Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Ritmia: Forse il mare (New Tone, 1986)

A half sardinian, half tuscanian quartet, Ritmia were an impressive "world music" acoustic ensemble which published just one album, "Forse il mare". Now the album's considered one of the great masterpieces of Italian folk revisitation.
The four tracks merge the most mediterranean spirit of Italian tradition and many other influences (jazz/improvisational, celtic, balkanic, African, Middle-Eastern...) in a very natural way, creating an extremely organic sound whose only parallel might be the French band Dédale. The music's most surprising for its exuberant stillness: though high-spirited and dynamic (rhythm intricacies being one of the most prominent elements), the instrumental lines keep on revolving round the same centers all along one track, creating an out-of-time sensation which is just occasionally broken by a sudden tempo shift.
Acoustic guitar, accordion, percussion, saxophones and flutes (with the unique, "distorted" sound of the double-reed piffero) are the key elements of their weightless sound alchemy, while the voice just bursts in here and there in the highest point of the climax. The first track, "La stella e la luna", oddly reminds me of Area's "Il bandito del deserto", though the whole album has almost no rock element at all.


Tracklist:
  1. La stella e la luna (stream it!)
  2. Serenata mare
  3. Siscari
  4. Adieu adieu/Moresca nuziale
Download (128 kbps)

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Unknown said...

Ohi wago, ottima segnalazione, vabhè a me piace in primis il suono della chitarra e la pioggia di percussioni, poi quando la cosa si fa troppo danzereccia rischio di avere uno svaso, piuttosto senti una cosa ?hai mai sentito parlare dei Taberna Mylaensis?, io ho qualche vinile qua in casa, giù in Sicilia dove vado io li senti nominare in ogni dove, suonano da una vita, potrebbero fare al caso tuo, go ahead

pajjo

wago said...

Mai sentiti, neppure nominare.
Ora mi informo un po'.
Nel caso ti tartasso perche' rippi qualcosa, sappilo :P
Vedo comunque che e' stato postato un loro album su ItalianFolkMusic: http://italianfolkmusic.blogspot.com/2007/04/taberna-mylaensis-populu-e-santi_18.html

Anonymous said...

A proposito di Sardità così presente in questo post esemplare ( complimenti)...
è possibile reperire la riservata Marisa Sannia e, in particolare "Rosa de papel"....regalaci questo acino!

Vaw Awareness Month said...

Thhis was great to read