Aargh, What's Going On?

It's hard for me to recall much about a bassist or a drummer.

It's not to say they don't matter, but it's harder for me to picture either as the face of a band. I love good drum work and good bass work, but it's the guitar and vocals that usually end up being front and center, and hence, more memorable to me.

Tarot has the blessing of having frontman Marco Hietala as a bassist and the face of a band, and he can do that by being a mostly forgettable bassist, having a few good lines (his solo in "From the Shadows," the intro to Nightwish's "Feel For You") among the endless "follow the rhythm guitar" bullshit he adheres to. But Marco has a godlike voice, and he's remembered for that.

Unfortunately, Tarot's most forgotten and perhaps mysterious member is Pecu Cinnari, their drummer. He's certainly not a bad drummer; in fact, I would say he's decent for his genre. His style is frantic, though he generally regulates himself to a pretty basic rhythm. It really fits the band, and while I want to say he's fine where he is, Pecu just doesn't do much. He isn't a songwriter, nor a lyricist, nor does he give any interviews. He doesn't even have a side project to really keep him occupied. For the most part, it sounds like Pecu leads a pretty uneventful life.

Then Tarot released Aargh, What's Going On Here?

A rarity for the band, this is all Pecu, including the scattered screams. He drums, and he drums like Tarot has never let him done since. The solo here is very much in the vein of his frantic style, much of it being a lot of really fast-paced fills. Every little addition feels extremely seamless, each switch of pattern blending in so smoothly.

Not to mention he has such a nice drum sound. Every drum sounds really strong, the toms are booming, and the bass pedals are not clicky. It's particularly good 1980's production, and for what was a bonus track for the band, surprisingly good production. Considering how Pecu has kept a magnificent drum sound throughout Tarot's career, it's great that he stuck with it.

I'm not a huge fan of soloing, though I think Pecu did a fine job with it. It's a shame how he doesn't show off in the proper Tarot albums, but maybe he could give Zachary Hietala and his guitar a break. Drums are metal too.

Pecu got 5:50 minutes of fame. I kind of want Tarot to use the other 9:10 on him now.