TENEBRAE VINCUNT

Absenthia is an Italian prog band from Vicenza that was formed in 2005. The line up features Igor D'Aoconte (vocals), Alberto Saccozza (bass), Massimiliano Piazzon (drums), Enrico Baù (keyboards), Paolo Miotti (guitar) and Ferruccio Caoduro (guitar). Their music blends influences ranging from PFM, BMS and Le Orme to folk, Italian melody and prog metal in a very original and convincing way. The band has a strong theatrical approach with the operatic vocals of Igor D'Aoconte in the forefront. The history of Ancient Rome is the main source of inspiration for the lyrics of their debut album, the excellent self produced "Tenebrae Vincunt", that was released in 2009.

The album opens with "Commentarii ? De Bello Gallico VII", a beautiful ballad inspired by the life of Julius Caesar and his assassination. Lyrics deal with the immortality of ideals and great achievements that can be reached only after the death... "When I will turn into ashes / You will understand the true reminders that loom the time / The flesh can die but the dream will come back in your head / In my death is concealed the secret / You will inherit my eternity".

The second track is the aggressive "Atomica Achillea". The achillea is a kind of medical herb that the ancient Greeks used to treat wounds. Here uranium is compared to a medical herb: what could have happened if the most ferocious armies ever on earth could have had atomic bombs? Perhaps just the end of the humankind and the beginning of a new world of dreadful peace...

"Absira e la battaglia di Teutoburgo" is a complex track, romantic and powerful in the meantime, a love song settled in the middle of the battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 A.D. The character of the female slave Absira is a kind of metaphor for the pleasures of life that are wasted in the name of the greed for power and money... "Absira silently dies in the twilight / The blood on her dress is like dropped wine... The flames are dancing around a dying love". This track is available in free legal download from the official website, so have a try!

"Aria ? Ricordi di un soldato" (Air ? Souvenirs of a Soldier) is a beautiful ballad full of pathos and energy where a soldier remembers his past days and a woman... "Days never come back / The memories of a time that's gone will fade away into the wind / But here inside me there's still your souvenir".

"La danza dei miei Satiri" is another great track, full of rage and despair for the ambiguities of life and the greediness of people. Then comes the fast and heavy marching beat of the next piece, the rebellious "Catilina e la congiura degli stracci", that deals with the living hope of a man that fight against a corrupted class of politicians with a weapon called reason, without mercy.

In the dramatic and sensual "Amore e Psiche" heavy guitar riffs are counter pointed by fiery organ chords. Lyrics are inspired by the tale of Cupid and Psyche by the Latin prose writer Apuleius. Next comes the dark and mysterious "Argonautica", inspired by the character of Medea, an enchantress in the ancient Greek mythology. The operatic approach of the singer here is more evident than ever.

"Spartacus" is a powerful track dedicated to freedom and to the dignity of people that die fighting in war because of the stupidity of dictators or politicians... "Blood on the dust / Smell like ambition / That flies away from this joy / Theatre of death...". The last track, "Lo schiavo infante e la matrona romana" is a pculiar ballad that tells love story between a young slave and his older matron.

On the whole an amazing album, in my opinion one of the best debut of 2009.