RITUALE ALIENO

What happens when zeuhl and the more symphonic-leaning end of the RPI scene end up in a head-on collision? What you end up getting is the bizarre mixture offered by Universal Totem Orchestra on Rituale Alieno, on which the music ranges from symphonic passages verging to the classical to parts which remind me of Banco or ELP to more traditionally zeuhlish fare. Bizarrely, the combination ends up hanging together much more coherently than anyone could have expected, with the final result being a delirious journey between radically different prog subgenres of the 1970s - with some influence from modern music creeping in here and there for good measure.