RUNNING AGAINST THE GRAIN

L’orizzonte degli eventi is the fifth album by Alex Carpani and was released in 2020 on the Independent Artist Record label with a line up featuring Alex Carpani (vocals, synth, programming, virtual guitar), Giambattista Giorgi (bass) and Bruno Farinelli (drums). According to the official website, this is a kind of visionary and existential concept album about the imaginary line that divides the possible scenarios of our lives, in the moment when we are in front of big life decisions. The overall sound confirms the new course of its predecessor, open to pop and new wave influences, but this time the lyrics are in Italian and in my opinion a good term of comparison could be represented by some of Franco Battiato’s recent works like Dieci stratagemmi or Ferro battuto... 

The album opens with “L’orizzonte degli eventi” (Event horizon) where, on a base of sound effects, the narrative vocals of an astrophysicist give the scientific definition of event horizon, a boundary beyond which events cannot affect an observer. After that, the event horizon becomes just a metaphor to describe some crucial life passages and the relativity of every thing and the first track is just an introduction linked to the following “Lava bollente” (Boiling lava) where the rhythm rises and you can ride on an imaginary train running against the grain through dream and reality, time and memory.

“Fiore d’acqua” (Flower of water) is a dynamic piece that deals with love and nostalgia, the desire to reach a person who is far away from you and the importance of the memories she left behind. Memories that seem like pages of a book written in the wind... Next comes the ethereal atmosphere of “Il perimetro dell’anima” (The perimeter of the soul), a piece that describes in music and words the strange feelings of a foggy morning and the rising power of an invisible force that shines through the clouds...

 

Alex Carpani Band, 2020

The nervous “Tempo relativo” (Relative time) is about time passing by. As As the merciless blade of time comes down, darkness devours light and life while deceiving illusions melt in a storm of emotions... Then it’s the turn of “Sette giorni” (Seven days), a surreal track about the effects of the daily grind on dreams and regrets, freedom and desires.

“La fine è là” (The end is over there) deals with environmental issues. The rhythm is frenzied, the atmosphere tense and threatening while the lyrics evoke the need for a desperate run against the clock to stop the human tendency to self-destruction. What comes after is the aggressive “Nel ventre del buio” (In the belly of darkness), a kind of invitation to dive in the heart of the night, an advice to look for the hidden side of things to find the right balance between expectations and reality. Then “Le porte” (The doors) closes the album with its reflective mood and a pinch of spirituality.

On the whole, a good album although very different from Alex Carpani’s excellent early works in a more symphonic style.

More info:

http://www.alexcarpani.com/

A TIME TO BREAK SILENCE

So Close, So Far is fourth album by Alex Carpani and was released in 2016 on the independent label Ma.Ra.Cash Records with a line up featuring Alex Carpani (keyboards, programming, vocals), Ettore Salati (acoustic and electric guitar), Joe Sal (vocals, guitar), Giambattista Giorgi (bass) and Martino Malacrida (drums). If compared with his previous works, it marks a deliberate change of musical direction veering to an elaborated A.O.R. and leaving behind vintage instruments and symphonic prog in favour of a modern, simpler sound. All the tracks have a common thread, the difficulty to communicate with each other even in an era dominated by social media and by a technology that seem to create interpersonal barriers instead to help us to break them down. The artwork by Gigi Cavalli Cocchi tries to capture the image of this world in reverse...

The opener “The Eve” is a short, melancholic instrumental track that leads to the lively, melodic “I Tried And Tried” where rays of light pass through heavy clouds and distant marching steps resound in the air, growing like shadows from an obscure past. Musically, memories from the eighties are knocking at the door...

The lyrics of the following “Man On The Wire” conjure up the image of a man walking on the thin rope of life between madness and fear, trying to avoid the tricks of everyday life. Here the music every now and again reminds me of Ultravox...

The bitter-sweet “Stay With Me” opens with an acoustic guitar arpeggio, the music and lyrics try to evoke the scent of the sea and a sense of inner magic sweeping off fears and doubts... A good style council where more eighties influences are mixed with a shy touch of prog!

The nervous “In Your Absence” starts by an aggressive electric guitar riff and drives you into the frenzied nightlife of a modern city, bewitched by the scent and memories of a missing lover while the following “Let My Drop Of Sweat Fall Down” is a good rock ballad about the need to push your heart against the tide and stretching out your limits.

Alex Carpani Band on stage, 2015

The nocturnal “Crystal Falls” tells in music and words about a solitary, regenerating walk under the moon and the falling stars... Then it’s the turn of the dreamy “One Face, One Lie” that begins with an excerpt from famous Martin Luther King’s speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence: I come to this magnificent house of worship tonight because my conscience leaves me no other choice… A time comes when silence is betrayal… The truth of these words is beyond doubt but the mission to which they call us is a most difficult one... As Martin Luther King’s words fade away the music and lyrics portray a man meeting a ghost, one day at home... Or it was just his image reflected by a mirror? Well, like all dreams, this one has its own illogicality and truth and lies are blurred.

 

The light “Next Time” features electronic sounds and catching melodies while the lyrics describe the attitude to postpone decisions as time flies away. It leads to the melancholic, introspective last track, “The Last Sign”, a reflection about the relativity of life and time.

On the whole, this is a nice, accessible album but beware! Many prog lovers could by highly disappointed by Alex Carpani’s new course.

More info:
http://www.alexcarpani.com/

FATE AND DREAMS

Four Destinies is the third studio album by Alex Carpani and it confirms all the good qualities of its predecessors, Waterline (2007) and The Sanctuary (2010). It was recorded with a line up featuring Alex Carpani (piano, Hammond, Mellotron, Moog, vocals), David Jackson (sax, flute), Ettore Salati (electric and acoustic guitar, bouzouki, balalaika), Giambattista Giorgi (bass), Alessandro Di Caprio (drums) and Joe Sal (vocals) and produced by Cristiano Roversi who engineered, mixed and mastered all the pieces. The album was finally released in 2014 on the independent Festival Music label with a nice packaging and an art cover reproducing a statue by Michelangelo Pistoletto, The Etruscan, from the Forth Worth Museum collection. According to the liner notes, this is a concept album based on four eventual destinies that a man can find on the path of his life: four destinies that irradiate, moving from the same point, in four different directions of life. To be honest, the concept is not very clear: the lyrics alternate parts in English and in Italian and do not try to tell a story but rather conjure up images adding more colours to the four musical tableaux on the album, the rest is up to your imagination! Four destinies, four long tracks with many changes in rhythm and mood, very rich in ideas and musical colours well performed by an excellent team of musicians...

The beautiful opener, "The Silk Road", takes you on a long journey through valleys and deserts, following the ancient tracks of merchants and adventurers such as Marco Polo. It's a road that marks the destiny of many different people in a melting-pot of races, colours, smells and sounds... A road that crosses the borders between science and faith, where you can hear secret stories whispered by silent shadows under the moonlight...

"Time Spiral" takes you on the mountains where you can sit on the banks of a brook and bathe in the icy waters of the springs of Time. There you can get lost in the mystery of life, you can feel the weight of your days passing by like dust and sand carried away by the current... But a threatening storm is approaching and the rage of the wind will soon blow away everything around you in the crazy spiral of a deadly fate...

"Sky And Sea" begins softly and features some dark passages that recall Genesis and Van der Graaf Generator. The music and lyrics take you on a boat sailing across raging waters under a thundering storm in a dark night... You've got to gather all your energies and fight hard for your life against the fury of the elements. At last the storm calms down, you see a lighthouse and you can breathe the smells of a seaport, you can reach a safe harbour. Now the danger is gone but sometimes tears take a long time to dry...

"The Infinite Room" takes you on a sleepwalk through an enchanted world, as in a H.P. Lovecraft story... Your body is out of control while you're strolling through the streets of a fantastic, unreal city. At dawn the dream melts and you wake up confused by feelings, thoughts and visions that are driving you insane. You can hear a strange music that's shaking your soul... "The sound of weird lyric melody was what aroused me. Chords, vibrations, and harmonic ecstasies echoed passionately on every hand; while on my ravished sight burst the stupendous spectacle of ultimate beauty..." (H.P. Lovecraft, from Beyond the Wall of Sleep).

Alex Carpani Band 2014

On the whole, I think that this is a very good album: if you like bands such as Genesis or Van der Graaf Generator and Italian progressive rock, have a try! I'm sure you will not be disappointed.

You can listen to the complete album HERE

 

Alex Carpani: Four Destinies (2014). Other opinions:

Jerry Lucky: The music of Alex Carpani is best described as classic Italian Symphonic Progressive Rock and he has all the musical elements in place humming like a precision clock. You hear old or classic familiar sounds set against a host of newer textures, blending together to create a wonderfully enticing modern album. Thoroughly enjoyable and highly recommended... (read the complete review HERE)

More info:
http://www.alexcarpani.com/ 
https://www.facebook.com/alex.carpani 

SHELTER FROM THE STORM

After the release of “Waterline” Alex Carpani recruited some experienced musicians to perform his music on stage and in 2010 released a sophomore album titled “The Sanctuary” on Cypher Arts and Ma.Ra,Cash Records. Here the line up features along with Alex Carpani (piano, Hammond organ, Mellotron, Moog, pads, lead and back vocals) also Gigi Cavalli Cocchi (drums, percussion), Ettore Salati (electric and acoustic guitars, dulcimer) and Fabiano Spiga (bass). “The Sanctuary” is a conceptual work built up on the idea of an imaginary, invisible shield protecting a man from the stress of the real life and the beautiful, surreal art work by Paul Whitehead gives this idea a shape. The overall sound draws unashamedly on the prog masters of the seventies, especially Genesis and Emerson Lake & Palmer, but the result is not too derivative and every track of the album seems almost timeless, suspended between past and present as in a dream.

The instrumental opener “Burning Braziers” sets the atmosphere. It starts softly, the mood is dreamy but you have to walk cautiously on your way to your sacred shelter. Then the rhythm rises, so hurry up! The dark shadows of the real life are following you...

“Spirit Of Decadence” recalls the music of Genesis. Crumbs of life emerge from a glorious past while as a bold archaeologist you look for the reminiscences of a powerful king and of his court, lost in time... “Opulence and well being, holiness and favour / Warriors on the path and guards protect the treasure...”.

“The Dance Of The Sacred Elves” is a lively instrumental track that recalls ELP. There’s a turntable hidden somewhere, echoes from the past come back from an old vinyl and magical creatures start to dance. If you pay attention you can even hear the needle of the turntable scraping the record...

“Entering The Sanctuary” begins with a solemn organ passage. You are now entering in a cathedral with walls and roof of glass, your personal sanctuary where you can listen to vintage sounds from an enormous turntable which lies in the place of the altar. Once you have found the way rush in and close the door behind you! “Inside this sanctuary I repent all my life sins / Drunk with harmony, enclosed in a cage where I’m safe and free... Deaf, I can hear / Dumb, I can speak...”.

The instrumental “Knights And Clergymen” and the following “Templars Dream” evoke dreamy rides on the wings of time while the vintage sounds conjure images floating through the waves of a sea of light...

“Memories Of A Wedding” begins with a romantic piano solo passage, then electric guitar riffs break in and the rhythm rises. You have to fight hard against the interferences of the outside world... “Now the elves are scurrying away, the pageant comes to an end / A wide frame grows on the wall, the scene appears like a dream... Now and then alien forces break that dream and desire / Folding hearts and resistance...”.
 

On the hypnotic instrumental “Master Of Ceremonies” the battle rages on and dreamy passages alternates with more aggressive, disquieting parts. A short flamenco guitar pattern leads to the following track, “Moonlight Through The Ruins”. An acoustic guitar arpeggio and soaring vocals seem to evoke ancient spirits wondering under the moon, through the ruins of your broken dreams... “I can make out the stones and vaults... Now the ruins are loving arms to embrace and... I can make out the people’s smile / No roof on my head, the stars...”.

It’s time to come back to reality but the healing effects of the time passed in harmony and peace remain. The amazing instrumental track “Leaving The Sanctuary” drives you in the real world with a new awareness and a feeling of self confidence concluding an excellent album...

You can listen to the complete album HERE

 

Alex Carpani: The Sanctuary (2010). Other opinions:

Olav Martin Bjørnsen: The Sanctuary is a good example of an album that should have a strong appeal among fans of 70's progressive rock of the symphonic variety. In sound and expression those familiar with the giants of the genre will find many recognizable details, while the overall sound and arrangements also incorporate elements of a more contemporary nature... (read the complete review HERE).

Read the interview with Alex Carpani at progarchives. Click HERE

More info:

http://www.alexcarpani.com/

http://it-it.facebook.com/alex.carpani

WAVES AND DREAMS

Alex Carpani was born in Switzerland in 1970 of an Italian father and a French mother. Later he moved to Italy and graduated in Musicology at the University of Bologna. As a composer and musician his activities and interests range from soundtracks for cinema and theatre to electronic and progressive rock. From 1990 to 2007 he self-produced many works with little success, then he met Le Orme’s singer Aldo Tagliapietra and his career suddenly changed direction with the release of his first prog album, “Waterline”, a conceptual work dedicated to the thin line dividing the world which emerged from the water (the familiar one) from the submerged world (the unknown one). Originally conceived as an instrumental project, it became an album with lyrics and vocals thanks to Aldo Tagliapietra. It was composed and recorded as a demo in three weeks by Alex Carpani in his home-studio, then Alex sent it to Aldo Tagliapietra, who liked the project and put him in touch with the American independent prog label Cypher Arts. Alex Carpani met Cypher Arts’ director Dan Shapiro in Los Angeles and the album was finally refined and released in 2007 with the help of many musicians from the American prog scene and an art cover by Paul Whitehead. The result is excellent and if you like the works of bands such as Le Orme, BMS, early Genesis and ELP I’m sure you’ll like this work too.

The opener “The Siren And The Mariner” should be a true delight for symphonic prog lovers. It starts with a tasteful classical intro that leads to a duet between the voice of the mariner Aldo Tagliapietra, who sings in Italian, and the voice of the siren, the guest singer Beatrice Casagrande, who answers in English... “Your voice shines like the sun on the sea... Come to me and hear me sing / Leave behind your hopes and fears...”. Then, after an instrumental break featuring an electric guitar solo, Aldo Tagliapietra concludes... “I’m losing myself in the light / Following your voice... I’m feeling like a leaf lost in the sea”.

“The Levees’ Break” is a beautiful, dreamy instrumental featuring delicate flute passages and shifting tempos. Next comes the darker “In The Rocks” that tries to depict in music and words the feelings of the survivors sheltered on the rocks after the wreckage of their ship, in the mist...

 

The solemn “Reclaimed” is another beautiful instrumental track that leads to quiet sailing on the clear waters of “Agua Claro”... “A new direction covers the past / Take the white wave / Ride towards the sun...”. “Starcurrents” is more dramatic and mystical. Here we sail to a path of stars without a frame, a metaphysical journey into space...

 

 

The calm instrumental “Song Of The Pond” features a delicate acoustic guitar arpeggio and dreamy flute passages leading to a final joyful section... “A Gathering Storm” is more aggressive, with the sax in the forefront and a tasteful jazzy feeling while the following “The Waterfall” begins with a cascade of notes played by piano then joined by the other instruments for another musical ride...

On “Catch The Wave” the saxophone leads the dance until an acoustic break, then the vocals soar... “With no more fears / I ride the wave towards the open sea / In harmony with this sea / I can’t fall / I can’t fail...”. An interesting arrangement of J.S. Bach’s “Prelude In C Min.” concludes the album.

The vocals of Aldo Tagliapietra and the art cover by Paul Whitehead do not necessarily make the difference between a very good album and a masterpiece. In this work in some passages Aldo’s vocals seem almost “unnatural”, as if he had tried to make an effort to sing in a different way and at a lower pitch than on Le Orme’s works. Nonetheless I enjoyed the music...

You can listen to the complete album HERE

 

From the book Rock Progressivo Italiano: An introduction to Italian Progressive Rock

Alex Carpani: Waterline (2007). Other opinions:

Ryan Sparks: Waterline is a very promising debut and Alex Carpani has assembled a great supporting cast of musicians to help him carry out his vision. You can hear the ghosts of many different bands from the glory days of progressive rock all over Waterline, so Carpani has certainly done his homework. It's what he did with those influences, and how well he incorporated them into his own original compositions to create something new, that makes Waterline such a joy to listen to... (read the complete review HERE).

Olav Martin Bjørnsen: Like many other artists it’s the symphonic side of the progressive rock universe that has fascinated Carpani, and whilst there’s certainly a distinct vintage sound to this first venture of his in this stylistic expression he’s to be given credit for finding a sound that doesn’t immediately make you think of other artists... (read the complete review HERE).

Read the interview with Alex Carpani at Progarchives. Click HERE

More info:

http://www.alexcarpani.com/

http://it-it.facebook.com/alex.carpani