The Dust
The Inner Side

21 years have passed since Roberto Grillo, then a 15-year-old, decided to establish The DusT, a courageous and extremely ambitious musical project that remains relatively unnoticed to this day. Its foundations were built by drawing inspiration from 70s British rock, with a special nod to Queen, and generally, Glam-Rock and progressive rock. Following this path, much progress has been made: with multiple lineup changes, Grillo remained the sole unbreakable cornerstone, and from 2001 to 2014, five works were released: in God we trust (2001), Golden Horizons (2004), cinema rétro (2005), Portrait of a Change (2010), and Remembrance (2014), all self-produced. After the last musical endeavor, Roberto Grillo and guitarist Michele Pin (active in The DusT since 2012) decided to gather new energy and, above all, new skilled session musicians to craft and produce, right around the holiday season, The Inner Side (2016), once again self-produced.

This time the lineup is as follows: besides Grillo and Pin, there is Gianni Fantuz on drums, Alberto Mazzer on bass, and additional collaborations including pianist Marco Simeoni, Lorenzo De Luca on sax, Mauro Bortolani on electronic instruments, Alberto Petterle on cello, Enrico Sanson on violin, and Chiara Marcon as an extra vocalist on the track “(Got To Say) It’s Love”. From these premises, it is understood that even in The Inner Side, The DusT decided to go big, aligning with their style; a trait also belonging to the bands that inspired them. The new album continues the path inherited from the previous ones: each track will offer rhythmic and melodic solutions different from the last. “My Own” mixes energetic Arena-Rock a là Bryan Adams with Synth-Pop; “Cross the Line (Brazilliant)” mimics (in a good way) typical Brazilian melodic patterns following a rock theme reminiscent of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Toto; “Lost In Flames” is instead a melancholic and apocalyptic ballad in full Porcupine Tree style. “We’re Fighting Till the End” represents what, in previous years, marked the ending of The DusT's albums: grand arrangements with epic and rock elements, balancing between the solemnity of Innuendo and the pomp offered by the typical rock/classical blend. The namesake finale of The Inner Side, however, takes on a more subdued acoustic tone, marking a clear and intimate break from the rest of the album. The Inner Side is a work impeccably played, which perhaps loses itself too much in self-referentiality and the richness of arrangements, missing the opportunity to forge its own indigenous and distinctive identity: such aspects appear as a double-edged sword, representing both the greatest strength and, at the same time, the biggest flaw of this album, as well as the previous ones of the band.

But with the sixth work, The DusT have now consolidated their style, with no intention of changing it: Grillo is primarily interested in expressing his passions through music, rather than selling. Perhaps in a market more suited to them, The DusT would surely achieve the success and visibility they deserve: Italy, with its talent shows, boardroom-created groups, and crude and rough singer-songwriter culture, is not a country for them.