Rale – Až Zahřmí (1998)

Country: Czech Republic

Tracklist

1. Až Zahřmí 05:32
2. Přiznání Odysseovo 04:07
3. Řeka 04:23
4. V Každém 03:17
5. Na Niti 04:53
6. Zahrada 07:02
7. Galloping 02:39
8. Žalm Svatojánský 04:18
9. Ve Skulině 05:41
10. Netopýr 02:40

Rale arose in East Europe in the 90s bringing together musicians from folk, world, rock,

improvised, and experimental music backgrounds, retaining the delicate appeal of folk acoustic guitars, 

the complexity of avant-prog, and the distinctive touch of Czech rock.
Formed in 1993, Rale came to life through a chance meeting at the International Music Festival MIMI in Marseille, France.
There the guitar duo from the musical group Dunaj, Vladimír Václavek and Josef Ostřanský 

befriended the Japanese violinist Takumi Fukushima 

(who, among other things, collaborated with Volapük on their album "Polyglöt")

and French-Vietnamese singer and dancer Cynthia Phung-Ngoc.
The four of them sat down to write the material for their first eponymous album that was released in 1994 on Wolf Records.
Their various influences were cemented in East-European folk traditions,

giving the band a sound somewhere at the crossroads of Dunaj,

Iva Bittová (with whom Václavek recorded the album "Bílé Inferno"), and Pavel Fajt's Pluto.
Lyrics were written and sung in English, French, Spanish, Vietnamese, Czech, and Japanese

while Phung-Ngoc's voice on record and presence on stage quickly gained the group a cult following in Europe.
The group was later expanded to a quintet with the arrival of cellist Andrea Konstankiewicz 

who she had already played in one of Ostřanský's other projects, the avant-alternative rock outfit Boo.
Two CDs featuring this lineup saw the light of day before the decade closed, "Až Zahřmí" (Rachot Behémót, 1998)

and "Twilight/Soumrak" (Indies Records, 2000) that featured Miloš Dvořáček as a guest on drums/percussions.

Memory