Arcansiel were born in 1986 from the meeting between keyboardist Marco Galletti (author and composer of all the songs) and drummer Gianni Lavagno. The publication of the first two albums “Four daisies” and “Stillsearching” was favorably received in the world of Italian prog by critics and the public, especially the suite “I’m Still Searching”, present in the second. In the 90s Galletti was replaced by Paolo Baltaro, with whom the group released “Normality of Perversion” and “Swimming In The Sand”.
After exactly twenty years from their last work and with a lineup renewed for 4/5 compared to the original one (only one of the founders is present, Gianni Lavagno), Arcansiel is back with their fifth album, co-written by the Lombardo triad -Sorella-Valvo, in which each of them puts their own cultural background in the music and lyrics of the four songs that compose it.
Already from the title you can guess what the atmospheres and topics present in this new work will be: the difficult times we are facing from a social, cultural and ethical point of view, for which the band enjoyed creating an analogy with the difficult times that distinguish Progressive Rock, imagining the latter as a metaphor for the former (it is no coincidence that the word “times” is written using, for some letters, the “leet” alphabet, in which the similarity of the numbers to the letters that replace, in this case odd as often, the tempos of the Prog, still make the text understandable). The album opens with “Too Late”, a suite that lasts almost 18 minutes, in which Davide Sorella, author of music and lyrics, contrasts an elaborate musical texture with clear references to the Baroque, alternating with almost jazzy atmospheres, with a heartfelt environmentalist complaint against the damage that man is perpetrating against our planet.
The next song, “Puppets & Puppeteers”, the result of the collaboration between Sebastiano Valvo and Felice Lombardo, has a musical structure that alternates sung parts with pressing rhythms and unpredictable melodies, with solemn atmospheres and “epic” moments. The song is a criticism of the arrogance and arrogance that are rampant in a society in which anyone can “go on air” without filters, pontificating on any topic without having the necessary competence.
The third song, “Heaven Is Not Here”, music and lyrics by Felice Lombardo, is the story of a woman who is convinced, with the promise of a better life, to abandon her roots. It opens with an intro with a bucolic flavour, which flows into a ballad where the protagonists are the guitar arpeggios and the singing, characterized by a melody that puts the voices of Marco Leccese and Sebastiano Valvo to the test. A long instrumental moment follows which leads to a more peaceful ending.
The album closes with a song by Davide Sorella and Sebastiano Valvo, “My Old Same Mistakes”, in which the protagonist is a man struggling with her fears, desperately seeking her help. Here the atmosphere is more relaxed, with an instrumental part centered on medieval and prog-jazz references, at least until just over a minute from the end, where, when the song seems finished, an unexpected bass line appears from nowhere, kicking off a minute of pure Canterbury delirium.
ARCANSIEL:
GIANNI LAVAGNO – Drums & Percussion
MARCO LECCESE – Lead Voice
FELICE LOMBARDO – Fretted & Fretless Six-string Electric Basses
DAVIDE SORELLA – Keyboards
SEBASTIANO VALVO – Electric & Acoustic Guitars, Vocals
