VOLA

While the roots of Mosaico date to around 2000, it was not until 2014 that their debut album was released. That long period of time and the age of the band members might explain why this Third Wave RPI release often reminded me of the Second Wave, which, while we all may have differing opinions on the history, in my mind is the period from the late '80s to early '00s. This was the period when those bands carrying the torch for the '70s "Classic" First Wave began to make their own mark. Excitement was building. Mellow Records was releasing lots of lost RPI gems on compact disc giving new fans the chance to hear this work. By the late '00s and on, we had entered a third wave of RPI in my opinion, with lots of new and successful releases which were increasingly heavy and now incorporating even metal influences of bands, moving beyond the Neo-Prog and Symphonic-heavy '90s in some cases.

Vola, clearly a Third Wave release if we're looking at calendars, still has much Second Wave vibe to it. It reminds me of some of those old Mellow Records artists I heard early in my RPI journey, bands like Cooperative Del Latte, Mindflower, Tilion, and Pierpaolo Bibbo. This is a marvelously melodic and assessable mix of symphonic with lighter folkish touches in the feel and instrumentation. "Lenti Passi" was far and away my favorite, great chorus and bubbly bass. The approach is to have a modern sound with expected nods to the spirit of classic RPI, most notably in the keyboards and the acoustic/electric guitar tradeoffs. Even a fair amount of accordion! The playing is impressive as are the vocals, all in Italian. As for the composition specifics, I would direct you to both Andrea and Michael's excellent reviews. They seem to have a bit more enthusiasm for the songs of Vola than I do. I do think it's good, but three stars is best I can do.

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