Search - Saint Just :: Saint Just

Odd Italian nugget

Nicky Garratt | San Francisco | 11/25/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Saint Just were an unlikely Italian progressive folk avant-garde band certainly apart from bulk of progressive bands from the region at that time. They have more of a quirky British sound like Jan Dukes De Grey or Comus (Minus the male vocal). There is charm here and a naïve combining of elements, which also has its appeal. Jane Sorrenti's vocals are rendered in a folk almost medieval fashion but often seem detached and perhaps would resolve better being sunk a little into the esoteric music. The music is constructed from an arsenal of acoustic guitar, sax, flute, drums, and keyboards among others but is often filtered down to groups of two or three instruments at a time. I used the term avant-garde for lack of a better description, but it's not avant-garde like Faust or Samla Mammas Manna rather the experimental ingredient is in the improbable combining of the rather standard sections. I think that could be the naïve lack of arrangement but never the less it works nicely.

Sorrenti's voice is not on par with Alison Williams and Clodagh Simonds from the outstanding Mellow Candle or, naturally, Sandy Denny, but the music treads a different more progressive path.

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