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A
few weeks ago I started to dig into the underground Italian rock
scene. First, I was surprised by the dirty garage of The
Intellectuals, then I fell into the long spell of some obscure 70’s prog
bands such as Le Orme and Banco del Mutuo Soccorso. Goblin? Any
self-respecting horror fan should know. So when I learned about
the SuperNatural Cat label and hit them up for some promos I
found three of the most interesting bands (and don’t even talk
about the astounding artwork handled by the Malleus Rock Art Lab) I’ve heard in the last couple of years; the
massive doom unit Ufomammut, the left-field art/stoner rock of
Morkobot and the flawless earthly experimental mood core rock of
Lento. So for those of you not in the know, I am more than
pleased to introduce to you Lento. Guitarist Lorenzo Stecconi
answered our questions. Read on and spread the word.
- The name of the band is Lento. I didn't do enough research,
but that means 'slow' in Spanish. Why the name?
Actually it
means ‘slow’ in Italian as well. When we needed to search a
name for the band, we finally hook up with Lento because we like
the sound of the word itself. I've just discovered that means
‘flight’ in Finnish.
- How did the band come together? Was it easy finding people
with like-minded musical taste?
We formed in
2004 as Lento, but we're good friends since a long time and we
used to play together since 2000 with other projects. In 2005
another guy joined the band, experimenting the three guitars
sound. It's really difficult to find some open minded folks to
play with. Fortunately, it's not our case, as I said before we
knew each other maybe too much...
- How has the sound of the band changed/progressed since the
beginnings?
The first
experiments in our sound were involved in a more post-rock
oriented form. Basically, the actual Lento sound starts forming
in 2005. We have spent a long time in the studio recording
Earthen, and another long span of time in our rehearsal
room. Basically, our last year was totally dedicated to the
realization of the album. We must say that just two or three
songs in the album were recorded exactly how we played during
our rehearsals, some of them were re-arranged due to the unity
of the album. Instead some others have born directly inside the
studio, like “Currents”, “Emersion of the Islands” and “Leave”.
- How did you get to the conclusion to be an instrumental band?
Is music more than enough to transmit whatever you want to
transmit? Are there any limitations to having no vocals?
It has been
a natural process. In our primary line-up one of us used to
sing, but slowly we started to use vocals less and less. We
just realized that we don't need a singer, and now we really
don't feel the lack of it.
- What makes a Lento song? How do you build the music?
Songs may be
conceived in our rehearsal room. They could come up from a riff
or from a drum pattern, or during the recording process in the
studio. We don't have a classic way of composing. As I
said before, during the Earthen recording sessions we
spent a long time looking for the unity of the work. We wanted
it to sound like a unitary work and not as a compilation of
songs.
- Do you guys ever encounter occasions when you finish a song
and discard it after coming to the conclusion that it might
sound too much like another band?
It might
happen with some riffs, the selective process is very strictly
and usually we don't even finish the arrangement of the song if
it doesn't sound good in our rehearsal room.
- The influence of bands like Neurosis and Isis is clear, what
would you say is the most distinguishable characteristic of
Lento's music?
First of
all, we're instrumental. And our main influence is nature.
We're deeply inspired to the whole thing about earth and nature.
- How did you hook up with SuperNatural Cat?
They
contacted us on MySpace during the studio recordings of
Earthen, amazed by "Hadrons". They asked us more stuff and
we quickly became good friends. We're very happy to work with
the guys at Supernatural Cat, one of the few really independent
labels I guess. They manage everything regarding us, from
booking to artwork, from press to merchandise, and they seem to
really know how to work.
- How is the heavy music scene in Italy? Any bands you would
recommend?
We got some
really good bands here in Italy, such as our neighbours Zu (we
come from the same little city near Rome), and obviously our
labelmates Ufomammut and Morkobot. I must say that a lot of
heavier bands are starting to produce some good music here in
Italy, just two or three years ago everyone was looking to sound
like Pavement or Sonic youth.
- Please list a few records you'd consider as influential in the
development of Lento's sound?
Just to name
a few: Swans - Swans are Dead; Isis - Oceanic;
Mare - Mare; Brian Eno - Discreet Music.
- Favorite album?
Hard
question. Probably it will be Brian Eno's Discreet Music,
one of the albums I could not listen if I'm not in the right
mood.
- Not long ago I stumbled upon some pretty good records by Le
Orme and Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, are you fans of these bands?
In my past
I've been into Banco del Mutuo Soccorso a lot, I've even took
some guitar lessons from their guitar player when I was younger.
- Any old Italian bands you would recommend? Of any genre.
Don't forget
to mention PFM, probably the best Italian prog band ever.
- When in Rome, where can I get the best pizza and the best
gnocchi?
Ahah,
everyone says that it's not possible to have a bad meal in Rome.
Just find an old restaurant in Trastevere or Testaccio districts
and you'll be satisfied!
- What's next for Lento?
We're
planning to tour Europe for the next fall. Actually we're
promoting the album all across Italy and we're starting to write
down some new songs.
Official Site
MySpace
Read our review of Lento’s Earthen. |
