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Reviews

Ábrete Gandul — Suciedad Contemporánea
(Azafrán Media AP 2554, 2025, CD)

by Peter Thelen, Published 2025-08-22

Suciedad Contemporánea Cover art

The album title Suciedad Contemporánea translates to Contemporary Dirt, an interesting offering by (at this point) a completely instrumental quartet from Chile. Ábrete Gandul has been around for a good 25 years, and although I’ve heard about them, this — the band’s fifth full length album — is the first time their music has reached my ears. Some of the members are known to Exposé via other bands or solo projects that they participate in: Rodrigo Maccioni plays guitars and flute, he is also the main composer and guitarist in the chamber rock band Asceta, while Cristián Larrondo, who plays Chapman Stick, was a member of Mar de Robles and now has his own solo project called Bizirik, both of which we have covered  here. The quartet is rounded out by pianist / keyboardist Jaime Acuña and drummer Antonio Arceu, who, along with Maccioni are the only remaining founding members of Ábrete Gandul (that’s him in the Magma shirt in the group picture — always a good sign). Joining them is guest player Alfonso Vergara of Asceta on clarinet. Their stock in trade is something of a progressive math-rock mixed with jazz and fusion influences plus a lot of unbridled originality. One can hear the influence of Discipline era Crimson, but with keyboards present the sound often goes down a different track, with symphonic and odd-meter parts cropping up all over the place. There is no bassist, those parts are handled by Larrondo on the Stick, he and Arceu being quite a formidable rhythm section, while  Acuña and Maccioni paint their colorful leads and loops over the top of the fabric of each piece. The seven-minute opener “Santos en la Corte” is a key example of the harder-edged aspects of their sound. “Tráfico de Influencias” is like a busy jazz riff that merges with near-metal guitarsand classical keys at various times, definitely an unexpected change after the opener, but every bit as interesting and unique. The title track makes good use of compositional loops and general strangeness to create a piece that approaches hard fusion at times, a touch of classical and even psychedelic tones at others. The eight-minute closer “Crónicas Inmorales” is another powerhouse that shows everything, from composition and arrangements to outright chops, that makes this a band that deserves your attention. The label has no website or Bandcamp page, but I managed to find a couple tracks from the album on YouTube that the band uploaded at the links below.

Filed under: New releases, 2025 releases

Related artist(s): Bizirik (Cristián Larrondo), Ábrete Gandul

More info
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCIrkvZg2hM&list=RDTCIrkvZg2hM&start_radio=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVsyLILB3ow&list=RDPVsyLILB3ow&start_radio=1

 

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