Spiteri

Spain's Vampisoul Records continues to offer up lost nuggets of experimentation from throughout the Spanish-speaking world. Spiteri were a rock/Latin hybrid formed in London in 1973 by Venezuelan émigrés. Brothers Charles and Jorge Spiteri were tasked by GM Records with creating a British version of Santana. Sure enough, the rock influence, or rather, foundation, is in the mode of Traffic, rather than West Coast psychedelia. With big budget production, the album is a period piece of prog-y London sounds spiced with congas and Venezuelan folk forms. The blend is pretty successful, as Andean rhythms and tonalities coexist with the unmistakable rock-ness of the thudding kit drums. Sung mostly in English, the vocals are more serviceable than distinctive. The biggest problem is although it's original enough in its concept, the rock aspects of this record don't compare with the greats of the period in Latin rock or the progressive sounds happening in London. It's still an enjoyable disc, and track for track, there could be some DJ ingredients.