O projeto Saturnia existe desde meados dos anos 90. Criação do multi-instrumentista e produtor Luís Simões, a sua estreia ao vivo aconteceu na “Hora do Lobo ao vivo” de António Sérgio. Músico já com uma longa carreira, tocou e gravou com muitos artistas nacionais, integrou a banda de heavy metal Shrine e foi durante década e meia o Zymon dos Blasted Mechanism, banda que abandonou no início deste ano. Com aparições pouco frequentes em Portugal, o concerto a que assistimos foi a apresentação do seu mais recente álbum, o sétimo enquanto Saturnia. The Seance Tapes foi tocado na íntegra (12 temas). Acompanhando Luís Simões (guitarra elétrica de dois braços, sitar e gongo), estiveram um baterista (André Silva) e nos teclados André Hencleeday, ambos músicos de muito bom nível.
Foi para mim uma viagem 40 anos para trás, para uma altura em que os discos de bandas como os franceses Pulsar, os alemães Amon Düll, Tangerine Dream, Can e Popol Vuh, os britânicos Hawkwind, Pink Floyd (pré Dark side), Soft Machine e King Crimson eram presença diária no prato. Um belíssimo concerto de um grande músico, excelentemente acompanhado e que só foi pena não ter suscitado mais atenção. Mereciam muito mais do que uma sala a meio gás.
- TRANSLATION -
The project Saturnia exists since the middle of the 90’s. It was created by the multi-instrumentalist and producer Luis Simões, their live debut was on “Hora do lobo ao vivo” by António Sérgio.
A musician with a long career, played and recorded with many national musicians, was a member of the heavy-metal band Shrine and was during a decade and a half Zymon from Blasted Mechanism, band that he left at the beginning of this year. With very rare appeareances in Portugal, the concert that we watched was the presentation of his most recent record, the seventh while in Saturnia. The Seance Tapes was played in its totality (12 songs). Playing with Luís Simões (electric and acoustic sitar, double arm guitar and gong) were the drummer André Silva and on keyboards André Hencleeday, musicians of very high-level.
It was 90 minutes of prog rock, psychadelic and cosmical, with influences from experimental and improvised music. Above the lays of the synths and the ryhthms of the drums, Simões virtuosity on the guitar and sitar stood out. It was a very solid concert in terms of quality and it’s hard to point its highest points but in doing so, Chrysalis, Mondrama, The Twilight bong and Cosmonification would be the chosen songs. For me it was a trip that took me 40 years back , time in which records like the french Pulsar, the german Amon Düll, Tangerine Dream, Can, Popul Vuh, the british Hawkwind, Pink Floyd (pre Dark side), Soft Machine and King Crimson were a daily presence on the stereo. A beautiful concert by a great musician that was accompanied by good musicians. The only weak spot was that it didn’t attract much attention. They deserved a room with a lot more audience.
TEXTO / TEXT: JOSÉ MARQUES
TRADUÇÃO / TRANSLATION: CLÁUDIA ZAFRE
IMAGEM e VÍDEO / IMAGE and VIDEO: JOSÉ MARQUES
LOCAL / VENUE: MUSICBOX, Lisboa
DATA / DATE: 5 de Maio, 2018