LAND OF BLUE ECHOES

I am surprised to see that this is the first review of this album that was released in March of this year, 2016. I have already read two reviews praising this album, but it seems so far to have flown under most prog radars here.

Marco Ragni is no up and comer. His 2014 album "Mother from the Sun" made it on the PA Top 100 of that year. And though his PA discography only includes five studio albums plus three others, his homepage includes some 11 releases. His catalogue on PA begins with his 2010 release "In My Eyes" which has a score of 4.25. Prior to his solo career he was involved in other bands for some 30 years.

"Land of Blue Echoes" has a very strong early seventies Pink Floyd vibe to it, but Marco doesn't lean solely on this rock. There are a number of surprises that keep this album ear-worthy. We begin with the short, spacey instrumental with a late sixties guitar sound and spoken recording at the beginning. Colin Tench (Corvus Stone, CTP, Oceans 5, Minstrel's Ghost, etc.) provides some lead guitar work. A very good start to the album!

There's a quick turn, though, as the 15-minute "Horizons" begins with harp and flute before transforming into a cosmic space rocker. The drums are pretty up front in the mix, and I'll admit that from my perspective it sounds more like listening to someone play drums along with the track. But just when you think you've got the album sussed out, a harpsichord becomes the sole instrument with Marco's vocals. The music changes once more with a spacey slide guitar bit and goes more up tempo with organ and guitar. That gives way to piano and then we reach a delicate solo piano segment. The track goes through a couple more twists and turns before returning to the cosmic theme near the beginning and wraps up with a bit of harp. There's a lot going on during these 15 minutes and a few choice parts for my ears.

The title track is a piano waltz with acoustic guitar and strings. There's an emotive, early seventies-inspired guitar solo to bring this shorter track to a close.

"Money Doesn't Think" is a rollicking track that sounds somewhere between "Dark Side of the Moon" and the more up tempo side of "Wish You Were Here" but with lead guitar that could have come off "Meddle". It eases back a bit more the sung parts but for the instrumental segment we are back into the exciting rolling and grooving part with some great lead guitar work. One of my favourite tracks!

"Canto D'Amore" will turn your head for sure with its harp and acoustic guitar and beautiful vocals sung in Italian. This was the first track on the album to really make a deep impression on me and even now after several listens it remains my favourite. Prog should have more harp!

Durga McBroom, who has sung "Great Gig in the Sky" and backing vocals for Pink Floyd, sings the lead vocal here. The music is very eased back with organ and electric guitar and McBroom's excellent vocal performance. Style-wise, it's not exactly my preference; however, there is no questioning the music and vocal performance.

"Beltane" is another favourite of mine. Acoustic guitar and a folk prog approach, this song features what sounds like backwards wah-wah guitar playing and has a strong cosmic rock feel in parts. There are some spoken recording added in and a ticking clock that will surely remind you of Pink Floyd again, and another smooth and soul-felt guitar solo.

The longest track on the album is "Nucleus, Pts. I-III". It covers a range of moods from more Pink Floyd-inspired lead guitar to Durga McBroom delivering a "Great Gig in the Sky" vocal performance, to more eased back cosmic groove to some great early seventies guitar rock groove with some cool, simple but chunky bass. This track of nearly 23 minutes covers a lot of ground though overall there's a laid back feeling of continuity. Some parts are a little easy to drift away in but it's not too long before something happens that reels you back in.

"Queen of Blue Fires" is also an outstanding track for me. It begins with clean electric guitar in a style almost like Pavement or Sloan but brings in organ. The chorus is the catchiest of the whole album and there are more organ, keyboard and acoustic guitar parts that are handled wonderfully. An excellent track to wrap up the album.

Though it's not every song that perks up my ears, Marco Ragni has created an album that really shows off his song- writing and multi-instrumentalist skills. If there's one criticism I have it's that sometimes the electric guitar lead work has some scratchy echo to it that works to create an atmosphere in most cases but sometimes sounds a little harsh. The drums sound great, especially the toms, but once or twice they seem to be a bit loud and to the front of the mix. I give this album a solid four stars and I am now considering which album I should go for next. I recommend this album to anyone who thinks they can enjoy early seventies, Pink Floyd-inspired, cosmic rock with some twists such as delicate piano solos and a song composed for harp and vocals. The digipak is quite beautiful, too!

Italian composer and musician Marco RAGNI have a career that stretch back to the 1980's, but then as a member of a variety of different bands. From 2010 and onward he has catered for a solo career, one that have seen him release five albums so far. "Land of Blue Echoes" is the most recent of these, and was released through US label Melodic Revolution Records in the spring of 2016.

Ragni's fifth solo album showcase a composer and musician that appears to be confident in what he wants to achieve and how he wants to achieve it, using guest musicians in select places to elevate the total experience for the end listener and otherwise paving out a path for himself in a subtly folk music inspired and distinctly atmospheric laden psychedelic part of the progressive rock universe. Similarities to Pink Floyd is a part of the totality, but not to any great extent. That being said, I still suspect that those with a taste for late 70's Pink Floyd may well be something of a key audience for this album.

Having enjoyed Marco's 2018 album, 'The Wandering Caravan', I have now gone back to the previous release, 2016's 'Land of Blue Echoes'. He again provides multiple instruments himself, and has brought together a stellar cast of musicians, including the wonderful Peter Matuchniak on acoustic and electric guitars. Colin Tench also provides guitar on the opening number, "Between Moon and Earth", which made me stop when I realised as it is nearly the first anniversary of his sad passing. We had been swapping emails on Christmas Day in our normal jokey manner, and just two days later he was gone. Both Poms, both living away from the land of our birth, at opposite ends of the planet, he signed his off "Colin of the North".

But, this isn't one of Colin's great albums, but again another masterpiece by Marco. He not only provides vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, Greek bouzouki and bass, but also keyboards and piano. His ability to play multiple instruments enables to get the best out of those he is working with, with masterful arrangements. Drummer Jacopo Ghirardini is a monster behind the kit, driving complex rhythms (or sitting there having a rest), while Peter demonstrates yet again that he can turn his guitar style to anything at hand. He can be delicate and restrained, Gilmour or Latimer-like, or he can turn on the overdrive and become far more powerful.

It is the multiple styles that makes this such an interesting album to listen to, with elements of Pink Floyd and (especially) Tangerine Dream giving way to some driving hard rock, all controlled and making perfect sense throughout. There are a couple of epics on the album, which comes in at more than 70 minutes long, and although there are long instrumental passages there are also some wonderfully delicate and powerful vocals from baritone Durga McBroom, which add to the feel of class which is prevalent throughout this release. Strong bass counter rhythms and melodies, Spanish guitar, it all combines to produce yet another compelling album from Marco which is well worth investigating.