A Bivaly Hatan - Sitting On he Buffalo

Sitting on the Buffalo, Kampec Dolores' second CD for the label ReR Megacorp, followed their breakthrough album, the highly experimental Zúgó/Rapid, and their first North American tour. The lineup has changed considerably. Singer/violinist Gabi Kenderesi and guitarist Csaba Hajnóczy (who were both involved in the project the Danubians) are the only two musicians playing on both albums. The band has lost a very inventive drummer (András Halmos cannot match the mastery of Péter Hárságyi), but gained a strong bassist in Árpád Vajdovich. This album is more song-oriented, with shorter tracks and more lyrics instead of random syllables (still featured on "Small Cloud 1" and "Small Cloud 2"). Kenderesi sings in Hungarian (with English translations supplied in the booklet), Tamil, and Turkish. Raï and Tzigane influences permeate the group's rock songs. "Tan Naa Ne" is a traditional South Indian folk song, while "Yürüyorum" was adapted from a ceremonial song of the Bektashi dervishes. The basslines recall some of the best avant-rock Czech outfits, such as Pavel Fajt's Pluto and Uz Jsme Doma. The album is 45 minutes long: the last track, an edited version of the title song, is preceded by seven minutes of silence (the aptly titled "Silence [Real Silence]"). More accessible than the band's previous album, Sitting on the Buffalo makes a good point of entry into Kampec Dolores' exotic world. ~ François Couture, Rovi