“Deus
lo vult” is the third album by Il Bacio della Medusa, a band from
Perugia that was formed in 2002. It was self-released in 2012 with
the help of Glare Art Communication and features a beautiful
packaging with an art work by Licia Marino mixing photographs and
drawings. Violinist Daniele Rinchi left the band after the excellent
second album and now the line up is reduced to a quintet featuring
Simone Cecchini (vocals, acoustic guitar, harp), Diego Petrini
(drums, percussion, mellotron, organ), Federico Caprai (bass), Simone
Brozzetti (electric guitar) and Eva Morelli (flute, sax, theremin).
The overall sound is harder than in the previous work but in my
opinion the music perfectly fits the storyline and the final result
is magnificent. In fact, “Deus lo vult” is a concept album
inspired by the first crusade where sarcasm and irony prevail upon
epic tones. It tells the story of an unfortunate, naive lord from
Umbria who leaves his land and wife in search for glory and richness
in the Holy Land. Well, if I had to compare this work to a film I
would say that it's definitely closer to Brancaleone at the Crusades by Mario Monicelli than to Kingdom of Heaven by
Ridley Scott!
The
short opener “Invocazione alle Muse” (Invocation to the Muses)
sets the atmosphere with Simone Cecchini who here plays the role of a
minstrel... “Let the wind blow strong / And as for magic / Let it
suggest the song / Of the young Simplicio...”. On the following
“Indignatio (Infedeli in Terra Santa)” (Indignatio – Infidels
in the Holy Land) the rhythm rises while the music and lyrics weave a
sense of organized delirium. This piece describes the atmosphere of
mystic fanaticism and hysteria that leads to every religion war. The
Earth seems to give birth to dark, venomous scorpions while infidels
plunder and celebrate their pagan rites in the Holy Land. You can
hear curses and invocations to the divine wrath... “Hurry up! Hurry
up! / The whole Christianity has to rise and fight...”.
On
“Urbano II bandisce la Prima Crociata” (Urban II summons the
First Crusade) Simone Cecchini plays the role of pope Urban II blessing
Godfrey of Bouillon and his army in an almost ludicrous way and
there's a strong sense of parody. Next comes “Simplicio”, a
beautiful ballad which describes the protagonist of the story on his
way to the Holy Land and his meeting with an attractive girl who
reads his hand and predicts him a gloomy future. She offers him
shelter and love but our hero turns her down and rides on... “When
he gave up counting so many suns and too many moons / He attained his
destination...”.
“Deus
lo vult” (God wills it) begins softly with exotic flavours in the
air, the music here recalls the score of Lawrence of Arabia by
Maurice Jarre. Then the rhythm suddenly rises and you can hear the
battle raging and see the blood flowing in deep purple colours...
“Shoot the arrow and run / Towards those towers... God wills it! /
Beyond those gates / Death is waiting for you... God wills it...”.
“Verso
casa” (On the way home) tells of a sad return. Simplicio is
disappointed, for him there's no glory nor land nor richness since
the leaders and the most powerful knights make the rules and for him
there's nothing left but pain. So he comes back home with no booty
but, at least, the hope to find again his faithful wife cheers him
up. The final track reveals a nasty surprise... “La Beffa (Non un
trono, non un regno... Solo sdegno)” (The prank – No throne, no
kingdom... Only outrage) describes the moment when he finds out his
spouse cheating on him. She's in bed with the local priest and
Simplicio goes mad. In his final explosion of rage he's merciless and
burns them alive... “Get ready the stake...”. Well, a real
flamboyant finale!
Il
Bacio della medusa : Deus lo vult (2012). Other opinions:
Raffaella
Benvenuto-Berry: Besides the outstanding quality of the music,
which successfully blends a vintage feel with a thoroughly modern
allure, Il Bacio della Medusa should be commended for the painstaking
attention devoted to the lyrics – though, unfortunately,
non-speakers of Italian are bound to miss out on this aspect, as even
the best translation is unlikely to convey the stylistic subtlety of
Simone Cecchini’s work. In any case, Deus Lo Vult is undoubtedly
poised to become one of the standout Italian prog releases of this
first part of the 21st century. Especially recommended to fans of
bands at the heavier end of the RPI spectrum (such as Osanna and the
already-mentioned Balletto di Bronzo and Biglietto per l’Inferno),
this intense slice of top-notch musical skill and exquisitely Italian
drama will probably be mentioned in many “best of 2012” lists at
the end of the year... (read the complete review HERE)
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