Claudio Rocchi & Effervescent Elephants
Claudio Rocchi & Effervescent Elephants

Claudio Rocchi was one of the great figures in Italian music: in the '70s, he was the symbol of a certain libertarian counterculture. Albums like Volo magico, Il miele dei pianeti, le isole, le api, and Essenza are masterpieces of psychedelia, tinged with oriental and mystical influences and had an expansive sound. Rocchi's approach was unique, his lyrics spiritual and his music cosmic. Unfortunately, death took him from us in 2013. However, in 2011, he managed to release a split with the Effervescent Elephants by Lodovico Ellena, protagonists of the Italian neo-psychedelic scene of the '80s: in reality, the musicians of the Elephants had their first musical experiences in the '70s: they were often accustomed to launching into long improvised sessions as was the custom at the time. The same Ellena in his book Storia della musica psichedelica italiana gives great prominence to the figure of Claudio Rocchi and makes it clear how important he was in his formation. It is not surprising that, in the end, the circle closed and there was a collaboration between the Milanese musician and the group from Alice Castello. The record is wonderful, full of music that epitomizes creativity: you can clearly hear Rocchi's hand in tracks like "Niente di meno," "Gli apostoli," and in "Apollo e le Muse," the latter a mystical journey that smells of India and changing and psychedelic colors. In "(Andando al) La Mecca" you feel all the magic of psychedelia: it is an expansive and Arabian-style track in which the Elephants launch into an improvisation that takes us to unknown places belonging to another space-time dimension. The music is full of good vibes and sensations and will bring out the mystical animal hidden within yourselves. Claudio Rocchi and The Effervescent Elephants sounds like a small spiritual testament for a great artist who left us and deserves to be listened to with the right attention and spirit.