...DI TERRA

With seven studio albums on their back (two of them in English),Banco del Mutuo Soccorso were ready to push their skills a bit further.For the second time Francesco Di Giacomo and his splendid voice get out of the picture and the band collaborates with the Orchestra dell'Unione Musiciti di Roma for their next effort ''...di terra'',released in 1978 on Ricordi,the first album since ''Io sono nato libero'' again on this label.

With the help also of Alan King on saxes and flute,this whole instrumental journey is a true obscure experiment for the entire Italian Prog/Rock scene.While ''Nel cielo e nelle altre cose mute'' sets the listener in the mood for pieces of Classical Music,''Terramadre'' and ''Non senza dolore'' finds the band battling through complex KING CRIMSON-esque jazzy patterns with the orchestra,later to add experimental synth work in the mix.''Non senza dolore'' contains also strong elements from Eastern-Music.The long ''Io vivo'' is an alternating piece between Symphonic Music and rock experimentation with complicated piano and dissonant rock structures.Another long track ''Né più di un albero non meno di una Stella'' starts off as a romantic symphonic piece to end up as a groovy number with fusion-esque elements on both keyboards and guitars.''Nei suoni e nei silenzi'' will much soften things down,a weird combination of electronics and symphonic music with a soft jazzy mood.The closing self-titled track is again somekind of grandiose soundtrack music with stand-out work on guitars by Rodolfo Maltese and complex keys by Vittorio Nocenzi.

Believe me,this is one of the most challenging and complex works of Italian prog and Banco del Mutuo Soccorso already left traces of this work in the past for all the experienced futurologists of art/prog music.The feeling are a bit mixed up,parts of the album show the greatness and talent of these musicians,while others are too excessive to be followed by the average listener.The album yet deserves a recommendation not only for the good quality,but also for the band's nerve to release such an ambitious work around the time of commercial music's growing heydays.