IL TEMPIO DELLE CLESSIDRE

I should love this - I really should. I've been returning to this album more than a dozen times now to see if I had gotten it wrong, heard it whilst drunk or sleepwalking, but alas there is just something about this release that completely fails to engage me.

Mind you, these are some highly skilled musicians whether you choose to lend an ear to the Banco inspired classical fountains of piano - or you lean towards the heavy notes of guitar and pumping drums. All of these people are up there with the best of them, and furthermore, like many reviewers here also have mentioned, the masculine and quite endemic vocals of the now legendary Stefano "Lupo" Galifi roam throughout the playing time of the album. He still sounds as powerful and insisting as ever, and you wouldn't know that he by now is in his 60s.

There are a fair few fingerprints of the original RPI wave, and I hear traces of the aforementioned Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Quella Vecchia Locanda and of course Museo Rosenbach - Lupo's original band. Then you get some modern touches akin to Anglagård and the reformed Van der Graff Generator - all mixed together with what genuinely sounds like a bit of Dream Theater. I maybe loosing it a bit, but that's what I hear.

One of my biggest gripes with this release, is the total lack of dynamics in the production. I constantly feel like I'm listening to the second cousin of Vapor Trails. One big pounding wall of sound, that keeps things loud and distinguishable - crystal clear and audible - everything in its right place.... Now would that be such a bad thing then? Well sometimes it isn't, but on here it makes me loose focus and interest, when all musical excursions seem to be at the same level, resulting in a flat expression - levelling all valleys and peaks to one great big pan cake. It kills me, because I can hear the brilliant songwriting and the chops of these guys, but I just can't help it. Feels like it was recorded in a lab - seems oddly sterile and cold - even if the music bears strong resemblance to the warmer and more romantic side of the Italian scene. Personally I just loose track somewhere in the album and then forget to listen. The times I've heard this all the way through felt like a chore, and that is no way to feel about music... This is actually a big problem for me with most of the modern RPI releases, and this is essentially what sets them aside from the acts of the good old days. It's why I don't get the Fabio Zuffanti projects as well as most of the other new kids on the block. They sound bland to me - without the warmth and soul power of the original wave that with poor means and a small cupboard to record in, managed to create something audacious and vibrant. Something with life and dynamics, which sadly are the two ingredients I lack in this outing.

I realise that I am just about the only descending voice here, but then again, if you feel enamoured by the current recording productions a la Dream Theater, IQ, Yes, Haken and Rush, then by all means climb on board this ride - you're most likely going to love it!

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