SFARATTHONS

"Odi et amo", the third album by the Sfaratthons, was self-released in 2023 with a consolidated line up featuring Luca Di Nunzio (piano, keyboards, guitar, vocals), Cecilio Luciano (drums), Mario Di Nunzio (bass), Giovanni Casciato (guitars) and Giovanni Di Nunzio (guitar, vocals) plus the guests Geoff Warren (flute), Sabatino Matteucci (sax) and Alessandra Iandimarino (vocals). The music is, as in their previous albums, an excellent mix of vintage influences, modern sounds and bright new ideas in the best tradition of Italian prog. This time for the lyrics they were helped by Donato Di Luca and (in only one track) Pietro Lugli while the colourful art cover was painted by their friend and former bandmate Luca Luciano...

The beautiful instrumental opener, "Odi et amo", begins with a dreamlike atmosphere but the delicate piano pattern and soaring flute notes are like the calm before the storm and the music goes on through many changes in mood and rhythm. The title is in Latin and refers to the incipit of a poem by the poet Catullus, "Carme LXXXV". According to the liner notes, the music tries to evoke a mix of contrasting feelings and emotions such as hate and love or joy and pain drawing inspiration from the immortal poetry of Catullus...

"La donna amata" (The beloved woman) is another wonderful piece where dynamic progressive rock parts alternate with baroque passages leading through dreamy atmospheres and darker moments. The lyrics celebrate the love of a woman capable of shaking and giving strength to her man like a summer storm where the rain pouring down on the thirsty land can heal the wounds in the arid soil. The beloved woman shines like a fresh crescent moon in the sunset and after the storm is like an omen of adventure and a fulfilment of love...

The melancholic, mystic "Maddalena" is sung in Abruzzese dialect and tells in music and words of the feelings of a woman that tries to rediscover in the church near her home where she goes to pray what an evil man has stolen from her: faith and love. Many times she thought about taking her own life jumping off the cliff under the church with her eyes closed because her life sometimes seems worse than hell, bitter and dark like ash. But hope never dies and keeps her alive. The narrative vocals (in Italian) of the guest Alessandra Iandimarino close the piece playing the role of the protagonist...

"Saffo" is dedicated to a woman best known for her lyric poetry, written to be sung while accompanied by music, Sappho, an Archaic Greek poet from the island of Lesbos. Most of Sappho's poetry is now lost and little is known of her life but her myth is still a source of inspiration for many hearts. Here she looks at you enraptured and feels like a goddess, one after the other she drinks the words of love coming from your smile and directed to her eyes, the eyes of woman eternally in love...

The long, complex "Zarina" (Tsarina) is dedicated to Maria Alexandrovna, born Princess Wilhelmine Marie of Hesse and by Rhine (8 August 1824 ? 3 June 1880), Empress of Russia as the first wife of Emperor Alexander II. She married when she was still a teenager and her marriage was unhappy. She suffered from tuberculosis from 1863 onwards and spent long periods of time in southern Europe, in particular in the Italian town of Sanremo, to avoid the harsh Russian winters. The music and lyrics evoke the feelings of a fisherman watching the unfortunate tsarina walking on the sand of Sanremo beach. To his eyes she looks coming out from one of his dreams. He can't get closer to her because she's surrounded by the people of her circle and he's too unworthy for them. But he can see the sadness in her eyes and perceive her uncertain breathing. Soon she will be gone and what will be left of her presence is just an army of palms. In fact, grateful for the hospitality of the place, the empress donated the first palm trees to the Municipality of Sanremo which still today adorn the Passeggiata Imperatrice (Promenade of the Empress), on the Sanremo seafront...

"Ti dono una canzone" (I give you a song) was written and recorded in remote mode during the Covid 19 pandemic and is dedicated to all the healthcare personnel and to those who took care of the sick in that dramatic period, those who really gave their best to overcome the crisis caused by the spread of the virus. It's a song to listen to at night, made of tears and wind, weaved in style with a few notes for those who made of their job an act of love...

The instrumental "Odi et amo - Closing Session" is a short experimental track that closes the album with a disquieting atmosphere and a soft flute melody that seems almost to escape and take off from strange background noises, hidden chats and thoughts...

On the whole, an excellent work that deserves a place in every Italianprog collection!

Odi Et Amo is the third album by Italian five-piece formation Sfaratthons, 4 years after their previous effort Appunti Di Viaggio (2019, see review). Originally Sfaratthons is from the late Seventies, in the Eighties they disbanded but in 2011 were refounded, with a new line-up and guest musicians. The current Sfaratthons feature Luca Di Nunzio (keyboards, guitars and vocals), Cecilio Luciano (drums), Mario Di Nunzio (bass), Giovanni Casciato (guitars) and Giovanni Di Nunzio (vocals and guitar), guest musician is Geoff Warren on flute.

On the first two tracks Odi Et Amo and La Donna Amata the band delivers a typical Seventies symphonic rock sound, with flowing shifting moods, the focus is on Geoff Warren and his flute work, blended with vintage keyboards, and instruments like the harpsichord and vibraphone. The one moment it sounds like Camel featuring tender flute and piano, the next moment the music strongly evokes Jethro Tull with sparkling flute traverse, in a mid-tempo, or sumptuous outbursts with Mellotron choirs, Minimoog flights and Hammond runs.

But then Sfaratthons takes another musical direction: atmospheric, soundtrack-like music in Maddalena (embellished with female choir, spacey synthesizer, flute, piano, a beautiful cello sound, and Italian vocals, male and female) and Saffo (Mellotron violin layers, moving guitar, alfway more lush and finally bombastic with Mellotron violins, howling guitar and spacey synthesizer).

The dynamic epic composition Zarina (12:34) starts with dreamy flute, piano and romantic Italian vocals, halfway a break with rock guitar and sparkling flute (Hungarian Solaris come to my mind), followed by a freaky synthesizer solo, in the second part moving electric guitar runs, swirling flute work, and passionate native vocals.

Finally two short tracks: the bluesy and compelling Ti Dono Una Canzone (Hammond/flute interplay, sparkling flute, in a slow rhythm, with melancholical vocals) and the atmospheric, a bit experimental Odi Et Amo - Closing Session.

So if you are up to a blend of Seventies symphonic rock (Camel, Jethro Tull) and more atmospheric/experimental prog this is an interesting album to discover.

My rating: 3,5 star

This review was previously published on the website of Background Magazine, the oldest Dutch prog rock source.

"Appunti di viaggio" is the second album by the Sfaratthons, a band from Abruzzo whose roots date back to the seventies. It was recorded by a consolidated line up featuring Cecilio Luciano (drums), Giovanni Di Nunzio (lead vocals, guitar), Luca Di Nunzio (keyboards, guitar, vocals), Giovanni Casciato (electric guitar) and Mario Di Nunzio (bass) with the contribute of some guest musicians such as Geoff Warren (flute), Alessandro Saponaro (guitar), Giovanni Ferrari (sax) and the choir Chorale Trebula from Quadri, a little town in the province of Chieti. It was self-released in 2019 with a wonderful packaging in form of book, enriched by some paintings, extended liner notes and a short story by their friend and former bandmate Luca Luciano. It confirms all the good qualities of their 2016 debut work "La bestia umana" and goes even further, showcasing great song-writing skills and an improved sound quality...'

The wonderful opener 'Appunti di viaggio' (Travel notes) is a long, complex instrumental piece that invites the listener to follow the band all along their musical journey around the world. It starts softly by the sound of the sea waves and goes through many changes in rhythm and atmosphere accompanying you through dreamy marine landscapes under the moonlight. It leads to the following 'Vela' (Sail) with its marching beat and epic keyboards passage incipit where soaring flute arabesques conjure up the image of a surreal sail flying over the sea in a deep sky evoking bitter and sweet feelings. There's joy, delirium and pain in the blowing wind that draws you away at dawn along with that sail...

The excellent 'Cielo nero' (Black sky) describes in music and words the feelings of a timeless lover on the day before the meeting with his beloved woman. On a black night dotted with just a few stars he longs for his young bride and can't sleep until the morning comes. It's a restless wait full of dreams, expectations and hope...

'Notte' (Night) depicts a dark night in a big city where every shadow seems threatening and scary. Fear rules on the streets, on every step you take you can perceive the danger, every sound tears your heart apart, there is no room for peace and rest. Under the lamplights homeless, hungry people are walking in search for justice but they're losing their faith while waiting for a new dawn and a better day...

The melancholic 'Your War, Our War' starts by a sound of shots in the background and a voice taken from a radio broadcast speaking in French and commenting a picture with the image a dead little child on a beach. It's the image of Aylan Kurdi... Then the rhythm rises while English vocals evoke an eternal emergency and a land ravaged by a war that nobody wants to see. There's a sense of impending disaster and dark, grim omens for a hopeless future...

'Ne journe, n'anne' (A day, a year) is sung in Abruzzese dialect and deals with the relativity of time and space. The piece starts with a carefree flute pattern and a soft pace, then the music and words conjure up a dreamy atmosphere and a carousel of stars and moon while the choir might recall a kind of Christmas carol. Day after day time seems to stand still when you are surrounded by love and beauty, a year has passed by and you have the impression it lasted a single day...

'With All The Strength Of My Voice' opens with threatening keyboards waves and Latin rhythms. The music and the English lyrics depict the image of weapons and guns in a country filled by hatred where people desperately try to run away searching for a way out. Then there's the ceasefire and peace comes back, the war is over and a new beginning is possible... The final part features voices in the background speaking in Spanish and a bold marching beat. According to liner notes, this piece was inspired by the peace agreement reached in Colombia between president Juan Manuel Santos and the leaders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, the Marxist-Leninist guerrilla group involved in the long Colombian conflict started in 1964. On 23 June 2016 the accord was signed in Havana, Cuba...

'Vaije' (I keep on going) is another piece sung in Abruzzese dialect that describes in music and words the stubborn obstinacy of a man who never stops in his search for love and continues to travel around the world in the hope of filling the void in his heart. In his storming heart there's rain and snow but he keeps on going following the route of the sun...

The lively 'Trust' deals with environmental issues and ends the album with a message of hope. The pace is fast and the rhythm every now and again could recall The Pogues. The music and lyrics try to urge everyone to fix the damages that man behaviours have inflicted to our planet. There's still time to save the Earth, but we've better hurry up...

On the whole, an excellent work and a really a must have for Italianprog collectors!

Appunti di Viaggio is the title of the album, but also the entirely instrumental piece with which the CD begins: a suite of about ten minutes, in which the initial sound of the sea opens the way to strings, synthesizers, 12-string guitars and mellotron, which alternate between frequent rhythmic changes and sonorities with typical prog-rock features, sometimes psychedelic. Classic sounds and aggressive rock features merge in Cielo Nero and Notte. In the three songs in English With the strength of my voice, Trust and Your war, our war: the band travels to different places in the world, moving from Syria, the scene of frequent human tragedies, to Colombia, perhaps on the road to lasting peace. The songs in Italian dialect Vaije (Vado) and Ne journe, n'anne (One day, one year) the Sfaratthons make a fusion between jazz/rock and folk/ethnic music with the presence of a folkloric choir which is particularly unusual in rock music. In recent years ProgRock has become again popular worldwide, it is very nice to see that even in Italy there are several groups that still manage to let us experience the beauty of this music. The CD is inside a spectacular 35 pages booklet, where there are the texts, a fair tail and fabulous paintings.

Borrello is a beautiful small town in the province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region, near the border with the province of Isernia in Molise. Nearby you can visit a natural park with the highest waterfalls in the Apennines, le Cascate del Verde. Here, in the middle of these magnificent panoramas, in the late seventies, five young friends in love with progressive rock music formed a band called the Sfaratthons, a word derived from the local dialect that can be loosely translated as "the idlers". The first line up of the band featured Cecilio Luciano (drums, vocals), Giovanni Di Nunzio (guitar, sax, vocals), Mario Rosato (keyboards), Bruno Di Nunzio (bass) and Luca Luciano (vocals, guitar). With the help of another friend, lyricist Argentino D'Auro, they started to work on a rock opera dealing with environmental issues entitled La bestia umana. Unfortunately, the band never managed to release an album during their early days and eventually split up in the eighties.

In 2011 some of the old members reunited with the idea of making an old dream come true. With a renewed line up featuring Cecilio Luciano (drums), Giovanni Di Nunzio (lead vocals, guitar, sax), Luca Di Nunzio (keyboards, guitar, vocals), Giovanni Casciato (bass, guitar) and Mario Di Nunzio (bass), the Sfaratthons started to work again on their old compositions. Another original member, Luca Luciano, is now an appreciated painter and took charge of the art work while lyricist Argentino D'Auro wrote a book about the concept of the album and the history of the band... During the recording sessions the band was helped by some guest musicians such as Geoff Warren (flute), Berardo Adenolfi (guitar) and Giovanni Ferrari (sax) that contributed to enrich the sound. The album was finally completed and self- released in 2016 and I think it's really worth listening to. The music and lyrics are able to convey emotions and there's a vintage atmosphere that could recall some Italian album from the seventies...

The instrumental opener "Overture" is like a kind of time machine that takes you back in time. Imagine to dive in a sea of green grass in a foggy September morning... There are evocative vintage sounds and quiet pastoral atmospheres that could recall bands such as PFM or Blocco Mentale. Now you are surrounded by a still uncontaminated nature...

"La bestia umana" (The human beast) begins by what seems like a child's lament, a disquieting guitar arpeggio and swirling flute notes, then a marching beat and the voice of Giovanni Di Nunzio introduce a strange kind of evil animal, Mankind! Indeed, here the music and lyrics depict the human madness and its consequences: self-conceit, ruthlessness, disrespect and a fatal overestimation of the power of science lead to a natural disaster... The calm middle section conjure up the gloomy atmosphere of the day after while the drum beat of the final section come as a kind of funeral march.

The heartfelt, committed "Civilt' perduta" (Lost civilization) is a bitter complaint against human greediness and vanity. Men run after dreams of power and deceiving spectres that made them blind and unscrupulous, hate and terror become their myths, remnants of a civilization that celebrated its deadly rites to the gods of pride and stupidity. The bright sun of progress led men on a dangerous path and condemned them to doom, arid deserts now cover the land that once was green and blooming...

The delicate, dreamy "La dolce illusione" (The sweet illusion) is a sad, tormented reflection about a generation who lost every hope and now lives in the sweet illusion of a better future. It leads to the following "Smog" a frenzied track that describes in music and words the threatening shadow of a black, venomous cloud. You can feel here fear, anxiety and a sense of helplessness in front of another impending tragedy.

"Il verde" (Green) begins by hard electric guitar riffs and an almost martial pace. Then, melancholic vocals describe the systematic destruction of the forests, allowed by indifference and by political inertia. Men keep on committing the same errors condemning themselves to death... A bitter-sweet requiem to Mother Nature!

Next comes "Life In A Prison" a track that, despite the English title, is sung in Italian. It tells about the hypocrisy of artificial paradises built on sufferance and exploitation, chains and violence. You have to look for a way out... The music and lyrics of the dramatic "Epilogo" (Epilogue) seem to invoke the help of an extraterrestrial race, more evolute and wiser than humankind, just before the fatal return to naught.

Too late! "Dopo" (After) is a melancholic piano ballad that depicts a gloomy landscape made of lunar deserts... What have we done? The marching beat and a celestial choir evoke a sad farewell to humankind. The short closer "Uomo" (Man) features narrative vocals and poetical lyrics. It's just a final warning about an impending danger that maybe we are not able to see...

All in all, this is very interesting work, a labour of love that deserves a try! The album is available from the main digital stores, for the CD you have to ask the band. You can listen to the complete album on deezer or spotify...