FELONA E SORONA

Le Orme's much-vaunted concept album might take the group's lyrical approach into space, but you won't find space rock here - just more pastoral prog along the lines of Trespass-era Genesis with Keith Emerson sitting in on keyboards, on Le Orme's previous effort. Though it is a great little album, I don't quite consider it a full-on masterpiece - not only do I mildly prefer the group's previous album, which is a slightly fresher take on similar musical territory, but the group seem to be grasping for ideas a little here, to the point where some of the keyboard work on the opening track seems to recall Watcher of the Skies a little too closely for me to consider it a coincidence. It's still a great little listen, but I wouldn't say it's the sublime, definitive Italian prog album it's often put forward as; give it a go, but don't just the whole RPI genre on its merits.