SECOND ACT

Percorsi is Plurima Mundi’s second studio work (and their first full length album) and was self-released in 2017 with a renewed line up featuring Massimiliano Monopoli (electric violin), Grazia Maremonti (vocals), Massimo Bozza (bass), Silvio Silvestre (guitar), Gianmarco Franchini (drums) and Lorenzo Semeraro (piano). It maintains all the good promises of the 2009 EP entitled Atto I with its excellent mix of classical influences, progressive rock and world music...

The excellent opener “Eurasia” is a long, complex instrumental piece that starts with a drum solo part, then the sound of the violin lead us from Venice to Asia and back through the Silk Road. You can hear strong classical influences with the shadow of Vivaldi looming large, but this particular journey goes through many changes in rhythm and atmosphere and all you have to do is set your imagination free and let the music drive...

The following “E mi vedrai... Per te” (And you’ll see me... For you) every now and again reminds me slightly of Opus Avantra and tells in music and words of a burning, sensual passion and of a lost love that the protagonist would like to take back. A dream that could turn to nightmare. In fact, in my opinion, the operatic, theatrical vocals of Grazia Maremonti conjure up the image of a crazy, hysterical, dangerous woman...

The disquieting “L. ...Tu per sempre” (L. ...You forever) tells of another tormented love story. The atmosphere is dark, the music is closer to Goblin’s horror soundtracks than to dreamy emotional landscapes. Here the music and lyrics evoke a love that burns like a raging fire in the heart of the protagonist, but her lover is missing. She runs to the border of the night, her lover now is like a haunting ghost with an icy look. The wind is blowing, time passes by but in the darkness the memory of a lost summer dream shines on...

“Male interiore (La mia età)” (Inner disease - My age) starts softly, by an acoustic guitar arpeggio, the atmosphere is hypnotic and tense. The hermetic lyrics and operatic vocals express the need to open your heart to the universe and follow the rhythm of its notes while the music takes rough trails with sudden accelerations and unexpected turnarounds... Then a shortened version of “L. ...Tu per sempre” closes the album.

On the whole, an interesting work that is really worth listening to.

You can listen to the complete album HERE

Plurima Mundi: Percorsi (2017). Other opinions:

Steven Reid: Clocking in at just over forty minutes (including the bonus track), the first full effort from Plurima Mundi may not be the longest album you'll encounter this year and yet with not a second wasted in its running time, it may well be one of the most interesting you'll come across. The songs are tightly constructed and varied, while the violin and vocals always keep similar underlying themes in play. As with their previous release, there's little doubt that a band emanating from the US or the UK would never have conjured up what Plurima Mundi do. Something that, with so many outfits working towards similar goals, is a real breath of fresh air... (read the complete review HERE)

More info:

https://www.facebook.com/plurimaOfficial 

FIRST ACT

Plurima Mundi came to life in Taranto in 2004 on the initiative of classical violinist and composer Massimiliano Monopoli with the aim of blending progressive, jazz, rock, swing, blues, funky, world and classical music to give form to something challenging and new. In 2009 the band self-released an interesting debut EP entitled Atto I with a line up featuring Massimiliano Monopoli (violin), Grazia Maremonti (vocals), Massimo Bozza (bass), Vincenzo Zecca (guitar), Pierfrancesco Caramia (drums) and Francesco Pagliarulo (piano) plus the guest Lino Vairetti (vocals on one track - from Osanna). The overall sound is rich and varied, the musicianship and compositional skills of the band worth noting...

The opener “Ortus confusus” is an instrumental piece that starts softly, with a dreamy atmosphere and a strong classical flavour. Then the rhythm rises for a short passage that recalls a folkish dance led by the violin that turns into a swinging jazz part with the piano in the forefront. Finally the violin returns to drive back the music in a classical world following other directions...

Next comes “Nei ricordi del tempo” (In the memories of time) that starts by a calm section veined of nostalgia. The music and lyrics evoke the memories of a lost love emerging from an inner sea of emotions, then the rhythm rises, the memories turn into a vortex and begin to dance in circles, hand in hand with time. Everything turns around like in an eternal come back...

The long, complex “Laboratorio 30” (Laboratory 30) is a dreamy piece that goes through many changes in mood and rhythm. The music and lyrics evoke new forms and colours coming to life as darkness falls down, tableaux painted in vivid colours, an illusory world of modernity and brilliant night entertainment where every novelty becomes a fatal attraction. Pictures of a vanity fair where you can get lost between temptation and deceit...

The last track, “Aria” (Air), features the guest vocalist Lino Vairetti interacting with Grazia Maremonti. The music and lyrics evoke the sense of freedom that you can experience by breathing fresh air after escaping from the prison of your daily grind. Mediterranean influences conjure up an enchanted, mysterious atmosphere as a new emotional world opens its gates and invites you to come in. The night hugs and protect you...
 

On the whole, a very good work.

 

 

Plurima Mundi: Atto I (2009). Other opinions:
Jim Russell: "Atto I" is the debut EP by the Taranto based Plurima Mundi, a new 6-piece outfit delivering lavish and elegant compositions that should thrill many RPI fans. They sound markedly different than many other current entries on the RPI scenes, different than the heavy-rock proggers, folkier entries, or those infused with metal or neo influences... This band has a feisty compositional attitude and grabs every style in the book in the search for a unique sound... and it works! Blending so many styles could be a disaster in some cases but not here... (Read the complete review HERE)

More info:

https://www.facebook.com/plurimaOfficial 

VIVID DREAMS

 Exedra came to life in Taranto in 2005 on the initiative of Giuseppe Prete and Andrea Rapisardo with the aim of mixing classic prog from the seventies with modern sounds and prog metal. After some line up changes and many years of hard work, in 2012 they self-produced and self-released an interesting debut album entitled Apeiron with a line up featuring Giuseppe Prete (vocals, acoustic guitars), Marco Memmola (piano, keyboards), Luca Orlando (bass), Simone Basile (guitars) and Andrea Rapisardo (drums). It’s a complex conceptual work about the eternal cycle of life (birth – death – rebirth) and the title refers to an Ancient Greek word meaning boundless or infinite. The art work by Giusppe Prete tries to give an idea of the subject matter...

The powerful opener “Fenice” (Phoenix) describes in music and words the need to recover from the misfortunes of life. The title refers to the mythical bird that cyclically regenerates by arising from its ashes that here is just a metaphor to tell about a stubborn will to overcome difficulties. Rage might flow like lava burning down your hopes but pride keeps you alive and for every broken dream you’ll rise again from the extinguished fire. Never surrender!

The reflective “Siddharta” starts softly, then the music and lyrics conjure up a surreal landscape out of time. Like Siddharta you sit on the banks of an eternal river that carries away questions about the meaning of life and troubles. Some calm passages could recall Pink Floyd... Then it’s the turn of the dreamy “Crisalide” (Chrysalis) that describes the impulse to fly higher, following your dreams, like a butterfly that rises from a chrysalis of tears.

The long, evocative “Venga il tuo regno” (Thy Kingdom Come) is a suite divided into five parts: “Sogni vividi” (Vivid dreams), “In un attimo” (In a while), “Macerie” (Ruins), “Siamo noi” (It’s us) and “Verso il sole” (Towards the sun). It tells of dreams, virtual reality, false truths preached through the media in a crumbling world falling down because of man’s greediness, error after error, horror after horror... What’s the matter? Where is God? You need to reach the bottom of the ravine to climb up again...

Exedra 2011

The melancholic, reflective “Siamo qui” (Here we are) with its cutting lights and inner darkness fades into the following “Come il vento” (Like the wind), a nervous piece about the ravages of time on human nature, then the long title track closes the album. “Apeiron” is a complex suite divided into seven parts: “Overture”, “Intorno a me” (Around me), “Le ali della farfalla” (The wings of the butterfly), Naufragio (Wreck), “Oceano di realtà” (Ocean of Reality), “Samsara” and “Io vivrò” (I will live). The music and lyrics unfold going through many changes of atmosphere and mood following the dark shadows of an unavoidable fate, in search for a hidden harmony lost between order and disorder, trying to escape an inner wreck in an ocean of doubts where hazard and destiny play among the many threads of reality… 

On the whole, a good work even if the concept, to be honest, is not always clear. Have a try!

You can listen to the complet album HERE

More info:

https://www.facebook.com/Exedra-110098393668/

PUGLIA

Heading east now, for the next leg we go back to the Adriatic coast, to PUGLIA. We go first to FOGGIA, where we can listen to a young band called Moon Eclipse (MySpace). Then we turn south to BARLETTA, best known for the Disfida di Barletta, a battle between French and Italian Knights that took place on February 13, 1503. It consisted in a mounted tournament and was won by the Italians. Here we can listen to a psychedelic prog band called Orient Express (MySpace) and to the young, interesting Il Canto della Città Ibernata (Facebook) while the near town of San Ferdinando di Puglia is home to Geologica (Facebook).

Then we pass through the town of Bisceglie, birthplace of classical guitar virtuoso and composer Mauro Giuliani. Still heading south along the coast we pass through the town of Monopoli where we can listen to two interesting emerging bands, the post rock Corridoio... Con Figure e Luci (MySpace) and La Biblioteca Deserta (MySpace) that after two demos and much trouble (including the loss of all their instruments that were stolen after a concert near Naples in 2009) have finally released a first full length album on the independent label Faro Records, Travelling Without Gravity, featuring ethereal psychedelic sounds and spacey atmospheres.

Still heading south we arrive in BARI, the capital of this region. The best known artist from Bari is probably Domenico Modugno, but in the seventies Bari also gave us some good prog bands such as Festa Mobile and Il Baricentro. The current prog scene of the city is rich in interesting and very promising bands. One of my favourites is Assenzio (MySpace) that were formed in 2004 by five skilled musicians with the aim of blending influences of classic progressive rock bands such as PFM, BMS and Area with more recent sounds. 2005 marked the release of their excellent self-produced debut album, ’Avon, an interesting concept album about the seven capital sins featuring a very good sound quality although it was completely recorded and mixed in the band’s home studio. Well, Assenzio’s guitarist Gigi Lorusso is a teacher of sound recording techniques as well! By the way, Assenzio’s members are also involved in other projects such as the very interesting La Variante Chevac (MySpace), Think Tank (Facebook) and U’Papun (MySpace).

Other interesting local bands are Floating State (MySpace), Le Marionette Ribelli (MySpace), Iniqua (MySpace), Odi et Amo (MySpace), Prometheo (Facebook) that in 2019 self-released an excellent debut album entitled D'un fuoco rapito, d'un giovane uomo, d'un amore insensato, Hora Prima (Facebook), then Chiquita Noir (MySpace), AcomeandromedA (MySpace), Telenauti (MySpace), Novaetere (Reverbnation), Noise Overtones Therapy (MySpace) and the Mediterranean ethno-pop project Radiodervish (MySpace). Members of Floating State started also a side project called Folletti di Vetro (MySpace) featuring new arrangements of Fabrizio De Andrè’s songs. Before leaving the province of Bari there’s the time to have a quick look at Ruvo di Puglia, home to Alice's Mirror (Facebook) and at Gravina in Puglia, a town west of Bari in an area called Murgia. Here we can listen to some emerging prog bands such as La Quinta Essenza (MySpace) and Divinae Laude (MySpace).  

Leaving Bari, heading south we first pass through the town of Rutigliano, also known as the “città dell’uva” (the city of grapes) because of its renowned vineyards, where another excellent band, Architrave Indipendente (MySpace), come from. The band was formed in 2004 by musicians in love with analogical sounds. Their self-produced debut album, the excellent Azetium a 8 piste, was released in 2009 only on vinyl!

Then we reach Molfetta where we can listen to the psychedelic Obscure Paths (MySpace). Then we pass through the “white town” of Ostuni, where we can listen to Trimaira (MySpace) and to Silent Tears (MySpace). Our next halt is the city of BRINDISI, where we can listen to Aufklarung (MySpace) , Bolero (Facebook) and to the psychedelic Lenula (MySpace).

Then, finally, we arrive in LECCE, the main city of an area called Salento, the south eastern extremity of Italy. This area is best known for a particular dance called pizzica and for an annual music festival dedicated to this dance, La Notte della Taranta.

 This area is home to prog bands and artists such as Abash (MySpace), I Viaggi di Madeleine (Facebook), Aria Palea (MySpace), Zaq (Bandcamp), Tempu’s (MySpace), Marcello Zappatore (Facebook), Muzak (MySpace), Shedim (MySpace), RetrAvantgarde (MySpace), the folk oriented Aedo (MySpace), the hard, dark L’Impero delle Ombre (MySpace) and the metal influenced Historia (MySpace). Some members of RertAvantgarde are also involved in a side project called Melanalogica (MySpace). 

For our next stop we head north west along the coast of the Ionian Sea, to the city of TARANTO where we conclude our visit to Puglia. The city is home to some interesting prog bands such as Plurima Mundi (MySpace), Dante Roberto's project The Circle (Facebook), Ritratto di un Mattino (MySpace), Sin Terra (Reverbnation), Exedra (Facebook), Nuclide (MySpace), Il Sogno di Rubik (Facebook), Le Meccaniche Illusioni (MySpace), Samsara (MySpace) and, in the nearby town of Grottaglie, Vino Zingaro e la Sospensione del Giudizio (MySpace).