Raúl Cantizano - Raúl Cantizano & Hidden Forces Trio (2023)

Raúl Cantizano is known for his works as flamenco and experimental guitarist. This time, he joins long-standing free jazz unit Hidden Forces Trio for a “free rock” album influenced by some noisy rock outcasts.

Raúl Cantizano (Seville, 1973) is an explorer of the limits and genres of the instrument with an unusual open-mindedness. As a flamenco-trained guitarist who loves rock, his mind has always been receptive to all kinds of influences, including those he learned from the Spanish composer Llorenç Barber, which make him feel comfortable moving between Jimi Hendrix, John Cage or Diego del Gastor. In his music, however, all of this flows naturally, sometimes even cinematically. His album “Zona acordonada” (La Castanya, 2021) is a pioneering work of prepared flamenco guitar modified with self-made devices and electronics.

HFT is formed by Gustavo Domínguez (bass clarinet), Marco Serrato (bass) and Borja Díaz (drums). The trio members have extensive experience in different musical fields, and they’ve been channeling their improvisational energies for more than a decade, releasing their albums on labels like Bruce’s Fingers or Raw Tonk and collaborating with well-known improvisers such as Ricardo Tejero or Alejandro Rojas-Marcos. HFT also appears on the film “Siete Jereles” (Gonzalo García Pelayo and Pedro G. Romero, 2022).

Cantizano has collaborated previously with some HFT members: with Domínguez on the Orquesta Entenguerengue de Improvisadores and with Serrato on duo format and trio (along flamenco singer Tomás de Perrate). This album is the first time these four musicians enter together the recording studio under the premise of improvising Beefheartian tunes and broken rhythms. We cannot fail to mention the honorary collaborations of the legendary Mike Watt (Minutemen, Stooges...), Colin Webster, Howie Reeve, Ricardo Jiménez (Orthodox) and Xavier Castroviejo (Blooming Látigo), along with the astounding cover artwork by Gianluca "Tenia" Gambino.