Here’s an obscure one the close the RPI week out. Errata Corrige was a symphonic prog band who released a rough debut in 1976 with limited funds, tried again with some slightly newer music that didn’t see release until 1991 and went away. Almost 25 years later the band, now older, wiser, and more experienced, returned to re-record their debut as they originally envisioned it. The result, Siegfried, Il Drago E Altre Storie, is a rich and layered experience, truly embracing the more pastoral aspects of the genre, and even if it isn’t the most thrilling album in the world, it’s got a lot of heft and weight in its idyllic grace.

How obscure are Errata Corrige? Well, they’re not on streaming, not available via Bandcamp, and I can’t even find the 2015 re-recording on YouTube, so the above embed comes from the original 1976 recording. It gets to the bones of the music, but this is the rare instance where the re-recording is superior in every way. The opening track “Viaggio Di Saggezza” is lush and warm, with acoustic guitars, flute, and gorgeous harmony vocals. The piano gives a bit of an early Chicago vibe, and you get a clarinet solo for kicks, and it’s great. It also sets the stage for the sweeping suite that follows.

The suite, “Del Cavaliere Citadel E Del Drago Della Foresta Di Lucanor” is 11 and half minutes of pure symphonic bliss. French horns and flute round out some great drumming and bass work by Guido Giovine and Gianni Cremona, respectively. Forest sounds add to the ambience, and everything just works…does that make sense? With all the members in their sixties, there’s a rich sophistication and expertise to the arrangements and playing that’s incredible to hear against the original recording, and I keep coming back to how good the vocal harmonies are. Truly beautiful guitar playing from Mike Abate, and the keyboards from Marco Cimino (who also does all the flute playing) is super tasteful and robust without diving into Rick Wakeman or Keith Emerson territory.

The suite is followed by “Siegfried (Leggenda)” and “Siegfried (Mito)” and both tracks give a little different tastes of the band’s sound, with horns and layers of synths and smooth guitar solos, but the focus of Siegfried, Il Drago E Altre Storie is never over the top solos or showoff complexity; it’s all in service to the album’s song cycle. Not a lot more to say about Errata Corrige except that this should really be more readily available: I think a lot of prog nerds would dig the hell out of it. It’s available to purchase on CD from Amazon, though I would highly recommend seeking out more independent stores and businesses (I grabbed it from LaserCD, though it seems out of stock there now).

How obscure is this record? Well, there are zero images of the band now, so here’s a quick snapshot of my CD showing these wonderful old gents as they appeared back in 2013 when they recorded it: