MusicRatty: COUPLA PROG - Edmundo Lopez (2000)

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COUPLA PROG - Edmundo Lopez (2000)

2008-07-31 15:44:46 by Editor in Progarchives.com (Progressive rock and related latest reviews)

Nothing more uplifting than to take one progressive-by-nature musical genre and to attempt to collect as much as you can from it: a place for rarities such as the Krautrock 60s-70s Scene adds to the excitement the raw spirit of most of the music, the vintage sound or the wild expressionism/experimentalism, the meld of several hard styles, yet also the genuine variety and amplitude, as were talking a genre where many great voices and fabulous groups are representative. An aftertaste of this collecting passion is discovering those less bright, rare but also forgettable examples. Its a well-taken risk of going deeper into underground/unreleased/unfamiliar territories of the genre, but the music itself, anyway you take it, once it disappoints you, gets a permanent sour grade, and nothing else, nothing in between. Though I cant pronounce upon Coupla Progs entire career at the moment of writing this particular review, Edmundo Lopez is anyway, for sure, a miss. A rare-breed project, of vintage flux and characteristic krautrock topics, still a miss.

The album is called Edmundo Lopez based on the conceptual story its entirely built on, a story about struggling against the immanency of war, the hero fighting morally against the voices of violence and conflict (Kill `em, if you wanna be free), but ultimately being thrown in an obviously more complex destiny. From this, Coupla Progs album can be considered Rock Opera per se, though I find it hard to believe that all this is strong, healthy enough, more could have been done, added, directed just naming it concept album is fine as well. The subtitle is SWF Sessions Vol.4 and heres where I found the bio details a bit confusing: Coupla Prog basically recorded music at the Südwestfunkstudios for almost three years, between 1970-1972; according to the back cover, Edmundo Lopez was recorded in 1970 (the date being even more precise than that: 16.07!!) is this the fourth strict volume of their recording history under this label, as the subtitle would more than likely suggest, or is there a mix of several recordings, as stated in other places? Anyway, its more clear that Coupla Prog were invited by the SWF director to play, record and release something under SWF, this being the main product. This band joins other visible names of that period, to name at least Odin, Juds Gallery, Kollektiv or My Solid Ground, this sort of sessions being normally important and fruitful enough made also under prestigious conditions - as to not be catalogued as extra material, jamming session, strict collection items.

An extra note to this albums making shouldnt surprise fans that really sink into the band: the difference between recording and releasing, in Coupla Progs case, is huuuge! Did we make this album in 1970? Why not put it to rest 30 years?!

In terms of style, everythings pretty much by the book, cool- and old-sounding, plus admittedly more various that it is to be expected. Judging by some core pieces from the Edmundo Lopez story, Coupla Prog are here bit more leaned on psychedelic, blues and pop from the 60s, definitely collecting some Doors inspiration at times + some old-fashioned bluesy/RnB elements. But theyre neither retracting from the new 70s (it would be awkward for the prog in their name to have no resonance with proggressive rock what so ever, no?), reaching even a tinge of symph or heavy. Besides this, kraut (acid/psych) rock is mostly left; not bashing or chaotic, but neither un-plugged to infusing, fuzzed or drenched surrounds.

Where is the mistake, then? Absolutely down the vocals section, Rolf Peters taking most of the heat, while Wolfgang Schindhelm backs him. Its blunt to say it this way, but theyre bad. And loud. The bigger problem is that most of Edmundo Lopez, despite its imposing kraut instrumental mood and gear, is song-oriented (and the concept, of course, is for all song-written). The middle part of the album, more than anything, is a nightmare you want it to end, then you dont wanna get back to. Production can be spared of really bad marks, though its nothing amazing, but the tuning, style and volume of the vocals/vocalist push it all into something recorded and left to rot unreleased in a mediocre, unfinished, un-exemplary way.

And, in true sense, nothing is sadder than the fact that the album is ruined so much after a start that couldnt be more wonderful. Opening with a classical-adapted Präeludium by Bach (with added common kosmische/psych smoke-sounds), the first venture is into a symphonic/thick kraut mélange, with Introduction, a piece from where the story starts already, but the vocals arent truly bad yet: in fact, after a fragile sing in English comes a unique moment of German incantating. A last strong piece, for now, is Alone In The Mountain, rejoicing to a bit of piano play, but building an intrigue soon enough, with plain rock/psychedelic beats and mixes. This piece also contains some adapted music by Jean Sibelius. What follows is disaster: five pieces, if not adding a sixth - Kaki Gatal are horrendous in terms of singing. And the problem is, as Ive mentioned, that theyre mostly songs, the instrumental just takes its vintage psych mood or its RnB steady kick, with more exceptions in Christobal G, where solo spaces exist. But anyway, from Kill `Em to On The Way To The Village, we have two blues, one 60s psych, a kraut/acid/melodic curious mix and, finally, a heavy-psych. Kaki Gatal can be spared thanks to deep krautrock-based experiments and elongations. To note, a certain vocal tune from Night (likely the worst moment of 'em all) is somehow repeating in the next piece, which could count as leitmotivs, an appropriate element for Rock Operas.

Out of the last two pieces of Edmundo Lopez, Listen Rain presents an acoustic respiro to evolve afterwards into a bursting, heavy-breathing dramolette, while Extroduction is okay, dry and smooth, including the famous Dies Irae that was also used by Hector Berlioz. Accepting, therefore, that the last bits of the album regain their quality (though nothing like the splendid opening), its doesnt make up for the hard-boiled damage.

At this point, I find it hard to believe that, despite a trained and genre-fitting instrumental power (ruled by kraut, psych, blues or rhythmic laws), this album can escape severe criticism for its songs and its singing. In the same way, this can very well be an interesting project and result of early 70s German music, and can count historically as vintage, but it still stays nervebreaking, to put it softly. Its a shame; alas Edmundo Lopez is something only for fans and for listeners who can resist to its very hard bits. Or and I dont mean it as an insult dont actually have the ear so refined as to notice or care. Low album, ruined in an ugly, perhaps undeserving way.

by Ricochet

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