In orbita is the sixth studio album by Conqueror, a Sicilian band whose roots date back to the nineties. It was released in 2019 on the independent label Ma.Ra.Cash Records with a renewed line up featuring Simona Rigano (keyboards, synth, lead vocals), Natale Russo (drums, percussion), Tino Nastasi (guitars) and Sofia Ferraro (sax, flute, EWI 5000) plus the guests Edoardo Ragunì (bass, backing vocals) and Giovanni Alibrandi (violin). It’s an excellent conceptual work inspired by the life of Russian space hero Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin (1934 – 1968) where the music and lyrics try to express emotions and feelings through a sort of empathy with the protagonist rather than just telling a story. The colourful art cover by Giusy Lo Conti in some way depicts the emotional content of the album...
The dreamy opener “Fino al limite” (To the limit) starts softly evoking beautiful landscapes where all the natural elements dance in symbiosis with colours and moving lights... The words and lyrics try to take us back in the childhood of the protagonist, born in the rural village of Klushino, in Smolensk Oblast, Russia. The child, curious and interested in everything, develops an almost transcendental fascination for flight and is determined to pursue his dreams, a bit like Jonathan Livingston, the seagull...
The tense “In cerca d’ali” (Looking for wings) tells of an episode from the protagonist childhood. The music and lyrics describe the evolutions of two planes, red stars falling from the stars avoiding the crash with an audacious combination of geometrical manoeuvres... In a cold winter night, two jet fighters of the Red Army are forced to make an emergency landing in the snow because of a mechanical breakdown. All night long the pilots wait for the rescuers without leaving the damaged air-crafts and the children of the village can admire their courage and tenacity.
The dynamic “Verso un nuovo mondo” (Towards a new world) is about the feelings and sensations that the protagonist experiences during his hard training for the space mission. The music alternates lively, almost funky passages with calm, dreamy sections evoking symphonies of colours and rains of sounds while heart and mind of the cosmonaut are focused on the goal of the mission...
“Kedr” starts by a nice organ solo pattern, then the rhythm rises as the protagonist is going to board the space-craft. This piece depicts in music and words the emotions and feelings that the protagonist experiences before and during his space mission, the first space flight of the Vostok programme and the first human space flight in history. The title refers to the call sign used by Gagarin during the mission. The Vostok 3KA space capsule was launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome on April 12, 1961, with Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin aboard, from the space he can see that the the Earth is just a far, small blue planet and everything takes a different perspective...
Yuri Gagarin 1961 (pic from Wikipedia)
“Un disegno perfetto” (A perfect drawing) is a reflective track that deals with the effects of this extraordinary experience on protagonist. There’s a new awareness, a new maturity, the whole soul of the cosmonaut is transformed and he finds a new balance where serenity and troubles melt... Per aspera ad astra!
The title of the short instrumental “09.07 A.M.” refers to the departure time of the space mission. It’s a beautiful, classical inspired track that leads to the closer “Star On The Moon”. Despite the English title, the conclusive piece is mainly sung in Italian with backing vocals in English. It’s a light, melodic track that draws solar visions from the space, stars over a sailing moon lost in the sea of the universe in a never ending journey towards new worlds and dimensions...
On the whole, an interesting concept and a wonderful work!
You can listen to the complete album HERE
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