HABELARD2

Band info. "Copriferro Semantico is an album that was originally realized in 1979, in this new edit there are 5 tracks that come from that old work and other 6 from different years. Composer Sergio Caleca plays keyboards, guitars and electric bass. After short experiences with various progressive-rock groups, he started a solo research activity, moving on electronic, new-age, rock, folk and other contaminations. He was the keyboardist with Ad Maiora, a prog band in Milan, until 2018."

Incredible, what a variety on this album, wonderfully coloured by tasteful keyboard work from Sergio Caleca and moving guitar play by Ettore Salati (I know him from his work in The Watch, SoulEngine, Alex Carpani, Archangel and The RedZen), backed by Fabio Sereni on drums and Paolo Callioni on vocals.

Seventies symphonic rock with intense electric guitar play (obviously inspired by Hackett), blended with piano, acoustic guitar and lush vintage keyboards (Hammond, Mellotron and Moog) in Muscle Inertia - Part 1.

Folky with acoustic guitars and the Greek bouzouki, in the second part more dynamic with a raw guitar riff and finally a cheerful accordion sound in a mid-tempo in the alternating Bifolky.

A King Crimson-like dark climate with a captivating contrast between soaring Mellotron violins and an agressive electric guitar sound, topped with a growling bass and powerful drums, and finally a Hammond and Minimoog sound in Acquaragia

Exciting electronic music (reminding me of Vangelis and Synergy) in Muscle Inertia Part 2 (soaring strings, spacey synthesizer flights and intense Mellotron), Lullaba (sequencing, classical orchestrations, a synthesizer solo and slightly theatrical Italian vocals), Carosello (pleasant blend of synthesizers and Mellotron violins, synthesizer flights in a cheerful atmosphere) and the final track Copriferro Semantico (spacey with soaring string-ensemble, then an experimental electronic atmospheric sound with beeps and bleeps).

Bluesy in Nothing More (acoustic guitars, slide guitar, piano and English vocals)

And pure rock in There's No Solution (powerful guitar with mediocre English vocals and finally a biting guitar solo) and Crank (lots of changing climates, embellished with a Minimoog solo, rock guitar, a funky bass solo, fiery howling electric guitar and Mellotron violins).

My rating: 3,5 star.

Sergio Caleca is One Talented Composer

Back Story?

There must be a back story to the name, Habelard2, but I don't know it.

I do know this guy puts together some tightly orchestrated, melodic, quietly complex music that is instantly engaging.

Noises

Here on his eighth release since 2013, busy Milanese musician has taken "noises" from life- train sounds, footsteps, crowd sounds, lapping water- to set the stage for each meticulously assembled, precisely produced track.

The "noises" give way to acoustic guitar, or pulsing synths, or chiming electric guitar. Then layer by layer, keyboard by keyboard, textures are added, and become intertwined, sometimes in counterpoint, sometimes in lush fullness.

Caleca Does it All

The man is certainly classically trained- you can hear that in the compositions, the way instrumentation comes together, the progressions used.

There are the resonant bass guitar sounds that add in the progressive rock quotient, the quietly complex rhythms, yet with tasteful and intelligent arrangements.

Maybe Hints of Dissonance

But there are never rough edges and rarely do things get too speedy. Perhaps on "Pandemonio" we can hear the most edgy sounds on the album, with distorted guitars and almost metal riffs.

The dissonance is far more subtle, hearing just the hint of overtones here and there.

Probably If I Had a Wish

It might be nice if Sergio did cut loose, really let go. I thought the delightful "Mediterrtaneo" had folk dance resonances, as did "Nektar"- these were playful more than abandoned, however.

It's a Minor Quibble Though

My favorite track presently is "Inquietante Presenze". For my tastes, the nearly ominous held notes of the opening, the use of mellotron, that resonant bass guitar, and the lush, regal build makes this song a stand out.

In Conclusion

Sergio Caleca is on talented composer! I know I said it before, but especially if I did in fact take a long, relaxed train ride, I'd sure like to have this as my soundtrack.

My rating is four lush landscapes.

Habelard2 is the project of composer Sergio Caleca from Milan, Italy. His album "Sgnautz!", released in September of 2019, is his 2nd full studio released in 2019. Once again, Sergio is the sole performer on this release playing all instruments. The only guest is a vocal by Paolo Callioni on the title track. This album originally came about from unused material from a demo tape in 1986. The 4 tracks from that demo have been refined and other new songs were crafted from that. The final product is a 13 track album that has a total run time of over 55 minutes. There are no long tracks like the 16 minute ending track on the previous album. This time around, the tracks stay between one minute and just over 6 minutes. The album is available as a FLAC download on bandcamp.

The album starts off with what Sergio says is probably his first ever composition "Alta Marea" (High Tide). The sound of waves brings in a solo piano that plays a repeating motif and the piano later improvises over the motif which is fairly straightforward, but has just a touch of dissonance on the back end. Just before 2 minutes, other instruments (drums, soft guitar, light synths) are added in. The music builds a bit bringing in electric guitar and synth to play off of the motif. "Carruba" follows with a rolling percussion and an organ/synth that builds to a solo. This has a catchier, yet somewhat tricky beat at times. "Scuiscia ca Vola" (So Thin That It Could Fly) has a funk vibe to it and is led mostly by synth layers. The vibe mellows to a more soft jazz fusion sound as it continues. The synth improv towards the end is nice.

"Mocassini Babe" (Baby Shoes) is led by soft guitar layers that have some contradicting lines that provide a slightly unnerving feel, and this texture continues as it goes while it builds and then softens to sustained effects and then returns to the main riff with the addition of a cool synth/organ improv around the main theme. The dissonance that is felt through out the track is a nice touch. "Music For an Imaginary Crime Action Movie" is led by piano chords and organ with some strange synth chords. There is a cinematic feel to the expansive sound the synth reaches for at times, but there seems to be a lack of tension that the title implies should be there. Later, there is an addition of scratchy, funky guitar that might echo "Shaft" or something like that, but there still isn't the tension there.

"Notturno Nr. 2" is led by layered electric guitars with some synth background and an even rhythm. Later, a single guitar line plays the melody with embellishments, but it always leads back to the layered sound. Since the track is a Nocturne, or named as such, it doesn't seem quite as peaceful or pensive as a typical Nocturne, maybe a bit busy, more like a city at night. "Gualdrappa" starts with solo piano playing a repeating motif with drums and smooth synths coming in later, making for a slow swaying sound. Halfway through, an organ builds a bit more excitement as it drives more emotion into the track that culminates in a more driving beat with the guitar coming in heavier as it goes along and then finally calming with strings (could be effects) calm things down and build it all up again to a sudden ending.

"Sgnautz!" (the title track) comes along next with a more dramatic sound as pounding drums and smooth synths build the music. When it reaches the apex though, it's not really the payoff that was expected. Instead you get some synth chords. Finally the guest vocalist comes in well into the 2nd minute. The track remains surprisingly flat and lifeless throughout unfortunately, even the lyrics or melody from the vocalist don't help. In the end, it's hard to understand why there was a fuss around this track. "Split" returns to the instrumental tracks. This one at least has the tension in it that was missing from the last track, and is led mostly by piano and organ with the drums working well to create tension. This is a return to a better sound with a nice expansive feel as it continues. It's a very nice track. "Sabrena" goes for a much heavier sound with an extended guitar riff in the beginning, but it lightens up to more jangly guitars later. The guitar textures keep changing back and forth and end up making a nice contrasting track that does well holding its weight, even when the sustained synths come in later. It ends up being another nice track with some great texture contradictions throughout. Strangely enough, it all works well.

"Perle ai Porci" (Pearls to Pigs) begins surprisingly smooth, but throws in some squealing pig sounds and an occasional dramatic piano riff to just through you off. The music makes you keep thinking there is going to be this cool payoff, but it never really happens as it stays a bit lackluster, even when the guitar layers threaten the somewhat meandering feel of the song. "Salve" (Hello!) is the shortest track just over a minute, and features some nice glitchy synth effects that are warped and muffled. The album ends with the longest track just over 6 minutes called "Il Giudizio Universale" (The Universal Judgement). The beat is moderately slow and the guitars and synths are a bit too passive for such an apocalyptic title. It sails along on layers of synths and mellotron with an underlaying guitar. It slowly builds a bit and the drums try to get a little more excitement out of the instruments, but they are content just to sail along. Tension builds as it continues, and again you wait for the big pay off that keeps threatening, but never really comes about.

The album is pretty decent, but has its share of downfalls too. Some of the tracks are pretty good while others seem a bit pointless, especially the title track with the unnecessary vocals. While some tracks are quite satisfying, there are just as many that don't really go anywhere. As was the case with "Il Dado e Tratto", the previous album, there are no real "focus" tracks here, but that still doesn't say that this album doesn't have it's moment. There is still some great material here, but overall, it comes across as being a bit inconsistent. It all seems to even out at the end, so this one gets 3 stars.

Since 2013, Sergio Caleca has been releasing solo albums, and "Il Dado è Tratto", released in February 2019 is his 6th studio album released under the name "Habelard2" which is listed as a Crossover Prog project, thus his music is varied under this project name. He has been a composer since 1977 and has had experience playing with other progressive bands, and, most recently, with the RPI band from Milano, Italy, "Ad Maiora". He is a multi-instrumentalist playing keyboard, guitar and bass. He plays all the instruments on this album, which is entirely instrumental. But even so, it is full of variety touching on several styles.

"Bad Shape" starts off with acoustic guitar and drums which lay the foundation for the lilting synths and either flutes or a reed effect that provide the melodic line. The sound is along the lines of a folk style, but the synths lead the melody. At first the melody is simple, but later it becomes more complex as the piano, guitar, mellotron and drums establish an odd meter, but it eventually goes back to a standard meter. The sound is pleasant, pastoral, folkish and sometimes complex.

"Carne, Ingranaggi, Tibie e Pulegge" begins with all synths and occasional cymbal rolls making it sound like electronic music. This changes when drums come in at 2 minutes along with bass and a guitar playing arpeggio riffs. Later, you get a synthesized orchestra and organ as the tempo picks up a bit. This is a nice and relaxing track that stays mostly simple and soft with a few crescendos to keep it all moving forward.

"Idiosincrasia" is a bit harder and much more suited for Rock Progressivo Italiano. It is quite dynamic in its meter changes and complex rhythms. The tone is usually quite dark and sinister utilizing mostly guitars, but also some jazzy piano and drums. Synths are also used later mostly for anchoring the track.

The next three tracks are below the 6 minute mark where the previous tracks were longer than this. "Il Pianto della Iena" has a progressive jazz foundation mostly created by piano and other keyboards and a melodic line created by synthesizer. It starts out quite cheery and upbeat, but later slows down to a moderate straightforward tempo with reed effects. It later returns to the original jazz style. "Empty Pages" is quite straightforward with a good upbeat feel with a slight pastoral feel to it, mostly produced by keyboards. "E7sus2" starts as a piano solo with jazz chords as hinted at in the title. A flute joins in later with light percussion. At 1:30, other instruments join in with a walking rhythm and guitar taking over the melody line with a synthesized brass section trading off. Other instruments trade off doing improvised melody over the jazz foundation before things get more complex and progressive with a start/stop section before returning to improvising on the main theme again.

The last track is the title track with a duration of over 16 minutes. It starts with a stately theme and some organ and heavy percussion continue before things get more progressive. The track has a jazz/rock fusion, always changing its meters and moods, going from pastoral to jazzy to heavy, yet everything keeps holding together quite well by creating continuous themes generated by the music's complexity. All of the instruments get a chance to shine usually against unique backgrounds. After 16 minutes, though, even with the ever changing atmosphere, it tends to go on too long without anything to really anchor it. Don't get me wrong, there is some awesome stuff going on here, but it's a bit too long and even then, it ends quite abruptly.

The album is quite pleasant with a lot of variety and styles throughout. There are some great passages and the music, although quite progressive in sections, is quite accessible and never abrasive. The reason this music is considered Crossover Prog is because of the variety in it. The production is great and the musicianship is close to perfect. The reason for the 4 star rating is because it could have been better with a little more heaviness, but that might not have fit well on this album. There are also sections that tend to wander a bit and some unexpected surprises would have been nice, but it is still an excellent album with some major high points.

From Tomita, to Wendy Carlos, to Rick Wakeman, Emerson Lake & Palmer and no shortage of others, there's a long history of artists working in progressive-related styles adapting countless classical music pieces in a variety of ways that can be of great interest to prog-rock fans. Now it's the turn of Italian multi-instrumentalist Sergio Caleca, with Haberlard2 the alias project name for the solo project of the Ad Maiora keyboard player (and if you haven't checked out the work of this talented modern Italian band, bookmark this page and divert into checking them out right away, then come back here!), and he changes direction again here with 2018's `The Black Swan' by reinterpreting a range of classical compositions as prog-rock styled arrangements, and the results are a constant delight!

Of the highlights, `I Remember' is a warm and elegant acoustic theme, Satie's `Gymnopedie no 1' is a gorgeously embracing electric piano shimmer that gently springs to life, and both Beethoven's `Moonlight Sonata' and the sighing synths of `Ornaud '77' now sound like they could have wandered off an early Genesis album with their regal and weeping Steven Hackett-like guitar strains. `Symphony in D' is a charming organ-driven stroll, and The Nutcraker's `Dance of the Mirlitons' is given an amusingly kitsch synth-pop makeover that sounds right out of the Eighties! Bach's `Sleepers, Awake' now resembles something off an early Flower Kings disc with its romantically whimsical tone and Mellotron-like strains, `Reverie' has a late-night/early AM hours placid jazzy mellowness, and the title-track of `The Black Swan' bristles with danger from ever-looming organ and grinding guitar menace.

Although slightly overlong, and the drum programming can be a little unengaging in spots, there is no denying the painstaking effort, passion and even sense of fun that was gone into Sergio's work here (all his own playing, not with additional musical guests this time around), and the accompanying press release conveys how influential the music of numerous classical composers were to the artist growing up. Perhaps classical purists will be wary of `The Black Swan', but more open-minded listeners should greatly enjoy these inventive and lavish recreations of some grand pieces of music, and it's another varied and colourful effort from the always unpredictable Mr Caleca performed with exemplary skill!

Four stars.

Italian keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist Sergio Caleca not only keeps busy with his `day job' band Ad Maiora (who've put out two superb albums being `Ad Maiora!' in 2014 and `Repetita Iuvant' two years later, if you haven't investigated them yet), but he's also devoted to his own solo project Haberlard2, and just this year (2017) alone he's offered two complete studio albums! The earlier one `Maybe' proved to be a joy for symphonic and eclectic prog music fans with a touch of vocal pop-rock where Sergio was backed up by a range of notable Italian prog guests both of the vintage and modern era, but `Hustle & Bustle' sees the man go it alone, yet still managing to deliver another colourful and diverse collection of fully instrumental pieces across an eclectic range of styles.

Looking at some of the highlights, the album opens infectiously with a full-blown unexpected jazz-fusion take on classic ditty `Frère Jacques', coursing through everything from jangling guitars, funky murmuring bass and dizzying fuzzy keyboard runs! That unpredictability will maintain the rest of the album, and the laid-back whimsy with a touch of playfulness and warmth from Sergio's electric piano touches gives `Dolce' a light Canterbury flavour in parts before more strident and dramatic rises. `Giada' is a quirky electronic/symphonic hybrid, and `Alice' is a darker Hammond organ-powered symphonic workout with jazzy accompaniment courtesy of keyboard emulation (with the real instruments this could have easily popped up on any of the recent Tangent albums).

The longest piece at almost seven minutes, `Folk e Martello' is lavished with prettiness and dignified pomp, `Tragico nr.2' bristles with classic Genesis and Steve Hackett-esque symphonic majesty (and Sergio's glorious guitar soloing would have fit in nicely on a Flower Kings piece if Roine Stolt needed a day off!), and `Celtic Dream' is, sure, enough, a lovely Celtic theme both gentle and proud. Much of `DeboleFortePiano' is a sparkling electric piano-led piece with a bouncy spring in its step that means it could have shown up on many Alan Parsons Project albums, lovely Canterbury sound flavours waft through `Cinc Ghei Pusè Ma Rus' and `Seventies' is a shorter reflective interlude. The title track `Hustle & Bustle' finds a good balance of dramatic and quirky moments as it brims with colourful keyboard soloing, and album closer `Finalino' is a mix of grand symphonic rises and sprightly jazzy piano touches.

While the album would have greatly benefited from being performed with all real instruments as opposed to being constantly aped on keyboards (how about getting some musical friends to re-record some of these pieces together over time, Sergio?), `Hustle & Bustle' is no less grand in scale and ambition than its predecessor, as well as being more intimate with a thoroughly admirable `anything-goes' approach. If you want to hear a superb modern musician displaying a huge range of his technical and compositional skills, Sergio Caleca/Haberlard2's `Hustle & Bustle' has plenty to offer progressive music lovers!

Four stars.

Putting out two superb albums with modern Italian band Ad Maiora - `Ad Maiora!' in 2014 and `Repetita Iuvant' two years later - wasn't enough for keyboardist Sergio Caleca, he also spends his time with a solo project that goes by the name of Haberlard2, with his latest work, `Maybe', proving to be a joy for symphonic and eclectic prog music fans, and it's one of the most diverse and colourful progressive music albums of 2017, Italian or otherwise. Predominantly instrumental but finding time for some charming English rock/pop vocal pieces to slot in as well, multi-instrumentalist Sergio has not only enlisted the help of his Ad Maiora bandmates to help flesh out the disc and give it a more full, rich sound, but he's also received valuable contributions from members of a diverse range of Italian groups such as The Watch, Phoenix Again, Silver Key, Ubi Maior and even RPI legends Maxophone amongst others!

The propulsive drum-beat and relentless bass of opening instrumental `In A Bell's House' instantly reminds of `Nude'-era Camel, with lots of momentum-building piano and bubbling runaway synth noodling. Slinking electric piano gives `Barlafüs' a cool laid-back lightly jazzy flavour that could have easily found a home on the debut Arena/Di Tollo/Marras album `ADM' from 2012, but some fiery electric guitar bursts throughout bring a darker hint. `A Lie' is the first vocal piece of the album, a lightly melancholic ballad featuring both Soulengine/Redzen member Ettore Sallati's haunting guitars and his brother Giorgio (Joe) on charmingly accented English vocals, and `Waiting For A Saviour' is a half playful/half damning pop/rocker also performed in English by lead vocalist Alberto Ravasini of legendary vintage RPI band Maxophone with lovely additions of violin, sax and flute throughout.

The album then hits another fifteen-odd minute stretch of instrumental tracks again, and `Stress' is one of the longer pieces that darts through a range of tempos and moods, made up of groaning sitar, brooding electronics, serene ambient passages and urgent symphonic turns. `Stringa' is a warm classical guitar interlude that seems to have wandered off from a Steve Hackett album, as does `Chi Era Laynson?', a lavish and regal (if too short!) symphonic instrumental with harpsichord, viola, oboe, brass and Mellotron choirs aplenty. Ad Maiora's vocalist Paolo Callioni enters for `Looking For An Ashtray' that almost sounds like the more introspective Adrian Belew sung moments of King Crimson's `Thrak' and `The Power to Believe' albums (and watch out for the synth-tastic freak-out in the middle and lovely serene Mellotron in the finale!), but then it's back to a final stretch of three vocal-free tracks. `Anonimo' is a hybrid prog-electronic/symphonic mix with Phoenix Again's Antonio Lorandi's bouncing bass guitar, and Sergio himself even lets rip with a fiery electric guitar solo in the climax! The piece is something like classic-period Genesis and early Steve Hackett solo meets `Stratosfere'-era Tangerine Dream - very tasty indeed!

But it's the title-track `Maybe' that leaves the biggest impression, an elegant swoon of classical acoustic guitar delicateness, thoughtful flute, grand organ and sweeping orchestral grandness, and its exemplary build and control means it lifts to the heights of being one of the best symphonic-prog pieces of 2017 so far. `Taste The End' is then a reflective and sweet piano-led closer with lovely bluesy guitar soloing from Ad Maiora's Flavio Carnovali.

`Maybe' is a symphonic prog fans delight, and if you don't mind the three vocal tracks, this is seriously one of the best instrumental albums of 2017 to date. All of the guests offer valuable contributions (in particular Francesco Lattuada's viola is a constant highlight on several of the pieces), but it's Sergio that shines brightly with his brilliant performance across a range of instruments and keen ear for melodic and luxurious compositions. Maybe? More like absolutely completely YES!

Four stars.