DECIMO CERCHIO (WITH "I SINCOPATICI")

I SINCOPATICI are a trio from Italy who are dedicated to the rediscovery of silent film masterpieces with live musical accompaniment. They are led by keyboardist Francesca Badalini who composes the music she feels is suitable for each film. This trio have been collaborating with Cineteca Italiana since 1999, and they have done about ten of these live performances, which are audio and visual events. So ten silent films so far and these are all pretty much films from the 1910s and 20s. So of course asking Claudio Milano to be part of this just seemed so obvious, as he is an actor and vocalist extraordinaire, already doing stuff similar to this.

I SINCOPATICI also includes bass player Andrea Grumelli who adds electronics and soundscapes, as well as drummer Luca Casiraghi. Francesca also adds synths besides piano for the most part. I really like that there are pictures in the liner notes of this event with Claudio standing close to the big screen that the film is being shown on. There is a QR code so I can actually watch this video which is very cool. We get over 66 minutes of music spread over 26 tracks that are often blending into one another.

The film itself is called "L'Inferno" from 1911, and it consisted of five reels of film, with fifty four scenes totalling around 73 minutes. The music here combines classical and rock with plenty of electronics and experimental soundscapes. Of course Claudio takes this soundtrack to further heights with his theatrical vocals. He puts on a show. This truly is theatre for the mind. Think ART ZOYD and the many silent films they have done soundtracks for and you get a pretty good idea of the sound here. In fact these Italians have taken up where ART ZOYD left off, and we are in very good hands folks.

When I spun this for the first time I was taken to another place, I was so fascinated with it that I spun it again, right away. Music for the Underworld I guess you could say. Headphones are a must. There is a lot of powerful music on here. This is like the period of ART ZOYD where they started to let electronics dominate their sound. I was actually moved when the cd ends and the crowd starts to clap and clap and clap with passion. They just experienced something that they probably will never experience again.