Aucán - Aucán (1977)

Artista: Aucán

Álbum: Aucán
Año: 1977
Género: Prog Folk
Nacionalidad: Argentina

Lista de Temas:
1. Melodía de saludo
2. Canto al sí
3. Anónimo que va
4. Para chocolate
5. Preludio de Alejandro
6. Cueca de los augurios
7. Para alguien que no está
8. Tristeza y miel
9. Poema tuyo
10. Día suburbano

Alineación:
- Diego Perez / batería
- Eugenio Perez / guitarra y voz
- Miguel Perez / guitarra y voz
- Pablo Perez / bajo, teclados y voz

ea había dicho que lo traía, pero le ganó de mano el imparable de Alberto, en este show de discos compartidos por nuestros amigos. Ahora vamos con un clásico argentino, me refiero al disco homónimo de Aucán, que lo han pedido en varias oportunidades así que imagino que muchos estarán felices de esta entrada... Disco típico de prog folk argento, un género que se derivó en múltiples vertientes y casi se perdió en el tiempo pero que hoy goza de buena salud a pesar de la negación del mainstream musical.

Prog folk es la evolución del folk tradicional, pasando por el Folk Rock, que da en un sub género que combina elementos propios del folk con instrumentación y estructuras musicales del Rock. Se destacan en esta línea: Amazing Blondel, Ian Anderson, Blackmore’s Night, Carmen, Fairport Convention, Gryphon, Jethro Tull, Mellow Candle, Mostly Autumn, Spirogyra, The Strawbs, Traffic. Este tipo de fusión inspiró a muchos músicos de otras latitudes a intentar hacer lo propio con sus tradiciones musicales vernáculas y los elementos del Rock. En Latinoamérica ha sido profusa la aparición de grupos en esa línea: Anacrusa, Aucan, Contraluz en Argentina.

Lennon

El grupo hacia una música progresiva con raíces folclóricas, que por momentos llegaba a buenos climas instrumentales, con letras de poesía simple y concreta. En algún momento el grupo llegó a hacer su sonido al primer del primer Serú Girán, con abundantes mini moog y piano Fender.
Finalmente Miguel Pérez se va de la banda para su proyecto solista Yuelze (que tocara junto a Jinetes Negros el año pasado, dentro del ciclo Cabeza de Moog / Peña Rock en el espacio cultural Rincón, show que les comento se lo perdieron porque estuvo genial).

Los hermanos Eugenio y Miguel Perez se presentaban como duo desde 1970. Editaron un disco independiente en 1972 y se presentaron en el Acusticazo. Tres años más tarde convocaron a sus otros dos hermanos menores para darle forma a Aucán, con inclinación más hacia lo folklórico.
Tras lanzar un simple también en forma independiente consiguieron un contrato para el primer LP ("Aucán", 1977). Al poco tiempo, y tras presentarse con Mercedes Sosa y Jaime Torres, Miguel emprendió su carrera solista y sus hermanos convocaron a Guillermo Fracchetti como segunda guitarra.
"Brotes del alba" fue el segundo disco, producido en 1980 por León Gieco y presentado en el Festival B.A.Rock de ese año.

Rock.com.ar

AUCÁN are a late 70's band from Argentina who blend symphonic rock with folk and classical influences. The original line-up was an all-family affair consisting of the four Perez brothers: Eugenio and Miguel both handling vocals and guitar, assisted by younger brothers Diego on drums and Pablo on bass, keyboards and vocals. They released two albums in 1977 and 1980 and then split up.
Both the eponymous first release and the better-known "Brotes Del Alba" are made up of smooth, well-structured melodies with frequent folk incursions, lots of acoustic instrumentation and elegant guitar passages. Perhaps on account of the more prominent keyboards, the second album is slightly more symphonic and features several guest musicians who bring the band's sound up a notch with their use of cello, mini-moog, oboe, English horn, harmonica and baroque flute among other instruments. Lyrics are sung in Spanish. Nothing groundbreaking here but well executed overall.
Fans of SAGRADO, CELESTE and perhaps CAMEL will feel at home with this band, especially with the second album.

Lise

Well I had a chance to listen to this on cassette a few times and now I find it pretty high on my wish list. Unfortunately, though Aucan’s second and final album is readily available, this one seems to be rather difficult to find. There is apparently a Musea 2-in- 1 reissue of both Aucan albums, but the few places I’ve seen it listed are all out-of-stock. Not to fear though, I’m sure a copy will pop up soon.
And it is worth having if you are a prog folk fan, or just a fan of Latin American folk music in general. These guys are Argentinean, but they remind me a fair bit of the Chilean band Los Jaivas on their first two albums before that band developed a more mainstream and far more elaborated sound. They have also been compared to Camel, and I can understand why. These are largely folk-leaning compositions, and rather casual and subdued for the most part; but they are most certainly not the kind of strumming acoustic guitar and wistful vocals you might expect. There’s a little bite here and there just to keep things lively and interesting, and the piano, keyboard and guitar arrangements are complex enough at times to give the impression of British prog rock influences from bands like Camel and probably Wind & Wuthering-era Genesis as well.
But there are also strumming acoustic guitars and wistful vocals, and that’s okay - you should expect some of that in a prog folk album.
Aucan is the brainchild of four brothers of the Perez family, formed shortly before this album and disbanded following their second release. The instrumentation is rather conventional for a folk band, with the exception of brother Pablo’s exceptional and emotional cello; Miguel’s flute; and Eugenio’s occasional charango playing. The rest is pretty much piano, guitar, bass and drums. But those three additional instruments combined with the storytelling vocals make for a completely charming set of tracks that stick in your mind well after they stop playing.
The production is a bit uneven, with some electric guitar parts seeming to kind of wash out from time to time and some of the percussion getting buried behind drums and vocals, but mostly the mix is quite decent.
Most of the tracks are similar with nostalgia-dripped cello, plain but lively piano; and two or sometimes three part vocal harmonies. I don’t speak much Spanish but it wouldn’t matter since a fair amount of the lyrics seems to be sort of abstract poetry anyway. On a couple tracks the brothers decide to jack up the electric guitars and stash the cello for a more rocking effect, particularly “Canto al Sí” and the closing “Día Suburbano”. In other places they opt for a more percussive ethnic sound (“Anónimo que Va”, “Para Chocolate”); and on still others there is some keyboard and effects experimentation mixed with otherwise fairly straightforward, almost pop sounds (“Cueca de los Augurios”). Finally there are the few classical-leaning and largely acoustic tunes that are responsible for the Camel and Genesis comparisons. “Tristeza y Miel” is the most obvious, but the dedication song “Preludio de Alejandro” and “Poema Tuyo” fit this description as well.
This is a very decent prog folk album and an excellent example of modern South American folk music as well. The brothers would enlist an impressive lineup of guests for their second and final album, but this one has the advantage of being their first attempt and has a certain purist charm that makes me think it is the better of the two. Four stars without hesitation, and highly recommended.

Bob Moore

Aucan's roots date back in 1970, when brothers Eugenio Perez qnd Miguel Perez formed a Psych/Folk duo in Argentina and even released a record in 1972.A few years later they were joined by their two younger brothers Diego (on drums) and Pablo (on bass, keyboards and voices) to form Aucan.The family quartet eventually recorded and released a self-titled debut LP in 1977 on the obscure Diorama label.
The Perez brothers proposed a pastoral Folk Rock in this effort, surrounded by occasional progressive vibes through the frequent use of electric guitars, piano and keyboards.The album is filled with very warm and sensitive vocal lines, sometimes with a choir-like approach by the brothers' collaboration, and the strong acoustic passages have a very calm and mellow atmosphere, not far from compatriots PASTORAL.These moments are very delicate and emotional, characterized by some archaic traditional flutes and acoustic strings, although with little instrumental depth.On the other hand there are also more upbeat passages, based on electric instrumentation and the careful use of keyboards, mainly piano and moog synthesizers.The vocals remain very emotional, the music however becomes more interesting with a slight symphonic flavor in the orchestrations.The guitars have a discreet HACKETT-ish color and the alternating presence of piano and synths, though not much in the forefront, add a nice diversity to the sound.
A quite good album within the Prog Folk genre's borders.Fans of the style will love this album, but ''Aucan'' has a strong chance to be appreciated also by lovers of more emotional music journeys.Quite rare, but recommended.

apps79

Beautiful stuff. Very melodic folky prog, with beautiful, passionate vocals. Like a better version of other late 70s argentinian folky acts like Seru Giran. So good that Leon Gieco and Charly Garcia are guests here.

frond

Una auténtica joya para coleccionistas y amantes del rock argentino clásico. Agradezcan a Alberto que seguramente no se queda en las intenciones y dentro de poco trae también "Brotes del Alba", el segundo y último disco de Auncán.