Album Review: Dolcetti — Arriver
File next to: Frank Zappa, Steve Vai, Jimmy Herring
Arriver is instrumental progressive/art rock of the most accessible variety. Dizzyingly fast guitar runs, turn-on-a-dime drums lines and thunderous yet agile bass guitar all come together to create music that is surprisingly hook-filled. And humor – a quality that’s all too often lacking in prog – is served up by this Italian duo in copious quantities. Dolcetti spins out catchy tune after catchy tune, and there’s very little in the way of musical pretense. The duo’s judicious use of keyboards adds to the ear-candy nature of the tunes. Some of them cheerfully lumber, dinosaur fashion, like “Idea effe.” But unexpected bursts of pig-squeal guitar – and Zappa-esque tuned percussion – puncture any serious air, much like the punch line at the end of a joke. Instro-prog rarely manages such a fine balance of technique and widespread appeal as found on Arriver.
About the Author
Bill Kopp
With a background in marketing and advertising, Bill Kopp got his professional start writing for Trouser Press. After a stint as Editor-in-chief for a national music magazine, Bill launched Musoscribe in 2009, and has published new content every business day since then (and every single day since 2018). The interviews, essays, and reviews on Musoscribe reflect Bill's keen interest in American musical forms, most notably rock, jazz, and soul. His work features a special emphasis on reissues and vinyl. Bill's work also appears in many other outlets both online and in print. He also researches and authors liner notes for album reissues, and co-produced a reissue of jazz legend Julian "Cannonball" Adderley's final album. His first book, Reinventing Pink Floyd was published by Rowman & Littlefield in 2018; a paperback edition is due in September 2019.