IL TEMPIO DELLE CLESSIDRE

Il Tempio Delle Clessidre is an Italian progressive rock band founded in Genoa in 2006. The band intends to express ideas and music with the typical sound of the 70's progressive rock music. Elisa Montaldo, keyboardist and composer passionate by the progressive rock and Stefano 'Lupo' Galifi, the vocalist of the album 'Zarathustra', the progressive masterpiece of the famous Italian band Museo Rosenbach met in Genoa in 2006 and gave life to the project, which takes the evocative name 'Il Tempio Delle Clessidre', the final piece of the suite 'Zarathustra', then revised in meaning and concept. The band performs the entire album 'Zarathustra' live, so that Galifi's voice can return to the audience with its original strength and its typical blues nuance. The band begins to work on new ideas for their own compositions. The study, improvisation and sound research are crucial elements for the birth of their eponymous debut work from 2010.

So, 'Il Tempio Delle Clessidre' is the debut studio album of Il Tempio Delle Clessidre that was released in 2010. The line up on 'Il Tempio Delle Clessidre' is Stefano 'Lupo' Galifi (lead vocals), Giulio Canepa (guitars), Elisa Montaldo (vocals, piano, organ, keyboards and concertina), Fabio Gremo (bass guitar) and Paolo Tixi (drums). The album had also the participation of Antonio Fantinuoli (cello) and Max Manfredi (narration).

On 'Il Tempio Celle Clessidre' the compositions are tightly organized and strike the right balance between the melody and the complexity, without a second wasted and with enough changes of pace to make the most demanding prog fan happy. Although the singing is strongly emphasized, there is also a lot of room for the instrumentalists to display their considerable chops. Indeed, the pristine sound quality allows each of the musicians' performances to shine, and captures every nuance of Galifi's seasoned vocal delivery, honed in years of fronting blues-rock bands, while the melodic bent tempers the intensity of the lyrics and the esoteric symbolism of the cover art and booklet of the album.

'Verso L'Alba' is an instrumental track, relatively short that immediately sets the high standard of the music. It sets the scene with the deep, Gothic sound of the organ. It immediately sounded to me as a fine Italian prog album of the 70's. 'Insolita Parte Di Me' is a piece with a lot of rhythm changes, alternating quieter passages with more dramatic ones, dominated keyboards. It's amazing how they manage to achieve the complexity of prog without sacrificing the melody. 'Boccadasse' is a more conventionally structured song with a great diversity. The instrumental parts are followed by the melodic vocal parts with beautiful melodies, catchy chorus and a beautiful melodic guitar solo. The end is great too. 'Le Due Met' Della Notte' is a splendid keyboard showcase that combines melody and intensity. It slowly builds featuring the piano, vocals and a rhythm section, to the full bombastic splendor of the best symphonic prog in its finale. 'La Stanza Nascosta' is a ballad largely acoustic in its nature. It's a very beautiful and delicate track with a lot of classical influences. The piano and the stunning vocals conjure a melancholic and meditative atmosphere. It's superb. 'Danza Esoterica Di Datura' features a varied array of sound images, abetted from a Shakespeare's extract of Macbeth recited by Elisa. It develops into a great prog track with great keyboard melodies combined with very complex rhythms. 'Faldistorium' is full of rhythm and wonderful parts full of keyboard strings. The story is spoken by guest Manfredi, reciting a short text in an emphatic, melodic yet slightly ominous, reinforced by the closing strains of a church organ. 'L'Attesa' is an up-tempo track, a rich and energetic keyboard fest. It's very much in the vein of classic Italian heavy prog acts of the 70's. It has jazzy bass, Hammond organ, Mellotron strings, romantic piano and the great voice of Galifi. 'Il Centro Sottile' is a solemnly melodic track where all the instruments strive to create a lush texture with romantic and classical piano parts, beautiful vocal lines, melodic guitar work always supported by tasteful keyboards. To complete, the fairground and firework sounds on the finale and can add emotionality to the listener. It's simply amazing. 'Antidoto Mentale' closes the album with the leading role for Galifi. This includes lots of vintage keyboards played pleasantly too.

Conclusion: Il Tempio Delle Clessidre deserves to be hailed by their debut. Blending the warmth and melodic flair of the Mediterranean musical tradition with the driving energy of rock and the artistic ambition of prog, the band released one of the best albums to have come out of Italy. While taking their cue from the prog music produced in the 70's the band manages to sound fresh and up-to-date, and not a mere exercise of nostalgia. Il Tempio Delle Clessidre delivered quite an achievement with an album that they can be very proud of. A flawlessly performed, lovingly presented effort, Il Tempio delle Clessidre will surely bring a lot of listening pleasure to the many fans of the Italian progressive rock style. It's highly recommended for people who enjoy the music of the 70's made by Genesis, Yes, Camel, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Premiata Forneria Marconi, Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso and Le Orme. You should definitely invest in this band.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

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