ROCK PROGRESSIVO ITALIANO

Catia initiates the dual vocal with Mateo operating right under her scintillating vocal, a sublime piano weaving an intricate and spellbinding melody, churlish organ and strings penetrating the nearly medieval arrangement, until a rough guitar and rhythm section assaults the senses only to teeter back and forth between speed and serenity. There is a symphonic hint of Gentle Giant, in that the sonic evolution constantly incorporates hypnotic twists, Matteo doing a fine variation on Derek Shulman's dance with violins and cello. This 10-minute epic also infuses some narration before returning to Catia's echoing lament, channeling darker confines before screeching vertiginously into a wild assemblage of conflicting sounds and opposing emotions, waiting for the solitary piano to tuck you in for the night.

A completely altered soundscape is exhibited on the ultra-cool and jazzy shuffle of "Canto Per Lucy", an immutable bass groove that stops and starts as if dealing with congested traffic, sprinkled with glittering piano passages that flow like the Tyrolian Mountain rivers. The softer auditory realms are markedly attractive and evocative of countless imaginary visions, hints of old school Genesis in the keyboard/guitar interplay and an all-around laid-back delivery, highly confident and relaxed, a truly inspiring number.

The ornate piano rules once again on the classical tinged intro of "L'Empio Simulacro", before choir mellotron throws all caution to the wind, and maximum acceleration is locked into gear for another extended roller-coaster prog rock ride. The alternating male/female vocals give each singer the spotlight to show off their skills, constantly disrupted by unexpected variants that may include oddly muted sound effects that induce a sense of dark tension and explicit drama. The strings do a danse macabre with the eccentric syncopation, enhancing hints of a vaporous image of a "Glass House" and still colliding with pristine piano chords, this is quite the aural labyrinth. The ensuing and extended organ solo is priceless and bloody amazing!

Then comes the marathon 23-minute mastodont that stamps this album with various waxed seals of excellence, a cornucopia of meshed intersections slicing across the focal core of the story, overloaded with a surfeit of dramaturgical pyrotechnics, verging on a progressive opera of the highest order. Flush with offbeat time signatures, turn-on-a-dime ricochets, screwing guitar drills, and enough robust rhythmic exuberance to thrill the most percussive of fans. Half-way through, the atmosphere enters pastoral realms not far from the bucolic sections of Anthony Phillips' classic works, such as the celebrated masterpiece "Slowdance", then moving into another phase of female voice-led exploration, accentuated by some stunning lead guitar exertions from Girard as well as Gasparetti's redolent mellotron efforts. Yet, all this apparent mayhem seems totally targeted with intelligent purpose and it works subito presto! Multiple auditions only increase the level of genius displayed here, truly mind- boggling! A fine companion to PFM's classic "Promenade the Puzzle"

"La Radiante Foresta" completes the program with one final onslaught on the senses, though a softer climate was deemed necessary in order to calm down the pulsating heartbeat and return to some semblance of sanity and equilibrium. Once again, the cello and strings play a large role, augmented by cascades of acoustic guitars clanging in harmony, Matteo fluid voice navigating the gentle winds emanating from his lungs as the ever-growing arrangement swells into a paroxysm of celestial voices and sounds that can only cure all the ills of a weary and abused brain.

This is a stellar slice of RPI, a must discovery for those seeking to broaden their horizons and fall under the spell of musicians who cherish their traditions and seek to develop them ever further. On par with Celeste's latest offering as well as Barock Project's "Time Voyager", the crafty Italians never fail to show up, year after year, with quality progressive rock releases. Forza Italia!

5 Norse deities

The band was connected with another Savona band Il Giro Strano which keyboardist Alessio Feltri played in simultaneously. That band existed from 1971-79 and never released albums during its run but also would find archival interest in the 90s. CORTE DEI MIRACOLI was distinct in that it featured two keyboard players (Alessio Feltri, Riccardo Zegna) and no guitarist. The band also featured Graziano Zippo on vocals, bassist Gabiele Siri and drummer Flavio Scogna. The band played the live circuit for its entire existence and it was only just before the recording of this album that original keyboardist Michele Carlone was replaced by jazz pianist Riccardo Zegna.

A typical symphonic prog band in many ways CORTE DEI MIRACOLI featured the same style of romantic vocals, adventurous instrumental excursions that alternated from dreamy folk oriented passages to more bombastic hard rock. The double use of keyboards is taken to its extreme as the album opens with the beginning flurry of sound with "E Varrà L'Uomo" but the album features a lot of intricately designed softer motifs as well, equally at home with lush classically inspired piano runs. The band like so many in the Italian prog scene were all seasoned veterans in their retrospective field and although similar to other Italian prog bands such as Banco, PFM and Le Orme still delivered a rather distinct sound.

Although the band was not successful in the least as it dropped its sole album on the market the very same year it disbanded, this one has become a second tier favorite amongst many intrepid explorers of 70s Italian prog and for good reason. The album provides all the instant connections of a great Italian prog album with exquisite melodic developments that are fortified with all the excessive instrumentation and creative heft that a prog lover could hope for. Perhaps the vocalist could have been a bit more robust in his performances or better yet incorporate a more unique stylistic approach to his singing style but still manages to get the job done adequately enough. The album also offers some interesting percussive deviations form the norm. The guitar is not really missed at all as the two keyboardists fill the space commendably.

While i do not believe this is a concept album, the science fiction themed cover art is one of my favorites from the Italian 70s scene. Overall this is an excellent album. Not quite up to the level of the greatest Italy had to offer during this era but certainly a very competent band that delivered its own version of the style that made Italy a center of masterful progressive rock. This one is definitely recommended to those who love a double doses of symphonic splendor as the two keyboardists are on the top of their game and offer some excellent dueling moves when they get down and dirty. A rather unique experience in the greater Italian prog scene even if it doesn't reach masterpiece status. The band's earlier recordings though with the first lineup would have to be shelved for many years before seeing the light of day but as the prog revival of the 90s take hold, even the more obscure bands like CORTE DEI MAIRACOLI finally appealed to a greater audience.

In 1971 the band unleashed its most famous release CONCERTO GROSSO PER I NEW TROLLS which was basically ground zero for the classically infused Italian prog that exploded onto the scene soon thereafter. The music on the album was written by Luis Enriquez Bacalov, the Argentine film score composer who collaborated with a number of Italian bands during the early 70s prog boom. Fortified with orchestral arrangements and ambitious musical workouts, NEW TROLLS adopted the symphonic aspects of The Moody Blues along with the rock infused energy of The Nice and delivered one of Italy's most famous classical crossover rock albums of the era and one that announced to a nation still suffering from a 60s beat hangover that the times have a-changed and that the wild prog 70s had arrived.

The album featured two long tracks that filled each side of the original vinyl edition. The opening title track featured four suites ranging from a violin led orchestra introducing the show on "Allegro" and continues with dreamy vocal led progressive rock on "Adagio." "Cadenza" provides a haunting mood setting with a frenetic violin solo whereas it all ends with "Shadows (per Hendrix)" which displays a more acid rock heavy psych approach complete with an unhinged guitar freak out at the end. Throughout it all are elements of folk music with Jethro Tull-like flute performances and although the band had graduated to full-blown prog, the beat aspects in the drumming pattern still found their way into the mix. This was very much a transitional album from the 60s psychedelic rock trends to the wild and fully developed prog that bands like PFM, Banco and Il Balletto di Bronzo would deliver the following year.

The second side is a NEW TROLLS composition and features the 20 1/2 minute "Nella Sala Vuota, Improvvisazioni Dei New Trolls Registrate In Diretta" which is the cream of the crop on the album as it pushes the prog rock characteristics even further with a series of cadences and motifs that morph and offer basically what amounts to songs within songs. The keyboard performances are feistier as is the rock guitar, bass and drum rhythmic drive. On this one the band delivers a reckless abandon and simply goes for it as opposed to the more structured and reserved compositional flow of the A-side. Side B offered more exploration in meandering through various moods with shifting dynamics and a greater emphasis on soloing. While the keyboard excursions are pleasant i could live without the seven minute drum solo at the end though. Luckily the track resolves itself with a feisty band performance ending that matches the intensity of the drummer.

Sure this isn't the best prog album of the 70s but it surely is one of the most historically relevant and it's also fairly unique sounding as it perfectly capture that in-between stage between the psych-fueled 60s and the unleashed prog excesses that would very quickly follow. The musicians perform all the movements perfectly and although there is some downtime here and there which keeps the album from being perfect, nothing is so bad that it's not listenable. Much of the album is the perfect mix of classical and rock and for a rough draft of Italian prog so to speak, it's actually a brilliantly designed album. Excellent Hammond organ work, dynamic flute and guitar parts, more than competent drumming with Nico Di Palo's vocal style passionately delivering high register operatic walloping wails.

Named after the fact one of the members had been in a band simply called I Trolls, this updated version proved to be innovative enough from its very beginning stages and even opened for The Rolling Stones on their 1967 tour based on the release of a mere single called "Senzioni." The band released its first album SENZA ORARIO, SENZA BANDIERA (No Time, No Flag) in 1968 which is considered to be the first Italian rock concept album forged by the poetry of Richard Mannerini and then reworked by the Italian singer / songwriter Fabrizio De André which crafted a single themed album where all the tracks ran together much like progressive rock albums that would follow. The music was written by Di Palo and De Scalzi with the exception of the track "Signore, io sono Irish" by Gian Piero Reverberi. Despite this being a concept album, i'm still not really sure what the concept is supposed to be about!

Given the album was released in 1968, SENZA ORARIO, SENZA BANDIERA was still far from the symphonic prog classical powerhouse that the band would release in 1971. This debut was still rooted in 60s beat music with psychedelic overtones such as the Hendrix inspired guitar sounds of Nico di Palo who would soon become one of Italy's most popular guitar heroes. Despite the 60s connections, NEW TROLLS was definitely innovating the beat pop music by offering symphonic elements even as early as this debut album with busy keyboard contributions orchestrating a classical-tinged backdrop and likewise the band was displaying the romantic vocal style that would become the staple of classic Italian prog in the 70s. The entire band contributed vocals and crafted some tight harmonies as well. Despite the progressive pop tendencies, the compositions themselves weren't very complex and based on the bluesy beat hooks that were popular during the era.

This is a rather mellow album that despite some sort of concept that will be decipherable by speakers of Italian pretty much flows from beginning to end like a very very long orchestrated pop song. The album is less than 27 minutes so it's not excessively long lasting but the musical ideas are fairly sparse with only the nascent prog ideas sprouting. The album comes across as Italy's answer to The Moody Blues' "Days Of Future Passed" only without the interesting compositions that take it anywhere exciting. The album is actually a bit boring as it seems like the same acoustic guitar strumming and music motif is extended throughout the entire album's run. Various moments do offer contrast but generally speaking, the musical flow is a bit of a one tricky pony and gets monotonous fairly quickly, a stark contrast to where NEW TROLLS would take its music just a few short years down the road. Sure it's a classic for planting the proper seeds in Italy's fertile music scene but as an interesting album in its own right it's just not very captivating.

2.5 rounded down

While in many ways the band was a typical Italian prog band with the classic folk and rock format that included two guitarists, a keyboardist, drummer, bassist and in RRR's case also a saxist / flautist, the band was led by the eccentric Luciano Regoli whose desire was to follow in the footsteps of the flamboyant Arthur Brown who was still rather unknown in Italy at the time. His first band was in Il Ritratto di Dorian Gray which never recorded its own music but proved to be the spawning grounds for Goblin's Claudio Simonetti and Quella Vecchia Locanda's bassist Massimo Giorgio. This experience prepared Regoli for the leadership role to steer his band RRR into more eclectic territory than what many other bands were aiming for.

PER? UN MONDO DI CRISTALLO is an early example of a science fiction themed concept album with lyrics written by the poet Maria Comin about a man who engages in an expedition to space only to return to a destroyed planet and all the loneliness and suffering he has to endure as he ponders the meaning of life and his struggle to find the will to continue on a depopulated destroyed planet. The album was one of the few post-apocalyptic albums of the Italian prog scene which set it apart significantly from the competition. The album features a series of musical motifs that shift between acoustically infused folk music with flutes to the more energetic guitar heavy rock. Regoli's vocal style is the top notch variety covering a wide range of octaves and evoking the classic PFM or Banco vibe however the music is darker and more mysterious.

Incorporating everything from knotty progressive rock workouts to jazzy touches, this album is designed to narrate the theme and offers a wide range of moods and dynamics shifting to pull it all off. The musicians are top notch with crazy keyboard runs and energetic hard rock outbursts balanced by dreamy symphonic prog touches that keep it within the realms of the romantic side of the Italian prog scene. The tracks are rather unpredictable in how they progress with off-kilter curve balls thrown in throughout the album's run without derailing the album's excellent attention to melodic processions that occasional veer into the avant-garde. The opening "Nulla" sets the tone with a dark brooding keyboard intro that paints the bleak picture of the stated man's mood as he returns to his once thriving life giving planet that is no more.

The album wastes no time ping ponging all over the place on "Su Una Rupe" which begins as a lush acoustically strummed dreamscape before erupting into a frenzy of knotty workouts and a passionate vocal led rock procession that finds an endless series of variations that continue throughout the album's playing time. While the musicianship is absolutely stunning, the production is a bit lackluster and has been a complaint of prog enthusiasts since the albums release however i can tolerate a less than perfect mixing job if the music delivers enough mojo magic to elevate the experience beyond that sole element and RRR certainly succeeded in that department. Fluent Italian speakers will also complain that the lyrics don't always relate to the concept but since my Italian is not of that level i can't say it bothers me too much especially since lyrics aren't my main focus anyways.

While considered by many to be a second tier band of the Italian prog scene, i beg to differ slightly. As far as success is concerned RRR may exist on a lower plane however as far as the talent and craftsmanship of the band's sole album is concerned i find this to be one of the most dynamically creative and well performed albums of the entire era. It's a bit of a strange one upon first exposure no doubt and requires an acclimation period but certainly delivers as many bold daring prog moves as all the greats of the day without sacrificing any of the attributes which makes it rather accessible in the melody making department. Nice diverse drumming styles, fiery performances contrasted with pastoral placidity and a more than competent singer and musical section. What's not to love about this one? Well, yeah the production which unfortunately many will cite as an inferiority. Masterpiece? Well maybe not quite but this is no doubt an excellent slice of creative Italian prog from the golden years.

Apart from the title track, "Goblin" is the second highlight to me, this 11 minute track standing well on its own. Stylistically, it borrows quite heavily from mid-70's Italian prog. Simonetti provides a good ride with synth leads and drummer accelerates to a 100km/h towards the end before returning to the symphonic motive. Perhaps the best Goblin track. "Dr. Frankenstein" is a fusion number, focused more on playing than composition but what a drive! Easily 4 or 4.5 stars.

Notable for mixing the classic RPI style with heavier rock, A PIEDI NUDI offered one of the most hards rocking blends of Italian prog since bands like Procession and Il Rovescio Della Medaglia burst on to the 70s scene with their own style of early proto-metal infused Italian prog. While experiencing lineup changes over its three album run throughout the 90s, the first lineup that appeared on this self-titled debut featured Mirko Schiesaro (vocals), Nicola Gardinale (guitar, backing vocals), Cristian Chinaglia (keyboards), Simone Bighetti (bass, 12-string guitar), and Carlo Bighetti (drums, flute, backing vocals). This would be the only album for lead vocalist Schiesaro who would jump ship after this debut allowing drummer Carlo Bighetti to pick up the additional task as lead singer. This dramatic darker variety of RPI debut featured 12 epic tracks that stampeded past the one hour mark.

Although several classic Italian prog bands added the extra touches of harder rock ranging from Osanna to Il Bigletto Di Bronzo, A PIEDI NUDI upped the ante so to speak and didn't just copy and paste past glories but rather took the romantic symphonic prog prototype of classic RPI artists and infused it with the modernities of the 1990s. With raw and aggressive rhythmic drives, A PIEDI NUDI delivered a borderline metal hybrid that offered a touch of alternative metal chord crunching along with the occasional modern guitar soloing techniques. The heavy rock freneticism of the guitar, bass and drums is accompanied by the more traditional keyboard styles of the 70s along with Schiesaro's vocals evoking the passionate romanticism of the classic era. This mix is stark and utterly unique as far as i've ever heard. While there were hard rocking RPI bands in the 70s, those bands deemphasized the symphonic prog aspects during their hard rock phase and focused on a more complex style of proto-metal. APIEDI NUDI feels equally at home in either the pastoral lushness of classic RPI as it does the modern world of heavier alt rock / metal.

This is even made more stark during turbulent instrumental outbreaks that take the guitar, bass and drumming action into overdrive meanwhile the keyboards remain staunchly rooted in the past as do the vocals which are fashionably sung entirely in the Italian language. The band also added elements of the darker world of contemporary rock with touches of gothic rock and grungy guitar tones. To call this album surreal would be an understatement as it sounds like two distinctly different bands from different eras gathered for a moment of cross-pollination that nobody else seemed to think of. Somehow despite the contrasting passionate display of Italian 70s sensibilities in cahoots with the harder nihilistic style of guitar playing that made the alternative 90s so distinct, the band pulls it all off quite successfully with neither style dominating and both finding the perfect middle ground to let the other simply meld into the overall mix of things.

And best of all this album doesn't sound the least bit gimmicky. The composiitons themselves are captivating and suit both the hard rock heft of the instrumentation as well as the more sentimental vocal and keyboard contributions. Overall this is a fascinating clash of two disparate musical scenes and one that A PIEDI NUDI delivered with gusto. Despite all odds, the pastoral tender aspects of the band's sound craftily cavort with the adrenalized rock bluster. All in all A PIEDI NUDI filigreed a fusion all their own and despite losing Schiesaro as the lead vocalist after this eponymous debut, would continue this unique federation of disparate musical forces. Although this one doesn't seem to get a lot of love, i find it captivating and utterly exhilarating!

The tunes are beautifully melodic with plenty of room for development and the musicianship, writing and production are all excellent throughout. I can't believe anyone who likes PRINCIPE DI UN GIORNO won't enjoy this release.

4.5 stars