Plenilunio
come from Acqui Terme, a small town in the province of Alessandria
and in 2012 released an interesting debut album with a line up
featuring Roberto Maggiotto (vocals), Valter Camparo (keyboards),
Fabrizio Genta (guitars), Fabio Zorgno (drums) and Roberto Camparo
(bass). It was entitled Respiri lunghi 1000 miglia and was
released on the digital label Battitorumore/Believe Digital (so far,
unfortunately, there is no physical copy available I'm aware of).
Although the love of the musicians involved in this project for bands
such as Premiata Forneria Marconi or Locanda delle Fate is apparent,
their main influences seem to come from classic rock and Italian
canzone d'autore with a strong leaning for melody. The
songwriting is not particularly challenging, there are no long suites
or extended solos but the final result is pleasant and never banal.
According to the band, their pieces should be considered as small
pictures on the walls of the feelings with gleaming frames to enhance
their content, every single note is meant as a chisel for the lyrics
that capture the meaning of emotions lost in winter mists and
troubled hearts lightened by a full moon on a sleeping plain...
The
opener "Giugno '78" (June '78) takes you back in time on a
journey on the wings of nostalgia. Sitting in an armchair with a cat
at your feet, watching at an old photo-book with a smell of white
glue, you listen to an old vinyl album... The first notes take off
like bats drawing mysterious trajectories in your room and conjure up
the images of a trip to Zurich in the seventies, a solid friendship,
hopes and dreams. Now your memories are like lightnings escaping from
the clouds of Time...
The
title track "Respiri lunghi 1000 miglia" (1000 miles long
breaths) tells of old split ups and painful separations, ships
sailing across infinite, metaphorical oceans, people and lovers that
you can't forget, moonless nights without love, timeless vigils and
unexpected come backs after years of absence... The following "Il
blu" (Blue) depicts in music and words a magical dawn and all
you have to do is close your eyes and imagine a dreamy landscape with
woods and hills all around: you would like to pick up a piece of blue
sky and put it in a canister saving it for the grey days...
Next
comes the melodic "Pioggia" (Rain) that describes an
autumnal day with rain drops falling on the windows like tears from
the sky and dancing leaves in the air swept by the wind. You can see
the bolts on the horizon tearing apart the sky like knives while
romantic memories are still lingering in your head... "Il
finestrino" (The window) takes you for a while on the dark side
of the moon and depicts a train running fast across hills and plains.
The thoughts of a commuter on his way back home unfolds while the
panorama changes outside the window...
"Sogno"
(Dream) is lighter and depicts a man who is living a kind of musical
fairy tale, a daydreamer strolling around the city and feeling like a
child in an amusement park. It leads to the suggestive
"Inconfessabile" (Unconfessable) that tells about the
meeting of two lovers in the city, on a windy winter day lightened by
desire and passion. Then it's the turn of the calm, reflective "Le
paure" (Fears) that evokes old fears, haunting memories and icy
dreams melting in an autumnal day, swept away by the inner light of a
new awareness.
"Arrivi
tu" (You come) recalls Lucio Battisti and is light and melodic.
On an autumnal day the image of a charming, smiling woman comes out
of the blue and makes your heart beat fast... Next comes the
bitter-sweet "Lettera al paradiso" (Letter to Paradise),
about the relationship between a father and his son. "Sui
gradini" (On the steps) is a romantic piece that tells of
emotional alchemies that set your eyes on fire while your reason get
lost on the rocks of your senses. It leads to closer "Pleni",
a short instrumental with an ethereal, baroque atmosphere...
On
the whole, this is a nice album with strong melodies and some good
ideas but I'm sure that this band can do better. At the moment they
are recording a new album with a renewed line up and I'm looking
forward to listen to it...
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