Tellah - Continente Perdido (1980) (1993) Lossless

Tellah biography
Based on Brasilia, a city where they managed to get a consistent fan base, TELLAH had to struggle a lot of years before they had the chance to release an album at all, and even then, the album "Continente Perdido" didn't achieve the public attention it surely deserved. For 6 years, the band played lots of gigs in many Brazilian cities - on many occasions they served as opening acts for fellow bands such as O TERÇO, JOELHO DO PORCO and OS MUTANTES. Their instrumental input is usually the most intense of their repertoire, showing influences from YES, "Moon Madness"-era CAMEL and RUSH, while their sung material leans closer to the realms of melodic prog with a definite romantic touch (not unlike other Italian and South American bands).

The band got started in 1974 as a DEEP PURPLE-inspired rock band with an original line-up of Cláudio Felício (guitars), José Veríssimo (bass) and Felipe Guedes (drums). Expanding their artistic interests, this line-up made the soundtrack for a theatre play called "O Cavalo de Guerra". It wasn't until the first half of 1978, when drummer Dênis Torre and bassist/keyboardist Marcone Barros entered in replacement of their respective counterparts that TELLAH decided to pursue a progressive prog trend. Barros' extensive use of synth and organ and Torre's precision at the handling of complex rhythm patterns stimulated a sense of virtuosity shared by the threesome organically. Between April and August 1980, in a 8-track studio of Rio de Janeiro, "Continente Perdido" was recorded. The album's repertoire included a couple of alien numbers penned by members of O Terço and Joelho do Porco, besides their own material. For the next 4 years their activities became more scarce: still, their farewell concert in 1984 was a very special event in Brasilia, in which they even played a couple of unreleased tracks (now released as bonus tracks for the CD edition of their album).