When I started listening to Segreti Nel Nero by the Italian act L'Ombra Della Sera, which was completely new to me, I was initially misled. Especially because the names of the band members were unknown to me. I thought this was a completely new act, but after looking up information on the internet, that turned out not to be the case. It actually turned out to be the new musical project of the well-known Genoese progressive band La Maschera di Cera. And it turns out to be the second album already, following the eponymous album released by this band in 2012. With this new side project they aim to pay homage to the soundtracks of some historic RAI TV dramas from the 1970s, such as Il Segno Del Comando, Ritratto Di Donna Velata, Gamma, La Traccia Verde, I Incontra Un'Ombra, as well as A Come Andromeda, I Racconti Fantastici, Albert E l'Uomo Bogey, and L'Amaro Caso Della Baronessa Di Carini. La Maschera di Cera alter ego L'Ombra Della Sera consists of the three founding members of the band. Namely vocalist (also guitarist and keyboardist) Alessandro Corvaglia, bassist Fabio Zuffanti, and keyboardist (and orchestrator) Agostino Macor, all three of whom have been prominent figures in the national and international progressive scene for at least four decades. They are joined by flutist and saxophonist Martin Grice (Delirium) and drummer Andrea Orlando (La Coscienza Di Zeno, Finisterre). As mentioned earlier the album Segreti Nel Nero is a "cineprog" concept work that pays tribute to the dark and mysterious atmospheres of Italian television "sceneggiati" (miniseries) from the 1970s. For this they used vintage instruments to reinterpret and evolve the musical themes of classic RAI suspense and sci-fi productions. The nine tracks dedicated to the aforementioned TV series already run well over fifty minutes, but the band also recovered the original scores for the soundtrack of an unproduced TV series based on Giorgio De Maria's novel, Le Venti Giornate Di Torino (The Twenty Days Of Turin), producing a version that nearly clocks in at twenty minutes. The music you can hear on the more than seventy-minute-long album clearly has characteristics that take you back to the seventies, and as a result, you can also clearly hear the influences of Van Der Graaf Generator, King Crimson, and Genesis. The latter two partly due to the use of the Mellotron and other analog keyboards and synthesizers. Through the use of the saxophone, VDGG comes strongly to the fore, but also, of course, the early work of KC. This leads to beautiful symphonic pieces, but sometimes also to aimless noodling on the wind instruments, which does not always sound pleasant to the ears and comes across as chaotic. So the classic progressive rock sound we might expect, but also dark, hypnotic, at times disturbing sounds, with trip-hop overtones, with hints of jazz and psychedelia. However, the overall impression is certainly positive, and there is plenty to enjoy in the songs. Songs that sometimes clearly have a recognizable musical theme. Musical themes such as those belonging to music for a television series. There is no point in going through the tracks one by one, as it is clear that the musical quality throughout the entire album is very high. All the songs sound good, despite the sometimes chaotic sections that you also have to experience and accept as part of the musical whole. Right from the start of the album, it is simply a joy to listen to the musical contribution of the musicians, who give the songs from the era of the popular TV series their own interpretation in a beautiful way. Perhaps the previously mentioned epic sounds too chaotic, but this is offset by the fantastic opening track and the other fine songs that many a prog fan can revel in. Not to be forgotten is the booklet in which all the songs are listed along with their composers. There are also photos from the previously mentioned Italian TV series. Additionally, it is stated who plays what, although the names are fictitious. This album is highly recommended for people who, just like the musicians themselves, remember the TV series from their youth and love good progressive rock reminiscent of the seventies. For them, this is a perfect mix, but also for all other fans of the great prog bands from the seventies such as Genesis, King Crimson, and Van Der Graaf Generator. Even if you don't know the music from the original Italian TV series. A beautiful musical tribute to a time when the real classic TV programs were produced by RAI. **** Henri Strik (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen) Where to buy? |
