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LE MASCHERE DI CLARA

RIO/Avant-Prog • Italy


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Le Maschere Di Clara picture
Le Maschere Di Clara biography
Clara's Masks, artistic expression of Italian background.

Le MASCHERE DI CLARA, founded by Lorenzo MASOTTO (piano, bass, voices), Laura MASOTTO (violin, voices), and Bruce TURRI (drums, voices), have found their roots in the harmonic testing, taking inspiration from the classical counterpoint, screening the emotionality of the progressive polyrhythm, developing the union between the arid sonority of the stoner and the Italian poetics, they've left the listener free to feel the nuances that could be or not inside the melodic fabric.

Le MASCHERE DI CLARA started from the artistic necessity of looking beyond the musical conventionality of this historical period, from a new generation of musicians and listeners open to new sonorities. Their debut album "Anamorfosi" was released via Black Widow Records in 2011.

(Thanks to Lorenzo Masotto for providing their biography & information.)

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LE MASCHERE DI CLARA discography


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LE MASCHERE DI CLARA top albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

3.88 | 5 ratings
Anamorfosi
2011
3.83 | 4 ratings
L'alveare
2013

LE MASCHERE DI CLARA Live Albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

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LE MASCHERE DI CLARA Boxset & Compilations (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

LE MASCHERE DI CLARA Official Singles, EPs, Fan Club & Promo (CD, EP/LP, MC, Digital Media Download)

3.00 | 1 ratings
Lynch
2015

LE MASCHERE DI CLARA Reviews


Showing last 10 reviews only
 Lynch by MASCHERE DI CLARA, LE album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2015
3.00 | 1 ratings

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Lynch
Le Maschere Di Clara RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Finnforest
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

— First review of this album —
3 stars Intense new EP

"Lynch" is the short but wild new EP from Verona's acclaimed Le Maschere di Clara, released in October of 2015.

LMdC aims to mold classical with rock in an attempt to "vent" feelings while maintaining the highest ideals of expression, improvisation, and artistry. Like many great RPI bands past and present they easily reach this threshold. And while "venting" may not have been the best translation or the word they would have chosen it seems to apply just fine to this recording.

This short work is a burst, a Molotov cocktail, intense as hell. Beginning with "Freak" the distorted bass is so massive and the drums so nuts it almost feels like some garage doom metal band's wall of sound, save for the theatrics of violin all over the top. "Istanbul" begins every bit as manic before a short breather, but it doesn't last. The pace quickly reverts back to intense through the middle section of the EP. The 10-minute long closer "Solar" becomes the show piece here. Beginning with a huge infectious groove and some Italian spoken word, the tension slowly builds with some looping effects that brings a sense of unease, disjointedness to the listener. Toward the end when the track is in full maelstrom there are these calming, uplifting notes but only at intervals. These bring the slightest bit of calming effect to the craziness, a bit of a post-rock hug after having your ass kicked.

I was disappointed though that the EP is already over following "Solar" and I guess that's why it doesn't do better than 3 star "good but not essential" for me. I wanted this one to be twice as long and see where it all led. I wanted much more. This is stimulating listening at its finest and will please all adventurous RPI fans, but it may leave you hanging and feeling somewhat unfulfilled. I would have held onto these cool songs a bit longer for an album.

 L'alveare by MASCHERE DI CLARA, LE album cover Studio Album, 2013
3.83 | 4 ratings

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L'alveare
Le Maschere Di Clara RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by octopus-4
Special Collaborator RIO/Avant/Zeuhl,Neo & Post/Math Teams

4 stars The second album of this Italian trio is for me one of the best albums of 2013 and I'm sorry to have forgotten it when I have voted for the prog album of the year. Borderline with RPI, the band has chosen to dedicate an album to literature. Each song is inspired to books.

"Rasoi Di Seta" (Silk razors) is the title of a collection of poetries by the poetess Alda Merini (1931-2009) who had suffered the experience of a madhouse in the 40s. The book was released in 2007 together with a CD containing songs and speeches by her friend "Giovanni Nuti". The interpretation of Le Maschere di Clara is heavy, dark and suffered.

"A Se Stesso"(To Himself) is inspired to a poetry published in 1835 by Giacomo Leopardi. Sad and intense. The heavy bass enphasizes the mood. This song has melodic moments and Laura Masotto's violin fits perfecly. A great song which in my opinion could have some chances for radio passages.

"Forse Il Cuore" (Heart, Maybe) is a poetry by Salvatore Quasimodo published in 1947. Let me clarify that this is not an album of poetries put in music. The lyrics are original and just inspired to the writings. This is about war. The music is again heavy and dark, driven again by bass with screamed vocals in the chorus and a melodic part substained by drums and violin. The high volume of the rhythmic instruments (drums and bass) is remarkable.

"Il Fu Mattia Pascal" (The Passed Away Mattia Pascal) is a famous novel, at least in Italy, by Luigi Pirandello who is best known for his theatrical works. The plot is very complicated and I suggest searching for it on the web.This song is mainly driven by the violin and is mostly instrumental, almost symphonic. The parts with lyrics are more noisy and the lyrics reflect quite well the story which in the novel is a subjective flashback of the main character.

"Satura" is an album of poetry from one of my favorite authors, the Nobel prize Eugenio Montale. It's mainly an arrangement for drums and violin of a classic piece, I think by Saint- Saens. It's nice that it's closed by a "satruation" effect.

"Se Questo E' Un Uomo" (If This Is A Man) is the autobiographical story of a Hebrew chemist deported at Auschwitz, Primo Levi, who later after publishing some books committed suicide. You can imagine how dramatic and dark this song can be, but I suggest grabbing a copy of the book which has been translated in many languages. Piano and operatic vocals by Laura Masotto set the mood, then the bass, heavy and high volume as usual and drums make the background for Laura's speeches. It can seem a paradox but this is probably the most melodic song of the album. It would deserve some radio passages.

It's surprising that "Notturno" from Gabriele D'Annunzio, a poet considered as the best Italian poet by Mussolini andthe fascist regime and one of the first "interventists" in the War against Austria in 1915, follows Primo Levi. Anyway Notturno is an anomaly in D'Annunzio's production. written in 1916 while he was blocked after an air crash (he was a pilot, too) is meditative. The song is very melodic, based on piano and violin and reflects well the actual status of the writer, almost blind, stuck in a bed, writing short sentences on strips of paper. It's an excellent song reminiscent of classic RPI.

"Collezioni di Sabbia" (Collections of Sand) is a collection of short essays and newspaper articles by Italo Calvino, which was released in 1984. This song is more rock oriented respect to the rest of the album. It has a little touch of "Arabian folk". Probably the sand has made the authors think to the desert. This contamination with world music works very well in my opinion, even though I think it's quite distant from the original messages from Calvino. The remind to Lawrence of Arabia (the movie soundtrack) arranged as a bolero is nice but unnecessary.

Last but not least, Dante. "Fatti Non Foste A Viver Come Bruti" is said by Ulysses in Dante's Inferno. the complete sentence means "You were not born to live like brutes, but to follow virtue and knowledge" It starts with those words spelled before violin and drums give start to the song. The violin melody has a medieval touch counterbalanced by the very heavy and as usual high-volumed drums and bass. It would have been fit greatly in the Colossus Project compilation about Dante.

A great album full of contents and meanings, excellently played and arranged, not properly easy, but accessible enough to be of interest for non RIO/Avant followers. It took some time to me to enter in its mood, so my suggestion is "let it grow". Find the right moment and situation and enjoy it.

 Anamorfosi by MASCHERE DI CLARA, LE album cover Studio Album, 2011
3.88 | 5 ratings

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Anamorfosi
Le Maschere Di Clara RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Nightfly
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

4 stars With a line-up that comprises of bass, drums and violin (and the very occasional piano) you could be forgiven for thinking that this new trio of Italian's, Le Maschere Di Clara might be a tad on the mellow side. Think again because this exciting band make one hell of a noise, in the best possible way.

Anamorfosi, which is their debut album features eleven compositions, most around the four to five minute mark of 50/50 instrumental/vocal prog rock with the emphasis on rock, which they really do! The foundations are laid by the brutal rhythm section of Lorenzo Masotto and Bruce Turri who benefit from a great in your face bass and drum sound, played with the tight precision and dexterity. The icing on the cake comes from Laura Masotto whose visceral and virtuoso violin playing immediately demands the listener's attention. For only a trio they create a surprisingly powerful sound as they take classical influences with a touch of Italian folk and weave them into a dynamic rock format that has more than a hint of originality. The vocals, in keeping with the nature of the bulk of the pieces are not surprisingly aggressive and shouty and fit well in the general scheme of things. The occasional....and it is only occasional, quieter moment only serves to heighten the powerful and exciting nature of the album overall.

I first became aware of Le Maschere Di Clara last year but it's only now I've managed to track down a copy of this excellent debut album. Had I got hold of it sooner this would have surely made my top 10 albums of 2011. Not quite a five star album, but near enough. Highly recommended.

Thanks to DamoXt7942 for the artist addition.

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