Okay. So the name these guys operated under basically translates as "fairyband." Just disregard that and stick to Bandhada, mm-'kay?
Like bond-HAW-duh. There—now we're over it!
What Mylodon has given us is a reissue of a fine light progressive fusion album roughly twenty years old; the split down the middle sways right or left depending on which tune is up.
Guitarist Carlos Chung formed Bandhada only a few years before 1983 saw this eponymous release. Flautist Juan Carlos Neumann and keyboard player Alfonso Feeley (who mainly sticks to Rhodes and a rich analog string patch with a fast decay) shift the sound closer towards Camel, though the late, great Peter Bardens' style and Feeley's are dissimilar. Bassman Felipe Clark and drummer Juan Coderch in turn lasso the canvas—wet from the others' paints—to bring it back towards terrain previously explored by Weather Report and Caldera. The album's initial six tracks are by no means close to the complexity or heaviness of more visible prog-fusion outfits like Mongol and Side Steps—nor are they formulaic and predictable like half the compositions by the latter.
To be fair, Bandhada may be a little too accessible for the discerning fusion collector, which may make it perfect for the symphonic prog lover who is keen on testing the fusiony waters. More than a few shades of Canterbury throughout, at that. "Expreso a Corea" is one such track that straddles keyboard prog and lite fusion without sounding sappy as the latter. Chung's guitar playing is customarily nuanced yet easy to overlook due to Neumann's flute residing in the foreground and Feeley's up-front analog timbres—the latter two comprise a superb melodic duo that unintentionally overshadows the band's leader! "La Séptima Casa" and "El Vuelo del Hada" are but another pair of smoothly crafted numbers that satisfy the jazz-rock palate. Even the paramecia are-a-wigglin'!
A pair of originals were dug up and tacked on, live recordings of "Algo Más Que…" and "Toque De Midas." One is another fine chip off the block, the other a blander cut from a well-illumined template. By picking up this most welcome reissue, you'll know which (the usual suspects stock it).
Tracklist:
1. La Séptima Casa The Seventh House (6:59)
2. Amores de un Noble Caballero Loves Of A Noble Horseman (3:14)
3. Expreso a Corea Korean Express (4:30)
4. Bien, Gracias Well, Thank You (6:44)
5. El Vuelo del Hada Fairy's Flight (6:33)
6. Rompiendo la Soledad Breaking The Solitude (8:34)
— Bonus Tracks —
7. Algo Más Que… Something More Than… (5:37)
8. Toque De Midas Midas Touch (6:45)
Total time – 48:58
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