The Italian prog artist Sophya Baccini is indeed an interesting case. Before her solo career she was in a prog metal band Presence and guested on albums by Osanna and Delirium among others. Her bilingual debut Aradia (2009) was classically influenced, dramatic prog full of mysterious atmospheres and many-sided arrangements, all crowned by her beautiful voice. It was followed by the William Blake inspired album Big Red Dragon (2013) that featured legendary guests such as Sonja Kristina (Curved Air), Christian Decamps (Ange) and Lino Vairetti (Osanna). It took ten years to get to the third album, but it was worth the wait. The group named after the debut album consists of female musicians only.

After the homonymous first album (2013) which celebrated AURORA LUNARE of the 70s, and the interlocutory “Translunaggio” (which paid homage to important progressive bands), the band from Livorno returns with “Terzo Luogo”: seven totally new songs, which contain the magic of a past (clear echoes of the historic Italian progressive) that has been able to renew itself brilliantly, with surprising freshness! “Terzo luogo” (Third place) as a middle ground between life and death, forgiveness and damnation, hell and heaven, the human and the divine, like a “third eye” capable of reading the subconscious.

Among the names that no Italian prog enthusiast can do without we undoubtedly have the legendary Dalton, a band that in the early ’70s left an indelible mark with the LP’s “Riflessioni: Idea d’Infinito” and “Argitari”. Their voice, guitar and one of the main composers was – and still is – Aronne Cereda, author of the recent “Memories” published by AMS Records in September 2017. In “Eden”, alongside the songwriting, folk and Celtic sides already present in “Memories”, echoes of ’70s progressive rock come back, unmistakably: an indelible sign of an era, that only those who have lived those years in first person can faithfully bring back to life; in particular, the songs “Giardino dell’Eden” and “La forza di Dio” will delight those who never forgot about Dalton, and still listen to their first two LP’s regularly.

Empire is an obscure early '90's progressive rock band from Italy, that featured the duo formation Syndone (drummer Sburlati and keyboard player Rogani) and female singer Rosanna De Luca. They release so far a single album in 1994 at Vinyl Magic named Back to Knowledge. They taken their influences from legendary ELP, the keyboards are sometimes one at one with the british, but always keeping the sound modern, that save them from bing a total clone band. Most of the nine compositions sound fluen and modern with varied keyboards that contain obvious hints from Eddie Jobson and Keith Emerson. If you like bands ELP, Monolith, Cairo, and those who are more in driven keyboards arrangements this is a good listen.

Recorded in 1970, Panna Fredda's lone work is one of the earliest pioneers of the ISP genre, one of the trailblazers of the distinct style of festive experimentation that would characterize so many great Italian bands. It's really an overlooked title in the Italian progressive rock universe. Heavy and dark with a distinct baroque twist and an emphasis on exploration, "Uno" was right there with other first wave titles from Orme, The Trip, and Osanna. The origins of Panna Fredda (translates to Cold Cream) date back to 1966 Rome and the Italian beat when members were playing in a group called I Figli Del Sole. These nightclub gigs evolved into a 6-piece funk/R and B/brass outfit called Vun Vun.

Latte e Miele is an Italian progressive rock musical group. The group formed in 1971 in Genoa. In 1972 they realized their most famous work, the concept album Passio secundum Mattheum, with part of music inspired by Johann Sebastian Bach and recitatives from the Gospel of Matthew. After having opened the concerts of Van der Graaf Generator, in 1973 they released another concept album, Papillon, and disbanded in 1974. The group reformed in 1976, with only Alfio Vitanza from the original line-up, and with the name of the group spelled as "LatteMiele". After the album Aquile e scoiattoli, best known for its 23-minutes-suite "Pavana", they gradually abandoned the progressive style and approached pop-rock. After disbanding in the early 1980s, the original line-up reunited in 2008.

About ten years from the now distant 2007, when the first foundations of this project were laid, one of the current Italian progressive rock scene most important bands, La Coscienza di Zeno, signs for AMS Records; while waiting to give life to their 4th record, they celebrate this event with the release of "Il giro del cappio", a live album recorded on 26 February 2016 in The Netherlands. "Il giro del cappio" consists of seven long and complex tracks for over seventy minutes of music in which, from classical to hard rock, various genres overlap and intertwine with impressive and apparent simplicity. Almost one third of the album is occupied by the suite "Giovane figlia", what could be called the 'Side A' of the band's third album "La notte anche di giorno"; four are the tracks taken from the eponymous 2011 debut, while the concert is opened and closed with two songs from "Sensitività" (2013).

Whether it's the luscious all instrumental four-album `Seasons' cycle or bombastic classical- influenced rock-operas such as `The Rime of the Ancient Mariner' and its live interpretation `Alive in Theatre', Hostsonaten has always been the most purely symphonic project modern Italian progressive music icon Fabio Zuffanti is involved in, and he and his music collaborators here return in 2016 with `Symphony N. 1: Cupid and Psyche'. Zuffanti and his musical friends, including La Coscienza di Zeno's keyboardist Luca Scherani, Laura Marsano on classical and electric guitars, Paolo `Paolo' Tixi on drums and Danielle Sollo on fretted and fretless bass, are backed up by multi- member brass and woodwind sections as well as a string quartet, and without a doubt they've delivered one of the most proudly grandiose, extravagant and bombastic symphonic Italian works of the year!

CANTINA SOCIALE is a new Italian group. The line-up is: Rosalba Gentile (keyboards), Elio Sesia (guitars, bass, violin), Iano Nicolo (vocals), Gianni Grasso (bass, saxophones), Carla Viarengo (saxophones, background vocals), Marina Gentile (guitars) and Graziano Viola (drums). The music is mostly similar to the seventies groups but there are some modern influences as well. They have more Mediterranean feel in the music than an average Italian symphonic group…

TILION is a new Italian group that was founded from the ashes of PROWLERS, a group that released three albums in the nineties. The group consists of Roberto "Bobo" Aiolfi (bass), Paolo Cassago (drums), Alfio Costa (keyboards), Flavio Costa (guitars) and Andrea Ricci (vocals). The music of this group is symphonic progressive with some jazz influence and perhaps even hints of prog-metal…

This third effort by Italian outfit Tilion is a mixed affair in oh so many ways; and although not always successful there should be quite a lot of material on this disc that will satisfy those interested in boundary-breaking, innovative and creative music…

Although GRUPPO AUTONOMO SUONATORI – or G.A.S. – has existed well over two decades by now, no sooner than last summer they released their debut album via Black Widow. And a very fine RPI album it is. The musicianship is excellent and so is the production. Stylistically the band could be taken as a prime example of the very faithful contemporary representation of the classic Italian prog…