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A journey through the Italianprog scene |
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Todd 
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RPI / Heavy Prog Team Joined: December 19 2007 Location: California Status: Offline Points: 3472 |
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 Posted: August 12 2011 at 11:37 |
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Andrea, that's wonderful! I always love your analysis and reviews. I'll be ordering a copy for sure!
And I agree about Darwin--it was my introduction to RPI and remains my favorite.
Edit: I've ordered it--I look forward to its arrival! Edited by Todd - August 12 2011 at 12:25 |
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2048 |
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Posted: August 12 2011 at 07:19 |
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andrea
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Posted: July 28 2011 at 11:14 |
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^^^^ Thanks for the feedback!
ROCQ BAROQUE
BAROQUE are an Italian prog band from Turin. They began life in 2004 and after many intense and sparkling live performances, a debut album titled La fiaba della buonanotte was released in 2008 by the French label Musea Records. In 2011 they released a new album, Rocq, on the independent label Hertz Brigade Records...
On stage Baroque have a funny and very theatrical approach. They managed to shape an original sound blending raw and heavy guitar riffs with melody, psychedelic and classical operatic influences. The result is an amazing musical delirium full of irony and interesting intuitions. Despite the name, do not expect to listen to a clone of PFM or to a “baroque music ensemble veined of rock” but to an original band full of energy and ready to start a sonic assault to conventions...
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Guldbamsen
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Retired Admin Joined: January 22 2009 Location: Magic Theatre Status: Offline Points: 23098 |
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Posted: July 22 2011 at 12:15 |
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Hey Andrea! David here from Denmark. I have completely fallen for RPI and the whole Italian scene. I´ve been reading this thread very slowly - trying to pace myself and save some for later. I just finished, and let me just say, that you did an outstanding job! It was a very interesting read and I learned a lot. So cool to get some information from an "insider", who is able to set things in perspective for you.
Thank you very much
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“The Guide says there is an art to flying or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.”
- Douglas Adams |
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2048 |
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Posted: July 22 2011 at 11:59 |
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THE METAMORPHOSIS OF LE ORME
What happened to Le Orme? At the end of 2009 founder member and vocalist Aldo Tagliapietra left the band. In 2010 former keyboardist Tony Pagliuca released an album featuring old pieces from the band’s repertoire rearranged for piano solo, the excellent Après Midi - Ormeggiando. Then, he teamed up again with Aldo and with another former member of the band, Tolo Marton, for some live exhibitions and new projects while the other members, Michi Dei Rossi and Michele Bon decided to go on under the name Le Orme looking for new blood to complete the line-up. In short, from the band’s family tree sprouted two new branches and I think it’s pointless looking for the “true and authentic” Le Orme now. People grow up and change during their life, the members of a band can leave and come back but what really matters is the music. Is it good or bad? Did the musicians lose their inspiration? Are they playing just by rote now? Did the soul of the band vanish into the dark?
In April 2011 we got a first answer when Le Orme’s branch featuring historic drummer Michi Dei Rossi released a new album. Along with Michi Dei Rossi (drums, tubular bells, Glockenspiel, cymbals, Bhayan) there’s still Michele Bon (Hammond C3, piano, synth, keyboards, back vocals), who has been a member of the band for more than twenty years. The new line-up features also Fabio Trentini (bass, bass pedals, acoustic guitars, dulcimer, electric sitar, back vocals), the veteran Jimmy Spitaleri (vocalist of the historic Roman band Metamorfosi) and two young, skilled musicians such as William Dotto (electric guitar) and Federico Gava (piano, synth, keyboards). Well, I had the chance to attend one of their concerts and I have to say that this “metamorphosis” of Le Orme is very good...
The new album “La via della Seta” is conceived as a long suite. All the tracks are linked together and the music flows without interruptions drawing an imaginary journey along the “Silk Road” where you can meet the ghosts of merchants, pilgrims, missionaries, soldiers, nomads and cruel Barbarians exploring mysterious cities and civilizations. To be honest the lyrics written by Maurizio Monti are not completely convincing, stylistically they draw on old melodramma canons and are a little naives but the music recalls the best moments of the band. There is more room for guitars and the interaction between piano and keyboards is excellent while the powerful, brilliant rhythm section adds beautiful touches of colour.
The opener “L’alba di Eurasia” (The dawn of Eurasia) sets the atmosphere. It’s a short instrumental introduction where you can hear the destiny knocking on your door and an amazing guitar work. It leads to another beautiful instrumental track, “Il romanzo di Alessandro” (The story of Alexander), inspired by the life of Alexander the Great, well portrayed in Valerio Massimo Manfredi’s novels as Child of a Dream, Sands of Ammon and Ends of the Earth...
Next comes “Verso Sud” (Heading South). It’s about the need to look for new ways to escape the violence of barbarians in love with war and features a delicate piano pattern and soaring melodic vocals... “We’ll need one day a new road...”. The dreamy instrumental “Mondi che si cercano” (Worlds that are looking one after each other) tries to evoke a new road leading to new dreams and a better future, then follows a short reprise of the previous track “Verso Sud (Ripresa)”. “Now a man makes up his mind / He comes to understand / Then a woman awakes and proudly comes forward...”.
The next track “Una donna” (A woman) was inspired by the work of the archaeologist Jeannine Davis-Kimball... The warrior women known to ancient Greek authors as Amazons were long thought to be creatures of myth. Now 50 ancient burial mounds near the town of Pokrovka, Russia, near the Kazakhstan border, have yielded skeletons of women buried with weapons, suggesting the Greek tales may have had some basis in fact. Nomads known as the Sauromatians buried their dead here beginning ca. 600 B.C.; according to Herodotus the Sauromatians were descendants of the Amazons and the Scythians, who lived north of the Sea of Azov [1]... The lyrics evoke a strange meeting between a warrior woman coming out from her grave and a traveling man... “I see a woman who is waiting for me / She comes out from her space to sing...”. Who is the mysterious man? Maybe Marco Polo, to whom is dedicated the following track, the short instrumental “29457, l’asteroide di Marco Polo” (29457, the asteroid of Marco Polo). The title refers to an asteroid that was discovered in 1997 by Italian astronomer Vittorio Goretti who gave it the name of the Venetian adventurer.
Next comes “Serinde”, a beautiful instrumental track that starts softly introducing exotic atmospheres, then the rhythm rises and you can dream of routes leading towards the far East... By the way, the term Serindia combines Seres (China) and India to refer to the part of Asia also known as Sinkiang, Chinese Turkestan or High Asia... It leads to “Incontro dei popoli” (Meeting of people), an intense and melodic ballad featuring heartfelt vocals and acoustic guitar... “I ask for a meeting / People joining together / A new dream for this world will maybe begin...New stories of peace / New communities / Another universe...”. This track is closely linked to the following “La prima melodia” (The first melody), where the lyrics tell about a melody which can brighten the routes of the travelers inviting people of every age to join and celebrate their friendship and their land... “Once upon a time there was a sound passing by / Along our old route...”.
The instrumental “Xi’an – Venezia – Roma” is another excellent track where the musicians try to blend classical influences and exotic flavours. It leads to the conclusive title track, where Jimmy Spitaleri’s operatic vocals soar powerful drawing beautiful melodic lines (every now and again this track reminds me of Andrea Bocelli’s Con te partirò). A bright, joyful marching beat leads to the “finale” of an album that is really worth listening to... “On the Silk Road / We can live again that past... I feel a new strong energy that will push me forward...”.
All in all, in my opinion this is a very good starting point for the band after the metamorphosis...
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2048 |
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Posted: July 02 2011 at 13:33 |
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^^^ Thanks!
MORE PROG FROM LOMBARDIA
Forza Elettro Motrice (F.E.M), from Meda. Young and promising band that in 2011 released an interesting demo titled Sulla bolla di sapone inspired by a science-fiction story by Kurd Lasswitz. You can listen to it on their myspace...
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LulaCici
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Spam Enchanted Evening Joined: July 02 2011 Status: Offline Points: 1 |
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Posted: July 02 2011 at 01:50 |
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<span ="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 1px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 1px; ">Great job, Andrea!  Your article can be used as a good guide through RPI.
Edited by Tony R - July 06 2011 at 04:18 |
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andrea
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Posted: June 22 2011 at 09:08 |
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POST-PSYCHEDELIA FROM LE MARCHE
PINEDA are the new project of Umberto Giardini, a.k.a. Moltheni, an artist from Sant'Elpidio a Mare, a town in the province of Fermo. Post-rock veined of psychedelia...
You can listen in streaming to the eponymous debut album by clicking HERE
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andrea
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Posted: June 18 2011 at 15:42 |
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JAZZ PROG FROM ROMA
GARUA’ are a jazz rock band from Rome. You can listen to their eponymous debut album and legally download it for free just by clicking HERE
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andrea
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Posted: June 07 2011 at 13:11 |
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MORE PROG FROM NORTH EAST
LUIGI DE SANTI is a young multi-instrumentalist and composer from Trieste. In 2011 he released a self-produced debut album titled Déjà Vu (from the garret...) featuring on vocals his cousin Giulio De Santi...
You can listen to the complete album in streaming by clicking HERE
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andrea
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Posted: June 06 2011 at 08:24 |
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SENZA NOME (the name means "without a name") are a young and very promising Italian progressive band from Marino (a small town near Rome – the same place from where came out BMS – see post # 2 on this blog) that was formed in 2003 on the initiative of Emanuele De Marzi and Stefano Onorati. After an intense live activity featuring a peculiar theatrical approach, in 2008 they released a very interesting self-produced eponymous debut album. Their main influences are the Italian prog masters of the early seventies like BMS, PFM and Area that they blend with an original touch and poetical lyrics. Here you can listen to the complete album just by clicking on the titles of the songs...
The opener “Illusioni di un’anima lontana” (Dreams of a distant soul) is a kind of suite divided in three parts. On the first part Tesi (Thesis) you can perceive BMS influences melting in a dreamy acoustic ballad (but the quality of Francesco Di Giacomo’s vocals here are clearly missing!). “She’s so far / Her eyes are immense / And there are no borders / She can be everywhere she wants / Through the mountains / Or along the desert / This world is too small / For her wish to dream...”. The second part, the instrumental Antitesi (Antithesis), suddenly breaks the dream with an aggressive “keyboards attack” (here BMS influences are even stronger) while on the third part Sintesi (Synthesis) a Latin rhythm is combined with interesting piano patterns... “She’s so far / Sometimes I feel pity for her / For her way of travelling and dreaming / For her way of fighting and hoping / For the way she deceives herself / Trying to change a world that cannot get better”. Well, good musical ideas but in my opinion a little bit confused...
Next track Passi (Steps) is a beautiful simple and delicate acoustic ballad which begins with recitative vocals declaiming some passages from Antoine De Saint-Exupery’s novel The Little Prince, it’s the episode where the fox asks to the Little Prince to be tamed and the song is about the need to “establish ties”, deep and sincere relationships... “By now I will be with you forever... I will feel forever your steps inside my steps... In me there’s your immensity / That will give me advice / In every single thought / In every single moment / We’ll never be alone...”.
The long and complex Tumore (Tumour) is probably the best track on the album, in the vein of early BMS’ epics like “R.I.P.” or “Metamorfosi”. The piece is almost completely instrumental with many changes of rhythm and a short dramatic vocal part... “To be / To appear / To feel pain / Living a life that you’ll never know / There’s a part of me that can’t stand it / Tumour of the Universe...”
Next comes Non sono mai esistito (I was never born) where the band try to blend Latin rock rhythms “à la Santana” with philosophical lyrics about the dichotomy between reality and unreality, but it’s not on the same level of the other tracks...
The long complex Ulisse (Odysseus) is another great piece, featuring an epic atmosphere with lyrics inspired by the adventures of the Greek hero depicted by Homer and a recitative part freely taken from Dante Alighieri’s “Divina commedia”. There are many changes of rhythm and mood and very interesting instrumental breaks... Good also Si la do (a short instrumental in the vein of BMS’ Traccia with a touch of “Area”) and the conclusive acoustic and delicate Sopra a un pensiero (Upon a thought).
There is also an enhanced “goliardic” video of “Si la do” but it’s nothing special... The album features a beautiful art cover and a booklet with pictures and full lyrics: not bad at all for a completely self-produced and self-distributed work (it can be purchased directly from the official website of the band)... Well, the album is not flawless, but on the whole it’s a very good work for an emerging band that deserves credit...
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Edited by andrea - June 07 2011 at 13:09 |
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andrea
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Posted: June 03 2011 at 16:45 |
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MORE PROG FROM ROMA
NO_DISC began life in 2008 in the Eternal City. In 2010 they released their first EP, C'era una volta un folle, available on the main on-line music stores. You can listen to it in streaming by clicking HERE
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2048 |
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Posted: June 03 2011 at 08:03 |
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andrea
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Posted: June 02 2011 at 09:24 |
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CROWS AND VIOLINS
I CORVI DI PIETRA (the name means "the crows of stone") are a young band coming out from an area called Lomellina, in Lombardia.
Here you can watch a video inspired by The Music of Erich Zann, a short a story by H. P. Lovecraft. The title of this track is “L’urlo del violino” (The scream of the violin), taken from their demo “Il tarlo”.
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andrea
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Posted: June 01 2011 at 14:03 |
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THE RETURN OF THE TRAINS...
I TRENI ALL'ALBA (see post # 1 on this blog) have just released a new album titled 2011 A.D. on the independent label INRI. You can listen to it in streaming by clicking HERE
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andrea
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Posted: May 25 2011 at 07:36 |
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ANOTHER INTERESTING DEBUT ALBUM!
GRAN TORINO come from Verona (see post #1 on this blog). In April 2011 they released an interesting debut album titled grantorinoProg on the independent label Galileo Records.
You can listen to the complete album in streaming by clicking HERE
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andrea
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Posted: May 18 2011 at 14:49 |
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DARK PROG FROM THE PAST...
JACULA are back! In 2011 they have released a new album, Pre Viam, on the independent label Black Widow Records...
You can listen to the complete album in streaming, just click HERE
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andrea
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Posted: May 11 2011 at 08:24 |
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andrea
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Posted: May 10 2011 at 08:36 |
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MORE PROG FROM GENOVA
LA COSCIENZA DI ZENO is an Italian prog band that was formed in Genova in 2007 by some experienced musicians coming from different experiences. After some troubles and line up changes they are going to release an interesting debut album on the independent label Mellow Records. The present line up features Alessio Calandriello (Narrow Pass) - vocals and keyboards; Gabriele Guidi Colombi (Trama, Narrow Pass, Armalite, Il Tempio delle Clessidre) - bass; Andrea Orlando (Malombra) - drums and percussion; Stefano Agnini (Vico dell’Amor Perfetto) - keyboards, Davide Serpico (Viola Smoke) - electric and acoustic guitar; and Andrea Lotti - keyboards, acoustic guitar.
Here you can listen to some pieces from the upcoming album...
More info:
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andrea
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Posted: May 05 2011 at 11:51 |
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CELESTIAL ORCHESTRAS
ORCHESTRE CELESTI, is the brainchild of keyboardist and composer Federico Fantacone (see page 1 post #1). This is a video from the first album...
A new album has just been released and you can legally downloaded it for free. The title is Transition Power...
Have a try! Click HERE
By the way, on progarchives you can find an interview with the artist, click HERE
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