ICARO

The wind curls the sea surface, sending wee waves in fine lines up to the horizon, and beyond. Then Icarus starts coming down and vertigo re-writes the whole picture. Am I delirious? No, I'm just listening to this Icaro debut album, and finding it so immersive, that I couldn't resist the image.

The synths are so textured as to send you in that kind of scene, I think, akin to the cover painting. And they do their job with dedication all the playing time, alternating that initial symphonic approach with a jazzy feel, punctuating robbed beats, and occasionally dwelling in tense harmonies.

A beautiful job, if you ask me, but by no means the only part to praise in this music. The electric guitar also does his part, contributing high doses of melodic clarity, complex flavor, and sheer energy when needed.

The drummer begins performing on the rather muscular side of percussive affairs, articulating the proceedings with tasty chops and clever fills. Nevertheless, he seems to know well that duty requires him to go varying pace in order to fit the subtlety of other compositions.

And if the bass clicks nicely round in the versatility displayed by the rythm section all along, he never forgets to deploy strategically scattered clusters of melodic fretless charm.

Being mostly instrumental, the album barely resents the not very inspiring vocal performance thrown in an otherwise enjoyable track (the number 4), and remains a high achievement overall.

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