COME STA ANNIE?

With an existence spanning merely three years, Italian act NICHELODEON has been a rather productive ensemble so far, with two full length efforts to their name, the latest of these "Il gioco del silenzio" from 2010. In addition, 2010 saw them release their first DVD as well, featuring half the material from the aforementioned latest CD as well as six pieces celebrating the 20 year anniversary of the final episode of Twin Peaks.

Musically I'll refer to mine and others descriptions of their CDs for a more detailed view as far as musical style goes, and will limit the description of previously covered material to the fact that we're dealing with a band exploring avantgarde music of the progressive variety. I assume most people interested in purchasing this DVD will be familiar with the band previously anyhow, and those who aren't know where to get more information.

The second half of the DVD, dedicated to Twin Peaks, covers much the same territory, but arguably with an even greater intensity. Pacier, more frantic and more dissonant than the material found on the companion CD of 2010. Some of the soundtrack from the TV-series are covered, but in a manner which doesn't make it instantly recognizable. Much the same can be said about the parts from Wham's mega-hit Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go which apparently is found in this live performance. At least according to the credits. In short, the Twin Peaks celebration is mostly made up by music inspired by the TV series, and the main connection are the final episode of the show itself, which is played out on a screen behind the band whilst performing these creations.

As is the case with most contemporary DVD productions these days, the audio has been captured brilliantly from this concert. Most of the people purchasing this DVD will find it to be as good as expected and hoped, and this aspect of the production is at least on par with other live concerts I have watched, and probably slightly better than a fair few of them.

The video footage, captured by three different cameras I believe, isn't quite on level with the best out there. Lightyears better than most such footage dating back a few years obviously, but compared to for instance Metal Mind's range of DVDs this one is of a lesser quality. So if you're dependant on top of the range image quality this effort will most likely not be of your interest.

Apart from that the footage has been carefully assembled, with good coverage of the various band members and extensive of the video footage the band utilize on stage, which does add a better understanding of their material. Compositions that came across less than interesting on CD alone are clearly enhanced by the footage used on stage to visualize them. And in the case of the Twin Peaks inspired set of songs, the combination of the TV episode and the musical numbers inspired by it makes for an exhausting but captivating experience.

Fans of Nichelodeon who would like to see them in a live setting will get value for their money if they choose to get this DVD, and for those accustomed to experimental progressive rock who'd like to get to know this act by way of a DVD this production should cater for such a need. How much of a quality release it is depends very much on taste obviously, but those with interests as outlined above will most likely find it to be a very good creation in general. And until the digital video technology makes another quantum leap in quality, it will most likely be the visually best representation of this band in a live setting available.