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A journey through the Italianprog scene |
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andrea 
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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 Posted: May 02 2010 at 02:21 |
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MORE PROG FROM LOMBARDIA...
MOOGG are an emerging prog band from Brescia. Especially recommended if you like bands like D.F.A....
More info:
Official Website: http://www.moogg.net/
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/mooggtheband
Edited by andrea - December 28 2010 at 07:42 |
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: May 05 2010 at 09:53 |
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CHRISTIAN PROG FROM TOSCANA
Genfuoco are an Italian prog band that was formed in Tuscany in the early seventies. The members of the band were linked to the Focolare Movement (also known as Gen Movement), a Christian movement founded in 1967 by Chiara Lubich to promote among young people from all over the world a peaceful revolution able to change the hearts first and then to change society bringing everywhere the spirit of the gospels. Genfuoco started playing covers of other bands linked to the Gen Movement like Gen Rosso (YouTube) but later they managed to shape their own sound writing original songs in a progressive rock style that could remind of bands like PFM, BMS or Le Orme, with a good use of flute and sax. The line up featured Marco Borgogni (vocals, flute, guitar), Tarcisio Bratto (sax, guitar), Franco Cecchi (keyboards), Paolo De Luca (guitar), Giovanni De Luca (bass) and Marco Naldini (drums). They had a good live activity all over Europe in the “Genfest circuit” and, after a self-produced demo-tape called “Antichi confini”, in 1979 they released an interesting album for the Catholic label Città Nuova, Dentro l'invisibile (Inside the invisible). The album was prevalently distributed through Catholic bookshops and almost completely “out of market”. In 2000 the old members reunited for some concerts. I really hope they could release a new album with new songs, sooner or later... In 2004 they have performed some new unreleased track like “Vorrei Essere” (I wish I was) and “Vento” (Wind) along with old stuff like “Come a Santiago” (Like in Santiago), a song composed in 1972 about war and freedom denied...
Luckily the independent record label Mellow Records re-released the album on CD in 1992. The sound quality on “Dentro l’invisibile” is not perfect, nonetheless the music is really worth listen to... The calm and dreamy instrumental opener “Ouverture” set the atmosphere. It begins with a solemn marching beat, then pastoral acoustic passages and delicate melodies played by keyboards, electric guitar, sax and flute follow in a perfectly balanced way...
“Dalla tana” (From the burrow) is darker and unquiet. It describes a strange dream, a stroll through a blurred past where ancient scimitars on the stones of a temple reflect the light and mummies lurk in the shade. “I painted with my thoughts / What the dark lacks...”.
The reflexive “Traspare” (It shines through) is about the ephemeral values of everyday life and the need to look for a more spiritual way of life... “Who are you? / Things turn around you... It shines through / Night and day / You leave your footprints on the sand / Well, they are already vanishing into the eternity / Forever...”.
“Terra promessa” (Promised Land) is a complex track in two parts, inspired by the Holy Bible... “On the sand / Into the silence / The infinity is a breath that goes / A few men are staring / They are walking on their footprints / The night is falling / Slow steps, hopes and distress / Tears into the void / Many years have passed by / And sweat dug the faces / But they keep on walking...”. Never give up! Beyond the hills a virgin land and a new story is waiting... Percussion with a Latin flavour seem to set a happy end for people who don’t loose hope.
Next comes the meditative “Galassie” (Galaxies). Music starts softly, featuring acoustic guitar and a soaring sax solo, then rhythm takes off. Lyrics invite you to the contemplation of the stars and constellations under a sky of glass. Just try to think about the mysteries of the cosmos... “Lost into the paradise / Hanging in the space / We’re walking in a fabulous reality.. Now we’re gliding below / We fall into a vortex / We’re getting lost in the dark / The dream is coming to an end... Let’s take again our time”.
“La serenata del fiume” (The serenade of the river) is a beautiful acoustic ballad that streams away in a fairy tale atmosphere. Once upon a time the Earth was generous and the water pure... “Like water that flows relaxed on the river / And dance while is carried away / He will gather all the flowers for you / The flowers on the bank that have the same colour of the moon...”.
Last comes the title track “Dentro l’invisibile” (Inside the invisible), my favourite piece on this album. It begins with a spacey flavour, like if coming from the dark side of the moon... “Here you are / The King is there / Fragile flower in a muddy desert / In the night, alone, without anything / Hanging in the emptiness of the cosmos... It’s the absurd, the separation, the cry, the scream / Loneliness, moments of death... Who will be able to read into the invisible? / Who will sit on the throne of deliverance? / Who will dig beyond the abyss of the ego / And then will find himself inside us?”. Well, the influence of Pink Floyd here is clear but the band managed to shape an original and intense track full of spirituality.
In 2001 the band released a live album featuring recordings from the period 1976-1978 that you can find HERE
By the way, from Tuscany come another Christian prog band called S-91 that have just released a debut EP...
More info about S-91:
Official Website: http://s91-11.com/
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/s91band
Edited by andrea - December 28 2010 at 07:45 |
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: May 08 2010 at 10:23 |
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: May 09 2010 at 08:05 |
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andrea
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Posted: May 09 2010 at 11:47 |
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MORE PROG FROM SALENTO
RETRAVANTGARDE are an emerging prog band from Lecce, in the Salentine Peninsula
More info:
RetrAvantgarde’s drummer Alberto Chetta and keyboardist William Verardi are also involved in a brand new project called MELANALOGICA, along with Andrea De Pascalis (bass) and Fabrizio Margari (electric guitar)
More info:
Edited by andrea - June 16 2010 at 07:14 |
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: May 12 2010 at 11:34 |
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EFFECTS OF LIGHT...
EFFETTO CATHERINE is a new instrumental project from Rome featuring Giuseppe Terra on piano and Davide Iacono on drums...
Her you can listen to “Profilo di luce” (Profile of light), from their first EP
More info:
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: May 15 2010 at 14:34 |
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MORE PROG FROM TUSCANY...
OPRA MEDITERRANEA, from Empoli
 MySpace:
DECUPLICO, from Livorno
 MySpace:
LA FAVOLA DI ESIS, from Prato
 MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/lafavoladiesis
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andrea
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Posted: May 16 2010 at 11:47 |
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MORE PROG FROM SICILY...
MOON FIRE, from Messina
 MySpace:
DELTA QUARTI, from Palermo
 MySpace:
INDICATIVE, from Palermo
 MySpace:
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Finnforest
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Honorary Collaborator Joined: February 03 2007 Location: The Heartland Status: Offline Points: 16913 |
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Posted: May 16 2010 at 12:19 |
 promising sounds!
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: May 19 2010 at 15:01 |
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FOUR EYES IN THE SILENCE...
STEEO is a new project from Torino featuring Arti & Mestieri’s keyboardist Beppe Crovella. Pink Floyd are the main source of inspiration...
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andrea
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Posted: May 31 2010 at 12:39 |
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andrea
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Posted: June 02 2010 at 09:16 |
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LOCANDA DELLE FATE, NEW REUNION...
On Saturday 17th July 2010 LOCANDA DELLE FATE will play live in Asti. The first reunion was a little bit disappointing but this time a return to a sound closer to the one of the seventies has been announced...
More info about the concert:
You don’t know who LOCANDA DELLE FATE are?
Well, Locanda delle Fate are a band from Asti that had been playing and listening to other prog band’s music for a long time before the release of their debut album in 1977, “Forse le lucciole non si amano più”, featuring their own composition. You can find on it many influences but all these influences are blended together with a romantic and “original touch” and the result is quite good…
The opener “A volte un istante di quiete” (Sometimes a moment of quiet) is an instrumental track that every now and then reminds me of BMS and Genesis and that shows the great musicianship of the members of the band…
Anyway, in my opinion the inspired lyrics and the wonderful vocals are the strength of the album… “Dragged by a theft of conscience / Dazzled by myths and legends / Our dreams full of miracles / Are not enough anymore / When the light comes…” : the title track “Forse le lucciole non si amano più” (Maybe the fireflies don’t love each other anymore) is about the contrast between dreams and reality and leads you in a world of quiet where to look for “the illusions and the dreams that nobody buy anymore”…
The following “Profumo di colla bianca” (Smell of white glue) is about a man that, after he found in the attic an old notebook and some old toys, longs for the dreams and the illusions of the childhood… “A thousand glasses reflect the memories left by a child / I pick up a book of pictures faded by reality / Immense wish of closing the doors on my age…”
The album goes on in his dreamy mood… The music and the well balanced arrangements exalt the oneiric images created by lyrics and vocals: the contrasts between illusions and disillusions and between dreams and reality are described in many poetical ways as in a kind of concept album…“Cercando un nuovo confine” (Looking for a new border), “Sogno di Estunno” (Dream of Summer/Autumn), “Non chiudere a chiave le stelle” (Don’t lock the stars) and “Vendesi saggezza” (Wisdom for sale) are all wonderful tracks and there are no weak moments…
“I don’t want explain anymore / You will be greater than Icarus / You will watch yourself flying”… After all I think that the beautiful album cover describes very well its contents, probably better than all my words…
Here you can watch five videos from their first performance on the Italian TV:
On the CD edition there’s also a bonus track (“New York”), but it is not at the same level of the other tracks…
The second album “Homo homini lupus” was the fruit of a reunion in 1999. Almost all the original members of the band were involved in someway in this project (precisely all but the singer Leonardo Sasso). Nevertheless the result was quite disappointing. The prog vein seemed to be gone an the result was a pop rock album with some good moments, but nothing more… “Lucifer quotidie parat bella usto capillo / Quam ferus qui primus protulit horrendo enses / Nos ad mala nostra corde vertemus micante / Atqui homo fieri potuit homini lupus…”. The opener title track is sung in Latin, but don’t worry… In the booklet you can find all the lyrics with the translation in English… “Lucifer has singed hair and prepares wars every day / How cruel was the one who first invented the ferocious swords / Our throbbing hearts cause our own misfortunes / Yet mankind has chosen to be a wolf against its fellow men…”… “Homo homini lupus” is a quite interesting song with amazing backing vocals, mellotron, Hammond B3…
Anyway the rest of the album is not so good and after the first track the music turns to melodic pop… To save only “Giro tondo” with a nice use of accordion and harmonica and with a happy rhythm, “La fine” featuring some nice harmony vocals and “Fumo” featuring a nice acoustic guitar part…
Let’s hope that this new reunion will bring something better... Edited by andrea - December 28 2010 at 07:53 |
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andrea
Prog Reviewer
Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: June 02 2010 at 11:16 |
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MORE PROG FROM TOSCANA...
SANCTA SANCTORUM are a dark and hard prog band from Firenze formed by experienced musicians in love with the sounds of the seventies. They recently released a debut album for Black Widow Records, The Shining Darkness
More info:
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: June 06 2010 at 03:05 |
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MORE PROG FROM GENOVA...
FUNGUS, psychedelic rock
You can listen to their last album, Better Than Jesus, clicking HERE
More info:
Official website: http://www.fungus-project.net/
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/fungusforyou
CRIPTA, jazz rock band formed in the seventies that recently reunited
 More info:
Official website: http://www.criptaquartetto.com/
HERMITAGE, post rock
More info: MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/hermitagepostrock
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: June 09 2010 at 13:56 |
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MORE PROG FROM VENICE...
SIDERA NOCTIS, folk prog project featuring flutist Mauro Martello who also collaborates with Opus Avantra...
More info:
POSTMERIDIEM, jazz-rock / fusion
More info:
LITAI, psychedelic experiments
More info:
UNFOLK, crepuscular post folk
More info:
ALLEN GREY, neo prog
 More info and samples:
Edited by andrea - December 28 2010 at 07:56 |
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: June 16 2010 at 07:07 |
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MORE PROG FROM TRENTINO...
PHAEDRA come from Trento and have been active, one way or another, since 1993. Now they are going to release their first album, a rock opera called Ptah...
More Info:
Official website: http://www.phaedramusic.it/
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/phaedramusic
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andrea
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Posted: June 19 2010 at 11:26 |
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MORE PROG FROM LAZIO
VZ69, an emerging band from Tivoli...
More info:
Edited by andrea - December 28 2010 at 07:55 |
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andrea
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Posted: June 20 2010 at 03:56 |
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SOME MORE BANDS FROM MILANO...
PINDARIC FLIGHT
More info:
N.O.T. (NOISE OVERTONES THERAPY)
More info:
ALTHEA
More info:
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andrea
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Joined: May 20 2005 Location: Italy Status: Offline Points: 2064 |
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Posted: June 22 2010 at 07:13 |
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andrea
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Posted: June 23 2010 at 02:41 |
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ALTARE THOTEMICO AT VERONA PROGFEST 2010
You can watch in streaming the live performance of Altare Thotemico at Verona progfest clicking on the links below:
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