ROCK PROGRESSIVO ITALIANO

Apoteosi was an Italian progressive rock band. Apoteosi was a very rare, if not the one and only progressive rock band coming from Palmi of the Calabria region. Apoteosi was one of those bands that only released one album and then disappeared. It was formed shortly before releasing their eponymous single album. Apoteosi was an excellent quality Italian quintet led by the three young brothers Idà and produced by the father himself. The band was a very familiar thing. In fact, the father of Idàs, Salvatore, practically gave them the release of their album in his own company Said Records, and the album was edited by Massimo Idà himself. Although its members were very young, the group had been playing together for some time, but the album was only released in 1975 by the small label Said, with a limited edition and local distribution, which made of it a rare album. The original LP fetched absurd prices among collectors. The band never recorded live, and for lack of support and stability, break up due the different decisions of each brother.

So, "Apoteosi" is the eponymous debut and only album of Apoteosi and was released in 1975. The line up on the album is Silvana Idà (vocals), Franco Vinci (vocals, acoustic and electric guitars), Massimo Idà (grand piano, Hammond B3, Eminent organ and ARP Pro Soloist synthesizer), Federico Idà (bass and flute) and Marcello Surace (drums). The album had also the participation of Coro Alessandroni (chorus vocals) on the track "Oratorio", as a guest artist.

Apoteosi plays a progressive symphonic rock with a great sound with something of some foreign bands especially the greatest names of the English symphonic prog bands at the time, but keeping some typically Italian characteristics. Its main musical characteristics are supported by piano, flute and beautiful melodies with a light folk influence that is closer to Renaissance and that sometimes reminds us to a lot of Genesis and Premiata Forneria Marconi too. Behind it, there's a greater influence of the 18th century classical music. The sound alternates between quiet, acoustic moments and heavier electric parts. The quality of the piano parts stands out on the album. It's a little sweet but very beautiful and sophisticated that often is compared to Osanna's work for its experimentation, although the album is actually a bit more symphonic. This is one of the best "copies" of this sub- genre, the RPI, with eight tracks, but with two long suites.

It's driven by Silvana's beautiful vocals that give a very nice feminine touch to the Italian progressive rock, which is commonly performed by strong male vocals. So, with a female vocalist, the vocals are a little different, but Silvana uses her beautiful and delicate voice very well. Besides Silvana, we have her brother Massimo that was only 14 years old when the album was released. The kid was driving a piano, a Hammond and a Moog with such excellence and familiarity that certainly leaves any renowned keyboard player to shame. Federico also gives a show on flutes making the album even more spectacular. His solos remind us of Gabriel's wonderful phase in Genesis. Marcello also stands out for beautiful drum passages and great turns. Franco made a discreet but very effective guitar work, completing the picture.

"Embrion" opens the album as an aperitif with a keyboard tour the force and shows compositional qualities, too. The song ends with organ chords. "Prima Realta/Frammentaria Rivolta" is the central piece on the album which, in fact, is two tracks floating into each other. It has gentle keyboards, lyrical flute, classically inspired piano and the beautiful singing of Silvana. In between there are always interesting Moog solos. "Il Grande Disumano/Oratorio (Chorale)/Attesa" is no less good with a festive atmosphere with keyboards and elegant piano notes, few heavier guitar passages before complex drums with the bass join. The second half becomes almost sacred with the beautiful choral vocal harmonies section. "Dimensione Da Sogno" is a pastoral piece with plenty of awesome moments and reaches its climax towards the end when the vocals get more intensive and guitar pulls of a nice solo. "Apoteosi" is different from the rest of the album. It seems to be a more jam-based fully instrumental and less heterogonous than the other tracks. It's more an atmospheric track aimed at soloing and not so strong compositionally. It's more in the psychedelic/space rock style.

Conclusion: The only album of Apoteosi offers melodic progressive rock surprisingly easily accessible of the Italian progressive rock of the 70's. The overall sound reminds me of early Premiata Forneria Marconi, yet not quite as direct. Driven by keyboards and guitar, with occasional vocals, this is quintessential progressive rock. All the right elements are there, complex musical interplay, a solid rhythm section, time changes, and so on. The romantic female singing and the symphonic keyboard entries are a real pleasure. In addition, there is magical flute playing, which rounds off this gem of the symphonic prog rock. My only complaint is that the production is a little bit thin and has too much treble. But the music itself is very good, so you should check out the album anyway. All in all, this is a recommendable album, especially for all the Italo progressive lovers and surely a pleaser to all fans of the mellow symphonic progressive rock.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

If we review carefully we will realize that almost no work is 100% original, and what we sometimes call "original" is nothing more than a development of style, which consists of building and ordering a composition - musical in this case - from different forms. In a progressive rock album we can hear elements of Jazz, classical music or traditional rock, and yet we know that we are not dealing with an album purely of the aforementioned genres. This is what every band has done from King Crimson, Genesis to any current band; develop a style - playing and experimenting - based on the musical interests of the various members of the band.

Having said all this, and knowing that Genesis and Gentle Giant were one of the leading progressive rock bands of the 70s, it seems normal to me that Acqua Fragile wanted to follow in their footsteps and add folk and Italian music scene elements to their style. Perhaps the only thing we should do is trust the quality of what we hear regardless of whether it is "original" or not.

The album opens with the up-beat "Ed io Canto" which has an amazing opening riff. The vocal performance Francesco Di Giacomo. It is my personal favorite track off the album also because of the hammond in the song. The next song "Cantico" is not a particularly special acoustic piece but it is a little nice song. It probably one of my least favorite tracks off the album. However, the follow up "Piazza dell'oro (eh, eh)" is a great track off the album. The opening seconds show the piano riff with the great bass-line. In my opinion the song has a really full sound, especially with the vocals. The keyboard solo with piano and organ in the middle of the song is a really nice touch.

Mille Poesie is another highlight off the album. The slow start with the pick up, vocals, and then the guitar lick that takes it into a new section is just really great. The song includes amazing harmonies from Francesco Di Giacomo that make it even better. After Mille Posesie is "Un giorno di sole." I think it is a really Beatles-esque song that really does it for me. The piano and bass work is once again amazing. The beautiful vocals that fade out, really remind me of a late 60s psychadelic song by The Beatles or Beach Boys. Following Un giorno di sole, is Un uomo solo. An another total Beatles/Beach Boys rip off. The Beginning of the song is literally "Michelle" of Rubber Soul. Then it it goes into this harmony that resembles that off something of Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys or Rubber Soul by the Beatles. I really love it though because the added hammond makes it like a proggy version of those bands, which I already love on my own.

"Bla Bla Bla" is by far the weakest song on the album. Not because the material is nessecarily bad, but it is too repetitive of the songs off the album before it. It opens with the closing riff from "Ed io Canto" then does a slightly revamped version of "Un giorno di sole" for the rest of it's run time. It's follow-up is probably the closest thing to their earlier work. It opens opens with haunting voices and hammond chords, that lead into spectacular vocals. Then it takes a faster pace, with great piano, hammond, woodwind, and percussion. Then for about a minute the song goes into a keyboard solo that fades out, but then a short drum solo pulls the song into a jazzy little interlude that closes off the song, resembling something off of Io sono Nato Libero. The title track closer is actually very good. It has great piano and hammond riffs along with a great bass line. It is total early 70s hammond prog. Then the harmonied vocals come in in short interludes, and it's just amazing. The song continues on the same pace for a while with a short keyboard solo, then closes of the album with the main riff.

Overall I love this album and think it's a great addition to anyone who is a fan of bands like The Beatles, Focus, The Beach Boys, and Early Banco music. I think it gets too much critisicm for the amount of great tracks on here. There are only 1 or 2 bad tracks in my opinion, so if you haven't check out the album!

Such is the case of the one album IO SONO MURPLE by the band MURPLE. This band came to life in 1971 Rome as the result of two friends, bassist Mario Garbarino and percussionist Duilio Sorrenti sharing a musical passion for the up-and-coming Italian prog scene. The pals quickly recruited keyboardist Pier Carlo Zanco and guitarist / vocalist Giuseppe "Pino" Santamaria and after encountering an American friend who claimed he chatted with an invisible penguin named MURPLE, the band was so amused by it all that they adopted MURPLE as their moniker and composed a concept album around this fictions penguin who would become a mascot.

The band was known to perform with an inflatable penguin on stage during its existence from 1971 to 1973. MURPLE's solo album was recorded during this time but didn't find an actually release date until 1974 due to the pass the ball attitude of various Italian record labels. The album eventually found a home on the German label Basf which did next to nothing to promote the album thus leaving MURPLE a mere footnote in Italian prog history until the prog revival of the 1990s rediscovered long lost treasures and gave them new life with proper modern musical formats.

Much like an early version of Camel's "The Snow Goose," MURPLE was a symphonic prog band that crafted beautiful melodic compositions based on classical music and added the heft of 70s rock music. Each side of the original vinyl featured two long suites each divided into six movements. This concept album narrated the tale of a penguin named MURPLE who was bored with his everyday existence in the frigid Antarctic and decided to move to the world of humanity where he gets captured and thrown in a zoo. The tale is dictated by the musical motifs and although the lyrics are in the same mold as other Italian prog acts such as PFM and Banco, MURPLE used them sparingly and opted to use sounds as a means of storytelling.

The album features both lush symphonic soundscapes that are light and breezy as well as heavier rock passages with choppy time signature complexities however the album is more on the mellow side and although not as technically challenging as some of the Italian contemporaries, MURPLE relied more on rich sound textures, complex motifs and ambience thus putting Zanco in the spotlight for much of the album's run. Like almost all Italian prog, IO SONO MURPLE was sung in Italian but also like much Italian prog the concept of the album really doesn't matter at all with music that is this well constructed.

Like many excellent bands of the day, IO SONO MURPLE features complex strolls down prog alley with hairpin turns and exciting musical developments that oft surprise when least expected without sacrificing the overall melodic flow. All in all this album very much makes me think of what "The Snow Goose" would sound like if Camel was Italian rather than English because the musical developments and subject matter of a single bird as the star of the show is so similar. MURPLE wouldn't last beyond this release but has since reformed in the 21st century and has released two more albums decades after this album faded into obscurity. Luckily it has been saved for the rest of time which is a blessing considering how beautifully designed this intricate Italian symphonic prog sounds even by today's standards.

If you are wondering what this album sounds like, picture your favourite keyboard-heavy prog greats of the early 70s. So don't expect anything groundbreaking. But if you are looking for high quality 70's prog, then this is for you.

De Rossi plays several keyboards masterfully. Creating typical 70's soundscapes. Meanwhile, Bordini is doing some great drumming. Both first tracks have enough ebb and flow to keep you interested. They sound very pleasantly, somehow soothing.

The last two tracks prove to us that fifty years may be between the two albums, but the sound has stayed very much similar.

If you are looking to expand your collection of 70-related prog music, then this album can be a good choice. don't expect anything shocking. But it certainly is a great listen.

3 stars.

Everything really began when a group, initially named Inaugurazione Museo Rosenbach, was created around 1971 from the fusion of two late 60's bands from Sanremo, La Quinta Strada and Il Sistema. Their first line up included the future Celeste's member Leonardo Lagorio on sax and flute, and the future guitarist of Museo Rosenbach, Enzo Merogno.

La Quinta Strada and Il Sistema had played mostly songs by some other popular artists at the time like Jimi Hendrix and rock groups such as The Kinks, The Animals and Steppenwolf and by Rhythm & Blues stars like Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett. Somehow, towards the end of the 60's, the Sanremo's groups, La Quinta Strada and Il Sistema, were two of the first Italian rock bands to spread progressive rock in Italy, even though they had never recorded a single album.

Everytime that the name of Museo Rosenbach is pronounced, you can see a sparkle in the eyes of every European truly progressive rock fan. Their album "Zarathustra" is usually considered as one of the best examples of the genre to come from outside England. However, the band wasn't successful at the time. They were accused of right-wing inclinations for the Mussolini image in the front cover collage on an all-black background and because Nietzsche inspired the lyrics. Both things contributed to limit the diffusion of their name and their album. So, it's not strange that Museo Rosenbach had a very short life, splitting soon after their album "Zarathustra" and some good live concerts in the summer of 1973.

"Zarathustra" is, undoubtedly, one of the most impressive Italian prog rock albums ever, with an astonishing blend of hard and symphonic progressive rock. It's still a perfect example of the Italian powerful idiosyncratic musical creativity. It's not hard to understand why this is regarded as one of the main albums of the Italian prog rock. This is symphonic progressive rock with a rough edge, but without becoming too much heavy progressive. The arrangements are heavily loaded with Mellotron, organ, piano, aggressive guitar and furious drumming. Everything is amazingly played. The compositions are flawless. It's a complex album with many time changes which is something that happens all the time.

Though the music is generally dark and heavy, it still manages to remain very melodic and fluid. The traditional rock ensemble of electric guitar, bass and drums has plenty to offer, with the Mellotron and Hammond organ capable of taking on both lead and supporting roles. The continually captivating interplay is a result of wicked distorted electric guitar, varied and beautifully arranged keyboards, a versatile rhythm section and strong expressive Italian vocals. Stefano Lupo Galifi's singing is bold and passionate, elevating the rest of the music to a higher level. It all comes together in a constant tension, topped by the majestic outbursts of Mellotron, which is the main hallmark of the album.

In the original vinyl version, side A was entirely occupied by the long "Zarathustra" suite, consisting of five tracks with the duration of about twenty minutes. "L'Ultimo Uomo" is the segment that opens the album between solemn and emphatic sounds and King Crimson's solutions. Hammond, piano and Mellotron introduce "Il Re Di Ieri", the second chapter of "Zarathustra" in which Museum Rosenbach manages to blend the symphony of the early King Crimson with the darker sounds of the Italian prog. "Al Di Là Del Bene E Del Male", is a song that deepens and expands the prog demands of the band. "Superuomo" is the most changeable episode of the all "Zarathustra" suite. The fifth and final chapter, "Il Tempio Delle Clessidre", returns to the final theme of "L'Ultimo Uomo", a pompous and grand instrumental.

The three other tracks on the album maintain the same high standard. "Degli Uomini" opens the B side of the vinyl. The initial Mellotron foreshadows the violent attack by Merogno's riffs, who contend for the scene at Corradi's Hammond and Golzi's battery pyrotechnics. "Della Natura" moves to a more jazz rock territory, with Hammond, Mellotron and guitar always in evidence with the rhythmic section, with Moreno's pulsating and nervous bass to underline the frenetic drumming of Golzi and where Galifi softens the atmosphere for a few moments before the usual jazz rock assaults. The equally beautiful "Dell'Eterno Ritorno" closes the album, an eclectic prog track with the typical Mediterranean sound.

Conclusion: There are so many outstanding melodies and themes on this album that it's not without reason that "Zarathustra" is considered one of the milestones on the Italian prog rock scene in the 70's. The band dedicated itself to the powerful and rocking version of symphonic rock music, where they managed the balancing act from rough, hard rock to more intellectually shaped, complex rock with flying colours. In fact, it's almost a definitive example. Here you have the big keyboards, organ and Mellotron, a passionate and strong vocalist, a drummer who's clearly a jazzier and compositions that are both dramatic and rocking at once. Hardly any other work can develop such a harmony between hard guitar riffs and soft Mellotron carpets. Wrap it up in one of the finest covers of the era and you have a perfect package. "Zarathustra" is, undoubtedly, one of the universally recognized masterpieces of the Italian prog rock scene.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

Il Tempio Delle Clessidre is an Italian progressive rock band founded in Genoa in 2006. The band intends to express ideas and music with the typical sound of the 70's progressive rock music. Elisa Montaldo, keyboardist and composer passionate by the progressive rock and Stefano 'Lupo' Galifi, the vocalist of the album 'Zarathustra', the progressive masterpiece of the famous Italian band Museo Rosenbach met in Genoa in 2006 and gave life to the project, which takes the evocative name 'Il Tempio Delle Clessidre', the final piece of the suite 'Zarathustra', then revised in meaning and concept. The band performs the entire album 'Zarathustra' live, so that Galifi's voice can return to the audience with its original strength and its typical blues nuance. The band begins to work on new ideas for their own compositions. The study, improvisation and sound research are crucial elements for the birth of their eponymous debut work from 2010.

So, 'Il Tempio Delle Clessidre' is the debut studio album of Il Tempio Delle Clessidre that was released in 2010. The line up on 'Il Tempio Delle Clessidre' is Stefano 'Lupo' Galifi (lead vocals), Giulio Canepa (guitars), Elisa Montaldo (vocals, piano, organ, keyboards and concertina), Fabio Gremo (bass guitar) and Paolo Tixi (drums). The album had also the participation of Antonio Fantinuoli (cello) and Max Manfredi (narration).

On 'Il Tempio Celle Clessidre' the compositions are tightly organized and strike the right balance between the melody and the complexity, without a second wasted and with enough changes of pace to make the most demanding prog fan happy. Although the singing is strongly emphasized, there is also a lot of room for the instrumentalists to display their considerable chops. Indeed, the pristine sound quality allows each of the musicians' performances to shine, and captures every nuance of Galifi's seasoned vocal delivery, honed in years of fronting blues-rock bands, while the melodic bent tempers the intensity of the lyrics and the esoteric symbolism of the cover art and booklet of the album.

'Verso L'Alba' is an instrumental track, relatively short that immediately sets the high standard of the music. It sets the scene with the deep, Gothic sound of the organ. It immediately sounded to me as a fine Italian prog album of the 70's. 'Insolita Parte Di Me' is a piece with a lot of rhythm changes, alternating quieter passages with more dramatic ones, dominated keyboards. It's amazing how they manage to achieve the complexity of prog without sacrificing the melody. 'Boccadasse' is a more conventionally structured song with a great diversity. The instrumental parts are followed by the melodic vocal parts with beautiful melodies, catchy chorus and a beautiful melodic guitar solo. The end is great too. 'Le Due Met' Della Notte' is a splendid keyboard showcase that combines melody and intensity. It slowly builds featuring the piano, vocals and a rhythm section, to the full bombastic splendor of the best symphonic prog in its finale. 'La Stanza Nascosta' is a ballad largely acoustic in its nature. It's a very beautiful and delicate track with a lot of classical influences. The piano and the stunning vocals conjure a melancholic and meditative atmosphere. It's superb. 'Danza Esoterica Di Datura' features a varied array of sound images, abetted from a Shakespeare's extract of Macbeth recited by Elisa. It develops into a great prog track with great keyboard melodies combined with very complex rhythms. 'Faldistorium' is full of rhythm and wonderful parts full of keyboard strings. The story is spoken by guest Manfredi, reciting a short text in an emphatic, melodic yet slightly ominous, reinforced by the closing strains of a church organ. 'L'Attesa' is an up-tempo track, a rich and energetic keyboard fest. It's very much in the vein of classic Italian heavy prog acts of the 70's. It has jazzy bass, Hammond organ, Mellotron strings, romantic piano and the great voice of Galifi. 'Il Centro Sottile' is a solemnly melodic track where all the instruments strive to create a lush texture with romantic and classical piano parts, beautiful vocal lines, melodic guitar work always supported by tasteful keyboards. To complete, the fairground and firework sounds on the finale and can add emotionality to the listener. It's simply amazing. 'Antidoto Mentale' closes the album with the leading role for Galifi. This includes lots of vintage keyboards played pleasantly too.

Conclusion: Il Tempio Delle Clessidre deserves to be hailed by their debut. Blending the warmth and melodic flair of the Mediterranean musical tradition with the driving energy of rock and the artistic ambition of prog, the band released one of the best albums to have come out of Italy. While taking their cue from the prog music produced in the 70's the band manages to sound fresh and up-to-date, and not a mere exercise of nostalgia. Il Tempio Delle Clessidre delivered quite an achievement with an album that they can be very proud of. A flawlessly performed, lovingly presented effort, Il Tempio delle Clessidre will surely bring a lot of listening pleasure to the many fans of the Italian progressive rock style. It's highly recommended for people who enjoy the music of the 70's made by Genesis, Yes, Camel, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Premiata Forneria Marconi, Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso and Le Orme. You should definitely invest in this band.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

The opener "Allegro con brio" starts with a dramatic crescendo that leads to a more dynamic part and ends with a short vocal part sung in English that conjures up the image of a young woman sitting on the legs of a stranger, still waiting to find the right man... Then comes the long, complex "Phoebus" that every now and again could recall Genesis and Gentle Giant. It's sung in English and tells in music and words the dark story of a dwarf that kills for vengeance and runs away but, in my opinion, this track is heavily penalised by vocals that here are not completely up to the task...

The dreamy atmospheres of the instrumental "Melodia di fine autunno" (Melody of late autumn) lead to the reflective "Aria e vento" (Air and wind), an intricate piece that, as you can guess from the subtitle, is about the doubts you can experience when confronted with the disclosure of your own anxieties. Confess or not confess you sins? Can you trust other people and open your heart feeling a sense of freedom or is it better keeping your secrets well locked up in a tower without windows nor walls? Sometimes it's a hard choice and maybe you'd better take it easy and follow your fate... This time the vocals are in Italian and succeed in delivering a strong emotional impact.

The last track, "5/5/1555", is a suite that recalls Banco del Mutuo Soccorso and is divided into three parts. It stages an imaginary dialogue, set on May 5, 1955, between the duke of Parma and his son about the combined marriage with the daughter of the king of France. The young man is in love with another girl, but the father tries to push him to take a decision with his brain and not with his heart. The first part is subtitled "Mattina" (Morning) and here we can listen to the duke telling his son to bury his bravery and to keep quiet his pride. The son is bewildered, confused, he can't think... The second part is subtitled "Pomeriggio" (Afternoon) and is completely instrumental, it's up to the your imagination figuring out the troubles of the young man who has to choose between love and power... The third part is subtitled "Sera" (Evening) and it's where the son makes up his mind: although he cries for a while, his love slowly fades away in the name of the reason of the state...

On the whole, a good album that deserves a try!

The title of the opener "La città di Dite" (The city of Dite) refers to an imaginary infernal city described by Dante Alighieri in his Divine Comedy. According to the sommo poeta, Dite is the place where the heretics, buried in red-hot stone graves, pay for their sins. Here the music and words deal with the inner hell of the protagonist. The piece starts by a dramatic piano solo intro then the other instruments come in as the vocalist plays the role of a disturbed man, one who fears climbing the slippery stairs that lead from the heart to the brain. If you fall from that damned staircase you'll land with your broken spine where the devil's tail lies...

The long, complex, "Sensitività" (Sensitivity), is an amazing track that evokes in music and words the effort of transmuting and sublimating the energy of a person in an inner alchemy to improve the ability to feel, to have sensations, to perceive stimuli through the senses with the aim of finding the way towards truth and self-consciousness. Here the lyrics are like brush strokes of colour quoting holy scriptures and philosophical works, literature and obscure, esoteric rites focused on the reaffirmation of the human connection with the supernatural world...

Then comes the ethereal, melancholic "Tenue" (Tenuous). There are no liner notes to explain the lyrics of this track but they seem to be inspired by the life of Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova, Russian astronaut known for being the first and youngest woman in space, having flown a solo mission on the Vostok 6 on 16 June 1963. Later in her life she got involved in her country political life, when there was not much left of the Red Russia and its application of real socialism. The dreams and ideals of the old Soviet Union turn to ashes on the sounds of distant radio frequencies, fading away like memories soon destined for oblivion...

The following "Chiusa 1915" evokes a beautiful, dizzying landscape and memories of war soaring from the woods. This beautiful piece is about the construction of the Val Gardena Railway or Klausen-Plan, a narrow gauge railway operating in the Dolomites. It was constructed during the first World War, when the region was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The works begun in September 1915 and the line was completed and opened on 6 February 1916, thanks to the conscripted labour of some 6,000 Russian prisoners of war, here depicted as sad living shadows pushed by the steam of a crazy gear. The railway was 32.5 km long and was the highest line operated by the Italian Railways with a summit of 1,595m above sea level. It closed on 28 May 1960 and now a long section between Santa Cristina Val Gardena and Ortisei is a beautiful public footpath, the Val Gardena Railway Trail...

Then it's the turn of "Tensegrità" (Tensegrity), a reflection about child abuse and the way the monsters of childhood contribute to shape a mature person with the floating compression of his emotions and feelings. This piece ends with an invocation to Hecate, a goddess in ancient Greek religion and mythology with domains in sky, earth, and sea that is variously associated with crossroads, entrance-ways, night, light, magic, witchcraft and more. The protagonist, to have his real nature revealed prays the goddess to take him with her in a long journey across the three worlds...

The title of the following "Pauvre Misère" refers to a 1953 song by French singer-songwriter Georges Brassens evoking the situation of agricultural workers and small landowners who toil on small farms and go on, modestly, without complaint. Here the music and lyrics update the concept and draw a bleak tableau of urban desolation conjuring up the image of a country that devours his inhabitants, a city full of lights and fake smiles where a poor man, an underclass worker, can only look at the show of consumerism. The face of Che Guevara printed on the tight tee-shirt of a young woman, stretched under her bosom, becomes the symbol of a faded revolution turning into something else...

The long, complex "La temperanza" (The temperance) ends the album and refers to the fourteenth trump or Major Arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks. Temperance is usually depicted as a winged angel pouring liquid from one cup into another to represent the dilution of wine with water, a symbol of moderation. Here the music and the hermetic lyrics draw disquieting images where you can find obscure symbolism and floating memories to describe the fragments of a life spent with too much moderation and without enthusiasm...

On the whole, and excellent work that grows spin after spin!