Transiberiana is the debut release on InsideOut Music from legendary Italian progressive rock act Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso, a group who released their self-titled debut album way back in 1972 but haven't recorded a new studio platter since 1997's Nudo...until now. With their home now on InsideOut, the band couldn't have picked a better place to be, and Transiberiana is a glorious trip back to their classic sound, which mixed soaring Italian vocals with complex, symphonic progressive rock in the grand tradition of ELP, Gentle Giant, Jethro Tull, and Genesis. Though their longtime frontman Francesco Di Giacomo passed away in 2014 in a tragic car accident, Banco have continued on, bringing on board X-Factor vocalist Tony D'Alessio to join with Filippo Marcheggiani (lead guitar), Nicola Di Gia (guitar),
Vittorio Nocenzi (keyboards, vocals), Marco Capozi (bass), and Fabio Moresco (drums).
Many of the trademark Banco sounds are still present, including the soaring, operatic vocals, the wealth of vintage keyboards, and tasty guitar work. If you love the lush Italian language, D'Alessio does a great job here, and lovingly pays homage to Di Giacomo on gorgeous tracks such as "La Discesa Dal Treno" and "Stelle Sulla Terra". Though there are some modern sounding synth passages and samples, they give a brightness to the arrangements that takes Banco's style into 2019, and paired with some occasional heavy guitar riffing, flashy fusion bits (check out the wild "L'Assalto Dei Lupi"), ethnic Italian elements, and of course vintage '70s prog bombast, makes for a thoroughly enjoyable listen. "Lo Sciamano" allows Nocenzi and Marcheggiani/Di Gia to really strut their stuff with plenty of keyboard and guitar textures, while the back and forth heavy riffing and gorgeous Italian vocals of "Eterna Transiberiana" are simply exquisite. At the back end of the album, you get the lush "Il Grande Bianco" and the epic sounding "Oceano: Strade Di Sale", both of which are classic prog rock at its finest.
Toss in some folky bits here and there, and a touch of jazz to go along with the over the top symphonic elements, and you have a truly wonderful return from Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso, making their InsideOut Music debut something to really celebrate.
Track Listing
01. Stelle Sulla Terra
02. L'imprevisto
03. La Discesa Dal Treno
04. L'assalto Dei Lupi
05. Campi di Fragole
06. Lo Sciamano
07. Eterna Transiberiana
08. I Ruderi del Gulag
09. Lasciando Alle Spalle
10. Il Grande Bianco
11. Oceano: Strade Di Sale
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