Avenida Larco (1981)
Peru has produced quite a few good bands in the late 60s/early
70s, mostly in the psychedelic genre. After a rather bleak 70s,
Frágil
released Avenida Larco, the first symphonic prog album
from that country. The band, the traditional prog quintet with
a dedicated singer, forged their sound along the lines of what
would be known as "neo-prog": grandiose, symphonic progressive
rock, with enough melody and accessibility. Thus, all the requisite
elements are here: lots and lots of synths, anthemic guitar
melodies, and that almost pop-like vocal melodies.
While all of the
elements above are present, the lasting impression one gets
is that most of the ten songs on the album are just pop/rock
songs dressed up in "prog" costumes. There are no suites, or
even long instrumental passages, save for the opening track,
"Obertura", which seems to be the most complex and elaborate
track on the album. To be fair, there are several outstanding
passages throughout the album, and if you're not easily offended
by very melodic songwriting, this album can actually provide
a lot of enjoyment. - Alex Siufy [September 2002]
Click
Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info
Sorpresa
del Tiempo (2002)
Frágil
is Peru's first (and only?) symphonic prog band. After their debut
album, Avenida Larco in 1981, they suffered several line
up changes, and three studio albums later, they went back to the
original formation (well sort of, they kept the current drummer)
and recorded this concert, in 1999. The story behind this concert
is that, back in 1983, they teamed up with the Peruvian National
Symphonic Orchestra for a one-off performance together. That concert
wasn't recorded, and the band felt it would be make for a good
"come back" if they held a similar concert again, this time recording
it for posterity.
The band seems
to acknowledge their best material is on their first album,
as they played all but one song from it. Four other songs are
more "rocking" and straightforward. For last track , "Sorpresa
del tiempo", they return to a more interesting direction, with
some beautiful flute playing. The musicians are all in top form,
and while the music is not demanding by any means, they all
perform admirably, more than living up to the original material.
The symphonic orchestra also added considerably to their sound,
with a lot of nice fills, making even some of their bland songs
sound "proggier".
Still, Frágil's
brand of symph pop/rock might not be for everyone, but if you're
not afraid of melody and would like to check out some accessible
prog in spanish, you can do far worse than try Frágil.
- Alex Siufy
[September 2002]
