(RIO/Avant-Prog / Progressive Rock) Jose Luis Fernandez Ledesma - 2CD - Designios - Hibridos, APE (image+.cue), lossless

Jose Luis FERNANDEZ LEDESMA is a big name in the Mexican avant-garde musical scene. He is acknowledged as an adventurous creator and a proficient musician: his performing skills include guitars, keyboards, various ethnic wind, string and percussion instruments, something like a Mike OLDFIELD with a RIO heart. His first steps in the world of prog took place in NIRGAL VALLIS, a band contemporary of ICONOCLAST and others, that never got to release a proper LP. After the band disbanded, FERNANDEZ LEDESMA began his solo venture determined to explore his unique musical vision. Singer/keyboardist Margarita BOTELLO is his recurrent partner in almost all his records. His music has been publicly eulogized by Chris CUTLER, as stated in the liner notes of the "Sol Central" album. In early 2007 he began the SAENA project, a symphonic prog band formed by veterans (just like him), but his solo career remains active. The writing and arranging modus operandi for FERNANDEZ LEDESMA's material is profoundly based on atmospheres, going from the ethereal to the somber and from the dreamy to the inscrutable, always dense and mysterious, at times colorful, other times grayish. The combination of acoustic and electric instruments bears enough amounts of mixing console processes as to make the original sounds go somewhere else. Instead of using traditional instruments according to the standards of fusion and prog-folk, what FERNANDEZ LEDESMA does is incorporate these ancient items as parts of the sonic amalgam that would match his modernistic vision. Influences range from krautrock (POPOL VUH, CAN, early 70s TD) to RIO (ART BEARS, HENRY COW, UNIVERS ZERO), as well as the avant-garde chamber music pioneered by Cage, Stockhausen and others. "Al Filo" comprises a dominant sinister tendency, while "Sol Central" displays a more developed sense of colorfulness. Albums such as "La Paciencia de Job" and "Hibridos" may lean closer to one trend or another. "Designios" stands out as a special exception to the rule, since its repertoire is a venture in the fields of symphonic-meets-folk prog, in this way exposing a not-so-usual melodic side of FERNANDEZ LEDESMA - it includes new versions of two old NIRGAL VALLIS tracks. Through the years, he has created music for theater, contemporary ballet and documentary films, and collaborated with other avant-garde artists (ALQUIMIA, OXOMAXOMA, etc.). Additionally, he works as a sound engineer and producer.