Ingranaggi Della Valle: Warm Spaced Blue

Just a little over three years ago the debut album, In Hoc Signo, from Italian progressive outfit Ingranaggi Della Valle announced the band on the scene in quite grand style. Since then a change of singer has occurred, new frontman David Savarese resulting in the lyrics on this follow up effort, Warm Spaced Blue, to be, as the title suggests, sung in English. And yet with that significant change and one that may bring the band to wider notice, one thing remains clear, lyrics are secondary on this traditional, symphonic, but clearly Italian progressive agenda. Seven minutes have passed before a brief vocal foray breaks out on opening track, "Call For Cthulhu: Orison", the first of a three part epic that is quite cleverly broken up by unrelated but no less involved tracks, but with Savarese a captivating presence, his contribution is worth the wait.

However there's simply no denying that this band's main concern is lengthy instrumental workouts, with two further tracks being completely without words, while "Inntal" stretches to a mighty five lines of 'dialogue'. Impressively this doesn't in any way detract from a quite excellent trip through a whole variety of different but thematically linked ideas, where a distinct air of unease sets the tone but never limits the scope. At times Porcupine Tree are brought to mind, at others the more spooky end of what Opeth provide, and yet in a way neither of those acts ever do, the likes of "Lada Niva" - the album's most overtly song based piece – brings everything from King Crimson to early Spock's Beard or Genesis into play; although the traditions of the Italian prog sound are never far away. Even here, the second half of the song is almost completely instrumental – it's just as well Savarese also brought his Rodhes MkV and glockenspiel to the party, or he'd get very bored indeed…

The piece he brings that Rodhes to is "Ayida Wedo", one of the lighter, airier and more 'commercial' tracks (oddly it's one of the instrumentals), proving Ingranaggi Della Valle can also revel in more readily accessible, if hardly immediate, fair. Although it's that intricacy and willingness to constantly push boundaries, while still knowing where the limits lie, that makes Warm Spaced Blue as interesting as it is.

Curiously, for fans of the band's first album, where that debut effort was an avant-garde, jazz-prog rock colossus, this outing is much more straight-progressive in both a traditional and contemporary sense, and to their credit that change is made seamlessly. The band themselves are a seven piece collective, all manner of keyboards, guitars, violin, bass and percussion brought into being, not to mention occasional guests adding further synths, bass, flute and on the aforementioned "Lada Niva", narration. Although it's possibly the closing piece and conclusion to the three part saga, "Call Of Cthuhlu: Promise", which shows the most progressive side to the band both in terms of instrumental meanders and the rather unhinged silence and crescendo that closes the song and album out.

If In Hoc Signo suggested this Italian outfit possessed a hat full of promise, their sophomore release, while quite a departure, confirms it in spades. Hopefully it will allow a symphonic progressive outfit who are willing to allow a few more contemporary styles to seep into sight, to begin to gain some recognition beyond their homeland.

Track Listing
1. Call For Cthulhu: Orison
2. Inntal
3. Call For Cthulhu: Through The Stars
4. Lada Niva
5. Ayida Wedo
6. Call For Cthulhu: Promise

Added: April 2nd 2017
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Ingranaggi Della Valle on facebook
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Language: english

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