AL VOLO

yep, first review ;)

My God, didn't know they're Avant. For me this one sounded pretty melodical and even poppy - look at the release's year. Besides it has nothing Italian in it except for wonderful vocals and lyrics - I mean musically it is NOT Italian. To give you a chance to imagine, take late 70s GENTLE GIANT, mix it with RUSH 81-87 and force them to play something 80s CRIMSO-related. Weird you say? Hell no! Melodic and sometimes even cheesy despite all this signatures and Frippique sound (the songs are pretty short, by the way). I liked the opening tracks here, and even thought of giving it a 3-star rating, but the further we go the more "samey" music goes. Boring and repetitive, nothing completely interesting. I wonder what did they play in 1975 (highly acclaimed album) and maybe I'll try to get that one. "Al Volo" is not recommended, only if you want to hear an Italian band playing non-Italian music. Not the best example though.

Two stars in terms of progressiveness; this reviewer greatly enjoys Al Volo and would personally rate it over three.

The preceding reviewer mentioned King Crimson's third era and that does seem to be a major touchstone, although there are non-guitar instruments brooding behind the grungy distortion and the loud bass, mostly in the form of '80s style synthesizer play.

Unlike the aforementioned band's "Discipline", "Al Volo" has a wider scope and is not always so claustrophobic, nor so neurotic. Generally speaking, the tracks alternate between a powerful number and a more relaxed, contemplative piece. Of the oddly numbered songs, "Piazza degli Affari" in particular leaves me wishing I had studied italian as it is propulsive and immediate, like a song with a definite agenda, while the subsequent "Ragionamenti" calms down to the point where the song is carried by a vocal ensemble, reminding me of a prog christmas carol - possibly what Prog-Jester has in mind when he references Gentle Giant.

The three albums that come before this one are more important to progressive rock, especially "L'Apprendista" which surely helped them become one of the original RIO members. It's safe to forego investigation into "Al Volo" as it is not an important work, just an enjoyable one.

Even a RIO artist sometimes must go to the supermarket to buy food, soaps and this kind of things. If you are already in the 80s when having a vibraphone instead of a fairlight is considered excessively experimental you can have an idea of why Stormy Six made an album like this.

The style is still Avant, IMO, the lyrics have completely lost the political connotations and even if still clearly left-winged they are more concentrated on "society" and "individuals". A sort of Italian Roger Waters, but there's an evident change in the musical direction: no more violin or clarinet. It's like in the 80s only keyboards are allowed.

There's a lot of melody even inside unusual passages. The choir in "alpine" style on "Ragionamenti" is very original, but this album seems to be a turn back to the more classical RPI and this is maybe one of the reasons of their disbanding. You can't produce pure art and eat steaks at the same time. Even one sixth of the Stormies may have a family at home...

So being them true innovative artists they have probably taken the right decision in disbanding after this release that I think they may have disliked.

I don't dislike it anyway. The fact that it's less avant or more approachable than the two previous releases doesn't mean that it's bad. There are unusual passages and sounds as well as melodic moments of RPI flavor. Don't forget that they're Italians.

Of course if you expect to be eating chocolate and find marmite you will be disappointed, but you can realize that marmite is not too bad in its own.

The bad with this album is that remains in the middle, not completely RIO and not completely RPI but the musicians are the same high skilled guys of Macchina Maccheronica.

Don't treat them too badly.

3 stars.

In Italy very few people know the Stormy Six and those very few are elderly people who were leftist militants in the Seventies or Eighties. I met the Stormy Six by chance, they were the apologists of another band at a concert held at the Communist party show in the early Nineties. Even then they were considered dinosaurs, extinct fossils but they had a small audience of their own. In short, they were a cult group, considered combat-folk (politically militant folk), not prog-rock. Their manifesto song was Stalingrado.

After that concert, I looked for their discs, and listening to them, I became a fan. Their music is very elaborate: Stormy Six are not the typical folk group with acoustic guitars and politically engaged lyrics: their music is as demanding and sophisticated as their lyrics. "Al Volo" is their last record. The first song "Non si sa dove stare" (vote 7,5) has an almost electronic sound, syncopated, based on rhythm, which recalls certain new wave music. "Reparto Novità" (vote 7) contains a critique of the consumer society. It is also a ballad punctuated by the rhythm section (Pino Martini on bass, Salvatore Garau on drums). The singing (Umberto Fiori) is stunted. The third song, "Piazza degli Affari" (Affairs Square) is an electronic track (Tommaso Leddi on synths); weak (voto 6,5).

"Ragionamenti" is another electronic ballad, with robotic rhythm, Ultravox style. But then there are polyphonic choirs and vibes solo (Franco Fabbri). Very strange (vote 7,5). "Panorama" is again marked by the great work of the bass, which gives way to a song once again difficult, suffered, but without reaching a great pathos, without arriving to the mood of existential angst that pervades the records of Peter Gabriel, that these tracks recall (vote 6,5/7).

"Roma" has a sunny beginning, but soon the gloomy atmosphere is outlined by the voice and the bass, alternating with a rare melodic opening (vote 7+). "Parole grosse" (Big Words) has an electronic start and then repeat the robotic rhythm already heard (vote 6,5). In general these songs are blurred, the arrangement is sought but does not reach that sound capable of transmitting strong emotions. The singer's voice does not have the anguish that shines through for example in Peter Gabriel, and is better in other contexts.

"Denti" (Teeth) is a short but lively song (vote 6.5 / 7), which makes irony on television: again the group chooses social satire instead of the politically militant song. The last track ("Cosa danno", again on TV, vote 6+) is happy again (the record ends with an increase in rhythm and extroversion) but too obvious and repetitive.

"Al Volo" is an unconventional album, which does not seek the easy commercial success, but does not find its strong identity, and in fact after this disc ends the experience of Stormy Six, which feel overcome by the times, both ideological and musical. A band that still deserves a lot of respect because it has previously recorded remarkable records, and unique in the Italian scene.

Medium Quality of the Songs: 6,89. Vote album: 6+. Rating: Two Stars.