The band was born in September 2005, when Claudio Colombo (drummer) decided to start a musical project with keyboardists Beppe Colombo and Corrado Grappeggia. At first, their main inspiration came from the progressive rock of the 1970s - they wrote their own music drawing from groups such as Genesis, Yes, P. F. M, New Trolls, Dream Theater, etc....
This band does not really need any further introduction, but you can read more about them in their PA profile. I got in touch with the band and Beppe Colombo answered my questions.
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Your
biography has been covered in your ProgArchives profile so let's
bypass its details. But why did you choose
the name Pandora and which bands were you influenced by?
We
had a lot of ideas, so we let it to luck! Ha ha ha… The name
suggested by my son was picked and he sure had the right inspiration,
as the name that came out of the hat was PANDORA and we all realised
that it was the right name… very inspirational… it still inspires
us! A great name for a band inspired by epic, mythology and fantasy
literature – and by everyday life too.
Our
influences are of course the 1970s music,
the decade in which the best music ever was created. We are mostly
inspired by Genesis, Yes, E.L.P, but also by some more recent bands
such as Pendragon, Mastermind, IQ and down to Dream Theater, that we
consider the greatest prog-rock band in the last 20 years.
So
we are pretty much influenced by anything that made history!
Let's
go straight to your first album. Please
tell us more about Dramma di un poeta
ubriaco (2008).
It
is a record that gave us a lot of satisfaction, a collection of our
early work since when we started with some later idea added... a
record that allowed to make our music known in the wide musical
world.
What
did you do after its release?
We
enjoyed all the nice reviews and the congratulations from our fans,
who we will never cease to thank for having supported and still
supporting us. But, as in Italy people like us never have a chance to
play live, we started to work on this new record.
You
have just released your new album Sempre
e ovunque oltre il sogno. Please
tell us more about it.
It
is a release that kept us busy for quite a while, a record in which
we strongly believe and that helped us improving as musician both
under the managerial and the technical point of view. Claudio’s
instinct and the musical savvy gave us a chance to grow and fully
express ourselves, allowing us to experiment with all the techniques
and genres we could think of. It was not easy: we had to deal with
incompetent managers and mock-sound engineers who only asked for
money without respecting our role as musicians and composers, but the
end result is what matters and I have to admit that it is a record
that allowed to grow quite a lot and that give us a great emotion
when we play it.
As
you can notice from the booklet most of the songs have been composed
by Claudio, who transferred his great skill as a musician to all of
us – and the results are clear; I leave further judgement to you.
I
want to say that the title is something that wants
to remain forever, like the suite “Sempre e ovunque”, a spiritual
legacy from a father who gave his whole life to music without ever
getting anything from it but who is full of magic, emotions and love
that he wants to transfer to his son in this eternal legacy: “always,
everywhere I will be there listening to you” (“sempre e ovunque
io ci sarò ad ascoltarti”)… in this verse what I mean is
clearer, “Sempre e ovunque” is a proof of what that father gave
to his son…
How
would you compare your two albums?
Honestly,
I don’t know. You compare them! Hahaha! They
are two great records and, if I need to abandon the role of the
musician to assume the role of a listener I must say that they both
give me emotions, even though they are very different from each
other.
What
are the topics in the lyrics of your two
albums?
There
are several. For instance a fantasy theme in the three movement
composing the Chad-bat saga, “L’altare del sacrificio”,
“L’incantesimo del druido” and “La formula finale di
Chad-bat”; mythology, like in “Ade, sensazione di paura” and
“Discesa attraverso lo Stige”, or real-life topics, for instance
“03.02.1974” about the Genesis gig in Turin during their Selling
England by the Pound tour, a special
evening for people like myself who were there.
What
inspires you to create new music and what are
your recording techniques?
We
are inspired by our love for music and the feelings in our souls, or
by what happens around us. We don’t have any special technique: we
rehearse for quite some time recording the sessions, debating and
eventually deciding together how to make the song we are working on
better; once this phase is complete we prepare the ticks then Claudio
records the drums, then bass, guitars and keyboards; then Corrado
adds his keyboards, then I add mine, and finally we record the
vocals. To conclude we add all the other instruments, such as
percussions, flute, some effects. Then we listen back to it all, we
mix it and we send the completed work to a mastering studio from
where it is forwarded to the label.
The
secret is to rehearse a lot, record everything we do and discuss it
to pick the better option, but it is always Claudio who has the final
word as he is our musical director.
The
results are plan to see, aren’t they?
Just
to give those of us who are unfamiliar with
your work a point of reference or two: how would you describe your
music?
Like
my son says our music is all-round Musical Expressionism, it never
has a single thread and can reach anybody because it includes
passages in several different styles, from hard to melodic, so even
the fan of heavier music will find him- or herself listening to some
purely melodic prog passages that he (or she) will sure be able to
appreciate… music is wide, why should we lock ourselves inside a
single genre? I am positive that anybody who listens to a record of
ours will encounter unexpected situations or new melodies until he or
she founds sounds he or she already likes.
How
is your situation with live dates at the
moment? Do you find it difficult to get gigs these days?
In
Italy it is a real mess, either you play in a cover band or you have
some contacts in high places, otherwise you don’t get to play
anywhere. Also, culture is left so far behind… when there is an
economic crisis, the first thing any government does is making cuts
on culture.
If
you play your own music, then, you are out even before you begin. We
are trying to find some gigs abroad, but it is not easy! Maybe if you
give us some contacts to play there, a nice little tour in your area
would be a dream!
What
is your plans for the rest of this year and
beyond?
First
of all take care of our album as much as we can, dedicating time to
all those who want to interview us, to those who simply write us, to
our fans... actually – send us a picture of yourself with our CDs
and we will create a special page on our website for you, you will
become members of Pandora!
Then,
well, a band’s job is to try to organise some live dates, it will
not be easy but we will keep trying and we will keep you updated with
videos and pictures through our website – keep visiting it, you
will always find news!
To
wrap up this interview, is there anything you want to add?
Yes!
We really want to say, because of your interest towards our music and
for the information you give about us, that you are amazing; we send
to all the editors and to all your readers a wish of “good music,
always, wherever you are”… and possibly that the good music is
Pandora’s!
Thanks
a lot.
And thank you too, Beppe !!
Their PA profile is here & homepage's here
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Pandora
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