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Iconoclasta — Iconoclasta
(Discos Rosenbach DR 001, 1983, LP)

by Mike McLatchey, Published 2018-01-18

Iconoclasta Cover art

I picked up the two-on-one CD featuring the first two Iconoclastas in the relatively early days of the progressive rock CD reissue wave. At the time, I think it may have had the absolute record for the longest CD in existence at the time, charting just over 81 minutes if I remember correctly. And it has been stable in every player I've used since. Iconoclasta may be the premiere progressive rock group from Mexico, beginning their career in the early 80s and releasing pretty close to a dozen albums since, but I don't think they've ever quite topped their debut. The band managed to crib together a mix of nascent digital keys and a few analogs to front a nearly instrumental sound that was less reminiscent of what was going on in Britain around the time and more in line with the lineage of Italian progressive rock that leaned to the King Crimson side. The music was intricately written and carried by the wealth of keyboard sounds, guitars that ranged from traditional acoustics to sustained Fripp-influenced lead lines, and a drummer who managed to ride the fence between virtuoso and barely controlled. The melodies were quite memorable and even though the vinyl quality wasn't particularly great, the band immediately surpassed all their possible weaknesses by having such grand ambition. For me this is one of those early discoveries that drew me deeply into the genre.

Filed under: New releases, 1983 releases

Related artist(s): Iconoclasta

 

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