Zakarrias - Zakarrias LP. Vinyl reissue of the only album by the British band Zakarrias is an overlooked treasure of the early '70s UK rock scene. Not much information about the band's history is available, but their lone LP is now considered one of the rarest releases of the period (along with Mellow Candle's 'Swaddling Songs' album). Recorded in London in the summer of 1971 by Austrian singer/songwriter Bobby Haumer and an English pick-up band, Zakarrias was issued on the highly collectible Deram label. However, Deram withdrew the album almost immediately when they discovered that Haumer didn't have a work permit. The result is one of the rarest slabs of early seventies vinyl, original copies have sold for in excess of $1000 on the rare occasions that they surface. Full of unexpected melodic shifts, and with an overwhelming sense of space and unresolved tension, the album skilfully blends singer/songwriter introversion with elements of folk, blues, psychedelia, and progressive rock. Mysteriously sounding heavy progressive with sensitive folk-psych moments. Great dynamics with contrasting guitar leads. The results have been compared to outtakes from the third Led Zeppelin album, but while the lead vocals are certainly reminiscent at times of Robert Plant, the overall sound and general air of quiet pretension are probably closer to Van der Graaf Generator leader Peter Hammill's early solo work. (m-/m-, new)