Tabletom ~ Spain

Mezclalina (1980)

---5/20/09

Such a strange little album, perhaps mirroring the surrealistic cover. On the surface, Tabletom seem to opt for a light, Spanish flavored, jazz rock sound. Flute is the initial featured instrument of choice. Then comes these crunchy power chord guitars, and irregular flamenco style rhythms. Violin and sax also make appearances. The vocalist reminds me of some of the more gravelly Italian guys as found on Jumbo or Odissea. It takes a bit to get into, but this one has a lot to recommend. The last nine minute track is a barnburner. I had thrown the Mezquita name out in the past, but that's a bit misleading, as Tabletom aren't quite as Andalusian influenced as that may imply. They had a few albums after this debut, but I understand they are of less interest, but don't know for certain. Great Dali-esque cover.

---4/29/25

And here we are 16 years later. I almost gave this a +1 as I found myself head-bobbing through most of it. Really enjoy those passionate Italian styled vocals as noted above. There's really nothing else like this from Spain, though maybe you can hear some of the same angst in early Nu. An excellent album that remains relatively unknown.

Ownership: 1980 RCA (LP)

Still not on CD as I update this entry (4/29/25). There does exist an LP reissue however.

2001 (first acquired); 5/20/09 (review); 4/29/25

2/3/17 (new entry)