ORLANDO: LE FORME DELL'AMORE

Over the past year I have really delved deep into Italian prog, something which had previously been a big blind spot for me. Very quickly Banco rose to the top and have cemented themselves as a top five 70s prog band for me. 'Orlando: Le Forme dell'Amore' is the latest album from the current incarnation of the band. The prior album 'Transiberiana' from 2019 I thought was solid but nothing something that left much of a mark on me. So going in Orlando I was not expecting much and when I also saw it had a length of nearly 80 minutes, my hopes for the album dropped drastically.

But to my surprise Orlando is a big step up from its predecessor. This album is actually really good. I do think it is too long and could have done with some editing down. But having said that I do enjoy every song, so what I would actually cut out I am not entirely sure. The album has great instrumentation, with clear nods to their past but still firmly modern sounding. This is certainly no retro album. What grabbed me the most however is how catchy the album is, there are so many great melodies throughout. This element is a particular improvement over Transiberiana.

A big shout out needs to go to vocalist Tony D'Alessio who has one of the toughest tasks in prog, having to fill the massive shoes left by the late Francesco Di Giancomo who was one of the great prog vocalists. D'Alessio thankfully does not try to imitate the unique Di Giancomo (an impossible task), but he does deliver a great performance in his own right. He sings with great emotion that is worthy of Di Giancomo. Overall, this album has been a pleasant surprise. It is rare for veteran bands to deliver an album this good so late into their career.