Cuarto Menguante ‎– Rompehielos (1980, LP, Spain)

Tracklist:
A1 Canción De Luna
A2 El Jove
A3 Las Niñas Del Espejo
B1 Cuarto Menguante
B2 Madre, Hay En Sevilla
B3 La Roda

Musicians:
Bass – Pedro Menchen, "Pilo"
Drums – Pedro Castro, "Pedrito"
Guitar, Vocals – Paco Urízal, Valentín Ponce
Percussion – Jesús Jiménez

Cuarto Menguante came from Sevilla and this was yet another Spanish combo to play along the lines of Andalusian Rock.They were formed in 1978 by Paco Urizal (guitar, vocals), formerly a lyricist for the Hard Rock band Storm, Pedro Castro (percussion), Pedro Menchen (bass), Jesus Jimenez (drums, ex-Los Brios) and Valentin Ponce (guitar, vocals).They released their debut album ''Rompehielos'' in 1980 on Movieplay.
These Spanish musicians offer two different sides of performance: The first one relies on a smooth, melancholic and ultra-sensitive lyricism with dominant acoustic guitars, soft percussion and relaxed bass lines, offering pieces heard like poems.Even these cuts contain sparse electric bursts with a mellow approach, but at the end they sound more like ballads than rock pieces.The second one, which is definitely more interesting, follows the principles set by acts such as ALAMEDA and GUADALQUIVIR, albeit with less interplays.Extended instrumental tracks with jazzy underlines and Flamenco-styled melodies, based on good breaks and tight executions, often with a few funky overtones but always highlighted by the fine guitar work of the Urizal/ Ponce.However they rarely add strong amounts of energy even in these pieces, while they lack the inspiration or the instrumental depth of the aforementioned bands.As a result their music sounds sometimes very secure with all the load relying on the guitar duo, making ''Rompehielos'' a rather one-dimensional work.
Not very impressive material by a scene that has offered some very impressive groups.Guitar-based Flamenco/Fusion with bits from Songwriter stylings.Mainly for fans of the movement.