LA VIA DELLA SETA

I had written a much longer review on this one but somehow I must have psuhed the wrong button and lost all the text: F#****!!!!! So I'll be brief. Like so many other fans of the band, I was a bit skeptical about this work since foudner member (and voice of the band) Aldo Tagliapietra left the band. Thus leaving drummer Michi Dei Rossi as the sole original member. But somehow they pulled it together with producer Fabio Trentini handling bass and acoustic guitar duties. Vocals would be another story entirely since Tagliapietra has a very beautiful and unique voice that was one of Le Orme's trademarks. But again the remaining members did a nice job of asking the services of Jimmy Spitaleri (of Metamorfosi fame) to fill the void

The results were quite stunning: the music is pretty much Le Orme at its best, meaning a fine symphonic keyboard driven rock, with beautiful melodies and a strong link with both italian classical and popular music. In fact I found it to be one of their most satisfying albums in a long time and on par with their classic stuff of the 70's. In fact, La Via Della Seta is a very inspired and well performed album that reeks of their 70's sound all the time, but this time with a much better, crystal clear, production. Spitaleri has a beautiful voice and a very emotional delivering that fits very well the music here. Different voice from Tagliapietra, but equally powerful and convincing.

The instrumental parts are brilliant as ever, with very nice use of piano, moog and Hammong organ, plus a few electric guitar solos (courtesy of guest member William Dotto) for good measure. Everything fits in like a glove and nothing here is overplayed. I should mention that Dei rossi is still one fo Italy's best and most versatille drummers. Another excellent musician, Federico Gava, also helps on the keyboards.

If you're into Italian symphonic prog, then you simply cannot miss this CD. With all the problems they had, they still can surprise us delivering an excellent album after all these years. Le Orme is truly special.

Rating: 4,5 stars. Highly recommended!