A little over 3 years ago, while sitting in a Baltimore hotel room after dinner, and with not much else going, I decided to hit YouTube and sample some recommended heavy psych 45s. This was the beginning of my foray into the medium, that I had neglected up to that point. This ultimately lead to me buying CD comps, and actual vintage 45s. One of the earliest I sampled was Spain's Cerebrum. After hearing the Eagle Death 45, I wrote simply: "Franco had to know the gig was up when he couldn't stop this from coming out." I knew that this compilation had existed, but forgot all about it until now.
It's hard to imagine a band like Cerebrum (or Mas as they were originally known) could exist during Franco's dictatorship, though things had loosened considerably by then. Cerebrum basically plays a ferocious style of psychedelic blues. The two singles are the highlights, and represent their studio recordings from 1970. The other 5 tracks are live in the studio from 1969. The latter is more blues oriented whereas the later material is more hard rock. Heavy guitar is the key ingredient to everything here. While similar to Catalan's Maquina, it's clear that Madrid's Cerebrum was a full step ahead when it came to heaviness. But alas it wasn't meant to be. Essential pickup for fans of early European heavy psych and hard rock.
Ownership: CD: 2012 Shadoks (Germany). Recent online acquisition. Jewel case contains fat booklet with excellent liner notes in both English and Spanish, along with recording details, photos, poster slicks, and lyrics. Sound is more than fine for the time and place. Excellent all around.
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