Machera, Marco: Dormiveglia

My favorite genres are prog, jazz fusion, and metal. That’s to be expected given that I write for this site. But I must admit that I have a soft spot for some singer-songwriters. Randy Newman’s Good Old Boys is a great look at the American South from the vantage point of a native who has a love-hate relationship with it. Van Morrison has several albums I enjoy, including what is often considered his nadir among critics, 1980’s Common One, which contains two 15-minute pieces and is pretty jazzy at points. Joni Mitchell had her own jazz period, culminating with the very good double live album Shadows and Light, also released in 1980 and featuring Pat Metheny, Jaco Pastorius, and Michael Brecker, among others. So, the genre can be more than just cloying tunes sung by self-important twits. (I’m thinking of you, Jackson Browne.)

I would put Marco Machera into the interesting singer-songwriter camp. His album Dormiveglia contains a set of progressive-minded tracks with nice vocals, somewhat reminiscent of Steven Wilson. He’s also assembled some great players. Pat Mastelotto drums on six of the nine songs, including “Building Homes,� which also features Tony Levin on bass. It’s not surprising, then, that this is my favorite track. And it may be Machera’s. He released it as a single complete with a visually striking video that helps give the listener an idea of what not only that song is about but the broad concept for the whole album. Dormiveglia roughly translates to being in a semi-conscious state, and many of these tunes evoke that feeling, thanks to both the music and Machera’s lyrics. Despite not being a native English speaker, he is a competent wordsmith.

Some of my other favorite songs on the album include the opener, “Dearest Fools,� the title track, and “The Empty Mind,� the longest tune on the album at just under six minutes. In fact, it’s the only song to break the five-minute mark.

If thoughtful, melodic, poppy prog is your thing, give it a shot. Actually, even if it isn’t, I would say it’s worth a try. I wouldn’t have guessed I would enjoy it as much as I did.

Track Listing
1. Dearest Fools (3:41)
2. Lost + Found (3:41)
3. Building Homes (4:09)
4. Within the Words (4:11)
5. Dormiveglia (4:44)
6. Trains (They Might Have Been There) (3:37)
7. The Empty Mind (5:54)
8. The Nest (4:00)
9. Did You Get What You Wanted? (4:05)

Added: January 30th 2024
Reviewer: Aaron Steelman
Score:
Related Link: Artist Website
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Language: english

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