CLOWNS

I found this CD by pure chance I must say i was quite surprised by their original mixing of traditional italian symphonic prog with heavy rock, plus a few experimentations here and there. Vocals are quite controvertial to say the least, sometimes bordering what can be called an Ian Gillan parody. Fortunaltly singer Ricky Belloni proves to be quite versatile and after a while you get used to his sometimes overtly emotional delivering. There are some great guitar and organ parts: keyboardist Giorgio Usai is certainly an avid Jon Lord fan. Most compositions work very well, but the highlight is definitly the title track with its 10+ minutes of epic twists and turns (including some daring brass arrangements).

This is their third LP and also their last, which I consider that a pity, since this band had very interesting ideas in terms of songwriting and performance and were a bit ahead of their time in terms of musical style. It would be great to see what they could do if they remained together a little longer. Anyway, this is a fine example of good musicians doing bold, intricated, yet not too zany, music.

Conclusion: a nice surprise coming from the prolific italian prog scene of the 70´s. Very worth checking out! 4 stars.