Customer Reviews

Misterios E Maravilhas

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Portugal wasn't exactly a prog rock hotbed, likely because the country had suffered through dictatorships until 1974 (Salazar, Caetano), which probably made life difficult for the average rock musician (although it's interesting to note that a few prog rock bands in neighboring Spain did record and release albums while that country's dictator, Francisco Franco was still ruling). Tantra was that rare example of prog from Portugal, existing in post-Caetano Portugal. While neighboring Spain had prog rock bands that flirted with local traditional styles of music (like flamenco, as demonstrated with the likes of Triana, Ibio, Mezquita, and Iman), Tantra stuck strictly to Continental European prog. If it wasn't for the fact they sing in Portuguese, you might mistake them for an Italian band. So that means you won't find any Portuguese fado mixed with prog here. 1977's Mistérios and Maravilhas was their debut, released on the EMI label. In an era where many prog rock bands were obviously influenced by the likes of Yes, Genesis, and Camel, Tantra's music seems to be quite free of influences and were quite an original band. The band consisted of Américo Luis on bass, Armando Gama on keyboards and vocals, Manuel Cardoso on guitar and keyboards, and Tózé Almeida on drums and percussion. Little doubt that Almeida was quite a talented drummer and was quite influenced by the fusion scene at the time, while Américo Luis gives us the occasional slap bass. The opening cut, "À Beira do Fim", one of only two cuts with vocals (in Portuguese) is nothing short of amazing. I especially like those atmospheric passages and the synthesizers. "Aventuras de um Dragão num Aquário" is an acoustic piece that's quite reminescent of Steve Howe's "Mood For a Day" (basically a piece played on classical guitar). The title track is more fusion oriented, with Luis giving us some slap bass. "Máquina de Felicidade" is much the same as the previous cut, but I can live without that cheesy music box that rears its head from time to time. "Partir Sempre" is the other vocal track, the first couple minutes is stuck with vocals, before the band gets in to some truly killer guitar and synth solos. In my opinion, the vocal cuts are the best, the instrumental cuts could be better, but aren't bad. Falls short of being essential in my book, but still worth having.

This 1978 album from obscure Portuguese prog band Tantra is really not bad at all, although it is crippled somewhat by problems with the pitch of the bass guitar on the lengthy opening track (I think tape problems resulted in the pitch being off by a half step). It is too bad really - the band has some great ideas and the synthesizer tones are fantastic. However, I am a hardcore prog fan and can overlook just about anything. After all, there are some really nice moments on this album that make me forget about my gripes with the recording process.

The lineup on this album included Armando Gama (acoustic piano; clavichord; Farfisa synthorchestra; and vocals); Americo Luis (electric bass guitar - played through a flanger on occasion); Manuel Cardoso (electric and acoustic guitars; guitar synthesizer; and vocals); and To Ze Almeida (drums; percussion). The guitarist and keyboardist really do an excellent job and contribute some good vocals (in Portuguese). The keyboardist was influenced somewhat by Tony Banks and those influences poke through here and there.

The six tunes range in length from 1:24 to the lengthy 13:39 Maquina da Felicidada suite. There are some good proggy workouts on this album, with nice synthesizer tones, good ensemble work, and some great melodies that get quite emotional at times. Hands down, my favorite pieces include the superb solo guitar piece (Aventuras de um Dragao num Aquario) and the excellent solo keyboard piece (Variacoes sobre uma Galaxia). I also liked the nod to the Tarkus suite (ELP, 1971) in Maquina de Felicidada. Pretty good stuff overall.

This issue by Musea features a great CD booklet with some detailed liner notes and color photos of the band.

All in all, while I think this album stumbles in spots and the playing is a little clumsy, the overall feel works for me. This is a good album of late period progressive rock that should appeal to hardcore proggers (like me) and is worth purchasing just for the solo guitar and keyboard pieces alone.

This is an excellent progressive rock group from Portugal. Their music is symphonic in nature and rolls gently to the ears. I would readily recommend this group to any progger in search of new groups to listen too.