Arte & Ofício - Faces 1979

Arte & Ofício were a Portuguese band from Oporto, found in the summer 75' by Antonio Garcez (vocals) and Sergio Castro (bass). They built a national status through various gigs and massive singles, recorded between 1976-78, and despite some line-up changes they made it to the end of the road, recording the full-length album ''Faces'' in 1979 (Discos Orfeu).Garcez and Castro were supported by original drummer Alvaro Azevedo, guitarists Fernando Nascimento, Sergio Cordeiro and keyboardist Antonio Pinho with thr help of Rui Cardoso on sax. The story says they were a pretty unique group, combining elements of Prog Rock, Jazz, and Fusion into an attractive amalgam, but things are rather different, as exhibited on ''Faces''.They shared a common love for Jazz, Pop, and Funk and that does not necessarily make their sound progressive. They were a rather radio-friendly band and the only proggy elements found in ''Faces'' are limited to some inspiring Gentle Giant-like tunes (as on the very good ''Lobster society'') and most of them recall the wrong period of the band, same goes for some Premiata Forneria Marconi echoes circa-''Passpartu''. Actually, the only consistent thing on this work is the excellent and clean English vocals, because the music is pretty commercial with short, vocal-driven pieces, showered by bluesy guitars, jazzy sax, and electric piano, and poppy melodies. When Cordeiro and Garcez left the band shortly afterward, Arte & Ofício lost much of their popularity. ''Danza'' from 1981 was even more accessible and less inspiring and they disbanded a couple of years later, performing during the last years with a vastly different crew by apps79.

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