LEMURES

There are several Italian bands whose music is truly appreciated by prog rock lovers, and most of them come from the 70's, an era of creativity and experimentation. Of course, Il Balletto di Bronzo belong to that bunch of legendary bands who gifted us with a memorable album, which is why we remember them. However, and despite our love for those old releases (YS is my number one Italian album ever, by the way) , it is great to see these bands moving forward and release new albums, no matter the years or line-up changes they've had.

Now in this 2023 the band returned with 'Lemures', an album in which mastermind Gianni Leone managed to gather the talent of bassist Ivano Salvatori and drummer Riccardo Spilli in order to give the fans a positive experience. So don't judge before listening, because it is worth the try.

The album opens with 'Incubo e Succubo', which sounds like a soundtrack of a sci-fi film with some explosions and spacey textures, later the three musicians begin to build up a structure, with a heavy sound which has a kind of apocalyptical sound, in fact, if I had listened to this track without knowing the artist, I would have guessed they were Goblin. 'Oceani sconosciuti' continues with the tension delivered in the opener, however, here Leone's vocals appear for the first time and yeah, they are so unique and a signature of Il Balleto di Bronzo. Of course as expected, keyboard work is great and is what leads this record, creating a vast amount of textures and nuances. Gianni's voice is so powerful and theatrical, and I really thank he decided to sing in Italian once again.

'L'emofago' brings so much power and energy, you can tell it by the drumming and of course, by the emotional vocals. If you ask me to label it, I would say this track shares some hard rock roots with prog rock and even some spacey nuances. There is a great Hammond solo in the final minute. 'Napoli Soterranea' shares a spacey and sinister keyboard sound since the very first seconds, then it becomes quite proggy, and we can notice it by the time signature and the diversity of changes it has, also by the vocal game of Leone, who doesn't actually say a word, but his voice itself says a lot of things. Addictive bass lines, fast drums and loony keys and vocals, and even a Crimsonian feeling in the final minute. Strange but wonderful, and with this one, the "short" tracks of the album finish.

Now be prepared for the "long" ones, starting with 'L'ombra degli Dei' whose first two minutes might be slow, however, necessary. Then it changes, drums and strings appear and create a rhythm that is greatly accompanied by dark keyboards as background, creating once again a dark feeling which later becomes chaotic. Spilli's work here is quite impressive, by the way. Then we have 'Labyrinthus' which is an extraordinary prog rock song, one of the best of the album. First it has bombastic keyboards and a funeral march like drums, then vocals enter creating some tension but also putting a literary scenario, I mean, one can imagine several things, fictional passages while listening to it.

'Certezze fragili'is a pretty nice mid-tempo track, not as explosive as some others, at least for the first minutes, but equally interesting. I like the interplay between bass, drums and keyboards, very symphonic and creative. 'Deliquio Viola' has a majestic sound, strong; after an introductory minute, vocals enter in a theatrical way, so we can perceive like a tragedy act is happening, where Leone's sorrow is spread while the music keep sharing a sinister atmosphere. Great track.

The album closes with 'Il Vento Poi', and yeah, it actually sounds like a closer, like a farewell song. It is good, a bit softer than the previous ones, but with the intact RPI sound in its essence. I am really happy with this album, decades have passed since that legendary 'YS' and it is great to see how Gianni Leone and co. have delivered a great work full of quality. Of course, you should not compare this album with its ancestors, so it is better if you listen and enjoy it as it is, one new release.