FLOWERS AND DUCKS

Flower Flesh come from Savona and were formed in 2005 on the initiative of Ivan Giribone and Alberto Sgarlato. After some line up changes, in 2010 the band began the recording sessions of their début album, Duck In The Box, with a line up featuring founder members Ivan Giribone (bass) and Alberto Sgarlato (keyboards) along with Daniel Elvstrom (vocals), Marco Olivieri (guitars) and Andrea Fazio (drums). The result of their efforts is an interesting mix of influences ranging from The Doors and Quicksilver Messenger Service to Uriah Heep, from Premiata Forneria Marconi and Le Orme to Kansas and Rush. The album was finally released in 2012 on the independent label Black Widow Records and I think it's worth listening to.

The opener “Falling In Another Dimension” is a short rock piece veined of psychedelia and full of energy that tries to take you in another space, far from the daily grind. The following “My Gladness After Sadness” begins softly, driven by a delicate piano pattern backed by an acoustic guitar. It's a long, complex track that every now and again evokes the ghost of the Lizard King and Daniel Evstrom's hieratic vocals provide here an almost mystic atmosphere. On an evocative marching beat you can see a woman's body materialize through a crystal ball... “I'm thirsty, you know / And in your eyes I can see the sea that I can't drink... The hourglass of Time stands still / We are a sinking ship / But when everything seems lost / We become energy of the universe / That's what I dream for us / You have to know it, my very sweet Mary...”. An excellent track where PFM meets the Doors. The lyrics are half in Italian and half in English and I have to say that's a real pity that the band didn't exploit more their native language.

“It Will Be the End” evokes a dark night and a light in the distance on the sea, there's a desert around you where truth and lies dance in the mist while the music features a slight eighties flavour. Next comes the psychedelic “God Is Evil (Like The Devil)” that recalls The Doors. According to the band, the lyrics are about clergymen who cover with religion their wickedness. The following “The Race Of My Life” features an exotic flavour and many changes in rhythm and mood. It's another track featuring lyrics half in Italian and half in English that draw strange visions taking you beyond Moon and Time to challenge fire and wind.

“Antarctica” features a slight a new wave touch and tries to describe the icy “landscape” that forms in a house when a relationship is falling apart. The last track, the complex “Scream and Die”, according to an interview with the band, is about the Soviet war in Afghanistan and quotes some verses by Arab poets from the book “Versi di fuoco e di sangue”. It's an excellent piece and a perfect conclusion for this work.

Flower Flesh: Duck In The Box (2012). Other opinions:

Jerry Lucky: Flower Flesh are a relatively new band, having started in 2005 and as such they bring an updated sensibility to the world of Italian prog. Their sound is clearly symphonic, a kind that hearkens back to an earlier time, primarily in the sound of the instruments and also in the uncomplicated arrangements. It may take a couple of listens to pick up what’s going on here, but in the end Duck in a Box is a very satisfying set of tunes. I’m liking it more and more each time I put it on... (read the complete review HERE)

Vitaly Menshikov: The band is obviously not setting out to change the world of Neo Prog – they simply make their own contribution to the genre. Nonetheless, those who prioritize rock music more based in melody than in details will likely find the album a solid success... (read the complete review HERE).

More info:

http://www.flowerflesh.com/

https://myspace.com/flowerflesh

https://www.facebook.com/groups/260209808944/  

A TRIP IN THE GHOST TOWN

Civico 23 began life in Rome in 2010 on the initiative of Massimo “Joe” Galatone and Lorenzo Gaudino with the aim to blend classic rock with new sounds. After a demo and an intense live activity in the Roman area, in 2013 the band released an interesting début album on the independent label Lizard Records titled “Siero progressivo” (Progressive serum) with a line up featuring Massimo “Joe” Galatone (vocals), Lorenzo Gaudino (basso), Daniel Parisi (lead guitar), Federico Cianfarra (rhythm guitar), Simone Mastrodonato (organo, piano, keyboards) and Francesco Cossio (drums). The result of their efforts is a personal “NeWintage” music (as they define it) full of raw energy and irony with a strong theatrical approach and influences ranging from Banco del Mutuo Soccorso and Premiata Forneria Marconi to Joe Cocker, Neil Young, Dream Theater and many more.

The opener “Umida cenere” (Wet ash) begins with an electric guitar arpeggio. Then, out of the blue, the music and lyrics conjure up hard images of desolate, dark streets where drug dealers and pimps rule over men and women who burn their life under a gloomy rain before getting lost into the black, as wet ashes swept away by a hurricane.

“Il menestrello” (The minstrel) is a short narrative introduction to the following “Il cavaliere illuso” (The deluded knight) , a long, complex track that alternates heavy guitar riffs and calmer moments, fiery organ rides and acoustic passages. It tells the story of a knight who kills a dragon and later realizes that he did the wrong thing since the dragon was there only to protect the town. The ungrateful townsfolk are far from happy for his noble deed since the dragon used to feed on hatred and negativity giving peace in exchange. So, eventually, the knight runs away and shelters in the forest, ashamed and regretful. In some way this track reminds me of another Italian prog band called Fiaba.

“Urano” (Uranus) tells in music and words about a cathartic voyage toward Uranus, the seventh planet from the sun, named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky. It starts softly, then a sudden burst of energy marks the take off towards deep purple skies. Along the way you could die working in slavery, haunted by apocalyptic visions and then come to life again with a new hope... “Stand up!”.

“Paura infinita” (Infinite fear) features a heavy atmosphere where the music and lyrics evoke gloomy, infernal figures moving behind the black face of Death, wildly dancing on the deck of a pirate ship... “Forests of fire / Deserts of sulphur / Come on damned! Dance with me! / You're welcome in my Hell...”.

“Aureo” (Aureus) is a short narrative piece which sets the atmosphere to the following “I sette angeli” (The seven angels), an apocalyptic ballad evoking seven angels carrying death and destruction on earth. After their passage there's nothing left but dust, ash and silence, then a woman crowned with stars appears in the sky bringing a new hope. She's ready to give birth to a new messiah, a new sun is going to rise and you can't do nothing but hope in a better world...

“Delirio ad occhi chiusi” (Delirium with eyes closed) begins with a delicate piano pattern, then the rhythm rises bringing a positive energy along with odd dreams and strange sensations. Only keeping your eyes shut you can fly over the towers of the prophets discovering humble, fragile secrets and see the infinite throughout the light that for centuries has been hiding it... “I want to shout on a distant music / As the wind blowing on a volcano that is going to erupt...”.

The long, complex “L'ultimo grido di Galeria” (The last scream of Galeria) is my favourite track on this album. Galeria is a ghost town that lies near Rome and was completely abandoned by the inhabitants in 1809, probably on account of a malaria epidemic. This piece depicts in music and words a traveller who walks among the ruins of the ancient buildings in wintertime. He can still hear the songs of a minstrel carried by the wind or the screams of pain of some lost souls still echoing all around...

A last short narrative track, “Rimane il mare” (It remains the sea), concludes the album with sparks of fairy tales and poetical visions... “In the beginning it was silence, then wind and rain came / And the sea with its ever changing wave / Then came the man with his wars and no solution / Then music came, primordial sounds / And in the end, in the very end / The wind was gone, and the man with his heart of pain was gone too / There was nothing left but the sea / A sound that can replace every human sound...”.

On the whole, a good work that is really worth listening to.

You can listen to the complete album in streaming HERE

More info:

http://www.civico23band.it/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Civico-23

http://www.reverbnation.com/civico23

BACK TO THE NEW WORLD

After some singles in a melodic, commercial style, in 1972 Franco Battiato took a more challenging musical direction for his first full length album on Bla Bla Records blending Italian melody with experimental electronic sounds. The result is “Fetus”, a concept album written in collaboration with Sergio Albergoni and producer Pino Massara and recorded with the help of a team of skilled musicians featuring, among others, Gianfranco D'Adda, Gianni Mocchetti and Sergio Almangano. According to the liner notes, this album is “completely dedicated” to Aldous Huxley and his works, in particular to Brave New World, a novel which anticipates developments in reproductive technology, sleep-learning, psychological manipulation, and operant conditioning that combine to profoundly change society. It's subtitled “Ritorno al mondo nuovo” (Return To The New World) and features a provocative, controversial art work by Gianni Sassi.

The opener “Fetus” is a short track in three parts that begins just by vocals and sound effects evoking the heart-beat. The lyrics depict the feelings of a baby who slowly takes shape in his mother's womb... “I wasn't born yet / And I could already feel the heart-beat / Even before my birth / I could feel that I was born without love...”. On the instrumental middle section synthesizers come in describing the mystery of life flowing in the veins of fate, then an acoustic guitar arpeggio introduces an almost mystical atmosphere.

The following “Una cellula” (A cell) features a dreamy mood while the lyrics conjure up images from a future where time gets blurred... “My cells will change and my body will have a new life... We will travel around the sun, faster than light / As time-machines against the will of Time...”.

 

“Cariocinesi” (Mitosis) is a strange, swinging track that every now and again reminds me of the Quintette du Hot Club de France of Stephan Grappelli and Django Reinhardt. The music and lyrics describe in a surreal way the magic of the process by which a cell, which has previously replicated each of its chromosomes, separates the chromosomes in its cell nucleus into two identical sets of chromosomes, each set in its own new nucleus, a process that is maybe blind or just “enlightened by a memory without past...”. But beware! Chance can alter the process leading to unpredictable effects.

“Energia” (Energy) begins with the voice of some little children in the background and the reprise of the theme of the middle section of the title track. Then Franco Battiato's vocals come in and draw some reflections about the role of chance in the reproductive process... “I have had many women in my life / And in every room I left some of my energy... If a child would be aware that he was born by chance among thousands of occasions / He would understand all the dreams that life can give / And he would live with joy all those illusions...”.

“Fenomenologia” (Phenomenology) begins with a strummed acoustic guitar and a dreamy mood... “My mental action is uncertain / The voice is marble and concrete / I live in spite of myself / It’s hard to get the control / There’s fog around my eyes / The outlines are getting blurred / I’ve already forgotten my dimension / Unknown forces are tearing me from myself...”. Then a second part follows introduced by strange percussion patterns while the vocals repeat the DNA formula. The track ends with a reprise of the third part of the title track

“Meccanica” (Mechanics) is darker and begins with synthesizers in the forefront that bring a sense of tension. Then an acoustic section follows and the music and lyrics depict a laboratory where the genes of love are manipulated to shape a new form of life featuring mechanical eyes and brain, a plastic heart and a synthetic taste. On the final section you can hear the voices of the astronauts of the Apollo 11 and Bach's “Air on a G string”.

Inner sleeve

Next comes the ethereal “Anafase” (Anaphase). Anaphase is the stage of mitosis or meiosis when chromosomes are split and the sister chromatids move to opposite poles of the cell, but in this case the lyrics and music conjure up an interstellar journey. Some spaceships take off towards the immensity - Will man colonize new planets?

The conclusive “Mutazione” (Mutation) seems to suggest the answer for the previous question... “Millennia of sleep have cradled me and now I'm back / Something has changed / I can't see any signal of life / Nonetheless I can feel it / The are some vibrations / I can't say what my eyes are going to see / Perhaps some bodies of stone / I feel them coming...”.

Well, on the whole an interesting album with a concept half-way between science-fiction and spiritualism!

You can listen in streaming to the complete album HERE

Franco Battiato: Fetus (1972). Other opinions:

Jim Russell: Despite the less-than-appealing cover art, "Fetus" is one charming piece of work. It is true that it is less realized than his coming albums, perhaps more scattershot, and yet I find it is probably the one I enjoy playing the most. It's a collage work mixing symphonic, psych, traditional Italian pop, avant-garde, minimalism, and electronic sound... As for what "Fetus" delivers to the listeners, the songs are short and sweet, built upon the combination of Battiato's VCS3, voice, and the acoustic guitar. The eerie warbles of the VCS3 are handled masterfully, and even if occasionally cheesy by today's standards they are often evocative and haunting in their strangeness. The embellishments in the form of violin, swelling organ washes, light/minimal percussion, Bach samples, and sound effects keep each track very rich and interesting... (read the complete review HERE)

UNDER THE MOON

Oxhuitza is a project that began life in 2011 on the initiative of guitarist and composer from Fivizzano Luca Bassignani and was named after an ancient Maya archaeological site. In 2013 an eponymous début album was released on the new independent label Mirror Records, recorded at the Hilary Studio in Genoa and produced by Fabio Zuffanti and Rossano Villa. Along with Luca Bassignani (electric and acoustic guitars), the musicians involved during the recording sessions were Rossano Villa (Hammond organ, Mellotron, Minimoog, Fender Rhodes, vibes, percussion), Carlo Barreca (bass, flute), Christian Giannarelli (drums) and Gabriele Guidi (piano, Hammond organ, Minimoog). The result of their efforts is a nice, fresh concoction of vintage and modern sounds that is really worth listening to. The album is completely instrumental but in the booklet you can find drawings, pictures and words that contribute to set the right atmosphere.

The opener “# 01” seems to evoke a cosmic, frenzied ride in search for light and space. There's a sense of exotic mystery and some sudden changes in mood and rhythm. On the notes of the following “Luna di Maggio” (May Moon) you can find “a new light in front of a new beginning” and run freely under the moon, then you can relax quietly in the night carried away on the wings of your dreams, waiting for a new burst of energy.

“Nervi in fibra ottica” (Nerves of optical fibre) features a slower pace and darker musical colours. Here math rock patterns are intertwined with evocative flute lines and jazzy passages where “the soul gets cool, the machine becomes human and plays, cheats, seduces...”. The following “Kirky” is another dark track full of mystery. There are some disquieting passages where tension and rhythm rise, then a short, dreamy acoustic section full of hope where the previous tension melts for a while. Well, try to imagine a land covered by an intricate forest with high trees pushing their roots deep into the ground and their branches up towards the sky, then listen to the song of the brook that flows there... 

 

“Pixel” is a good track featuring sharp guitar riffs and calmer passages, exotic flavours and echoes of ancient myths. It leads to the conclusive “Mano di luna” (Moon hand), a long, complex piece featuring some delicate melodies and a dreamy mood where the musicians pick their way unerringly through a labyrinth of different sensations and styles. On the whole, the album might be a bit short (only about 37 minutes) but there are no fillers and the final result is absolutely good.

Oxhuitza: Oxhuitza (2013). Other opinions:

Michael “Aussie-Byrd-Brother”: Although the occasional quirky elements grate on me a little, this really is a perky cracker of an album, that not only continues the 2013 tradition of superb Italian releases, but top-quality instrumental albums from this year as well. This self-titled work from Oxhuitza proves just how vibrant and thrilling the modern progressive rock scene is, and talented young bands like this will ensure the genre thrives for years to come... (read the complete review HERE)

More info:

http://www.reverbnation.com/oxhuitzaband 

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Oxhuitza 

A GUST OF FRESH AIR

Alan Sorrenti is an artist from Naples who was born to an Italian father and a Welsh mother. In 1972 he released an interesting debut “prog-style” album, “Aria” (Air), on the label Harvest. This work is an excellent effort to blend acoustic and dreamy atmospheres with experimental sounds and vocal acrobatics. The most evident source of inspiration here is Tim Buckley but in this work the Neapolitan artist, helped by some excellent musicians as Tony Esposito (drums percussion), Vittorio Nazzaro (bass, classical guitar) and Albert Prince (piano, organ, bandoneon, mellotron, synthesizers) managed to shape a particular, original sound that is really worth listening to.

The opener is the long, complex, claustrophobic title track... “Air, I’m looking for you in every corner of my room / Air, I’m running after you in the labyrinths of my mind... Air, I feel I’m losing you...”. The voice is used as an instrument to draw surrealistic poetry while calm, reflective moments are counter-pointed to almost hysterical, frenzied passages... For almost twenty minutes the music flows away with sudden changes in rhythm and colourful melodic lines run one after each other. The track is enriched by the violin of the special guest Jean Luc Ponty...

The second track “Vorrei incontrarti” (I would like to meet you) is my favourite. It’s a dreamy acoustic ballad, almost mystical. It expresses the desire to follow something so beautiful that it seems unreal, an illusion, a spell or a siren singing... “I would like to meet you / Outside the gates of a factory / I would like to meet you / Along the streets leading to India / I would like to meet you / But I don’t know what I would do / Perhaps I would cry with joy... Sing your song, sing it for me / Maybe one day I will sing for you...”.

“La mia mente” (My mind) is a melancholic ballad where vocal experiments and dissonant piano chords soar from an acoustic strummed guitar background... “My mind is a balloon / Wandering in a soft dream / And it doesn’t come back to earth / My people show it / My people shoot at it / The first hit make it shake / The second one shoots it down...”. In some moments Alan Sorrenti here reminds me of Area’s singer Demetrio Stratos.

The final track “Un fiume tranquillo” (A quiet river) is another long, particular ballad. The lyrics deal with the fear of self-destruction while the music flows like “a quiet river erasing the memories”, a “quiet river that can save you from a violent fall...”. 

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

You can listen in streaming to the complete album HERE