From Columbia, via the good offices of áMARXE, we have multi-instrumentalist Singlelito (Juan Pinto) and his release, Non-Consciousness. This is a musical journey through grief, informed from several traumatic events. The lyrics are certainly very emotional, and there is a distinct sense of catharsis here. Artistic expression as an emotional outlet.
Before going on to discuss the eight pieces of music we have, I must begin by stating that this artist is not twenty yet, and the talent on display is remarkable, really. It reminds me a bit of the stories of Tony Stratton-Smith seeing a bunch of young men not long out of (Charterhouse) school at The Marquee and remarking upon just how precocious their talent was. Look what happened to that lot!
The album is available at https://amarxe.bandcamp.com/album/non-consciousness It is, incidentally, and quite remarkably, his sixth long form work, and there are also singles & EPs in the catalogue.
As one might expect from this record label, the album is deeply rooted in the tradition of The Canterbury Scene, and, indeed, Singlelito clearly takes much joy and satisfaction from picking his influences from those old masters of the more eclectic end of the progressive rock spectrum back in the day, but, don’t be mistaken, this album also owes much to the modern movement which is really having an impact on the 2020’s progressive scene, so artists such as Tom Penaguin, Zopp, and the like. It melds all of this with Zeuhl and the traditions of his native South American land.
There are eight tracks on the album.
Leave, Left, Gone starts us off, the grief and bitterness of a breakup. Some of the grooves created here are so inviting that you really have little choice but to be hauled into this world, and I particularly enjoy the frenetic guitar work, the gorgeous bass melodies, the delicate percussion, and the instantly noticeable free form keyboard work. His voice has a sort of post-punk urgency to it. I have embedded this track below, as it does give you a decent flavour of what to expect with its interesting mood changes, the variation between exuberance, anger, and reflection.
Out! follows. It seems to be a tale of repressed youth in a monochrome society, the urge to leave strong, almost primeval, with the promise of a great show when the escape is achieved. It is short at just under three minutes, the use of the voice as the primary instrument, driving all else, clever, fast and furious, especially the underpinning notes. Listening to this track several times now, I think that Singlelito has absolutely been influenced here by some of the more interesting post-punk art rock which permeated the musical landscape in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, itself heavily influenced by the likes of the Canterbury artists and VDGG.
Oral Auto-Expression must be a contender for this website’s “title of the year” award. A brief liaison. Six hours of bliss, sounding almost vampiric in its intensity. Any of you reading this who are, shall we say, of a certain vintage, this track transports you back to those heady, confusing, but ultimately joyfully hedonistic days of your youth, if, of course, you were lucky enough to experience this! Full of funk, and featuring an exceptional guitar solo, I love this track, and you can see a video of this on the Bandcamp link above.
And Sometimes…You’re So Awful has a title remarkably like a well-known UK comedic catchphrase in 1970’s television. It is conversational, somebody having some seriously bad moments. The distorted guitar and dissonant notes capture perfectly the almost nihilistic nature of the discourse. At the halfway stage, we get some interesting experimentation, which reminds me of some of the improvisations Fripptronics used to give us. Certainly, the guitar work on this stand’s comparison.
Cacophony in Ze Major is another remarkable title. The track strikes me as being almost a cry for help to God, a need for intervention to help throw all his troubles away. The bassline underneath the guitar lead is phenomenal, and there are some excruciatingly sad emotions wrung out of the lead instrument, before breaking out into intense complexity. The vocal is harsh, frenetic, with more than a touch of Wreckless Eric about it, and there is a pleasing melody wanting to burst out in the final minute guitar lead. I have embedded it below.
And Every Time…You’re So Hypocritical is a song of betrayal and has much anger within it. Certainly vocally, this will appeal to fans of Zappa, the way he has layered this song is fascinating, some great drum & percussion work leading us into a deep and resounding bass solo, the pulsing notes standing comparison with the giants of this instrument, a remarkably mature sound hitting the ears with more fascinating mood and time changes, from relentlessly funky to spartan introspection, the latter having a gorgeous organ rising above the guitar and bass notes, the voice then displaying a fragility which so suits the mood.
The album proper closes with Picture of an Alleycat, the longest at 5:43, lyrically I believe revealing the true cathartic nature of this work, coming out the other side with a renewed sense of purpose, the author thankfully not doing anything tragically reckless, instead channelling everything into this work. Bass guitar takes the lead alongside a jaunty keyboard riff and satisfyingly complex percussion work, taken straight from the Canterbury songbook, and it is a joy to listen to, the vocals calmly and melodically at times expressing the moving on conclusion of the writer. There is some lovely interaction between bass guitar and keys, the drums and percussion rolling on beneath, and the pace picks up considerably as we move to the denouement, the organs in particular dragging the author out of the morass and into the bright future he undoubtedly has.
When you purchase the album, you also get an epic-length bonus track, A Lullaby For You, But You Didn’t Sleep, this from the album Flight recorded in 2022, and from this you can see how the artist has developed.
This is a very good album, and I believe I will look back in future years to this work to understand where someone who will, I know, be a very important player in this progressive world of ours, first struck me.
Another class work released via a class label and highly recommended for those of you prepared to listen beyond the accepted forms.