Detailed Reviews [Angel Ontalva - 2021 - "Angel on a Tower"]

Prolusion. Spanish musician Angel Ontalva has an established history in progressive rock circles, at first with the band October Equus and then in the last decade or so as a most productive solo artist with more than a dozen albums to his name as either strict solo albums or as collaborations. "Angel on a Tower" is his most recent solo album, and was released by Octoberxart Records in the fall of 2021.

Analysis. As a band member as well as a solo artist, Ontalva is among those artists that seek out the more progressive aspects of the progressive rock universe. While perhaps not in the extremely challenging department, his material always has a depth to it even if the songs themselves can be enticing and alluring also for those who normally shy away from material of a more challenging nature. "Angel on a Tower" is one more example of just that. Jazzrock is at the heart of this album, with rhythm details, instrument details and the general flow of the material more often than not tends to be oriented in that direction. The guitar is a central instrument in that respect, with the rhythm section obviously supporting and emphasizing this aspect of the material in addition to the flavoring that comes courtesy of various forms of keyboards and reeds. The latter instruments, in this case flute, bassoon and saxophones, are also given central roles in a number of compositions where the song in part or in full takes on a bit more of a chamber rock orientation, and on the occasions where this latter aspect combines at best with the general jazzrock orientation the end result can be rather quite spectacular as a matter of fact. That we are served some pastoral details here and there, some gentle nods in a symphonic tradition as well as a token song that brings in some more expressive guitar details of the kind I tend to refer to as Crimsonian are all additions that adds a nice little expansion to the already rich landscapes explored on this production. And while the variety appears to be wide, there's still a strong identity mark to all of the compositions, all of the songs feel like they naturally belong on this album despite having a fairly wide range in terms of expression and orientation.

Conclusion. Those who tend to prefer instrumental progressive rock should probably be aware of Angel Ontalva already, but among those who aren't this is an artist to take note of. The mix and blend of jazzrock and chamber rock elements with a possibly slight symphonic flavoring is an alluring one, and those with an affection for the former two of these varieties of progressive rock in particular should feel right at home with the landscapes Ontalva is exploring this time around.

Progmessor: November 2021
The Rating Room