Artist
The idea of time in music always grounded itself on two antagonistic
aspects: getting old and losing creativity vs. maturing and perfecting
the ability to compose music in a creative way. Happily for Alla
Polacca, and after almost a decade into their existence, they fit on the
positive side of
the equation. In other words, time meant for them a
perfecting path in achieving a certain consistence to their sound. This
is quite acknowledgeable on their first album released under no type of
collaboration, the exclusively theirs “We’re Metal And Fire In The
Pliers Of Time”.
Going back a while on a “situationist” retrospective we can see that,
during their career, Alla Polacca have suffered several line up changes
which invariably had a direct impact on their musicality. To understand
that, one needs only to listen to their three former releases, which
range from ambient forms to melancholy soundscapes and occasional rock
explosions on the verge of psychedelia. The coming and going of band
members brought to the core of the band a certain creative indefinition.
Nevertheless, the basic essence/concept of the group was always
present, holding the equilibrium and pointing towards the right
direction. This way, after a few digressions, Alla Polacca managed to
find the right route for themselves and make their songs sound the way
they set them out to: ambient, experimental rock with a strong emotional
charge that balances somewhere between vernal and autumnal feels.
What they present us now with in “We’re Metal And Fire In The Pliers
Of Time” is an elaborate musical piece, with a natural feel to it. This
easiness is supported on a simple and effective balancing of their usual
creativity (the one linked to their experimental ambient rock sound)
and a new feature, spontaneity, which brings them to explore new sounds,
even if that search leads them, at times, to the borders of the absurd,
as in “They’ll do without us”. It is nonetheless an absurdity that
sounds like ingenuity (even childishness) and ends up taking us to
strange imaginary worlds that exist inside us. The same thing is equally
felt in “The cold (Doubt)” or in the surprising beauty of “Last day”.
The changes are significant and they appear to head towards sonic worlds
usually associated with Sonic Youth. “King of winter” and “The lie
(Conspiracy and anticipation)” are both good examples of that, excelling
on the exploration of experimental methods in accordance with the
typical basic structure of the alternative rock song.
Alla Polacca let themselves loose and make the songs in “We’re Metal
And Fire In The Pliers Of Time” sound sincere. Nothing is forced or
manipulated. Everything grew out of the complicity between the band
members who, when together, let the best of themselves pour out without
any kind of constraint. When that happens, the end result can only be
consistent and appealingly creative. Everything we can hope to get from
music.
Jorge Baldaia, 2008source: mySpace profile
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