Strange, grey-sad, nihilistic, pulsating, unstable in showing emotions, trance-like, addictive, at times incomprehensible, mixing alternative sounds with progressive melodies, nostalgic, expressive and subdued at the same time, full of voices of hope and despair, vibrating with the enormity of the emotions contained. These are just a few expressions that can be formulated after listening to the latest album of the Italian group prototypeLAB - "Unboxing Memories". A few more journalistic terms could be added to this collection: alternative, post-rock, atmospheric, or progressive. However, I am afraid that they will not fully reflect the content of this "non-obvious" production. This year, at least for me, is full of "non-obvious" albums... that is, crossing the boundaries between styles and ways of playing. When listening to albums, we must be ready to revise our musical preferences when exposed to the music we hear. The album "Unboxing Memories" is just like that. The musicians try to convey the relationship between time, memory and identity, combining musical virtuosity with raw emotion. This album reaches into the deepest aspects of existence, intertwining reflections on life, death, friendship and love, emphasizing the contrast between the past and the present, between what was and what remains imprinted in... memory. He tries to unpack musically, open his memory to look at the moments experienced with fresh eyes, anew, in the midst of melancholy, self-awareness and self-acceptance. Some songs evoke fragments of the past that flows powerfully from within us, while others focus on the physical and emotional distance between people, the sense of loss and the inability to stop time.
This is a very "non-obvious" album.
And although the band itself is not a debutant, I guess "Unboxing Memories" can be treated as a kind of debut in a new formula. prototypeLAB has existed since 2010, but it was only in 2015 that it recorded its first album - "Mea Culpa". The debut was noticed. Metaliltalia.com wrote about it: "(...) The arrangements are refined and the rhythmic patterns work well in the title track (...) the piano accents are commendable, although it seems that the synthesizer playing is what attracts the most attention." However, we had to wait ten years for the new album.
Already the first of eight songs shows the non-obviousness of the album. "Vlad" is theoretically the narrative hero of the song, but at the same time it is an enigmatic creature, because the first Vlad is a bicycle thief, the second Vald is a thief of other items, and Vlad with the number three "(...) was brave and proud, very proud, he ended up on an island with all this sand and palm trees. I never saw or heard from him again, maybe he was stolen or kidnapped by the other Vlads.” The lyrically subversive song is accompanied by pulsating, slightly gray and dark music. Initially calm, accompanying the story being told. Later, a stronger, Porcupine-like one with clearly marked guitar chords. And at the same time, referring to the perversity of this song and... the entire album, it captivates with a melodic guitar solo starting in the third minute. And who exactly is Vlad? How many Vlads are there around us? Please just look around.
The irony of the lyrics and, overall, a rock song with a feisty guitar - this is how the second song from the album could be summed up. “Dear Mad Master” is a story about an imaginary boss – “Beautiful, fantastic, wonderful, wonderful. Son of the worst Italian pop rock. Please pay attention to the final part - the cooperation of the acoustic guitar with the electric one.
The third composition begins in a completely non-rock way - "In A Box". “(…) I put everything I got into a box. Everything I remember. I put everything I got in the box. I moved my dreams inside. I put in my future. I am exhausted and empty now because everything is there, put there….” This composition is a musically calm, predictable whole with a subdued and quiet melody line interrupted by a stronger guitar solo. This composition is also a sad story about buried dreams, about the fact that something could happen, could be, but... it lies somewhere buried at the bottom of the box with unfulfilled dreams.
You have probably already experienced disappointment caused by social media. The next song - "Red Fire" - is devoted to this issue. Angry vocals against the background of a slightly metal guitar are "mixed" with lyrical melodies and lyrics full of disappointment about lies, the reason for which is the pursuit of more likes.
“No Time” is one of the longer songs. It lasts over eight minutes and begins with an almost two-minute instrumental intro. This is one of my favorites with a beautiful guitar solo and vocal sadness - "(...) I regret what I did to you in my life." It captivates with the beauty of the synthesizer solo starting in the fifth minute, evoking an ambient-electronic atmosphere.
The song "Maximum Emotional Expression" begins with a quote from Julio Cortázar's prose - "(...) To love is to create poetry, with your body and mind, with your entire being." These words are carried against the background of sometimes gentle, sometimes slightly nervous music. It's a neatly arranged and played four-minute song.
The penultimate composition, dedicated to war and its devastating impact, begins in a moody and calm manner with a note of reflection. This is apparent gentleness. “War Picture” describes frightened eyes, smoke rising from windows, broken limbs and children's tears stained with dirt. Each verse is punctuated by the refrain "And dust in the wind", emphasizing the inexorable nature of destruction and the transient existence of humanity. In the middle part, sharp guitars appear, and the double bass line imitates the sound of machine guns, immersing the listener in a vivid sound presentation of war. The sound explosions that follow evoke the chaos of the conflict and increase emotional tension. After this fragment full of musical violence and destruction, the song returns to more gentle sounds, the music fades out, creating space for an intense and melancholic solo, which leads the listener to the conclusion - the pain that remains after war and violence.
The album ends with an instrumental song - "Leo" - composed and played by the band's guitarist Fabrizio Andreani, dedicated to his son. It is also a perfect way to end all the stories told in the texts. Maybe the lack of words, the time to think wordlessly about the situation a person finds themselves in, is the best solution when we come into daily contact with the reality that surrounds us? Maybe wordless reflection will make us different, better, and the world around us will be more peaceful and more for us, "for people" in its everyday life?
I like albums like this. Breaking the monotony of musical patterns and at the same time remaining within these arrangement patterns. Combining fire with water, power with peace, metal with ambient. Reflecting on the sad, gray, cheerful, joyful, bland, cheerful everyday life and its problems. If it's done in a fully professional musical way, you can't wish for anything more. Gentlemen: Andrea Fenili (vocals, guitars), the already mentioned Fabrizio Andreani (guitars, vocals), Stuart Franzoni (drums) and Giulio Rimoli (bass) recorded a very good album. Listening to it requires concentration, but it also provides many different impressions and emotions. And I guess that's the point. Because the worst thing that could happen is if we didn't feel anything after listening to the album. In the case of this publication, this is not a threat to you.
