Celeste

Another offshoot of the Sanremo-based Il Sistema, Celeste was founded in late 1972 by Ciro Perrino and Leonardo Lagorio, who was briefly a member of Museo Rosenbach. Their motive was not to recreate Il Sistemi, but rather forge a group with a more acoustic and classical feel. Rounding out the lineup were Giorgio Battaglia on bass and Mariano Schiavolini on guitar, the latter still a student in Sanremo. Their debut, Celeste, is also known by the title of the first track, "Principe Di un Giorno," and suffered a protracted release, as the album was reportedly written in 1973 and recorded in 1974. The opening track reveals an original mix of guitar and flute, offering something more akin to symphonic rock than anything folky. The Mellotron lines that open "Favole antiche" ("Ancient fable") recall King Crimson's first album, but the similarities end there; Celeste are as original and Mediterranean as they come. Gentle interplay between guitar and bass dominate the track, with flute and piano providing an ethereal, even "celestial" atmosphere. "Eftus" is softer, with the Mellotron and ARP sounding otherworldly; but there's a certain depth within, and one also accentuated by Perrino's gentle vocals and mostly drum-less percussion. "Giochi Nella Notte" adds horns to great effect, while "La Grande Isola" rises to some playful ARP synthesizer. The album is unique in the Italian canon, and it evokes a mood that is unmatched by any other group, foreign or otherwise. The album was released in 1976 on New Troll's Aldo and Vittorio De Scalzi's small Grog label, an offshoot of the Magma label. Celeste would record their next album that same year, cleverly titled Celeste II, but it was never released. The music was different, approaching something jazzy, with Lagorio's sax dominating. After stints in SNC and La Compagnia Digitale, Perrino would form the spacey St. Tropez with Battaglia in 1980; but, again, recordings would not see release until many years later. He did however release an excellent album of ethereal electronic music, Solare, in 1980 on the Caio label. Evidently solving the album release problem, Perrino co-founded (with Mauro Moroni) the important reissue label Mellow Records in 1991.