HOTEL BRUN

It looks like this was to be the farewell album of this Italian group. Sithonia plays traditional Italian symphonic prog that sounds very sophisticated. Their music might be a little simpler than most of the other acknowledged new Italian groups yet they still avoid all commercialisms. They remind me of Banco del Mutuo Soccorso and La Locanda delle Fate with perhaps an even more romantic touch. A band that is definitely in the better half of the 90's Italian groups. "Hotel Brun" is a great example of this. Their line-up is the usual prog line-up except that they have dual keyboards (mini moog, hammond, synthesizers). There are also some nice violin leads, which are credited to a non-band member Paolo Zuntini. . They had a very good vocalist in Marco Giovannini. Most of the tracks in this album are written by the keyboardist Paolo Nannetti and a non-band member Roberto Magni (he was the guitarist in earlier albums).

The highlight track is without a doubt the over 23-minute title track "Hotel Brun". This is also the most progressive track. Here the band delivers especially some really beautiful runs with the dual keyboards. My other favourite track is "Ombra Nella Nebbia" written by the bassist Valerio Roda. A very nice track this one indeed.

Conclusion: Very good 90's Italian progressive that should please fans of the Italian sound.