggy cosmic modern space boogie bop of “Tyrants” is no fluke. Maragda pinpoint genre intersections and explore sounds throughout Tyrants that go beyond manifesting the potential of their 2021 self-titled debut (review here). Clear-eyed in their composition, rich in melody and atmosphere, they could hardly be doing more to signal their arrival to the heavy underground in Europe and beyond.

Preorders open tonight at midnight CET, and while I acknowledge that not every track is going to land with every listener, I urge you to take a few minutes for “Tyrants,” which opens the album, to get a glimpse at the sprawl Maragda are conjuring and the manner in which they careen through it. European tribalism has for the better part of 40 years ignored the development of Iberian heavy and progressive rock. Tyrants shows this for how ridiculous it truly is in its flourishing realization and the outreach in the production at Big Snuff Studio by the esteemed Richard Behrens (he was in Heat and Samsara Blues Experiment, has helmed records for Samavayo, Delving and Weite, Abanamat, countless others), actively working to engage the modern heavy psych sphere with all its king-this-and-thats and bouncy galaxial thrust, while also tapping into Spain’s long history of prog melody. Shit, it’s even in English (as was the first record). They could hardly do more if they offered to put your name in a song.

It is an exciting listen. It is not the most hyped album you’re going to hear in 2024, but if you do catch it — and now’s a good time to be introduced — it might just be something you come to treasure.

To wit, it’s one I feel strongly enough about that, in addition to premiering the studio and live versions of “Tyrants” at the bottom of this post, I’m slated to stream the album in full Tuesday, May 7. Keep an eye out.

Art, PR wire info and, crucially, the music, follow. Please enjoy:

MARAGDA DROPS ‘TYRANTS’ AS FIRST SINGLE OF THEIR UPCOMING SECOND STUDIO ALBUM

Preorders (midnight CET March 22): https://spindarecords.com/

Maragda, the energetic power-trio from Barcelona, announces the release of their second studio album, “Tyrants”, available on May 8 via Spinda Records. The band is offering a sneak peek of the album with the release of its title track, showcasing both the studio and live versions taken from their recent live session recorded at Siete Barbas Studios.

This highly anticipated album follows their successful self-titled debut album (2021, Spinda Records) and the live EP “The Reckless / Evil Seed” (2022, Spinda Records). In this new musical journey, the band immerses listeners in introspective themes ranging from self-imposed limitations to the fight for values, love, hope, and farewells. All of this unfolds in a hypothetical fantasy universe, where psychedelia and progressive rock continuously merge, adding nuances of other styles like garage.

For the creation of the album “Tyrants”, Maragda embarked on a creative journey that took them to the Big Snuff Studios in Berlin, where they collaborated with studio engineer Richard Behrens, renowned for his work with bands like Kadavar and Elder. Subsequently, the mastering was handled by acclaimed engineer Peter Deimel (known for his work with bands like Motorpsycho) at the Black Box Studios in France, solidifying a successful collaboration that began with their debut album.

In the visual department, the band has once again partnered with Error! Design studio (known for works with Explosions In The Sky, Russian Circles, Mastodon) for the album’s graphic design, ensuring a cohesive and captivating aesthetic experience for their followers.

TRACK-LIST
1. Tyrants
2. Skirmish
3. Endless
4. My only link
5. Sunset room
6. The singing mountain
7. Godspeed
8. Loose

PRE-ORDER:
22 march 2024

RELEASE DATE
8 may 2024

‘Tyrants’ will be available on May 8 through Spinda Records, although album pre-orders will kick off at midnight on Friday, March 22nd, in both CD and vinyl formats. The vinyl edition will be part of the ‘Trippy Series’ from the Andalusian label, alongside acts such as Viaje a 800, Moura, Empty Full Space, or Moundrag. It will be limited to 400 copies on white vinyl with orange splatters and 100 copies on standard black vinyl.

LIVE SHOWS
May 17 | Madrid (ES) @ Madrid Psych Sessions
June 8 | Barcelona (ES) @ Sala Upload (fiesta de presentación)

https://www.instagram.com/maragda.band/
https://www.facebook.com/maragdaaa
http://www.maragda.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/maragdaband

https://www.facebook.com/SpindaRecords
https://www.instagram.com/spindarecords
https://spindarecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.spindarecords.com/

Maragda, “Tyrants” track premiere

Maragda, “Tyrants” Live at Siete Barbas Studios video premiere

Whatever combination of fingers and toes might need to be sacrificed on the altar of deregulated capitalism in order for me to see Viaje a 800 before I die, I have to think it’d be worth giving up at least a few. Generational spearheads of Spanish-language heavy rock in the 1990s and the outfit from which bands like Atavismo sprang, the Algeciras trio released their last record, Coñac Oxigenado (review here), in 2012. Undervalued during their time and, as with so many of the Iberian acts operating in their wake, never given the credit that was their due owing in part to European tribalism, they’ll get back together for three exclusive live dates this year (perhaps more) and offer a deluxe edition of Coñac Oxigenado on April 4 through Spinda Records.

And by ‘deluxe,’ they mean an entire second version of the album. Actually, it the first version. Recorded in 2009 and featuring the unreleased-until-today start-stopper “Todo es Nada” — video streaming at the bottom of the post — the lost Coñac Oxigenado is set to accompany the 2012 version in a 2CD or 3LP set for which preorders are also open as of today. They’ll do the album in full at the aforementioned shows, reportedly, as well as highlights from their other two records, 2001’s Diablo Roto De… and 2007’s Estampida de Trombones, either of which would deserve the same lush reissue treatment if they also happened to have alternate recordings laying around. And who knows, maybe they do.

I hope they keep going and I hope they do more shows.

From the PR wire:

VIAJE A 800 – THE TWO JOURNEYS OF COÑAC OXIGENADO

Release date: April 4 | Single & Album pre-order: March 14

Preorder: https://spindarecords.com/

Viaje a 800 is back with a deluxe edition of ‘Coñac Oxigenado’, which includes songs and unreleased versions up to date. The band from Algeciras (Spain) will be presenting it live in 2024 during a series of exclusive dates.

The legendary Spanish rock band Viaje a 800 announces the reissue of ‘Coñac Oxigenado’, their last studio album. This special release will be available on April 4, 2024, promising not only a celebration of the band’s musical history but also an unparalleled auditory experience for their devoted fans and rock enthusiasts alike.

With a legacy dating back to the mid-90s, Viaje a 800 has made an indelible mark on the rock scene with their distinctive heavy psych and progressive rock sound. Hailing from Algeciras in the very south of Europe, the band has earned acclaim from both critics and fans for their unique fusion of eclectic musical elements, ranging from heavy blues to proto-stoner rock or even Andalusian rock, creating a style of their own that has withstood the test of time and now positions them as an influence for many contemporary artists.

The story of ‘Coñac Oxigenado’, much like that of the band itself, is a saga in its own right, marked by unbridled creativity, perseverance, and a passion for music. Recorded analogically in 2009 at Doghouse Studios in Seville (Spain) by Curro Ureba, this album captured the raw and vibrant spirit of the band in its purest moment. However, after a series of events and artistic decisions, the final version of the album didn’t see the light until 2012, through Alone Records, and after being entirely re-recorded in 2010 by José María Sagrista at Punt Paloma Studios (Spain).

VIAJE A 800
‘Coñac Oxigenado’
(deluxe edition)

TRACK-LIST:
1. Oculi Omnium In Te Sperant Domine
2. Ni perdón, ni olvido
3. Eterna soledad
4. Tagarnina Blues
5. What’s going on
6. Oculi Omnium In Te Sperant Domine
7. Tagarnina Blues
8. Eterna soledad
9. Todo es nada

On April 4, 2024, Spinda Records releases a deluxe edition of ‘Coñac Oxigenado’. For the occasion, both versions of the album are presented, from the original pre-mixes by Curro Ureba to the final version recorded by the renowned producer José María Sagrista, mixed by José Gil at Crab Studios, and mastered by Chris Rozioswki in the US. Undoubtedly, this is a unique window into the band’s sonic evolution and the creative magic that has defined their legacy.

In addition to the inclusion of both recordings, this reissue of ‘Coñac Oxigenado’ features a series of significant differences: arrangements, song durations, mixes, and lyrics vary between the two versions, offering listeners a complete perspective of the musical vision of the band from Algeciras. If in the final version they had the collaboration on guitar of José María Sagrista (Triana, Círculo Vicioso) in “Eterna soledad”, in the initial version Marco Serrato (Orthodox) contributed vocals in “Occuli Omnium In Te Sperant Domine”. However, the main difference lies in the inclusion of “Todo es nada”, an unreleased track to date that was part of the 2009 recording but was left out of the final version in favor of “Ni perdón, ni olvido”. With over 7 minutes of extremely dark, intense music and a raw sound unlike anything Viaje a 800 had shown before, it will be presented as the sole preview of this necessary reissue on March 14th at midnight, accompanied by a music video directed by Fernando J. Martínez.

These two journeys of ‘Coñac Oxigenado’ also offer a unique visual experience, with a revision of Julia Morell’s original artwork by The Braves Church, presenting it in a triple gatefold sleeve with the inclusion of lyrics.

The deluxe edition of ‘Coñac Oxigenado’ by Viaje a 800 will be available from April 4, 2024, in digital and physical formats (pre-orders will be available from March 14th at midnight on spindarecords.com), in a double CD edition and in a triple black vinyl format, as part of Spinda Records’ ‘Trippy Series’. Each of the 300 vinyl copies is hand-numbered and represents a tangible tribute to the band’s lasting legacy in the history of Spanish rock; a necessary homage to an essential musical formation.

PRE-ORDER ‘COÑAC OXIGENADO’ ON VINYL / CD: https://spindarecords.com/

The band will offer a series of exclusive concerts to celebrate, where they will perform ‘Coñac Oxigenado’ in full, along with some classics from their discography. Those who saw them at the time or at one of the three concerts they played during their brief reunion in 2019 will know that they are in top form.

May 11 | Granada (ES)^
October 18 | Barcelona (ES)^
November 7 | Madrid (ES)^
November 16 | Algeciras (ES)

^Tickets on sale at spindarecords.com on March 15 at midnight.

https://www.facebook.com/viajea800/
https://www.instagram.com/viajea800
https://viajea800.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/SpindaRecords
https://www.instagram.com/spindarecords
https://spindarecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.spindarecords.com/

Viaje a 800, “Todo es Nada” official video

Powerblaster space rock from France, you say? Seems fair to expect a lot of that kind of thing over the next few years, so it’s so much the better that Empty Full Space are working quickly to get their debut LP out. March 20 will be the release date, Spinda Records has gotten behind the offering as part of an ongoing expansion of geography and sound for the Spanish imprint, and the band had a teaser on socials that you can see at the bottom of this post. I guess that’s everything you need to know, so I’ll just add that, yeah, I was being a little glib in that first sentence about cosmic heavy taking off in France in the wake of Slift‘s ascent, but it’s pretty obvious Empty Full Space are on their own kind of trip.

If you’re feeling adventurous, that teaser is down there, and the PR wire has more on From the Limbo, which is the offering to come. Dig:

EMPTY FULL SPACE joins Spinda Records

Here at Spinda Records we proudly welcome to our family the young French band Empty Full Space, formed by Nico (guitars, lead vocals), Flo (drums, backing vocals), Edgar (synths, percussions), Antoine (bass) y Max (guitars).

Inspired by legendary bands such as Hawkwind and Can, as well as contemporaries like King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard and Osees, these five musicians from the heart of Paris bring to our label a fusion of psychedelia, krautrock, postpunk, and shoegaze.

Only 6 months after we received an email introducing them as a band, we are thrilled to announce that on March 20, we will release their debut album titled ‘From The Limbo’. Prior to that, on January 25, we’ll be launching a first single for you to try this first offering from Empty Full Space. Digital, compact disc and vinyl editions will be available. Stay tuned for a musical journey that promises to captivate your senses!

What Empty Full Space says: “We feel grateful and proud to release our debut album with Spinda Records. It’s truly meaningful for us to spread our music the way we love. We’ve been working on this record for over a year, and we’re thrilled that it’s about to see the light very soon.

TRACK-LIST
1. From The Limbo
2. Morphogen
3. The Wheel
4. Amnesia
5. Have you seen the witch?
6. 2C

First single: Jan 25
Release: March 20

Formats:
* digital
* compact disc
* vinyl

https://www.facebook.com/emptyfullspace/
https://www.instagram.com/emptyfullspace/
https://emptyfullspace.bandcamp.com/
https://www.emptyfull.space/

https://www.facebook.com/SpindaRecords
https://www.instagram.com/spindarecords
https://spindarecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.spindarecords.com/

Barcelona classic-progressive heavy rockers Saturna released their fifth full-length, The Reset, last month through Spinda Records and Discos Macarras. A big gallop, an immediate sense of melodic mastery, and the listener is swept into “Your Whimsical Selfishness,” an oddly phrased but welcome hook that is the initial salvo from Saturna‘s latest offering, which in its digital edition runs 14 tracks and 66 minutes with the addition of four bonus live covers to the standard 10 originals. If you’ve heard the record already, great. As well written and produced heavy rock albums will, it snagged scene attention last month; a word of mouth hype spreading through shared links in a manner that it feels strange to think of as organic, because digital reality, but is that anyway.

Brightly fuzzed and putting Toni del Amo‘s guest keys to use with the organ sounds on that opener, Saturna‘s sound brings together decades of rock and heavy influences to feed into its construction. Of course, you get a ’70s-via-’90s feel at the root that one could argue is the foundation for the modern genre, but more pointedly, “Your Whimsical Selfishness” incorporates a stretch of folkish acoustic guitar to ease the transition into “The Never Ending Star,” which also tops five minutes (three songs do, including the first two, which feels purposeful), and has some light touch of Thin Lizzy in the guitars of James Vieco (also vocals) and Alexandre Sánchez, but its verse moves into a light-strum Zeppelin build back to its gentle push of a chorus. The four-piece — Vieco, Sánchez, bassist Rod Tirado and drummer Enric Verdaguer — trade between later Sabbathian largesse and subdued liquefaction on “Smile” and build off the earlier folkishness in the harmonized acoustic cut “December’s Dust” before “Into the Sun” surges forth with admirably Spidergawdy verve. So yes, more Thin Lizzy influence.

This is the part where I tell you Saturna bring their persona to that, and frankly, five albums deep into their tenure, as well they should. But part of what they do is to be in conversation with classics — and I think including not only four bonus covers, but covers of well known songs in Black Sabbath‘s “A National Acrobat,” The Beatles‘ “Come Together” (which nothing against the band’s version but I don’t think anyone should cover, ever; Soundgarden didn’t need to do it either; it’s not a song that should be touched; take on “Oh! Darling” instead if you’re feeling brave or “Yer Blues” if you wanna go dark), The Doors‘ “Five to One” and Jimi Hendrix‘s “Who Knows,” is intentional in its communion aspect — in their original songwriting as well, and that comes through in the proggy surge of “A Few Words to Say,” which feels like a continuation of the dialogue from “Your Whimsical Selfishness” on some level, maybe thematic, and captures an exciting push coming off the speedier “Into the Sun” that serves as a shift to the slower, more willfully expansive “The Sign,” rife with clearheaded ethereality and sunshiny heft.

“Made of Stone,” the longest song at 7:50, is a full-on classic heavy blues jam. It brings a return of the keys in a prominent role and dual vocals from Vieco and Sánchez as if to emphasize command even at what’s arguably The Reset‘s loosest moment. It builds to a classy apex but never wants to go over the top, so doesn’t, leaving the boogie “On Fire” — Priest via Motörhead is a winning combination — to give a landmark hook before the semi-titular closer “A Way to Reset” finishes along similarly straightforward lines structurally, but pulls back on tempo in favor of a nodding groove and intricate call and response bounce of guitar in its verse, almost Graveyard-esque, but the melody and the takeoff solo are Saturna‘s to be sure. They don’t blow it out at the finish, but the last chorus wants nothing for vibrance as a setup for the quiet finish and, on the download, immediate transition to the start of “A National Acrobat.”

Saturna did a covers night at some point, and apparently recorded it. Fair. Not every band would be malleable enough to shift from the sleek prot0-heavy blues wordplay of “Come Together” to the guttural stomp of “Five to One,” but Saturna make it work, with the vocals no less malleable. “Who Knows” comes across particularly funky, and that’s as reasonable an ending as one could ask for The Reset, which might be related as a title to some sense of starting over for the band — they were on one of Ripple‘s Turned to Stone splits in 2022 with Electric Monolith (review here), and one would not describe their sound at that point as broken or needing resetting, but you never know — or could just as easily be a broader call or something as simple as trying to fix the Super Nintendo they found in the garage. I don’t know, but taken on its own level and merits, The Reset stands up to the mighty forebears of its influences with a strength of craft and performance that are undeniable and a vitally engaging construction. There’s no real room for argument.

The band’s video for “A Few Words to Say,” which includes the shift to new guitarist Max Eriksson, premieres below. Please enjoy:

Saturna, “A Few Words to Say” video premiere

More than 4 years had passed since the Barcelona-based band Saturna released ‘Atlantis’, which was their latest full-length album until now. Much had happened since then, and their members had evolved musically, a fact evident from the first listening of “Your whimsical selfishness” and “The never ending star”, the two advance singles from ‘The reset’, their recently released new studio album.

This new offering from Saturna arrives through Spinda Records and Discos Macarras – who also co-released their previous album – and immediately positions itself as their best album to date , and also the most varied in terms of compositions. It explores a musical landscape that is a blend of hard rock, psychedelia, post-grunge, and heavy rock, as the band pointed out in recent interviews with Bienvenidos a los 90 and Siete Barbas Estudio, where they performed a live session, including “Smile” and “The never ending star”, both tracks from their new album.

Recorded at Analog Drive-in Studios, mixed by their regular collaborator Dani Pernas and mastered at Doctor Master, ‘The reset’ is now officially available in both physical formats (compact disc and vinyl) and digital. The Bandcamp edition includees 4 bonus live tracks featuring covers of Black Sabbath, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix y The Doors.

First tour dates announced:
Jan 20 in Barcelona (ES) @ Sala Wolf
Feb 17 in Vitoria-Gasteiz (ES) @ Errekaleor Ouzo Askea
Mar 10 in Torredembarra (ES) @ La Travi
Jul 5 in Tenerife (ES) @ Teatro Leal La Laguna

THE RESET
1. Your whimsical selfishness
2. The never ending star
3. Smile
4. December’s dust
5. Into the sun
6. A few words to say
7. The sign
8. Made of stone
9. On fire
10. A way to reset

All songs have been written and produced by Saturna.
Lyrics by James Vieco and Saturna.

Recorded by Christian A.Korn at Analog Drive-in.
Mixed by Dani Pernas.
Mastered by Estanislao Elorza at Doctor Master.
Artwork and cover by Jondix.
Design and layout by Marta Ramon.

Additional musician:
Toni del Amo – Keyboards

SATURNA is:
Rod Tirado – Bass
James Vieco – Vocals, guitars
Alexandre Sánchez – Guitars, backing vocals
Enric Verdaguer – Drums

Saturna, The Reset (2023)

Saturna on Facebook

Saturna on Instagram

Saturna on YouTube

Saturna on Bandcamp

Discos Macarras on Instagram

Discos Macarras on Facebook

Discos Macarras on Bandcamp

Discos Macarras website

Spinda Records on Facebook

Spinda Records on Instagram

Spinda Records on Bandcamp

Spinda Records website

Retrovisor is the fifth full-length from Chilean four-piece Adelaida, and in a surprising twist on the norm for a release announcement, it’s already out. That’s right. Not a single. Not two or three. The full record. You can stream it now and the vinyl will be out in February through Spinda Records, which announced it picked up the band at the end of last week. The band’s sound is varied in texture — room for The Cure and Nirvana in there, among others — but deeply informed by alt and psych rock, and has a kind of low-key progressive range that, to be honest I’m not even sure why I’m going on about it since you can just friggin’ listen to the thing. It exists.

Been trying to get this posted for days, obviously, but it’s something worth checking out if you have time. ‘South American heavy’ is often thought of as a monolith that it absolutely isn’t — as though an entire continent has one thing to say or one way to say it — and Adelaida remind of this with their melodic flourish and atmospheric push, songwriting and ambience.

Dig:

Chile-based band Adelaida released their fifth studio album ‘Retrovisor’ yesterday, announcing a surprise signing with Spinda Records. The album will be coming out on vinyl and CD in February 2024. For fans of 90s spectrum, grunge, indie rock and shoegaze.

Preorder: https://spindarecords.com/product/adelaida-retrovisor/

Bandcamp: https://spindarecords.bandcamp.com/album/retrovisor

Chile’s music scene lights up once again with the vibrant energy of Adelaida, indie band currently formed by Anke Steinhöfel, Jurel Sónico, Joaquín Roa and Tomás Pérez. In 2021 they won Premios Escuchar to best rock album with ‘Animita’ and best rock artist. And now, they’re presenting their fifth studio album, ‘Retrovisor’.

This highly anticipated full-length, available since yesterday in all majors streaming platforms via Disco Intrépido, promises to immerse the listener in a unique experience that will find its definite place in the hearts of their existing fans and in the of the new listeners approaching the band’s sound for the first time from this side of the pond. In ‘Retrovisor’ Adelaida takes a step forward, blending the evocative 90’s sounds of grunge, indie-rock and shoegaze with poetic and introspecive lyrics. However, for those looking to enjoy it in physical format, they’ll have to wait until February 2024 when its respective vinyl and compact disc editions will arrive -preorder here- through Spinda Records. In a surprising announcement just a couple of days ago, the label revealed the signing of the band from Santiago de Chile.

Advanced single “Desdén”, “Girasoles” and “Caída libre” already hinted that ‘Retrovisor’ was a true sonic odyssey that transports the listener through time, capturing the raw and emotive essence of the 90s while infusing a contemporary touch. In doing so, Adelaida align themselves with the new wave of alternatie rock from the Americas alongside bands like Fin del Mundo, El Shirota, Las Ligas Menores, Margaritas Podridas or La Ciencia Simple. The fact that they enlisted the talents of Pablo Giadach and Federico Zeppelin in the recording; Daniel Velásquez and Jurel Sónico in the mixing; and none other than Jack Endino in the mastering likely played a significant role – yes, the same Endino who worked with bands like Mudhoney, Nirvana, Tad, Melvins, Soundgarden, Screaming Trees or Mark Lanegan.

‘Retrovisor’ consists of 9 new songs and 4 tracks from ‘Monolito’, their iconic debut album that now celebrates a decade and which the band has revisited, giving a second life to some tracks that now sound more similar to their live performances. The digital edition includes a surprise titled “Brilla”, in which Adelaida takes on a contemporary classic by Chile band Suárez.

RETROVISOR CVR 1 1
RETROVISOR
1. Retrovisor
2. Océano mundial
3. La montaña
4. Caída libre
5. Espirales
6. Resplandor
7. Mi ventana
8. Girasoles
9. 12 días
10. Frutos de otoño
11. Solo por hoy
12. Pólvora
13. Brilla
14. Desdén

‘Retrovisor’, whose digital edition is now available, will be released on February 16, 2024, on compact disc and on a limited-edition-vinyl (350 copies in red, and 150 copies in black), which will be part of the ‘Noisy Series’ by Spinda Records. Physical formats can be pre-ordered on the website as well on as on the Bandcamp of the Andalusian label.

Preorder: https://spindarecords.com/product/adelaida-retrovisor/

Bandcamp: https://spindarecords.bandcamp.com/album/retrovisor

https://www.facebook.com/Adelaidabanda/
https://www.instagram.com/adelaida_banda/
https://adelaidaperdida.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/adelaidabanda

https://www.facebook.com/SpindaRecords
https://www.instagram.com/spindarecords
https://spindarecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.spindarecords.com/

Adelaida, Retrovisor (2023)

Portuguese heavy psychblasters Travo will release their second full-length, Astromorph God, this Friday through gig.rocks! and Spinda Records, furthering a regional/generational sonic emergence on the Iberian Peninsula that you neglect at your peril. Marked early by synthesizer sci-fi grandiosity, it is a cosmos-revelry vision of psychedelia that proliferates from post-intro opener “You Won’t See Me,” which picks up from the minute-long “Omens” and shreds, shreds, shreds the skies above it over the course of its five-minute run, a steady push of bass and some Roky Erickson/George Harrison stuff happening there too amid the frenetic kosmiche rock that will come even more forward in the howls and twists and thrust of “Arrow of Motion,” a far-out space boogie that’s as much now as then between Slift and Hawkwind but thankfully has plenty enough shine to realize the track’s supernova payoff. Taking that arrow, aiming it at the center of the universe, letting fly.

What could be better for a scorched earth than barnburner psych? “Arrow of Motion” boasts ‘go’ worthy of comparison to Ecstatic Vision and I’m sure if you’re on the whole King Gizzard/Pigsx7 end of modern psychedelia there’s a lot here for you as well. “Faceless Ghoul” shoves open the doors of perception with broad leads and echoing, chant-ish vocals calling to mind some of Iberia’s melodic proggers, shades of the recently disbanded Atavismo or Viaje a 800 at their weirdest, but has both structure and direction, so is not a hodgepodge or any sloppier sounding than it should be — I mean, it’s a star-forming nebula of hydrogen and helium coming together with enough gravity to ignite nuclear fusion; you’re gonna break a few eggs — however unhinged its jam sounds before they Sabbath crash shortly before six minutes in and spend the remainder of the song’s total 7:31 in a drone before “Turn to the Sun” restarts the dance-to-this-you-freaks physical urging of “Arrow of Motion” with perhaps more lean into the chorus and a shred seems to melt the track after about a minute and a half, and it’s nearly another minute before they’re back in the verse, undaunted.

Backed by the 15-minute closing title-cut, “Turn to the Sun” is penultimate on Astromorph God and it straddles the line between psychedelic shove and harsh noise, with the guitar meting out furious pulsations of noise as Travo propel themselves toward its finish. And as regards “Astromorph God,” buckle up. The four-piece seem to know at the outset they’re in for a longer ride, and while I wouldn’t call it patient exactly, like Sun Voyager on their most recent outing, Travo find a pocket in the verse in which to catch their breath before the next wormhole opens and sucks band and listener alike through to another change. To the band’s credit, they use nearly every second of “Astromorph God”‘s 15:16, and they don’t depart from the intensity — even the jammier end is dizzying — but they do account for the sprawl of longform work in repetitions and the exploration of the parts of the song itself, breaking to quiet after 10 minutes to start the last build in making the garage rock of an alternate dimension.

Euphoric and lysergic, Astromorph God positions Travo within the sphere of modern heavy underground psychedelia, and while Europe has always been somewhat tribalist in its designation of hotspots — Germany, Sweden, UK — it would be interesting to see Portugal and Spain force their way onto the map this decade as Greece did the last with a variety of acts and corresponding swath of sounds. I’m not saying Travo are leading that charge, but someone would need to and they certainly seem to have the energy for it if the music is anything to go by. A lot will come down to how much they tour, where and when, festivals, blah blah, but the spirit of victory resounds through this second Travo full-length, and it’s hard to imagine it not being embraced readily by those among the converted who take it on and maybe even a few heads out there who didn’t know they were weirdos to start with. Yeah, think of Astromorph God like a litmus test. “Must be this out of place on Earth to relate.” Little cardboard hand like you’re trying to get on the roller coaster.

Enjoy your ride. More info follows, including the preorder link, as per the PR wire:

It’s said that Travo is one of Portugal’s best kept secrets and it’s looks like it’s true. They’re young; they’ve already published two albums and one EP (and a the new one ‘Astromorph God’ which is on its way); and their live shows a real joy of head-banging, crowd-surfing and mosh pits. In their music you can find a fusion of heavy psych, progressive rock and trash-metal, with a significant garage attitude, without any type of filter. Yes, Europe is about to explode, with bands such as Slift, Maragda, Gator The Alligator, Kamggarn and, of course, Travo. It’s clear that on this side of the Atlantic Ocean there are thousands of fans of bands such as King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard, Osees, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Elder, Wine Lips and Frankie And The Witch Fingers.

And although this new album by David Ferreira (bass, guitar), Gonçalo Carneiro (guitars, synths, percussion), Nuno Gonçalves (drums, percussion) y Gonçalo Ferreira (vocals, guitars, percussion, piano) won’t see the light until 17 November, it can be pre-ordered on both compact disc and vinyl editions through Spinda Records and gig.Rocks!, Spanish-Portuguese alliance under which this album will be out.

‘Astromorph God’ will be available on November 17 on digital, compact disc and on a double edition on vinyl, limited to 150 copies in turquoise color and 150 copies in standard black color, both with gatefold cover.

PRE-ORDER ‘ASTROMORPH GOD’: https://spindarecords.com/product/travo-astromorph-god/

On October 4 ‘Astromorph God’ Iberian tour kicks off. So far gigs at Uma Noite Irreversível, Festival NOVO and Sevilla Monkey Week have been announced already.

Travo live:
Nov 18 | Évora (PT) @ Black Bass Festival
Nov 25 | Seville (SP) @ Monkey Week
Dec 02 | Porto (PT) @ Woodstock 69

MORE ABOUT ‘ASTROMORPH GOD’
Track-list:
1. Omen
2. You won’t see me
3. Arrow of motion
4. Faceless ghoul
5. Turn to the sun
6. Astromorph God

Credits:
Produced by Travo and Budda Guedes
Recorded and mixed by Budda Guedes at Moby Dick Studios (Portugal)
Mastered by Clara Araujo at Arda Recorders (Portugal)
Artwork and layout by IMUNE
Published and distributed by Spinda Records and gig.Rocks!

Travo on Facebook

Travo on Instagram

Travo on Bandcamp

Spinda Records on Facebook

Spinda Records on Instagram

Spinda Records on Bandcamp

Spinda Records website