HEARTQUAKE / REDUX

While I was looking for new things on the web, I saw a name appear in a list: Leviathan . As I read diagonally, I don't print the information directly and it's by rereading the page that I end up wondering. This is a name that reminds me of something... Well, everyone knows that there is more than one donkey called Martin, and moreover the name Leviathan is claimed by a considerable number of music groups... Yes, but there is an album title, Heartquake / Redux ... It finally clicks in my mind, and this suddenly takes me back a few decades, when I discovered the first album of this Italian group, reissued here by Musea : a sumptuous record of English inspiration (and sung in English), but with an Italian flavor with its superb melodies and excellent keyboards. In short, one of those albums that I've been listening to regularly and that I know almost by heart. A little step back is in order. The group was formed in 1985 by three very young Italian musicians: Alex Brunori (vocals), Andrea Moneta (drums), and Franco Pezzella (keyboards). Later the latter left the group and was replaced on the white and black keys by Andrea Amici . You add Fabio Serra on guitar and Andrea Castelli on bass, and you have the line-up which is in operation at the start of 2024. Two years after Heartquake released in 1988, Be Yourself is in the same musical vein and is reveals just as excellent. In 1997, it was Volume , this time sung in Italian, not bad but less musically convincing than its predecessors. In the first half of the 2000s, 2 long, absolutely remarkable musical suites, sung in Italian, were released as part of the Finnish collective projects Colossus (also published by Musea ). And then nothing more... Hence my disbelief in finding them without warning in 2024! Rather than embarking on a new album, Leviathan therefore chooses to revisit the music of its beginnings, to give it a major dusting and modern production. Ah what a joy to hear again "The Waterproof Grave" , its memorable theme, and Alex Brunori declaiming his Have you ever wonder why at night you have bad dreams ? This is neo prog like IQ , with added Italian exuberance! After this strong beat, it's time for a more melodic prog. "Hellishade of Hevenue" gently and nostalgically features superb harmonies, like this transition to 4'15, which follows the sung section and a very expressive guitar solo. It is also the guitar which takes care of the melodic line until the end. Leviathan/Heartquake (1988) "Only Visiting This Planet" alternates between a playful and playful tone, and grandiose passages, all set to inventive music. The piece ends in a certain cacophony, the sound of a rocket taking off? It's difficult to resist the deliberate and pounding rhythm of "Up We Go!" » , conquering music and grandiose keyboard harmonies do the job. "Dream Of The Cocoon" is once again endowed with a melodic line of which the Italians have the secret. The chorus is simply memorable. I feel like I'm going to have these funny feelings (if I'm not mistaken about what I'm hearing) in my head for a while. A little gem for sure! The title track which closes the album summarizes in a single piece the art and musical intentions of the group. IQ , Pendragon and Fish 's Marillion are not far away, but it is Leviathan who leaves his mark and his style in this grandiose finale, and by extension in this revisited first album. If the mythical biblical monster represents chaos and destruction, its Italian version presents a perfectly constructed musical world, of melodic and harmonic richness of rare inventiveness, alternating power and gentleness with equal success. What a good idea for the Romans to return to the stage with this magnificent version of an album that is probably little known and which fully deserves to be highlighted. I have no doubt that Heartquake / Redux (*) marks the return of Leviathan through the big door, and that it will not close anytime soon since a new studio album is planned and which should be released soon. title Testudo ! Pierre/ProgCritique