Wednesday 18 September 2013

Initiation (Cast, 1997)

Cast is not only the best known Mexican prog band, but also a long lasting and prolific one. This instrumental "Initiation", the opening track from "Angels and Demons" perfectly explains the reasons of their durable success. I rarely listened to such a strong, vibrant and colourful intro, some 8 minutes of classical and intricated plots where all the instruments compete in a bombastic musical race. I'd like to point out some of the song best features.

Cast released "Angels And Demons" in 1997.

First things first: the drum intro. It's a great work by Antonio Bringas, who dictates broken rhythms and provides the hooks on which the keyboards hang up their main riff. This is another good point: Luis Alfonso Vidales' fingers fly on the keyboards and his style is reminiscent of Tony Banks'... not a deadly sin, after all. Last, some excellent guitar solos provided by Francisco Hernandez Reyes, giving a passionate melody and a deeper soul to the track. So, if you like prog as it used to be and maybe should always be, this track is for you.

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