Ego

1. Rock Progressivo Italiano • Italy
EGO is a trio of experienced musicians from Varese that formed in January 2005 and consists of close friends Pier Caramel (keyboards, flute), Daniele Mentasti (bass, trombone) and Sergio Ianella (drums, percussion). They have backgrounds in many different genres of music and a shared passion for progressive rock of the seventies, in particular bands such as LE ORME, GOBLIN, PINK FLOYD and ELP. They are also united in their desire to break down what they call the ‘’fixed schemes’’ of music. An important aspect of this process involves their adoption of an entirely instrumental approach, the intention being that the absence of lyrics will facilitate a highly personal interpretation of the music on the part of the individual listener.

The band’s early releases appear to be demos that nonetheless aroused the interest of the record labels. ‘’Ego’’ (2005) was an immature work both in terms of compositions and production, while its follow-up ‘’Suppurtatio Annorum Mundi’’ (2007) made use of 1980s synthesizers and electronics to create an experimental blend of new wave and prog rock. ‘’MCM Egofuturismo’’ (2008) continued in this exploratory vein - an eccentric, fragmentary work that sought to create a cold and technological sound. Try to imagine a combination of ELP-inspiration, 1980s synths, jazz and some electronics. This is the album that was used during an early evaluation by the RPI team, a problematic evaluation that had EGO looking like a forlorn hope for addition to the subgenre.

However the subsequent release of ‘’Evoluzione Delle Forme’’ (2011) dispensed with all such concerns. Compared with the previous album this is actually a more prosaic work but one that made the decision to clear EGO for addition to the database an easy choice. It seems to work as a soundtrack to the glorification of the band’s own musical evolution, and in a recent PA interview Pier Caramel confirmed that: ‘’we think we have reached what we were aiming for from the start.’’ On this album EGO sets out to engage the listener with refined melodies, a warm feel, and arrangements that are not overly technical. The sleeve notes expand on the band’s philosophy of seeking to create an aesthetic revolution with the ability to look in all directions, with not only the eyes but with all the senses, in the search for one’s ‘’inner ego’‘.

‘’MCM Egofuturismo’’ and ‘’Evoluzione Delle Forme’’ are both currently available on C