[reviews] afe088mcd
fhievel: preghiera per una stella

I'm so late in reviewing this small gem but while I'm late in my duty, scout's honour that I've been listening to it many time since I own it.

Fhievel is not a newcomer at all since I think you probably heard him with some previous solo releases or with the Pocket Progressive trio (a CD is out on Creative Sources) which, besides him, includes Claudio Rocchetti and Luca Sigurtà.

OK, forget the electro-acoustic skill of Bergero and leave space for a drone oriented 3" MiniCD where Fhievel shows an incredible talent. The basic sound reminds of an organ keyboard, but it's well mixed with some other sounds in a really soft manner so that you'll probably simply swim into it.

The funny thing is that Bergero probably likes making the drones/sounds fade right after he thinks the natural climax of the single sound it's reached, alas don't expect the typical ambiental, neverending psychedelic sound going on forever and ever. The only thing materializing underneath from the pool of sound is a soft foam made out of barely audible noises.

Somebody in the past has compared Bergero to Eliane Radigue, probably that's true. By the way, as boring as I may sound, keep in mind that minimalism is not "poor" at all and, above all, it implies strength and self control. Fhievel is another good example of what I've just wrote.

[Andrea Ferraris]