'Deception Store' is a new Italian progressive project that is not making the buzz on the internet and some information can be found on their website either in Italian or in English here. Created by the singer 'Marco Pantazzi', their style is close to a quiet progressive rock that refers to the atmospheric rock formations of the 70s, led by 'Pink Floyd' and their first album 'Pindaric Flights' was released in late November 2021.
On the menu of this opus, 12 rather short tracks (except for the title song that exceed 7 minutes) that deploy beautiful melodies and refined atmospheres. We are welcomed by 'Lifetime' which shows a beautiful sweetness and the guitar solo 'Floydien' in the second part of the title is a pure wonder. With 'I Do My Way', the piano/song opening is very muffled and continues with a rhythm section that gradually grows with a final leaning towards energetic rapping, interpreted by 'Roberta Staccueddu', which falls back into a few notes of piano, then, we find this alternation of intensities with the next track, 'One More Time', which, after an introduction in a very quiet atmosphere with a whispered song of 'Marco Pantozzi', has a chorus much more lively. Follows the energetic 'Rock-Star (Meteorite)' with a direct and efficient second part of the track and a remarkable final guitar solo, then, back to a softer atmosphere with 'New Bad Day' which unfolds a delicate melody, and we find again these remarkable successions of strong and calm moments. As for the title song, it is made of several parts with a first acoustic section vocal/guitar accompanied by a slide guitar which, without real transition, leaves the place to a slow and heavy tempo rhythmed by a powerful bass in a psychedelic atmosphere bringing us back a few decades in the past and some lulls bringing a good airing to the whole. We start the second part of the album which continues to offer us a rather soft progressive and we can quote 'A New World' with its memorable chorus or 'Distant Lover' which flirts with a piano/bar atmosphere or the magnificent semi-acoustic ballad 'Close Your Eyes' with a melodic construction in crescendo that would not have disowned 'Roger Waters', and the only more energetic incursion is 'Timeline' with a muscular guitar solo but which ends on a much calmer acoustic part in a vocal/guitar duet. After the melancholic piano comma 'Free', the album ends with 'E Immagino Se', sung in Italian and that sums up well the general atmosphere of the album with this emotional strength brought by the alternation of intense moments and others much quieter.
In summary, the Italians of 'Deception Store' release a very promising first album in a refined and delicate progressive with beautiful melodic lines and 'Pindaric Flights', beyond the fans of progressive, should appeal to a rather large audience looking for quite immediate music because all compositions are quite short and catchy from the first listening... | |
