Artist: Mahtrak
Label: Self-released
Release: 2009
Runtime: 41:17
Rating: 4/5
Samba! That’s surely the first musical association that pops into our heads when Brazil comes up (even though samba actually has its roots in African music). But the jazz-rock outfit Mahtrak is working hard to get a jazz-rock and progressive rock scene going in Brazil too. Their role models are Return to Forever, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Weather Report, Caravan and Soft Machine; as you can see, these bands all hail from Europe or North America. So Mahtrak wants to become, just like their idols, a kind of synonym for the jazz-rock sound of their own continent, South America.
“Panorama” is therefore just the album to fill that void, which sits empty under the jazz-rock label in South American music culture. “Panorama” was recorded three years after guitarist Antonio Rodrigues, drummer Cris Oliveira, bassist Fabio Cesar and keyboardist Paulo Viana found each other and decided to form the kind of band they are today; in its final form, though, the album only came out in 2009. On the record, Mahtrak stay true to the original jazz-rock of the 1970s, experimenting mostly with the sounds of Hammond, Mellotron and Rhodes, combined with the old-school, classic-rock tone of the electric guitar. It’s also a pleasant surprise that the band didn’t overdo the length of the record, as is the “prog” habit – “Panorama” runs for “just” a good 40 minutes.
The band impressively lays the foundation for the album with the excellent opening chapter, “Tempestade”. Guitar and keys team up in an incredible maneuver. Viana mostly just repeats a few chords on the keys, but they lock in phenomenally with Rodrigues’s unbeatably sensual soloing. These two are front and center, building the structure beautifully, ramping things up and pausing at exactly the right moments. Thanks to the crazy guitar tone and Rodrigues’s occasional incredible “bends”, the tension is always at its peak. “Breeza” is a lovely keyboard interlude that sort of ties the first and third tracks together and is really just a bridge between them. The epic feel of “Tempestade” flows into the humor of the major-key “Nachos y Tequila”. This party-spirited jazz-rock romp is a big breather before the more demanding parts, and at moments Mahtrak even wander into the funky waters of disco. The structure still stays classic jazz-rock, and so progressive enough for harder-to-please ears.
“Sinestesia” is another keyboard-driven track, showcasing the sound of the Mellotron. A gorgeous melody, like “Breeza” before it, carries us into the fifth track on “Panorama”, “Mantra”. It slips back into the menacing waters of jazz-rock poetry, with more progressive-rock-based keyboard and guitar sounds. The track’s progression strongly recalls Brand X. Next up is the title track “Panorama”, which really captures the theme of the album: a gorgeous blue sky, the clouds in it, and carefree gazing up at them. It probably got the most work put into it, too, since it’s also one of the longest pieces on the album. Once again, the interesting guitar sound takes center stage, creating that “panoramic” atmosphere together with the keys.
The album tips into its second half with the track “Frankenstein goes to Disneyland”. The intro builds a hard, threatening atmosphere, accompanied by a truly chaotic guitar sound. It’s fascinating how Rodrigues combines that chaotic effect with funky guitar licks, which somehow stand in for the “Disneyland” part of the title, while the overall menacing sound is the “Frankenstein” part. A completely original track with no already-heard elements (so far, that’s also one of Mahtrak’s greatest strengths: variety among the songs that still form a kind of common thread). Of course, after a horror show like that, a keyboard interlude has to follow, as we’ve come to expect – and “Il Tamburo Spaziale” is exactly that. Viana keeps using a really ominous keyboard sound that thematically continues the previous track, “Frankenstein goes to Disneyland”, while toward the end setting up the cue for number nine, “Crystal Canyon”. The band starts showing its gentler side again, as “Crystal Canyon” shakes off the darkness of the preceding tracks and heads in prettier, more epic directions. That sound carries on into the second-to-last track on “Panorama”, “Venus”. The song is steeped in a slightly syrupy melody, a fitting tribute to the beautiful Venus. These two gentler tracks set the stage for Mahtrak’s closing act on “Panorama”, called “Oraculo”. The track shows how every single musician matured over the course of the record. Although guitarist Rodrigues and keyboardist Viana were the most prominent, Oliveira and Cesar didn’t lag far behind, which “Oraculo” shows off perfectly. The result is a downright sentimental ending to more than a respectable debut from a Brazilian jazz-rock outfit.
With their first record, Mahtrak have already put themselves and their musical vision on the map. Word about the band quickly spread from Brazil to North America and Europe, where they’ve picked up quite a nice number of fans. Their excellent dive into the musical history of progressive songwriting, mixed with a modern interpretation, makes Mahtrak’s work remarkably relevant among jazz-rock and progressive rock fans, while their unique ideas make the band one of a kind. Above all, they don’t sweat the “mandatory” length of prog-minded songs and, as a result, albums, which is a real rarity these days. In a relatively short time they create a real atmosphere for the listener and hold it for exactly as long as it stays relevant – they truly know what listeners “need”. That’s exactly why expectations going forward are high, and it’s up to these promising Brazilians to deliver and truly write themselves into the history of Brazilian music culture.
Lineup
Paulo Viana – keyboards
Cris Oliveira – drums, percussion
Fabio Cesar – bass guitar
Antonio Rodrigues – electric guitar
Production
Mahtrak
Track list
1. Tempestade (7:01)
2. Breeza (1:32)
3. Nachos Y Tequila (3:51)
4. Sinestesia (2:39)
5. Mantra (2:41)
6. Panorama (5:35)
7. Frankenstein Goes To Disneyland (3:58)
8. Il Tamburo Spaziale (1:10)
9. Crystal Canyon (4:48)
10. Venus (2:51)
11. Oraculo (5:11)
