STORIE DI UOMINI E NON

I can't believe how many amazing albums came out of Italy in the seventies. Is there an end to these obscure gems that keep coming out of the woodwork ? I hope not ! Thankyou Finnforest for bringing this band and OFFICINA MECCANICA to my attention, and to Todd who told me about these same two bands not long after Finnforest did. I ordered these two recordings at the same time and for me they will always be associated with one another.Two incredible bands and albums.

"L'Ultima Spiaggia" is the longest and perhaps most adventerous track on here. It hits the ground running with horns blasting. Nice bass as the guitar comes in ripping it up. A calm before 1 1/2 minutes as the melody stops and flute eventually comes in. We get vocals for the first time 3 minutes in and they are fantastic ! I really like his voice. It sounds like cello 4 1/2 minutes in as bass and horns follow. Great sound 5 1/2 minutes in then it kicks back in to a fuller sound. Check out the guitar before 7 1/2 minutes ! Passionate vocals, guitar and horns after 8 1/2 minutes. Haha.They're playing and singing with feeling. It settles again after 10 minutes, great vocals here. Love the sax before 11 1/2 minutes.The guitar is back shredding to end it. Now I can breathe. "Il Soldato" opens in a pastoral way as reserved vocals come in. Melancholic horns before 3 minutes.The vocals return 5 minutes in to the end.

"E" reminds me of the first track the way the horns come out blasting. They even get a little dissonant after a minute then some raw sounding guitar arrives. Horns and drums join in. It settles before 2 1/2 minutes but kicks back in quickly. "Io Robot" is mellow and laid back to begin with. Vocals before 1 1/2 minutes. Drums and a full sound a minute later. Great sound ! Check out the flute 4 minutes in. Another excellent section after 6 minutes. I like the horns and the beat. This song reminds me of AREA quite a bit. "Martino" sounds like there might be some fuzz in that intro. It settles a minute in, vocals follow and they're amazing. Drums pound as horns and guitar do their thing when the vocals stop. They break into a nice rhythm after 3 minutes. Vocals are back. I like the ending.

This is a must for Italian fans out there along with OFFICINA MECCANICA's album.