Gatto Marte are a Italian "progressive chamber quartet", who use violin, basson, piano & double bass. Their records are definitely comparable to folks like Julverne, ZNR, Jean-Philippe Goude's chamber works, etc., so if you are a fan of that style, you will want this.
01. Gioco del Mago 02. Tarantella del Gatto 03. Ladybird Dance 04. Petra 05. Il domatore di leoni 06. Fantasia e cadenza 07. Tone of innocence 08. Gun powder 09. A short story 10. Vorrei Partire 11. Tangata su nave che affonda 12. Fotogramma 13. Transeunte 14. Tango 15. Tarumba
Nino Cotone: Violin Giuseppe Brancaccio: Bassoon Maximilian Brooks: Piano, Vocals Pietro Lusvardi: Contrabass Guest Musician: Beppe Ronzoni: Drums, Percussions
This album is not a compilation! The band re-recorded the first 2 albums in studio with new instruments and new arrangements. Fantastic result! CrimsonKing
Francesco Di Giacomo writes in CD booklet that he does not like remakes and BANCO decided to re-record their two first albums because fans asked them ''to do it today''. It seems the easiest way was to play both albums live and make a record, but the band did it in studio. I guess musicians had their reasons for this.
I'm not a big fan of remakes too, but I like new versions of both albums. There are lots of new colours in familiar tunes, first of all due to Vittorio Nocenzi's excellent keyboard work. Rodolfo Maltese is more than competent guitarist, and Francesco Di Giacomo is, as usual, in good vocal form. It became a common place in prog circles to consider him an opera-trained vocalist, but I've read somewhere that he is a self-taught singer. Don't know where the truth is, but anyway he is one of the greatest rock singers of all time. The low point for me is the absence of bass guitar player on the whole record and the use of programmed drums on many tracks. But great music is great music. I love original ''BMS'' and ''Darwin!'' albums to bits, but quite often listen to these new versions.
Highly recommended, but get 1972 originals first.
"Prog Archives"
CD 1 - ''B.M.S'' 1991 version 1. In volo (2:17) 2. R.I.P. (Requiescant in pace) (9:09) 3. Passaggio (4:06) 4. Metamorfosi (13:01) 5. Il Giardino del mago (19:09) ... Passo dopo passo ... ... Chi ride e chi geme ... ... Coi capelli sciolti al vento ... Compenetrazione 6. Traccia (2:08)
Total time 49:52
CD 2 - ''Darwin'' 1991 version 1. L'evoluzione (16:46) 2. La conquista della posizione eretta (9:59) 3. Danza dei grandi rettili (4:15) 4. Cento mani e cento occhi (6:03) 5. 750.000 anni fa ... l'amore? (7:53) 6. Miserere alla storia (6:18) 7. Ed ora io domando tempo al tempo (3:23)
Total time 54:40
Francesco Di Giacomo: lead vocals Vittorio Nocenzi: piano, Hammond organ, minimoog, synthesizers, keyboards, drum programming, synth bass, accordion, clarinet, recorder, vocals, backing vocals Rodolfo Maltese: electric guitar, mandolin, sitar, backing vocals Pierluigi Calderoni: drums, percussion
"Synesthesia", the album, is an acoustic instrumental project combining the guitar artistry of Navid Nikbakht and David Martone to create a unique and individual recording. Nikbakht and Martone each bring their own individual set of influences to this group, which also includes producer/percussionist Christoph Bracher. Using elements of Latin, Asian, Jazz and Rock, "Synesthesia"'s self-titled album has already found many fans worldwide. Canadian born David Martone has been heavily influenced by Classical and Progressive Rock music and has two electric instrumental projects out "Shut Up 'N Listen" and "Zone". Iranian born Nikbakht defines his music as "world fusion". Concentrating on acoustic instruments, Navid's varied musical background is apparent in all that he does. Elements of Latin, Moorish, Jazz, Gypsy as well as his native Persian music can be heard through out this project. Nikbakht and Martone met in 1992 while attending Berklee College of Music in Boston and quickly found a common platform to launch their own unique version of world music. On this project they are joined by top musicians from India, Jamaica, Germany, UK and Iran.
01 - Inquisitive Heart 02 - Shatki 03 - Conference of the Birds Part II (for A.F.) 04 - Blue 05 - Intersense 06 - Prelude in C# minor 07 - Sultan Ghalbam 08 - Abadan 09 - Voluptuous Vulcan
Navid Nikbakht: Guitars David Martone: Guitars B.K.Chandrashekhar: Violin Gary Crosby: Bass Farnoosh Behzad: Keyboards Hossain Farjami: Vocals Christoph Bracher: Percussions
Le Silo, are a 3-piece band from Japan, that play a widely influenced blend of demanding prog rock, which mostly takes the form of RIO and avant-jazz, with punk-rock stylistics, which is not only captivating, but well played. By no means is their sound entirely original, but the musicianship is of a high quality and they do indeed have some very excellent and surprising moments too. Their punk stylistics are evident and with Miyako's links to Yoshida Tatsuya, then it is obvious they are influenced by Ruins and Koenjihyakkei and most likely Boredoms and Happy Family as well. Non-Japanese bands they are likely influenced by, include Univers Zéro, Present, French TV, Samla Mammas Manna and Miriodor. Originally starting life as Miyako (presumably named after Miyako Kanazawa), a punk orientated band; they eventually changed their style and their name to Le Silo, (some of their tracks have French titles too), presumably in honour of the French and Belgian bands that most likely influenced them. The members of the band - Yoshiharu Izutsu (guitar and voice); Michiaki Suganuma (drums and voice) and Miyako Kanizawa (piano) - released their debut album "8.8" in 2004 on the Tutinoko label in Japan. Miyako is also a member of Koenjihyakkei (keyboards and voice) alongside Ruins and Daimonji drummer Tatsuya Yoshida, who also produced "8.8".
If you enjoy the Japanese avant-prog scene and bands such as Ruins and Koenjihyakkei, you'll enjoy Le Silo. If you enjoy bands such as Univers Zero, Present, Sammla Mannas Manna, Guapo, Ahvak and Absolute Zero, you'll also likely enjoy Le Silo. Also liking zeuhl will help you with your chances of liking them also. They are definitely recommended for those who want something different to the norm.
01. Le Soleil (3.54) 02. Enormous Trees With the Holy Spirits #1 (2:23) 03. Oiseaux (9:41) 04. The Doctor's Helicopter (3:12) 05. Le Silo (6:40) 06. Numazapa (1:43) 07. On a Magic Carpet Ride (4:08) 08. The Hard Metallic Pigeon (9:35) 09. Turkish... (5.27) 10. Enormous Trees With the Holy Spirits #2 (1:56) 11. Twisting Waist (5:42) 12. Pendule de la Vie (5:41)
Ballroomquartet is a unique Belgian band with an exceptional sound and unusual instrumentation. The eccentric combination of classical and traditional instruments with electronics and effects creates a dancy, original and filmic atmosphere. On stage, they're always in for musical experimentation. Energy, virtuosity and sensitivity are the key words. Their two full-albums, Surfing Sufi (2004) and Soundmanifest (2007), got some very good press reviews. End of November 2009 they will release their new full-album in a production of Blixa Bargeld from Einstürzende Neubauten. This band has an exceptional live reputation! You should check them out!
It's been a while since we had another King Crimson album. During this time Adrian Belew has managed to release quite a few albums and this completely instrumental 2009-offering came right after the completion of the Side-series.
Unlike the previous albums e features a steady lineup of Adrian Belew on guitar, Julie Slick on bass while her brother Eric Slick handles the drums. According to Julie Slick's myspace website the band formed in March of 2006 when they took the stage at the Knitting Factory in New York City for a performance of Frank Zappa's City of Tiny Lites. After that performance the Adrian Belew Power Trio went on a long tour which they then followed by recording this album.
e or Planet e, as it was originally titled, is roughly divided into five different sections where each one, except for c, is split into one or more sub-sections. According to Adrian Belew the compositions can be listened to as individual pieces of music, but they do interact through the overall theme that binds them together. Musically this is as close as Belew has ever managed to capture the sound of the two latest King Crimson releases on his solo album. Although unlike the cold and mechanical-sounding King Crimson compositions this release actually manages to maintain the human element which most likely has to do with the excellent rhythmic section!
The whole album is packed with some of the most elaborate playing that I've heard from Belew and I'm quite surprised to be the only one reviewing this album since it has been out since July 2009! Granted that there are a few sections that make me think that Belew is just sliding around in different scales there are always other elements of the sound that capture my attention besides the guitar work.
Rune2000 - Prog Archives
01. a (0:30) 02. a2 (3:37) 03. a3 (3:07) 04. b (6:12) 05. b2 (3:36) 06. b3 (1:21) 07. c (6:19) 08. d (6:00) 09. d2 (2:50) 10. e (0:55) 11. e2 (7:57)
Adrian Belew: guitars Julie Slick: bass Eric Slick: drums
Founded in 1981 by keyboardist Lars Hollmer and guitarist Eino Haapala this zany band was an off-shoot of Sweden's Samlas Mammas Manna whose brand of RIO made them popular in Sweden in the 1970's but kept them relatively obscure elsewhere. Von Zamla released two studio albums in their short career; Zamlaranama (1981) and No Make Up (1983). Brimming with Nordic Folk Melodies,thanks toHollmer's amazing accordion work the albums feature much less improvisational work than their earlier Sammlas work. One of the defining qualities of the band is their sense of theatre,comic theatre to be precise and this shines through both their albums. This band represents a fascinating link to some of today's more creative bands such as Birdsongs of the Mesozoic and Miriodor.
Perfect vinyl rip. Not released in CD.
01. Forge Etude (4:19) 02. Soon Series (7:36) 03. Für Munju/Indojazz (6:08) 04. Gilmit (4:37) 05. Hopeful (4:41) 06. Endango (3:52) 07. Piece of Antsong (2:45) 08. Voice Improvisation (3:52) 09. After SMRT (5:22) 10. Cancion De Bi-Mi-Mela (3:26)
Michel Berckmans: bassoon, oboe Eino Haapala: guitar, vocals Lars Hollmer: keyboards, accordion Hans Louhelainen: keyboards, melodica Wolfgang Salomon: bass, guitaron Mårten Tiselius: drums Additional musician: Kalle Eriksson: trumpet (4), percussion
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DISCOGRAPHY:
Solo albums: XII Sibiriska Cyklar (1981) Vill Du Höra Mer (1982) Från Natt Idag (1983) Joggingcharleston Singel (1984) Tonöga (1985) Vendeltid (1987) The Siberian Circus (compilation, 1992) Vandelmässa (1993) Andetag (1998) Utsikter (2000) Autokomp A(nd)more (2001) SOLA: Lars Hollmer's Global Home Project (2002) Viandra (2007)
Quite an excellent and unique take on electronic music from this somewhat obscure British duo. Brian Hodgson is far less well-known for this than for his work at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop (he’s probably most famous for devising the devilish Dalek voices for TV’s Doctor Who). The two Wavemaker lads perform on the mammoth Electrophon synthesizer (essentially an EMS Synthi 100 with a bunch of custom modules hooked into it) and invited a couple of guests to sit in on drums and “timpanii” (their spelling).
The result is one of the most rockin’ synth-only records I’ve ever heard. The first time I heard the raucous fuzz-tone at the start of “Double Helix,” I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. Why didn’t someone TELL me a synth could do that? The A-side is a near-classic, with some unbelievably up-front synth-prog closing with the breathtaking “Syren’s Song.” The B-side is more low-key and contemplative, but no less high-quality. For fans of electronic music that are looking for something a bit different. Progbear
01. Lodestar 5:06 02. Double Helix 10:13 03. Syren‘s Song 5:55 04. Wavemaker 6:42 05. Oracle 8:13 06. Enter the Eldil 7:43
John Lewis: Keyboards Brian Hodgson: Synthesizer
Jon Keliehor: Percussion
Anthony McVey: Timpani
Another fine release from this Italian 'chamber music' quartet. Recalling the Belgian group Julverne, Gatto Marte are a percussion-less group that really focus on classical chamber sounds rather than 'rock' but have an appeal to 'rock' fans for the clarity and tunefulness of their compositions. If Univers Zero are rock's version of Stravinsky and Art Zoyd are rock's version of Varese and Wappasou rock's version of Debussy and ZNR rock's Satie, then Gatto Marte are certainly rock music's answer to Prokofiev! Delicate and beautiful music from violin, bassoon, piano & doublebass. When you go to Gatto Marte's site, you are greeted with the following sentence: "Gatto Marte is an italian quartet performing original compositions with classical influence and jazz improvisation." That, dear readers, is a mighty fine and accurate sentence. I'll write more now, but do keep that sentence in mind! This is the band's seventh album and the musicians are Nino Cotone: Violin, Hang and Percussion, Giuseppe Brancaccio: Bassoon, Maximilian Brooks: Piano and Percussion, Pietro Lusvardi: Double Bass, Banjo, Harmonica and Percussion.
"Gatto Marte is a chamber ensemble of classical background with an attitude close to jazz and a twist of folk music, from Eastern Europe through the Mediterranean towards the North. Piano, double bass, violin and bassoon are the protagonists of this musical journey."
01. Puer 02. Puella 03. Povera gente valse 04. Tango luna 05. Carnevale sopra le nuvole 06. Il bosco di Marte 07. La Tugazza 08. Prima volta 09. Tin tin 10. Rosa 11. Lily 12. Luca 13. Pique nique 14. L'armata di Picio 15. Rosa del deserto 05. Carnevale sopra le nuvole
Nino Cotone: violin, hang & percussion Giuseppe Brancaccio: bassoon Maximilian Brooks: piano & percussion Pietro Lusvardi: double bass, banjo, harmonica & percussion
Guest musicians: Doug Tones: tom tom & crash cymbal (1) Rosa Lusvardi: castanets (8) Lily Lusvardi assisted by Sara Lusvardi: maracas (8)
Calomito, from Genoa, Italy, wild sextet (double bass, guitar, drums, sax soprano, violin and Fender Rhodes), masters of candied jazz, chose to not deny themselves any way. That is total music, fusion of arab, tzigan, klezmer tastes on a solid progjazz base, remembering Doctor Nerve, Gong, Zappa… with a crackling and genuine creativity, which dilutes the astounding talent of the musicians and avoids any algid virtuoso wanking.
"...... the sound is a mix of progressive, r.i.o., Canterbury and jazz touch with a mediterranean influence that sometimes reminds of the fantastic Area, Gong, or Zappa … complex compositions, skilled musicians, a really good debut album!"
