ALPHATAURUS

Alphataurus may be the best of the "one-shot" bands to come out of Italy in the 1970s, although with a new studio album being released in November 2012 they technically fall out of that category. The similarities to Museo Rosenbach are a good reference point, but perhaps more vocally than instrumentally. No where is this more evident than "Peccato D'Orgoglio," a tour de force stylistically and musically. There is a slight bombastic quality to the song, which I guess warrant the ELP comparisons, but the ingenuity of the arrangement and passionate vocals eclipse anything ELP had done up to this point (Brain Salad Surgery was still months away). I especially love the coda/reprise at the end of the song, which adds a sense of closure and cohesiveness.

If the album ended there, I would have no qualms about giving it a 5-star review. Unfortunately, "Dopo L'Uragano" causes the album to lose a bit of its momentum so Alphataurus is eluded by that classic status. "Croma" is better, and sounds like the soundtrack to a movie never made; in the words of my wife it is "just okay." Things will certainly pick up on the second side of the LP.

"La Mente Vola" and "Ombra Muta" are simply awesome, great examples of the Italian Progressive scene and would not be out of place on any respectable compilation of the genre. To describe them any further would only create a preconceived notion of what the album "sounds like," so I'll resist the temptation to do so. I cannot recommend the album enough, and were it not for the merely above average shorter tracks, Alphataurus would be a masterpiece of Progressive Rock history. As it stands however, a solid four stars and worthy addition to any music lover's collection.