Iron Maiden | 1988 | Seventh Son of a Seventh Son

Heavy Metal
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Bruce Dickinson (vocals), Dave Murray (guitar), Adrian Smith (guitar, guitar synth), Steve Harris (bass, strings) and Nicko McBrain (drums)

After the excellent Somewhere in Time, Iron Maiden found themselves in the verge of a dilemma, for sure: Should they return to the formula that preceded Somewhere in Time or should they instead keep on the path which that album had outlined, including synthesizers and a more atmospheric sound? As is clear in Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, the band chose the latter. And it constitutes one of those adventurous decisions that distanced Iron Maiden from a whole litter of bands from their generation, permanently demoted to a second category due to their fear of taking risks. Conversely, the Londoners persisted in the risk associated with polishing their sound and moving it away from the more puerile rock of other NWOBHM acts, a twist that, undoubtedly, let down many fans of that old school, but that in turn translated into the band's trascendence in the long run.
And their step forward was not timid. Seventh Son of a Seventh Son not only deepened the atmospheric formula and the use of synthesizers, but also, for the first time in the band's career, it included orchestral arrengements –synthesized, by the way– and constituted Iron Maiden's first (and only) concept album. The result? The band's last masterpiece until 2000's Brave New World; an album that just does not have low points and that, although true to Iron Maiden's own spirit, marks the first steps into a more powerful branch of heavy metal, including certain prog elements, which curiously, however, is accompanied by some of the most melodically sensitive moments in Maiden's career.
The bar was thus set very high, and hence it was not surprising to see the band succumbing to the temptation of making things easier, returning to old-school metal in No Prayer for the Dying, sadly an album of notorious lower quality, thus confirming that the risk had been great for the band in previous years. Happily, the level of their golden years would return with the new millenium. But that is another story. —IMF

Uma Totoro | 2014 | Energía Solar Para Tortugas Gigantes

Experimental | Post-Rock
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Uma Totoro's self-titled debut had a palpable exploratory character that in their second album, Aparatos que median entre la realidad y el hombre, shaped a very unique sound, a dynamic type of experimental post-rock which, albeit having some electronic elements, was quite organic. In that chronology, Energía solar para tortugas gigantes is possibly the highest point in the duo's discography, mainly due to the nice dicotomy that is found in it: the confirmation of that characteristic sound –with more maturity, certainly– and, at the same time, an eclecticism that marks a sort of comeback to Uma Totoro's more adventurous spirit.
Thus, for example, in addition to songs that are more traditional (within the band's style), such as "El Jirafonte" or "Al calor de las máquinas", we are faced with "Lobotomóvil", which could be an interlude in a recent Tangerine Dream record; "Incidente en Roswell", which sounds like an electronic experiment by Radiohead; or the album closer, "Costa de Marfil", with an almost industrial sound. In that context, the fact that the band included acoustic instruments in their music, such as in "Bonbyx Mori" or "El Sol que rebota en los peces", is not surprising, and they work pretty well within Uma Totoro's formula.
In sum, without sacrificing their identity, the band achieved a dynamic and fresh-sounding album, and that instead of staying in the comfort of what they had already done before, boosted Uma Totoro back into the journey, back into the sonic quest that seems to always take them to the right destinations. —IMF

The Stooges | 1973 | Raw Power

Garage Rock | Proto-Punk
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Iggy Pop (vocals), James Williamson (guitar), Ron Asheton (bass, backing vocals), Scott Asheton (drums) y David Bowie (piano, percussion)

Fun House was the first album by The Stooges that I listened to, followed by the band's self-titled debut. The quartet's first two albums blowed my mind, each one from its particular flank. I had to listen to the legendary Raw Power, no doubt.
However, it was not what I expected. I did not understand it. I thought that I was listening to a flawed version. How was it possible that it sounded that bad? But I gave it more chances, in spite of the fact that I still was not able to understand it. Until it happened: I slowly began to remember the songs. And then I started to feel the need to listen to them again and again, until I suddently realized I had memorized the whole record. It did not bore me at all. I understood it.
Raw Power is, undoubtedly, the highest point in The Stooges's career, even within their original trilogy. The band's overflowing effervescence, their uncontrollable rush was already producing consequences: bassist Dave Alexander had been fired due to his alcoholism, Iggy Pop was immersed in a heroin addiction and the band's stability was in critical condition. In the middle of the turbulence of excesses, the quartet –which now consisted of Iggy Pop, James Williamson (who had just entered the band), and brothers Ron and Scott Asheton– managed to somehow focus on a creative process boosted by David Bowie acting as a producer. The result was Raw Power, a reliable reflection of that street indecency, that liberating muddle and reckless wildness in which the band was submerged.

The album has a rusty, grimy, crude, careless sound, and that is precisely what enabled The Stooges's peerless spirit (the sound that the band built like there was no tomorrow, as if it was a life or death matter) to be captured seamlessly. A plainly possessed Iggy Pop (it is easy not to recognize him at first listen) steps onto an instrumentation as solid as in previous albums, but in which the incorporation of guitarist Williamson and Ron Asheton's new role behind the bass stand out, shaping the band's sound towards a perhaps less psychedelic, yet not less powerful path, especially when Scott Asheton's drums are added to the recipe, adding outstanding intensity to Raw Power.

And when everything –blood, sweat and tears– is put onto the music and, in addition, there is as much unparalleled talent as the one the band had already showed in The Stooges and Fun House, the result cannot be other than a masterpiece. Raw Power has no low points and just grows with every listen. And it is, no doubt, a reflection of voluptuous and hasty creative energy, as well as of rabid eagerness and vehemence that, sadly, did not end up well in its frenzy. The Stooges split up, leaving behind three key pieces of rock history. —IMF
Note: This is the original, Bowie-mixed version of Raw Power.

Clara Engel | 2015 | Visitors Are Allowed One Kiss

Folk | Singer-songwriter

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Reviewing albums like Visitors Are Allowed One Kiss implies several challenges. For example, its condition of unclassifiable limits the possibility of making analogies or to even sketch a rough idea that truly reveals its content. Sure, it is folk, but it is not exactly that, and even though it has some drone elements and a blues-y melancholy, it is not drone nor blues, neither. In this sense, the difficulty of classifying it reflects, indeed, one of the most obvious charms of Clara Engel's work: its originality, an attribute that forces one to describe her music in an ad-hoc manner.
"Apocalyptic" is an adjective that is usually associated to Clara Engel's music, but how could such quality be attributed to something so beautiful? Even though the sound of Visitors Are Allowed One Kiss is melancholic and bleak, rather than Dantesque, it is introspective. And this beautiful formula is ideally supported by, on the one hand, its decidedly minimalist spirit in the instrumental work –presided by Clara's own guitar– and, on the other, the singer-songwriter's extraordinary voice, that gives the music a depth that leaves you speechless. Regarding this last point, the outstanding lyrics should also be highlighted, as this is another element that tinges the sound of the record with an intimate atmosphere.
It is very difficult to choose words that are up to the quality of an album like this and that do not look like dirty scribbles that break its delicacy and sensitivity. But in sum, Visitors Are Allowed One Kiss is a majestic album that, imperturbable, deepens itself into a reflective, cathartic journey, a sign of an untainted honesty and a composition effort that stands out. Unbelievable. —IMF

NEU! | 1975 | NEU! '75

Krautrock
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Michael Rother (guitar, piano, vocals, synthesizer, electronica), Klaus Dinger (guitar, piano, vocals, percussion, organ), Thomas Dinger (drums), Hans Lampe (drums)

In late 1974, Michael Rother and Klaus Dinger were not newbies anymore. NEU! had already released two essential records (Dinger had also played on Kraftwerk's self-titled debut), after which the duo undertook divergent paths for a few years.
Rother fled from the agitation of urban life in Düsseldorf and moved to an old rural house along with Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius from Cluster. With them, he formed Harmonia, whose debut, Musik von Harmonia, was recorded in the second half of 1973. The new trio would be characterized by its pastoral, restful and dreamy sound, which owed a lot to Cluster's ambient, yet not leaving aside Rother's melodic vocation, which would in turn leave a mark on the Berliners.
On the other hand, Klaus Dinger founded Dingerland, a music label through which he released Lilac Angel's debut album, which he had also produced, in 1973. However, his endeavor would prove financially disastrous, so that shortly after –and in spite of Dinger's consternation– Dingerland was forced to close. Thereafter, the idea emerged of forming La Düsseldorf along with his brother Thomas and Hans Lampe, a sound technician in Conny Plank's legendary studios (Plank had produced NEU!'s first two albums).
This was the context in which Michael Rother and Klaus Dinger would reunite: whereas Rother was submerged in the peaceful and introspective rural life, Dinger was enraged against the music industry and the elussive success that was taking so long to arrive. NEU! '75 would be exactly the result of such dicotomy. The duo agreed to devote the first half of the album to Rother's vision, tinged with a more ethereal and spiritual sonic quest, and the second half to Dinger's vision, effervescent of an energy that was both creative and destructive, owing to the ups and downs that he had had to face. The result of this dynamics was one of the most classic krautrock albums ever, in which NEU! managed to reformulate their sound without leaving behind the lessons learned in NEU! and NEU! 2, but at the same time introducing the new languages for which Rother and Dinger were advocating, each one from a different standpoint.

"Isi" opens up the first half of the album with the same formula that "Hallogallo" and "Für Immer" had applied in the records that preceded NEU! 75: hypnotic and dynamic motorik, which this time, however, appears nuanced by Michael Rother's greater sonic delicacy. "Seeland" and "Leb' Wohl" then confirm the new spirit, being two of the most beautiful and fragile songs in NEU!'s discography, with an atmospheric, romantic character à la Caspar David Friedrich, not uncommon in Rother's solo works. Conversely, "Hero" bursts into the scene carelessly with an energic and, at this stage, legendary proto-punk, with the undeniable mark of an explosive-as-usual Klaus Dinger. "E-Musik" follows this path, albeit closer to NEU!'s usual sound, while "After Eight" closes the album with a new electrifying and liberating proto-punk burst. The perfect closer for an undeniable masterpiece, for an album that would close NEU!'s original trilogy on a high note and that would guarantee the duo's trascendence, its influence until our days and an indelible legend within music history. —IMF

Aidan Baker | 2015 | Ecliptic Plane

Drone | Ambient

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One of the disadvantages of discographies as extensive as Aidan Baker's, is that albums like Ecliptic Plane lose the impact that they rightly should have. It is not, certainly, a matter of quality regarding Baker's work; on the contrary, his releases have always been up to the talent that he has always shown since Element, his debut album, and they have a consistency that, beyond their eclecticism, displays a distinctive and unique sound. And yet, Ecliptic Plane stands out even within this rich scenario.
This new record comes back to the most beautiful sound of Baker's work, which is reflected on the return to his most minimalist and classic formula: electric guitar and effects. Thus, the album shows a return to ambient and meditative soundscapes, to subtle brushstrokes that almost imperceptibly build ethereal, dreamy walls of sound, and to that cathartic spirit that is one of Aidan Baker's distinctive marks.
Although there have been various salient releases in the meantime (I could mention, perhaps, Noise of Silence or Liminoid/Lifeforms, or his essential albums with Caudal, in addition to many records with Nadja), Ecliptic Plane is, undoubtedly, Baker's best album since 2006's The Sea Swells a Bit..., which is not little to say. Thus, with its naturalness, its ataraxia and its soul, it constitutes a record that arrived at the right time to celebrate the first decade of Aidan's excellent music journey. Another perfect album. —IMF

Un Festín Sagital & Armchair Migraine Journey | 2015 | Habitando la Fisura

Avant-Folk | Drone Doom

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Michel Leroy (guitars, piano, effect, vocals), Alisa Slimani (guitar, vocals) and Armchair Migraine Journey (synthesizer, theremin)

After the amazing Kosmodynamos, Un Festín Sagital's neverending evolution does not stop. Habitando la Fisura, the result of a collaboration with Armchair Migraine Journey, shows a sonic progression that although preserves the avant-folk character of Kosmodynamos, adds new elements to the band's sound, some of them for the first time in their discography.
"Habitando la Fisura / Urgencia Pediátrica III", the first half of the album, summons Michel Leroy's work in Médula, combining the aforementioned avant-folk component with noise and drone. However, it distances from that album as it has a greater monumentality and a theatrical intensity that is obvious from the beginning (Médula is, undoubtedly, a more introspective LP). Without leaving UFS' own spirit behind, the second section of this song approaches drone doom decidedly, evoking Nadja's sound, but it is gradually deconstructed, giving shape to a more dismal, oppresive atmosphere.
On the other hand, "Eros III (A Nuestros Padres y Amig@s)" builds a more explorative piece, that develops a soundscape through more subtle, delicate brushstrokes. Accordingly, the band relies on a language closer to ambient, in which Leroy's piano work stands out (especially towards the end of the song) in its contrast with AMJ's more ethereal and abstract synthesized basis.
Even though it is a record with just two tracks, Habitando la Fisura is an album with a striking and captivating eclecticism. Un Festín Sagital's sonic journeys seem to always hit the mark, and this release is not an exception. —IMF