Progression, No. 31, Spring/Summer 1999
Baja's bodacious blast!
By JOHN COLLINGE, Progression Editor.
Opening Thursday evening's theatre show was the resurrected Tempano, from Caracas, Venezuela. That is, after a brief welcoming speech from the mayor of Mexicali, who extolled the city's friendly atmosphere and invited everyone back real soon. Performing their first gigs in 19 years (! ), Tempano appeared to have not missed a beat, delivering smoothly flowing, mostly instrumental progressive with a fusion foundation. Tempano defining release from 1980, Atabal Yemal , recently was reissued with newly recorded bonus tracks by French Musea label. Most of the material from, the disc was reprised live in Mexicali. The band had a knack for lilting, melodic grooves that venture between symphonic and jazzier atmospheres. Notably were the nimbly powerful bass playing of Miguel Angel Echevarreneta, and the beautifully ascending , wordless vocals of guitarist Pedro Castillo. The band reached a powerful climax with a 25-minute closing medley, including the recently penned "Un Nuevo Encuentro". Some weird electronic noodling and edgy , sinister riffery segued to Castillo's fabulously emotive lyric-less singing. It made for another of those specially transcendent proggy moments.
In a short interview following the show, Castillo and Echevarreneta said the band was so encouraged by its work for the reissued album that it plans to continue. "We are planning to do another album for Musea, which should be out by October," Castillo said.
