IL TEMPIO DELLE CLESSIDRE

It sure took me some time to put my thoughts into writing when it came to the band-titled album by Il Tempio Delle Clessidre. I first heard this release in January, a time where I was trying to uncover some of last years hidden prog gems that I might have missed out on. Some of my findings like One-Armed Bandit by Jaga Jazzist and Excavations Of The Mind by Sky Architect turned out to be very nice and refreshing surprises that I honestly was not expecting from a 40+ year old progressive music scene. Unfortunately, the scene is still very much into the music of the past and sometimes I even get the feeling that some artists and especially their fans try to cover their pop music with sparkling prog references just to get some street credibility.

- Dude, this music sounds just like that pop stuff that my mother listens to!

- No, man. This is Progressive Rock music!

- Oh...well in that case it must be alright for us to listen to it. Rock on!

Let's be honest about this, the Rock Progressivo Italiano sub-genre has always been a bit more sweet and melodic than the rest due to the idea that South European countries tend to favor the melodic approach to music. That being said, it doesn't automatically mean that Scandinavians, like yours truly, all sit alone in our rooms grinding those lo-fi sounding guitars while writing our Black Metal music. We did have ABBA you know! I'm basically speaking broadly here and within those very general terms Il Tempio Delle Clessidre is actually more like a pop band playing prog music than the other way around.

This is a very enjoyable album if you favor a soft and gentle approach to prog music. There are many nice melodies and the instrumental approach is generally very sweet. It's obvious that the majority of this world's population enjoy it since this is the type of music that you'll be hearing in the mainstream media but on sites like Prog Archives you'll probably be placed in the Crossover category, that is unless you just so happen to be an Italian act.

I'm just not feeling this album and it usually just swishes past unnoticed, leaving me in basically the same frame of mind as almost an hour prior to that. I blame it on the lack of anything challenging with this music. Yes, it's pleasant and features a few instrumental passages that will make the fans point out it's progressive rock affiliation but what's the point? We all know that it's just an excuse for us all to pretend that this is anything but pop music with a few eclectic elements embedded into it.

**** star songs: Verso l'Alba (2:52) Insolita Parte Di Me (7:21) Boccadasse (5:21) Le Due Metà Della Notte (5:19) Danza Esoterica Di Datura (6:13) Il Centro Sottile (10:40) Antidoto Mentale (3:49)

*** star songs: La Stanza Nascosta (5:10) Faldistorium (6:02) L'Attesa (4:36)