Welcome to Progressive Rock Journal! Today we have the pleasure to speak with Zio Crocifisso, the Italian sonic collective that has just released their ambitious concept album “Campana di Legno + Trappola per Topi” via AMS Records. This 14-track journey blends Progressive Rock, Avant-Garde, and R.I.O. influences in a narrative and
experimental framework that challenges conventional boundaries. Featuring members from renowned acts, Zio Crocifisso stands out as one of the most innovative voices in the contemporary Italian Progressive Scene.
Let’s start from the beginning: how did Zio Crocifisso come together as a band, and what’s the story behind this distinctive name?
Dario: “The band came together when Dario shared with SKE some of the materials which then became the song “Lievito Madre (PT. I-V)” and other stuff was being tested during rehearsals by Dario and Matteo. We ended up recording our first tracks as a trio. Our band name coincides with the antagonist’s name in Verga’s novel “I Malavoglia”. We think it is an evocative character, as he represents the expression “there’s none so deaf as those who will not hear”. Since we try to blend sounds, atmospheres and instruments in a way that is experimental to us, we have figured out that our listeners might be provoked by our musical proposal. It’s like saying “be willing to try to give a listen.”
Matteo: “Also, the band’s name was at first the name of the track Metaxu and viceversa, when we first recorded the basic tracks for the EP we thought the name Zio Crocifisso was better suited for the project. Your lineup features established musicians from well-known acts like Yūgen, SKE, Yokoano, and others.”
How did this collective formation come about, and how do you manage the creative process with so many talented contributors?
SKE: “I’ve known, played and occasionally collaborated with Dario since many years. When his SHO band collapsed, he had some ideas for new music, but he was having an hard time finding the musicians to work on it. I was interested in all of that, but it was just when he eventually met Matteo and started to rehearse with him that the band started to look like something real. In the early days, as a trio, the work was based mainly on Dario’s ideas, which at the time were midi files. I’d say 90% of the album started out like that. It was mainly Dario and Matteo rehearsing and refining riffs and rhythmic development and so on, while I would give my contribution regarding the overall structures, harmonic content or such. Once all of these were agreed on, each would include his own refinement ideas, in my case several times those would include writing down the melodic themes or arranging parts for guest instruments, while Matteo and Dario would focus on guitar/bass arrangements and percussion/sound treatments. Nowadays we are a 5 piece, and have included several different compositional strategies, which would leave freedom for everyone to propose his own ideas, both on a general and on a particular level. I think the key part of making it sound like “Zio Crocifisso”, was to be open to different approaches to the submitted ideas. I don’t think that any of the final compositions is that close to how it was originally, when we all started to work on it. This is a very creative shared attitude that I enjoy a lot in this band.”
Your sound blends Progressive Rock, Avant-Garde, and R.I.O. influences with theatrical storytelling. How would you describe your musical identity to someone discovering Zio Crocifisso for the first time?
SKE: “We actually never discussed a musical direction/style to pursue. Of course one could trace back lots of influences from bands, sounds or styles, but I think that would only describe the result of this particular album. What I mean is that in this case we found more interesting to follow our intuition and taste, rather than deciding beforehand what was ok and what is not ok for the band. This attitude would allow us to judge the sonic experience as it is forming, without too many bonds. The result is that we managed to include several different approaches and instruments, but hopefully still sounding like something coherent. To describe this sound, I guess names such as King Crimson, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Zu, Tool, Balletto di Bronzo among others, could help to suggest what we sound like.“
“Campana di Legno + Trappola per Topi” is described as a dark and symbolic concept album. Could you tell us about the conceptual framework and themes that drive this record?
Dario: “We noticed that some recurring themes in the novel are still present nowadays. A lot of people are trying to enhance their economical position by any possible mean, as if no other goal in life was available. This attitude leads unavoidably to conflicts, even inside family units. The character Zio Crocifisso himself deals only with money and credit. We believe a society where relationships are mainly based on this structure is destined to doom.“
Matteo: “There are many sayings in the Verga production directly taken from the Sicilian dialect of the late 19th century. ‘Trappola per Topi’ refers to the phrase that ironically compares marriage to a mouse-trap: those who are trapped in want to get free, those who are around it want to get in.“
The album features some fascinating track titles like “Lievito Madre,” “Margherita Legge Umberto G.” and “La Malabestia di Calafato.” What stories do these songs tell, and how do they connect to the overall narrative?
Dario: “‘Lievito Madre (PT. I-V)’ is about looking for the meaningful elements in life and putting them together. It can be translated as “sourdough starter”: once it has been created, it stays alive for centuries if someone takes care of it and nourishes it. In the same way the same group of people can keep creating within this one core. ‘Margherita Legge Umberto G.’ is a song where Margherita (SKE’s daughter) reads an excerpt from an interview. Italian philosopher Umberto Galimberti talks about his biography starting from his early years and then gives a strong commentary to contemporary society, where young people are having hard time finding a purpose in life and cannot find something to be passionate about. As a consequence, some people very often fall into isolation and drugs abuse. We thought hearing messages such as these from the voice of a young girl was quite surprising. ‘La Malabestia di Calafato’ sounds pretty threatening to an Italian ear. Actually, it is about the fine craft of building wooden ships. This title could be translated as ‘The Caulking Hammer.’ It is found in Verga’s novel, as well. Maybe the connection among such themes is the attempt to observe and capture the reality as we perceive it, and suggest a path allowing us not to repeat past mistakes over and over again.“
“Lievito Madre (Pt. I–V)” stands as the album’s centerpiece at over twelve minutes. How did you approach creating such an ambitious suite, and what makes it the emotional core of the record?
Matteo: “It is basically the track we spent most time on, and the result is the mix of all the atmospheres we could blend, from a soft spoken voice reading the recipe for yeast to blasting stoner riffs.“
Dario: “Some of us are progressive rock fans. Especially, we are fond of classic 70’s prog rock, which was a time when bands used to write suites. Actually, when I started writing it, the song was not meant to be a suite. It expanded naturally starting from the core and reaching its full length of almost 13 minutes. The choice of placing it in the middle of the record was made when we had to give our record a good listening flow.“
One of my favourite track, “Margherita Legge Umberto G.” carries strong social commentary. How important is it for “Zio Crocifisso” to address these themes through your music?
Dario: “We believe it is very important to convey positive messages. We started as an instrumental band, which was a choice that allowed us to communicate with everyone no matter the language. We think that through song titles we can express ourselves and tell something to our listeners. After Mitzi joined the band, this purpose has become even more important, since we can address to everybody with words, too.“
Matteo: “The choice of asking Margherita (SKE’s daughter) to read the commentary was made very late in the production stage, at first we wanted to have the original sample from the author, but the idea of a little girl reading such a bleak perspective of the life of young people immediately looked the right way of emphasize the message.“
Your arrangements incorporate diverse elements like saxophone, vibraphone, strings, and both male and female vocals. How do you balance these textures while maintaining the album’s cohesive vision?
SKE: “I honestly don’t know. I guess that ending up using such a diverse array of timbres, nothing really feels out of place, if used with taste. We even incorporated a (semi-stolen) large choir recording in one of our songs. We greatly enjoy to be able to merge different sounds while keeping it all together, I guess the fact that we all do have very different musical background and taste, and yet respect each other’s tastes, helps a lot to widen our common vision as a band.“
Working with AMS Records for this release — how has this partnership supported your artistic vision, and what does it mean for the band’s future?
Dario: “Working with AMS Records allowed us to express ourselves in total freedom. We certainly belong to the prog rock world (and AMS is very passionate about this music genre) but we are happy to experiment among musical styles and we are lucky to have found a label which shares this purpose with us.“
The album has been praised for merging traditional Progressive Rock with Contemporary Experimental approaches. How do you see yourselves fitting into the current Italian and international Progressive scene?
SKE: “I’m very glad the album received such attention and praise from the ProgRock community, which I am proudly part of as a listener too. Honestly I did not see this coming, because this band sounds quite different overall from my usual ‘comfort zone,’ if any. I thought we were making nice and interesting music, just not really for the average prog listener, maybe more for younger audience that doesn’t even know what prog is? Instead, we received a lot more positive feedback from the prog community than expected, so I guess people and critics understood that we are doing what we like in a rather uncompromising way, and maybe they managed to find beauty or inspiration in it. Hats off to you, prog community!“
Regarding live performances — how do you translate such complex, layered compositions to the stage? Do you have any memorable live experiences or upcoming concerts you’d like to share?
Matteo: “The best thing of live shows to us is that we don’t have to recreate the record as it has been recorded, we can make a selection of all the most important parts of the album and play them. The important thing is to not lose the message in the meantime! Many parts get re-thinked at every show, we can play longer or shorter versions of some
sections based on what we feel in that moment and we also get to improvise which is very fun. We’ve had the chance to play in beautiful small venues (such as Villa Vegan in Milan, or Radio Blackout in Turin) that despite the lack of “technical equipment” resulted in intense gigs with lots of people who cared about our music listening and discovering our band.“
Beyond music, what passions and interests fuel your creativity? How do these influences find their way into Zio Crocifisso’s artistic expression?
SKE: “Besides being a musician and passionate about vintage instruments, I am also fond of animation. This passion merged beautifully with Zio Crocifisso when, 3 years ago, we were asked to play live a soundtrack for some animation shorts in a local animation festival called Animatica. We chose to make the music for the ‘Food’ trilogy of one of my
favourite stop motion animators, Jan Svankmajer. His visual world merged beautifully with our musical approach, and we had such fun in doing it that we did it again the following year with Jiri Trnka ‘The Hand,’ which we also typically incorporate as an opener to our live shows. Of course we did not include the music in our cd, as it would have little meaning without its visual counterpart, but parts of it actually became independent songs such as ‘Buone Parole’ or ‘E Mele Fradicie.’
Thank you so much for taking the time to speak with Progressive Rock Journal. “Campana di Legno + Trappola per Topi” is truly a remarkable achievement that pushes the boundaries of Progressive music while maintaining a deeply emotional and narrative core. We wish you all the best with this release and look forward to following your future
endeavors.
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