Semiramis: Dedicato A Frazz (1973)

I’m still not 100% sure what drove me to dive so deeply into RPI, aka Rock Progressivo Italiano, but its claws are buried in my flesh and there’s little hope of extraction.I know I love the analog, larger than life music out that came out of the adventure that was the 70s, and Italian prog is just out there enough to give me surprises with each band I discover. Case in point: Semiramis, who up until this year earned their wings on the heights of a single album, 1973’s Dedicato a Frazz. I got tired of waiting for a decently priced vinyl, so grabbed an import CD and I couldn’t be happier. No surprise the keyboard work is exquisite, but overall the songs are really well composed; there’s a lot of rock and grit in the guitars, and it’s one of those releases that as a prog fan is essential. Let’s dive in.

ChrisJuly 11, 20242 Comments

Vinyl

Il Segno del Comando: Il Domenicano Bianco (2023)

I’m still trying to figure out what it is about Italian progressive rock that attracts me the way it does. Listening to Domenicano Bianco, the sixth full length from Il Segno del Comando (The Sign of Command) I’m still trying to figure it out. There’s certainly the accentuation of keyboards and synths, a little more pomp and circumstance in the songwriting, but those things can be found anywhere. Maybe with not understanding the language I’m left to really focus on the timbre of the vocals, the melodies they weave instead of getting bogged down with silly concepts and high fantasy – I’ve always been more of a music guy than a lyrics guy – and the dark, quasi-gothic underpinnings Il Segno del Comando bring to their songs resonate with me. I don’t know if it’s the best modern italian prog I’ve heard (we’ll definitely dig into more) but it’s solid.

ChrisApril 10, 2024March 9, 20251 Comment

Vinyl

Alphataurus: Alphataurus (1973)

Another day, another Italian prog album celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The self-titled debut from Alphataurus was pretty much a one-shot: after their debut the band, formed out of some like-minded musicians in Milan broke up before completing their second album. But that one is enough for me – this is more bombastic and rocking that the previous albums we’ve covered so far, and I remember it also being the first album I checked out from the Sea of Tranquility primer (yeah, I know…I’m linking to this a lot), namely because the list was alphabetical. But whatever the course it took to discover, it’s here, in my hands and on my turntable and the rush of sound is both exciting and calming, putting me in the familiar waters of prog and getting steadily settled in the Italian vibe.

ChrisJanuary 2, 2023March 9, 2025Leave a comment

Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso: Io sono nato libero (1973)

I was originally going to write about about failure, about how 2022 basically ground me to dust and left me lost…a failure inside, weak in body and spirit, and sick. By giving myself writing goals and objectives and deadlines I turned this outlet, a channel for my passions and joy into just another job, and I don’t need that…don’t want that. It’s just one more thing that puts me further in the dark.

There. That’s the post. Now let’s just listen to an album and record some thoughts about it. And try it again the next day, and the day after that. I’d been meaning to get to the loads of Italian prog I had purchased over the last few months… my post on Arti + Mestieri was just the start of it. So why not kick off 2023 with an album celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, the third release from Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso, the complex bag of tricks known as Io sono nato libero.

ChrisJanuary 1, 2023March 9, 2025Leave a comment

Vinyl

Arti + Mestieri: Tilt (1974)

It was a rare opportunity: I managed to take two weeks off from work and spend time with family, doing one week in Mexico with my in-laws and another week in Daytona with my brother. Normally that means nothing but classic rock and sunny beach tunes to keep my mind relaxed, but thanks to another Sea of Tranquility video I started getting caught up in 70s Italian Prog. There was one band that I couldn’t readily find streaming (turns out you can find here on Spotify), and so here we are with another impulse buy, Tilt, the debut by Arti + Mestieri, which loosely translates to “Arts and Crafts”. We’re going in blind (or deaf) here, so let’s do this…

ChrisAugust 2, 2022March 9, 20251 Comment

Consuming the Tangible

We are what we consume

Tag: RPI

Semiramis: Dedicato A Frazz (1973)

Il Segno del Comando: Il Domenicano Bianco (2023)

Alphataurus: Alphataurus (1973)

Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso: Io sono nato libero (1973)

Arti + Mestieri: Tilt (1974)