I had heard of Claudio Milano before as a multi-lingual vocalist and lyricist in reviewing the music of NichelOdeon and have MARTIN STRONG, of Great Rock Discographer fame, for bringing it to my attention. Theatrical (one piece is written by Brecht and Weill), operatic and cutting edge, the sheer volume of this work (two hours and 43 tracks) is challenging, but will reward intense and sustained listening. I cannot pretend that I got all the way though it to a sufficient depth, but what I did hear intrigued and impressed me in terms of musicality and Claudio’s amazing vocal acrobatics which is the one constant in “the years of dispersal” recorded in France and Italy during a 13-year time period.
Claudio has talked about his music bringing together the performing arts (some of the music is based on poetry) and of “geometric organisation” which I do not fully understand, but what he said about modern classical music without forgetting melodies and “crazy harmonisations” seemed to partially explain his esoteric approach, which has been described by some as avant-prog rock. What you do hear in the music is Claudio’s remarkable vocal range with falsetto and an uncanny ability to hold onto notes as evidenced by the a capella tracks and vocal duets (I believe has a 7-octave vocal range).
Too much at the outer limits to be incomprehensible, or a work of genius (for whom ‘risks’ must always be worth taking) for those with the time and patience to explore its depth? A plus point is the involvement of members of AREA and opening track ‘Per- Causa- Nostra’ (a different version opens the second CD) will make prog rock lovers want to hear more.
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