Tryo - Antología Eléctrica (2018)

TRYO is a veteran Chilean progressive rock band, celebrating thirty years of making music together, this year. Three members form the core of TRYO:

Ismael Cortez - Guitar
Francisco Cortez - Bass guitar
Felix Carbone - Drums

Yet, that is only part of the story, since band manager, producer, and resident guru Ignacio Carvajal has added cello and sounding bowls to the mix, and each member brings talent to the table.
In this process, others are drawn into the musical flow- how about a symphony orchestra, for instance? Or collaborations with other fine bands and musicians?
TRYO thus has become the center of a creative movement in Chile, and the representative album being reviewed today is one emanation of that movement- a testimony to thirty years of pushing boundaries and working to grow musically, spiritually, and personally to help the wider world evolve as well.
Antologia Electrica-2018 itself draws from music composed and recorded sometimes decades ago, sometimes much more recently. Several tracks have been reinterpreted.
Production and execution, as has been the rule with TRYO music, seems top-notch.
That these musicians seem to be superb and relentlessly driven to excel, seems obvious.
The sorts of themes and choices each pursues to become a whole entity- and expression of TRYO- appears to me to be indicative of thoughtful, contemplative, engaged humans giving voice to their deepest selves, their deepest aspirations.
Although I was not privy to such discussions, I can sense that track selections were carefully made, selected to be representative of TRYO in thought and musically.
Having been in numerous bands myself over the years, I can say it’s a testimony to each person’s character, patience, and fortitude when a band survives and thrives for decades.
I find the music itself hard to characterize. It is not immediately comfortable and engaging, in the way some less challenging music might be.
Rather, this is music that is bristling, complex, restless, driven. The three core musicians work as one, yet each stands out. The bass guitar drives the momentum relentlessly and with considerable musicality.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard the bass guitar used in quite this way.
Guitars become textures, impressions, tonalities- rarely in simple straightforward chords or single lines. Many sounds and qualities emerge.
Percussion is crisp, precise, and somehow flamboyant yet never intrusive.
I hear rock, jazz, world music, classical, folk, and of course, progressive rock- particularly of the eclectic subgenre.
In sum, this is for me and for anyone who cares about honest, passionate, ground-breaking music, a celebration of a creative force- TRYO- that cannot be subdued.
It doesn’t matter where in the world it originates, such creative passion and energy must be lauded and celebrated and nurtured.