NOWHERE NOW HERE

Wow! What a great album. I wish it would have lasted a little longer. This is one of the most fresh and imaginative prog music I have listened to in 2016. I hear many things going on here:

-great instrumentals (particularly track 3, which features a thrilling violin/guitar interplay that is both virtuosic and full of emotion),

-masterly crafted songs (track 2, 4 and 7, to name only some examples, which contain a perfectly balanced amalgam of voice and instruments, full of beautiful melodies and wonderful arrangements, great solos included),

-great guitar work in all the 8 tracks, from a guitarrist that is more into creating emotion and moods with every note he plays instead of trying to overwhelm the listener with hundreds of notes per second; many good examples, but I would choose track 3 and track 8 to show how a wonderful guitar work contributes to the general mood of the piece,

-refreshing sounds and unusual timbres coming from the keyboards, which perform an excellent and very imaginative job along the whole album,

-drums and percussion work of artisan quality, providing not only rhythm but also color to the pieces (all tracks, but listen only to tracks 1, 2 or 8 to have an example of this),

-what else I hear in this music? I hear risk and experimentation in this music, I hear mainly prog but also jazz undercurrents informing the pieces, I hear, yes, touches of Gilmour, of Crimson, of Wilson, of Weather Report, maybe some Bill Frisell, .....but, all in all, somehow, a unique sound, a sound that seems to be peculiar to this band, I cannot think of any other contemporary prog rock band that quite sounds like TEMPANO. Listen to the wonderful track 8, maybe the highest point in the album, to have an idea of the stories this band wants to tell: this track is a good summary of that blend of experimentation, tradition, prog and jazz undercurrents, exceptional guitar and keyboards work (also sax, by the way: a key ingredient in the piece), carefully crafted bass, drums and percussion work -that this music contains. But, more importantly, once you forget how the music is actually made, this piece of music is a good example of the carrousel of emotions that flow through the album, all the instruments, including the voice and sound effects, working towards the creation of a song of a strange quality: sometimes luminous, sometimes sombre, sometimes even disquieting, a true meeting of opposites, as the title implies.

A great album, no doubt. I can't stop listening to it and discovering new nuances and subtleties every time.

Every now and then an album appears out of nowhere that knocks you out, an unexpected instant desert island, an album you know you can't forget about it, one classic, forever with you, one you revisit frequently.

Nowhere nowhere is that album for me, Tempano has matured into a band that can do no wrong and delivered the most inspired album of their career and, again, for me, one of the best albums of the last few years so far.

The album encapsulates musical styles ranging from fusion to progressive rock, blended magically in a way that makes you wonder how do they do it so smoothly. An eclectic work that navigates from song to song across different moods.

There is a great balance between all instruments but if you listen closely you will discover that each one plays their own melody, the result, an elegant complexity that does not invade you, music played with passion.

There is one more thing about this band, the lyrics are carefully written, meaningful, there is a sense of direction that many bands lack, and to add one more magical element, the voice by an experienced singer, amazing how the guy can sing.

Tempano is formed by professional musicians, its evident just by listening to this album, it's simply rewarding for my ears, and with so much music being made, finding albums that really are different and special is becoming harder, Thanks you guys !