El Saguaro – Enthusiecstasy EP

by Mark 'Yeti' Richard · May 20, 2025

El Saguaro is a three-piece band from Lisbon, Portugal. They consist of Lucas Hugues on guitar and vocals, André Horta on bass, and João Ferreira on drums. El Saguaro just released their debut EP entitled Enthusiecstasy on May 16th 2025. It contains four tracks just over twenty four minutes long.

“Ticket To Ride” soars out of the gate with a high octane surge of acid rocking fury. Blazing guitars drenched in fuzz and a heavy psych sequence of retro-sounding riff rock. El Saguaro has that classic vintage vibe happening and delivers a great performance with these four tracks. They utilize vocal harmonies and totally shred with the guitar wankering. The groove is infectious and catchy. “Ticket To Ride” is an excellent opening song and captures the raw energy and emotion of this band. It covers a lot of musical territory in its almost six minute run, the jam band elements and psychedelic passages are all present on this one.

The second track entitled “Viaje” has a chilled out vibe throughout with a jazz theme happening. The swinging drum beats and clean guitar strumming sounds wonderful. The vocals are in their native language and connect perfectly with the music. El Saguaro has the instrumental intuition to break away and jam with their free flowing spirits. They express that on this song and I can imagine how vital it must sound in a live setting. The scorching guitar leads are delightful and amazing.

“Nazare” begins with a mellow build up and then cranks into a riff rocker. The heavy driven rhythm is accompanied by inviting guitar leads. The sound is almost progressive with a twist of jazz and blues. It’s a very dynamic instrumental rock song that sounds fantastic. The fourth and final song is called “Slow n’ Easy”. It is a blues rocking delicacy! The foot stomping grooves and powerful vocals are driven by the guitar tone. A warm blend of riff distortion with electrifying leads. The song flows with ease and consistency. There is definitely a strong influence of late 60’s and early 70’s heavy psychedelic rock within the music. Enthusiecstasy is an exceptional introduction to the El Saguaro sound! I will definitely be looking forward to hearing more in the future because these four songs are terrific and rocking.