APEIROPHOBIA

Apeirophobia is a Greek word that means "fear of the infinity" and centres this concept album by Italian band ifsounds. The lyrics by guitarist Dario Lastella are always very deep in researching the psychological implications in the stories that he talks about. There's a song about emigration (Summer Breeze) and one about the last six minutes of a woman in a death row (Last Minutes), but conceptually the highlight of the album is the title track suite. Apeirophobia is an epic 28-minutes-long trip in the history of human consciousness about faith and fears. Musically the album sounds a little like an updated Italian album of the 70s' even if there's a strong floydian influence in it (the opening Anima Mundi and Last Minutes are clear examples of it). The band has a very good cohesion and sound and the new singer Elena Ricci has a powerful yet sometimes slightly imprecise voice. But maybe the main instrument is the Claudio Lapenna's piano that along with Lastella's guitars makes the best sonic textures in ifsounds' songs.

One of the best albums I've listened to in the last years. 5 stars.