Interviews - Aton's (April 2010)

Aton's was put together in 1977 as a reaction against punk and new wave, according to my informations. Please fill me in with more informations. Why did you choose that name ?

Yes, the band was actually born with the target of a music more refined than the punk and new wave one. The name I've choosen is due to my interest and admiration for the ancien Egyptian history and culture and in particular for the age of the Amarnian monotheism, during which the pharaon Amenophi IV estabilished the worship of the sole god Aton

To start with; please give me your (long or brief) thoughts and lowdowns on.......

H (1985)

It’s the first Italian video opera rock. It’s a genuine, sincere and demanding album, without frills but also devoid of the money necessary to create more sofisticated sounds. Live studio recorded without overdubbing. There are two videos from H available on internet to these address: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4VVn4iHo6E - - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4VVn4iHo6E & http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqg5uTk-rdQ - - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqg5uTk-rdQ

A.I. 2984 (1988)

A smart work even if it’s still quite forthright and naïve. It marks the band’s debut in the world of Progressive rock

Caccia Grossa (1991)

It’s our most successful album (5.000 copies sold with the first edition) and it means a turning point towards more technicism and compositive and arrangements complexity. The video of the track “Buio” is on line at this address: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOzlkDP8oPg - - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOzlkDP8oPg

Dr Faust (1992)

Re-examination, from a rock viwpoint, of Goethe’s Faust. It’s the most heart-felt, studied of our disks and probably the most misunderstood because of the quite dry sounds (close to the 70s ones) that the critics weren’t able to fully appreciate.

Klein & Wagner (1996)

Inspired by Hermann Hesse’s short story of the same name, it marks the beginning of the crisis and of the slow break-up of the band. It’s our most difficult album but the complexity of the arrangements is well hidden beneath a catchy melody.

Capolinea (2002)

Melancholy album that ends the group experience. Characterized by particular and innovative polyrhythmical sounds.

How is the availability of your albums ?

H, Dr. Faust, Klein & Wagner and Xenia (my first solo album) should be available at the label, Mellow Records; A.I. 2984 has never been published in CD except for an unauthorized dreadful-quality version (for which we’ve never received any royalties), but I’m thinking to re-print it as soon as possible.

Capolinea is purchasable at Musea, Il Folle (my third solo album) is an Aton’s Management production and it is available writing to mailto:management@atons.it - - [email protected] while Metafisica (my second solo album) and Ombre di Musica (a live from a concert of Aton’s in Brescia and in Torino), are distributed by Lulu.com

How would you describe Aton's music and who would you compare Aton's with ?

One of the main problems with our music, though I,ve always considered it a treasure, has always been the originality that made it hardly fitting into any scheme.

Anyway my music sounds very Italian and is a free-from-traditional-standards kind of Prog.

Aton's was disbanded in 2002 and you went solo. Please tell us more about the end of Aton's and your choice to go solo.

To be correct Aton’s broke-up in 1999 (Capolinea is a posthumous work), because of my will to canalize my music in solo projects.

Please tell us more about your solo albums.

Xenia (1997) is very guitaristic and totally instrumental;

Metafisica (2008) is a very sperimental and technical album, a research work quite hard to listen at and not easly understandable. Almost totally instrumental (except for the track titled Marinella);

Il Folle (2008) is a complete and mature album in which the typical characteristics and sounds of Aton’s music emerge again.

What is your experiences with the music industry ?

I’ve always had to do with indipendent labels not to be influenced by commercial logics.

How do you look back on Aton's and do you have any regrets in your career ?

I’m satisfied with Aton’s experience but I have no regrets: the group had come to its natural end

Is music your full-time job or do you have a more sane job as the main income ?

Music should hardly be my fulltime job without making compromise..and as I’ve always been too free to accept any other logic in my music but my own inspiration and creativity, therefore I have a “more sane job”. I’m a teacher, I teach Philosophy and History in high schools

What is your five all-time favourite albums ?

Even if it’s a quite hard choice, I think I could say that my all-time favourite albums are:

Genesis’ “Selling England by the Pound”

Jethro Tull’s “A”,

Yes’ “Drama”,

Camel’s “Rain Dances”,

Rush’s “Power Windows”

Anything you want to add to this interview ?

Yes, I’d like to give to them who could be interested in, some cordinates: I have an official website

http://www.atons.it - - http://www.atons.it and a page on myspace http://www.myspace.com/pietroratto - - http://www.myspace.com/pietroratto .

The Management administrates a page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000477019717&ref=profile - - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000477019717&ref=profile

and a group is born on the initiative of some fans: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000477019717&ref=profile#!/pages/Atons/119712034944?ref=ts - - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000477019717&ref=profile#!/pages/Atons/119712034944?ref=ts