ATTO TERZO

Despite the fact that Italian's Delirio Sonoro released their first album back in 1992, Atto Terzo, their third is my first encounter with the band. There's been a considerable gap of thirteen years since their second album to this one released last year in 2009.

Despite having no benchmark to go by on what to expect musically I was nevertheless a little surprised by the contents, though not in a bad way it has to be said. From their PA classification and the dreamy cover seascape I was expecting a commercial sounding prog album with RPI influences. How wrong I was as the three core members, with the help of a few guests have produced a lean and modern sounding album combining elements of rock, pop, funk and electronica. The sound is to a large extent quite sparse with clean guitars and modern synth lines held together by warm, well to fore bass runs and programmed drums with percussion embellishments. Though simply structured and the initial impression that there's not a lot going on, after a few plays some insistent melodies come through on sometimes inventive compositions.

One of the best moments is the instrumental It's Braining Again with the addition of added colour from a haunting clarinet which floats over the clean guitar chords and minimal percussion. Not normally a fan of hip hop rhythms, which introduce Non Ti Aspetterò, the song develops into a driving spacey rocker with pleasing results marking another high point. The vocals here are also some of the best on the album, which I have to say is not always the bands strong point.

Un Altro Mare comes as a bit of a surprise, though very welcome with a more classically inspired touch with its big string effect synth sound and spoken word vocal. The album closes with Darkest Hour which has a bit of a Trip Hop vibe and female vocals making two more highlights.

Despite Delirio Sonoro not being the kind of band I normally listen to I nevertheless warmed to their sound and found Atto Terzo an enjoyable listening experience. I'd have appreciated some real drums not being a fan of drum machines, but in the context of the music it works fine, that just being my personal preference. Worth checking out.