|
Brought together by their common love for soundtracks and Italian library music of the late '60s and early '70s, the four members of La Batteria are veteran Italian musicians with experiences ranging through progressive post-rock (Fonderia), indie pop (Otto Ohm, Angela Baraldi), experimental jazz (I.H.C.), hip-hop (La Comitiva, Colle der Fomento), and world music (L'Orchestra Di Piazza Vittorio). The band performs original compositions influenced by songwriting from the heyday of Italian movie glamorama: music for images made between 1968 and 1980, by such masterful experimental composers as Ennio Morricone, Stelvio Cipriani, Alessandro Alessandroni, Bruno Nicolai, and bands such as Goblin and I Marc 4. The band plays all vintage instruments, but their debut self-titled album is not merely a revival; it's a projection of the past into the present. So, between the lines of their cinematic prog-funk, one can detect traces of afro-beat, hip-hop, and kosmische music, all filtered through a typical Italian feeling. La Batteria was conceived in Rome, the same area and environment where those soundtracks and library records were made. The album was mastered at the historic Telecinesound, owned by Maurizio Majorana (former bassist for I Marc 4), and was originally intended as a library album for Romano di Bari's Flipper Music (parent label of such cult labels as Deneb and Octopus Records). La Batteria's balanced sound maintains a continuity not only with the '70s Italian sound-world, but also with an entire movement that brought Italy to the attention of listeners around the world. It was a time of experimentation in the fields of music, theater, cinema, and visual art -- a whole cultural revolution now renewed. The visual elements of La Batteria -- Luca Barcellona (aka Lord Bean)'s cinematic logo and Emiliano Cataldo (aka Stand)'s cover art -- also establish a magical short circuit between past and present. Played by Emanuele Bultrini: mandolin and electric, acoustic, and classical guitars; David Nerattini: drums and percussion; Paolo Pecorelli: electric bass; and Stefano Vicarelli: Hammond C3, Clavinet, Fender Rhodes, harpsichord, celesta, piano, Mellotron, Minimoog, Prophet-5, and Dot Com System-66 modular synthesizer. "Formula" features the Patchani Brothers.
|
|