Banco del mutuo soccorso
Banco del mutuo soccorso

I couldn't miss the opportunity to review Banco's first album: it's a fundamental work for the Italian progressive scene, showing, like many other "colleagues," that they had something to say to their renowned German and English peers as well.

The legendary "piggy bank" listened to today, sounds very current, penalized solely by an imperfect production, inevitably very "'70s," counterbalanced by a sense of melody and harmonic taste typical of baroque classical music. This, combined with the experience of all the band members in "Crash," makes this album a true "rock opera". It lays the foundation for the undisputed masterpiece that will follow, "Darwin!," which I talked about some time ago.

It begins with a medieval-like introduction reminiscent of Ariosto ("from here sir/ you can overlook the valley"), followed by the splendid suite "R.I.P." Based on a leading riff with a few "sharp" chords, essentially rock 'n' roll (Led Zeppelin above all), it evolves into unrestrained solos and a subsequent slowed-down section, showcasing Nocenzi's classical piano playing. It is here that the band's characteristic sound is forming, made of contrasts, moments of great intensity, melancholic ballads, and the "tradition," prevailing at the time, of the Who, Hendrix, and others. The piece progresses with a crescendo of intensity, culminating in a chilling finale, once again slowed down. A truly unforgettable chiaroscuro. After a brief "Passaggio," we can listen to "Metamorfosi," which, as the title suggests, is a somewhat experimental track, rich in "Area-style" digressions. Then we have the second, splendid suite "Il Giardino del Mago," divided into 4 parts: "...step by step," "…who laughs and who cries," "…with hair loose in the wind", "penetration."

Describing in detail Di Giacomo's extraordinary vocal performance is impossible, even less so the unforgettable showmanship of the other musicians. I want to mention here Todaro and his splendid, bluesy and creative guitar performance: he was also present on the next record, and was worthily replaced, starting in 1973, by Maltese. A perfect "fusion" between baroque classical music, experimentation, and rock 'n roll. The concluding "Traccia" vaguely recalls the initial intro, concluding a perfect work, even though, as I hinted, the best is yet to come with Darwin!, the first concept of Italian rock. I recommend to all interested the websites: http://www.italianprog.com http://www.progreviews.com on the subject...