LITAI

Their soundscape might have got influenced by lots of jazz rock vanguards like King Crimson in the Discipline era (e.g. a track "Olio Su Tela" sounds like "Neil And Jack And Me") or Yochk'o Seffer (yeah saxophone madness), and crazy voices are something characteristic. Exactly their massively, strongly unified rhythm army parade is perfect and their creations in this debut shot are pretty promising.

Contrary to their splendid instrumental technique and multidirectional rhythm and multitempo (and simultaneously without any blur) soundprint shower, their soundscape or tune appearance should remind us of something like texture by the pioneers of jazz rock. Quite a tough call to create novel phrases, paragraphs, or stories under this subgenre where the excellent vanguards seem to have completed development perfectly. Honest to say (and personally) it might be more interesting they would squeeze Italian Symphonic Rock essence into such a killer avantgarde jazz rock. Yea this has been released as their debut album, so Ido hope their following creation will grab more and more amazing kaleidoscopic flavour and taste, along with their current promising exertion of powerful jazz rock entertainment.

In conclusion, we have NO suspicion against the fact they are fantastic really. And of course, we have a magnificent expectation for their next creation and brilliant future. Cheers!

The true peculiarity of Progressive Rock maybe is its ability to surprise every time independently if it's from '70s or our days. How many new bands hunters have exclaimed at least once "WOW!" listening a new band's album?! Probably anyone! I don't know if this can be the result listening LITAI, but certainly this band has got musicians with eclectic personalities, able to create an original sound with many glorious Prog contamination.

In musical sphere everything is possible but nothing is really certain. In Italy there is a musical sub- culture that does fistfight every day with a lt of trash music (as all over the world, after all). This "underground coven" fortunately has many chances to perform in squares, pubs, festivals and many more, conquering each one quite a lot of fans. There's an important event, which is held every year in Italy, to remember a great disappeared artist of the jazz / RPI scene. I'm talking about the "Omaggio A Demetrio Stratos" (homage to Demetrio Stratos), an avant-garde musical show oriented to Jazz / Avant sonorities. It has been theatre of many emerging bands, and one these was LITAI, which in 2010 won this prize before to release an album. Very interesting thing in my opinion!

Born in 2008, this quartet (in origin they were three members) presents an intellectual sound with poetic narrations loaded of a charismatic power. There are no vocal sung structures, but real poetry, that often appears such as complex encrypted messages, whome helps to create atmospheres of a passed time also for the using of an Italian language no more used today. In the way to use poetry the voice of Michele "mieChele" ZAVANT (that also plays the bass) remember me sometimes Pholas Dactylus in his album "Concerto Delle Menti", also for the tones of voice, so mysterious and disturbing but paradoxically warmth at the same time. Some little vague remember from Rocky's Fil J. as well (Storie Di Uomini E Non) and Emilio Lo Curcio (L'Eliogabalo), always talking about theatrical style of voice. Their compositions are fundamentally based on guitar of Francesco "floFRA" PIRANIO, enriched by saxophone of Mattia Dalla Pozza giving a touch definitively jazz.

Listen to it you can find an expressiveness in style "Hot Rats", pleasant Canterbury Scene atmospheres, sometimes remembering Soft Machine, sometimes (rarely) Hatfield And The North. They turn to King Crimson echoes masterfully executed by Piranio's guitar in a style that recall Robert Fripp (from Red period onwards). Is possible to appreciate it in song such as "Vadapianov" (that it seems he has been a Russian pilot) with an arpeggio in opening, on which "melts" a beautiful saxophone then interrupted by an angry scream: aaaaAAAAAAH? ORDINE! (order / intended such as to want more order). "Bagnasco" (apparently referred to Angelo Bagnasco, an Italian Cardinal) starts with an intro retrò and a beauty bass line. After the narration of a parody of an unlikely speech, signed Angelo Bagnasco; of his dispositions about beds remake for to sleep and for "animal-like practices", it happens many changes of rhythms very interesting. The band's membership to the Italian Jazz tradition is highlighted in pieces like "Babinia" that remember a jazz rock a la ARTI E MESTIERI. "Cantico" (canticle) sounds with acid tones. AREA / PHOLAS DACTYLUS footsteps into talked parts knots with Crimsonian atmospheres, sometimes placate by beautiful sax parts, sometimes snatched by Zavant's voice. At this point plays two beautiful tracks (my favorite), Hybris so intense that ends with a monstrous grunt, and the wonderful "Olio Su Tela" (oil on canvas), punctuade by the precise Zavan bass with a truly unique atmosphere of many sudden change of time, which express the soul of a "glomy spring". "Oltraggio" (outrage) continues on the same band style with an entangling bass line and usual sudden changes of time, that pleasantly protruding also in the last piece "Kamasutra Gong" which ends screaming "Madre Mia Che Orrore, Eravamo Proprio Nel Mondo Reale!" (mother of mine what horror, we were right in the real world!), after the description of a Middle Age scene where people in order of a social scale position, licked the feet of who was more important. Another manifestation of their musical skills.

A real impressive debut for these guys, executed with maturity and theatrical expressiveness. A powerful sound, captivating and painted of many Progressive contamination but that gets a look to the new melodies. The only one negative annotation is the spoken parts, that for someone (especially who don't know the Italian) can be annoying. An album that needs to be listened with attention and with no particular canons. An intelligent quartet, intellectual and with taste for art and music.

4,5 Stars - Excellent debut...waiting for their next album.