PEREGRINO ~ BONGOBONZOO .... review

Desert Psychlist described Chilean trio Peregrino's first EP "Borde" as an "excellent blend of hard rock, doom and heavy psych", we then went on to dub their second self-titled EP "Peregrino" as "truly excellent in every department", now with the release of  their first full length album "BongoBonzoo" we are going to have to come up with a whole new list of superlatives, though in all honesty it will not be a difficult task as this album RIPS!

Peregrino, Pablo Moreno (vocals/guitar); Luis Oviedo (bass) and Alejandro "Nano" Vera (drums), do not bring anything particularly ground-breaking to the table, their sound is a fairly straightforward mish mash of fuzzy stoner/desert rock, blues, grunge and heavy psych  that is then decorated in clean melodic vocal tones (sung in their own native Spanish tongue). So why then is Desert Psychlist going out of our way to review the bands latest opus and in turn try to persuade you, the reader, to invest your time and money in this bands latest venture? The reason is the way this band go about executing those grooves, the musical formula this band use as their starting point maybe one that has become somewhat overused in the past but they inject into that formula so much vigour and vitality that its almost like hearing music of this nature for the very first time, the band infusing subtle textures of  their Latin heritage into those tried and tested riffs and rhythms to give them a freshness and vitality maybe not found in desert flavoured rock music since bands like Kyuss, Yawning Man and Fatso Jetson moved their operations away from makeshift outdoor events and into clubs and arena's. Each of the eleven songs that make up "BongoBonzoo" are mini masterpieces in their own right, from the pure desert rock of "Viento fresco", through the Santana on mushrooms and speed title track "BongoBonzoo" to the gloriously all over the place angular and manic craziness of final track "Vendaval" not one single second will you be wishing you had not dropped the needle or pushed play on this absolute enthralling Chilean gem, its such a damn good trip from start to finish.

 Those out there already familiar with the grooves Chile and other South American based bands have to offer will find "BongoBonzoo" a more than worthy addition to your music collections. If , however, you are non-Spanish speaking lover of desert flavoured rock and swirling heavy psych looking to dip your toes into the South American underground scene for the very first time then we could not recommend a better starting point than Peregrino's full length debut, it's not just a great South American album, it's a great album FULL STOP!

Check it out .... 

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