INSOLITARIAMENTE

An ambitious and often interesting debut

Tilion (the name taken from a moon in Tolkien's "The Silmarillion") is a band from Bergamo Italy formed in 1998. According to their bio they were "founded from the ashes of PROWLERS, a group that released three albums in the nineties. Tilion consists of Roberto Bobo Aiolfi (bass), Paolo Cassago (drums), Alfio Costa (keyboards), Flavio Costa (guitars) and Andrea Ricci (vocals). The music of this group is symphonic progressive with some jazz influence and perhaps even hints of prog-metal..The debut album Insolitariamente was released.by Mellow Records. It is an album that is very much in the seventies Italian tradition and with a prominent use of vintage keyboards." "Insolitariamente" translates roughly to "Into a Lonely Mind" and is yet another good example of the new breed of Italian progressive rock: overflowing with ideas, difficult to pigeonhole, trend-averse, seeking freedom via the musical Vita-mix. This album reminds me of Egoband's "we are" in spirit if not completely in sound, but Tilion succeeds in crafting a more memorable album. Other bands recalled while spinning this album were Porcupine Tree and Oceansize, though only for some instances of guitar and drum, not songwriting, overall sound, or vocals. The album was recorded in the summer of 2002 at Sonica Studios in Rovereto.

The comparison to Egoband is relevant in three ways. First, both albums get high marks for aspirations while only partially succeeding at the lofty goals. Second, both albums are hard to describe definitively as they venture into so many different flavors. And last, and I feel bad having to say this because you don't want to hurt anyone's feelings, but both bands suffer a bit from vocals that are average at best, sometimes grating, sometimes even sounding off-key. (Singer Ricci has now left the band and I think it may serve them well in the long run.) This album, written in large part (but not entirely) by keyboardist Alfio Costa features five long pieces ranging from 6 to 16 minutes in length, with six short interludes gluing them together. The highlights are the feisty opening "Prologo" with its acoustic guitar/piano intro giving way to heavy guitar riffs and LOUD, bright cymbal crashes. Definitely gets your attention. The superb "Buio" is more a dream than a song with fine keyboard work up against shifting, adventurous rhythm sections. "Il Custode" and "Luna" both flounder a bit despite nice moments and are not as memorable as they could have been. Wedged between them is the wonderful "Solitaria Mente" featuring a sublime guest vocal by the Prowlers Laura Mombrini over great acoustic guitar playing with lots of harmonics on display. "Torpore Celebrale" features guest saxophone and some slow, steamy, laid back jamming. Later comes more Laura vocals and piano before the pace picks up. They dedicate 16 minutes to "Dietro i Ricordi" and it doesn't disappoint, exploring many avenues and having several pay off. A nice variety of great keyboard work, some flute, and a fiery electric guitar solo towards the end.

It's a good debut album despite the flaws and would certainly be enjoyed by fans of Mellow's eclectic artists, modern space rock fans, and Italian prog fans. But as with Egoband just be prepared for a few strikes here and there. While there are some excellent moments, overall it's not a 4 star album in my view. The band has a new album coming out soon on Musea.I'm excited by the prospect of different vocals and perhaps a bit more cohesion of the overall compositional theme, I will definitely be checking it out. 6/10

A new Italian band,who were formed in 1998 in Bergamo by Alfio and Flavio Costa after the demise of their previous band ''Prowlers''.TILION were named after the moon's name in J.R.R. Tolkien's ''Silmarillion'',a big resource for prog musicians all around the world.Summer 99' finds TILION supporting ''Deep Purple'' on their show in Pontoglio, with a demo-document of this performance coming out the same year.Another demo called ''Suoni'' was published the next year, distributed by Musea Records, until in 2003 the band releases their first full-length album on Mellow Records.

''Insolitariamente'' is a weird album:an unorthodox mix of dark complex prog and heavy Symphonic Rock with Jazz and even Avant-Garde touches here and there.The sound constantly alternates between romantic mellow passages and frenetic guitar-driven complicated themes from moment to moment.Flavio Costa delivers some decent yet heavy melodies with his guitar,but mostly his work has an evident KING CRIMSON-esque complex sound with sudden breaks and jazzy chords,a master of his instrument indeed.Even some piano parts in here create a haunting feeling in an improvisational mood,while the mightly mellotron is quite similar to ANEKDOTEN's approach.Italian Prog fanatics should not get dissapointed.The old,vintage and delicate Italian prog style is also present in the smoother moments,dominated by nice Hammond organ orgasms, moog acrobatics, warm vocal lines and well-crafted symphonic arrangements,recalling LE ORME and BANCO DEL MUTUO SOCCORSO.What is a bit out of the Italian approach are the modern distorted vocal techniques,while this blending of so many different styles is not always succesful,especially on the longer tracks.

However,this album contains plenty of trully interesting moments and definitely TILION are a band with unquestionable talent and a strong delivery on composing and song- writing.''Insolitariamente'' is a quite good album,which will satisfy music fans of different styles,while TILION are the new member on the list with modern prog bands we should keep an eye on.

Tilion had its origins back in November 1998 in Bergamo, Italy. It was formed out of the ashes of a 1990s Italian group called the Prowlers. The band is made up of bassist Roberto "Bobo" Aiolfi, drummer Paolo Cassago, keyboardist Alfio Costa (credited with Hammond organ, Minimoog, and Mellotron, plus others), guitarist Flavio Costa, and lead singer Andrea Ricci. On their debut album, recorded in the summer of 2002 and released the following year, the group is accompanied by guests Vincenzo Zitello on harps and flute, Laura Mombrini on vocals, and Adriano Ossoli on saxophone.

"Insolitariamente" almost seems like its a concept album, but my lack of understanding of the Italian language prevents me from ascertaining this based on the lyrics. However musically, the album has a prologue, an epilogue, and multiple short interludes between the main songs. This is the only thing that hints at that possibility. Online translators don't really help and my fellow reviewers here and elsewhere aren't hinting at that either. Oh well, let's move on...

The music on this one is generally a dark mix of psych and symphonic prog. But that just touches the surface. Not only are there influences from bands like Banco del Mutuo Soccorso and Le Orme, but also from King Crimson, Trespass-era Genesis, and even soundscapes that remind me of the Ozric Tentacles, plus occasional heavy guitar work. Some of the piano work is beautiful and sort of hints at Tale Cue. There are lots of quiet-to-loud and back to quiet transitions, all done seamlessly. The interplay of the members is fantastic. I think the one thing that bothers me most about the arrangement of the album is that the interlude tracks seem like filler. They often sound like short experiments that didn't lead anywhere and seem more like a distraction from the more important songs. The album to me would be better without them. All the meat is in the main tracks that range from six to over sixteen minutes long.

As for the production, this sounds very retro. It definitely has a 1970s sound rather than 2003. Whether that's on purpose is something I cannot answer for sure. The mix is sometimes inconsistent across the album. Bassist Roberto Aiolfi is an amazing player. He sort of reminds me of an Italian Mike Rutherford that can also slap the bass. Many times his playing is drowned out by the other instruments, however on Torpore Celebrale he's mixed in at the right level to show off his skills. Throughout the album, the snare drum comes off louder than I think it should. For some reason, most of the keyboard solos are placed slightly on the left side of the mix, rather than having them centered or evenly distributed across the stereo spectrum. I don't know if these slight flaws were due to limitations of the recording equipment or maybe they made some mixing decisions while being distracted with eggs or chickens or something. Nonetheless, these flaws don't distract my ears seriously enough from the enjoyment, the energy, and the powerful delivery of the music. It's a really great debut album.

If the flaws I mention above seem like they would bother you enough that you couldn't enjoy the music, then maybe this isn't the album for you. For RPI fans, this is well worth your time.

9/10 stars: Buio; Dietro i Ricordi (the two longest tracks) --- 8.5/10 stars: Luna --- 8/10 stars: Orizzonti sintetizzati; Torpore Celebrale --- 7.5/10 stars: Prologo; Epilogo --- 7/10 stars: Il Custode; Corale Tribale --- 6/10 stars: Solitaria Mente; Il pensiero dal Basso.

Overall rating: 8.25/10 (4.13 PA)