Alberto Rigoni was not a man that I have heard of before, so I decided to look things up. As it turned out, he actually has quite the resume. He is a bass player and composer, plays in several bands and also has a solo project going on. Quite impressive if you ask me. He covers many different genres from pop to progressive rock and metal. Right now he is playing guitar for Canadian singer Kim Bingham. I did not really know what to expect as I had never heard an instrumental progressive rock album before.
The first real track “Overloaded” sets off with a bass solo, but it does not take long for the guitars to join in. The song has a certain metal and progressive rock vibe to it just like the rest of the album. This is not your average metal artist, which can be quite refreshing. The entire album is instrumental and has a lot of variety in it, as it filled with certain elements to keep it interesting. Such as guitar solos, guitar licks, bass solos and also synths to give a more full sound.
The intro of “Chron” is filled with a strangely distorted guitar, and I think that I can hear synths in the background to back things up and make it more solid. It is obvious that the bass is the centre of the music, as it leads the rest of the instruments. After a while of bass solo-ing, the mood of the song quickly changes. Synths take over and all of a sudden the song gets a more psychedelic rock sound. I have to be honest; I like it when an artist decides to surprise the listener, but this surprise seemed a bit odd and out of place. Because just 20 seconds after the transition, the song goes back to the intro of the song. This makes it feel like a sudden mood swing that swings back again after 20 seconds.
“Corruption” is my favorite song on this album. As soon as the song starts, you’re treated with heavy palm muted guitars that go back to the earlier days of metal. Just when I started thinking that the song could use a bit of variety, the synths come in with a solo and make the whole lot more interesting. This is the most up-tempo and straight forward song on this album so far. About halfway through the song we get to hear an awesome guitar solo, after which the song calms down. Not for long however, because the guitars and bass come in heavy after the calm bridge and won’t back down until the end of the song.
The sixth track “Ubick” is another heavy song with interesting lead guitars, and the bass is not left behind. Alberto Rigoni sure knows how to keep his songs interesting. He does not take the easy way out by using standard song structures. The rhytm guitars are already interesting to listen to because of the melodies he creates, but there is also a lead guitar to kick things up a notch. What surprises me is that none of the instruments are lost in the mix, and the whole does not come across as chaotic.
The bass guitar is put in the spotlight during the final track “Glory of Life”, as the entire song is founded on bass guitars. Does it get boring? Not at all. Alberto Rigoni does not play single notes on his bass guitar, but he uses scales to progress in between them. This makes just the bass line a lot more interesting than most of the bass guitars you hear in the metal scene. And if that is not enough, Alberto uses multiple layers of bass guitars to add subtle elements to his music. That is not something to take for granted, because it is hard to add multiple layers to your music, but to still make sure that every element can be heard and is given a rightful place.
Overall: Alberto Rigoni is a talented musician for sure. He puts a lot of work and energy into making sure that his music is interesting and fresh, and he does succeed. Some small segments tend to get a bit boring, but it does not take long for a song to spin into a different direction. It is hard to think of a genre to label his music, but it sure is fun and surprising.
Rating: 7/10
Written by Geert Prins
Tracklist:
1. What’s on Your Mind
2. Overloaded
3. Chron
4. Floating Capsule
5. Corruption
6. Ubick
7. Multitasking
8. Liberation
9. Glory of Life (Bonus Track)
Discography:
“Something Different” (2008)
“Rebirth” (2011)
“Three Wise Monkeys” (2012) [review]
“Overloaded” (2014)
Record Label: Any and All Records, Oct. 2014
Weblinks: Website / Facebook / Twitter / Bandcamp
Buy the album here:
Holland: First Paradox
Norway: Nordic Mission
Soundcloud player: ‘Ubick’
[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/albertorigoni/ubick[/soundcloud]
Video below “Overloaded” (album teaser)