Songs (click the -icons for audio-extracts)
1. Bella ciao
2. Le marriage
3. Under the bunker
4. Convertible
5. Làmbda
6. Vanilla
7. Egyptian Reggae
8. Moanin'
9. You gonna quit me, baby
10. Le divorce
11. L'amour, je suis seul
12. Moskovitch

Musicians :
- Wim Goedertier : bass, percussion, harp
- Jan De Vos : guitar, vocals
- Geert Goedertier : guitar, clarinet

Recorded, at some time in March 1999, in some garage, somewhere in Ghent.

Press Release (band is not responsible for the poor english below : my translation)

Araña stands for mixing all kinds of music styles vehemently. The rhythms come mainly from the south, the bassline is pumping and stimulating, sometimes cool or tranquil. The clarinet gives the music a shade of jazz and often takes the klezzmer-path. The rhytm-guitar mingles latin-american influences with western folk. The vocals (in Spanish, in French or in nonsensical language) and the general atmosphere testify of the band members love for gypsy music.

The large repertoire consists mainly of self-written songs, supplemented with some cover-songs (Mo' better blues, Egyptian Reggae, La Bella Ciao ...)

Araña grew from an occasional get-together in 1997. What followed was a year of occasional practice sessins and gigs. In 1998, the cooperation grew stronger, they worked on a repertoire of their own, and came out in the open with a number of try-out gigs in café's and manifestations.
Recently, the band recorded a cd (with the name Moskovitch), published by the band itself, and are doing gigs in abundance.

My Opinion

The italian evergreen "Bella Ciao", the R.E.M.-song "Under the Bunker", a version of Jonathan Richman's "Egyptian Reggae" ... and all that wrapped in a gipsy coat and drenched in slivovitch of a good year : those are the ingredients of the Ghent-based trio Araña.
The set-up (acoustical with a guitar, clarinet, bass and woodblocks) sometimes sadly brings about the notion that this is the backing band of a singer that went for a leak and didn't come back. From the gipsy music they have the shamelessly romantic side, but the stirring, sweaty aspect of the gitans isn't so well captured, at least not on this demo.
A good point is that their own compositions, and most of all the divorce-trilogy "Le marriage", "Le divorce" and "L'amour , je suis seul" proudly stand up between the traditionals and the covers. The song I like most is "Convertible".
Conclusion : a tad too "well-behaved", but it is a "grown-up" product.

Contact :

- Geert Goedertier (09/225.96.88). Mail : Geert.Goedertier@rug.ac.be
- Jan De Vos. Tel : 09/233.90.69. Mail : j.devos@planetinternet.be
- Wim Goedertier : (09/252.67.18)
Araña beschikt over een eigen geluidsinstallatie ide een kleine tot middelgrote zaal aankan.

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