Miraj - Miraj (Mirage)

• Also contains LO-FI private lost recordings

"As part of the Romanian Sounds Unearthed, a series meant to bring back restored masterpieces of the Romanian underground music scene of the 70s, we are proud to present to you today the self-titled first album of the Miraj group, an exquisite slice of mid-70s hard-rock example, a beautiful blend of pure hard-edged prog&blues rock, brilliantly played, never released and criminally neglected for the past fifty years. This concentrated dose of guitar-driven and looping blues-influenced prog-hardrock is available for the first time in history, with full input from the band by Vasile Foica, Alexandru Szabó and Viorel Repciuc.

MIRAJ (also known as Mirage/The Mirage) formed in 1973 in Oradea, Romania – consisted of its founders: brilliant vocalist and main composer Alexandru ''Sonny'' Szabó, guitarist virtuoso Viorel ''Vivi'' Repciuc, flutist Vasile Foica (also from the great pop prog-rock group Ethos), alongside (those now deceased) bass guitarist Gheorghe Ivan, drummer Cornel Ungur and keyboardist and composer Șerban Lupu.

As part of a very specific niche of the underground music scene, Miraj was the work of young musicians, many of whom were either newly-graduates or still students. However, in this particular context, youth does not equal lack of talent or experience: all of Miraj’s members had years of activity behind them, both in terms of performing and composing and although they started out as cover musicians, this album is made entirely of original compositions, though one of the songs uses lyrics by Dan Mutașcu and two others use the work of debutante poetess Gabriela Hurezean.

The album opens with the iconic ''Atunci când visez = When I Dream'', starting a musical journey leading to the melancholic prog motif of ''Drumul = The Path'', via the unhurried grace and bold beauty of ''Inimoasă cale (Taina cocorilor) = Hearty Way (The Cranes’ Mystery)'', the memorable and blues-fueled monster ''Zi cu soare = Sunny Day'' and the album's most recognizable yet peerless track ''Dialog = Dialogue''.

In those days, due to the social and political context, it was not unusual for music groups to change their lineup, with musicians coming and going, some of them forced to relocate to other cities, others conscripted by the mandatory military service. This record’s tracklist covers the entirety of Miraj’s existence from early 1973 to 1980 (chronologically the last track to be recorded is 1979’s “Rock and Roll”).

Much like the previous albums released under this series, the self-titled Miraj represents the assiduous work of more than two decades: searching through forgotten record archives and restoring/remastering the material to the highest possible quality. A record truly deserving of the accuracy DTC treatment, the vinyl will be specially cut on DMM (Direct Metal Mastering), and pressed on Audiophile at a reassuringly weighty 180gr. vinyl, in order to preserve as much as possible of what was obtained after the long and arduous restorations of the sound, offering at least a decent level audition, as is tradition for all the albums in this series. We aim to please audiophiles, even though given the fact that in Romania back in those days the recording studios operated with semi-professional material, many of the archives no longer exist or have not yet been discovered. So, let's enjoy the historical character of these sound proofs and the very existence of these long-forgotten and rediscovered bands.

The album features original artwork across the gatefold sleeve and record labels by Barna Fazakas.

From start to finish, the album is a dive into the atmosphere of those years: the rediscovered works of young yet experienced musicians whose mastery of both instruments and composition is revealed by the seamless musical flow, a riveting, bluesy prog-rock tour de force which we are sure will be a delight for both newcomers and veterans of our Romanian Sounds Unearthed Series."

(promotional text by Mihai Alexandrescu)

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Romanian Sounds Unearthed – 8
180gr. DMM (Direct Metal Mastering)
Made in France
MSRP €21