The Ancient Veil
Rings Of Earthly...Live

THE REVIEW

Eris Pluvia was one of the best bands from the new wave of Italian progressive in the mid-'80s. Their Rings Of Earthly Light from 1991 is definitely one of the most significant releases of that time, imbued with "Canterbury" moods and poetic, melancholic atmospheres. Subsequently, two members, namely saxophonist Edmondo Romano and guitarist and singer Alessandro Serri, split off to form Ancient Veil, a group that continued in the same vein, although with less rock-oriented sounds: nevertheless, the class remained unchanged as you can hear in their first album, recently reissued and remastered under the title New – The Ancient Veil by Lizard Records, characterized by pastoral settings. Now, released again by Lizard and distributed by Black Widow Records, comes a beautiful live album—recording of two concerts at La Claque in Genoa—by Ancient Veil, which represents a kind of celebration of their career and is significantly titled Rings Of Earthly...Live. Let's say right away that the highlight of this album is precisely the re-enactment of the legendary suite "Rings Of Earthly Light” — with Valeria Caucino on vocals—almost 18 minutes long. The first tracks, instead, retrace the material from the first Ancient Veil album with Edmondo Romano's winds in great prominence: delicate and floral music that may remind one of Caravan and Camel. In the track “In The Rising Mist,” we find as guests none other than Fabio Zuffanti and Stefano Marelli from Finisterre, another glorious band from Genoa: in a sense, it's like the closing of a circle. Rings Of Earthly...Live is a precious album that highlights the great class of Ancient Veil and renews the splendor of the great Eris Pluvia as well.