Il Bacio Della Medusa

I desperately need to learn Italian. I did take a few lessons years ago, but it did not stick, and I'm now going through this (horribly expensive) Rock Progressivo Italiano phase, which led me to do this insane Québec-Montréal drive today in order to visit this record store in Québec that keeps some titles of the genre. I have acquired a few things, but, right now, I'm particularly pleased at having found one of the two Il Bacio Della Medusa albums, their first and self-titled one, which was released in 2004.

I've been listening to them for a while on last.fm, but it's official: I just won't shut up about this band until I make everyone realise that this is one of the top bands of the 2000s.

Of course, I'm not optimally informed about RPI yet, but it seems to me like this band has taken the best from the past (Banco, Le Orme, PFM, etc) and has added a healthy dose of testosterone to that sound with the heavy guitar of Simone Brozzetti. They're gritty, yet incredibly melodic. They're loud, but pretty (literally, I should add). They're probably poetic too, but I don't know. But it sounds pretty darn good out of Simone Cecchini's mouth, who does have one or two weaker moments when it comes to his singing, but he never loses an ounce of his intensity, which to me is really what makes a lead vocalist great and appealing. He actually reminds me a lot of Jim Morrison.

The manly (to say the least) and sturdy rhythm section made out of Federico Caprai and Diego Petrini is nearly perfectly counterbalanced by a selection of strings and winds. It has Eva Morelli on flute, in particular, but this album also has the guest participation of Angelo Petri on sax, an instrument I usually can't stand but that works so well here that I can't help but love now. The second album even has some beautiful violin work, among others on the breathtaking Confessionne D'Un Amante.

As for this particular album, well, having previously heard all the tracks, I was not expected to be this impressed with it anyway. It's even more gratifying now that I can listen to all the tracks side by side. I might eventually get into a fuller review of the whole thing, but for now, let me just say that it was absolutely worth the 6 hour drive.