Italian composer and instrumentalist Antonio SEVERI is, at least in progressive rock circles, best known for being the guitarist in Italian band Stereokimono. He’s also a member of Albateatro, presumably a theater based ensemble, and Police cover band Blanche de Namur. As a recording artist he has also recorded an album with the band Ozis. “Sunday Morning” is his first proper solo production, and was self released in 2013.
Those eager to read about a progressive rock album can safely skip this review though, as Severi’s exploits as a solo artist, at least this time around, covers a rather different kind of music. Just where I should place it in terms of category I’m actually rather unsure of, but that it is an instrumental affair revolving around a single acoustic guitar will most likely be revealing enough for the greater majority of readers.
An instrument can obviously be used in a number of different manners, and in this particular case the 11 compositions are all based around plucked, wandering acoustic guitars. Dual layered unless my ears deceive me, with a dominant layer that consists of wandering, circulating patterns and motifs and an underlying pattern of darker toned or more firmly played notes. At least that is my main impression, this of course described by a non-musician trying to decipher and understand what’s going on. An instrumentalist would obviously describe this in a very different manner.
Severi’s material manage to maintain interest partially by way of the constant wandering motifs that maintains a smooth fluidity and partially by alternating the intensity of the playing. Sometimes using what I’d describe as a soft and delicate touch and at other times applying a firmer approach leading to sharper and more intense notes with less room for subtle resonances. There’s always movement though, and a fluid one at that, and while some of the sequences may be more firm and intense this is music that by and large stays within a delicate context, and rather frequently with an overall mood of melancholy the order of the day. There are two main exceptions, on Onde a subtle, organic sounding solo is applied on top of the acoustic guitar, presumably by a carefully played electric guitar, giving this piece a rather different sound, mood and atmosphere. Later on the song named Colores is a brief affair that explore more of a Latin or perhaps Spanish oriented type of music, more forceful and dramatic in scope and delivery. Otherwise I’d describe this production as a gentle and melancholic one, and at least as I experience it one with an introspective mood to it.
“Sunday Morning” is an elegant production of it’s kind, and at least to these amateur ears one that comes across as a high quality one as well. I don’t know how large an audience there is for an album of this particular nature though, but if you have a tendency to enjoy gentle, acoustic guitar based instrumental productions featuring delicate compositions dominated by a soft melancholic spirit then chances are that you’ll treasure the qualities of this album.
My rating: 80/100
