A big hello to everybody from the Wonderful World of Oz. It’s your dear ol’ Wiz hear to tell you about the “latest musical images” to pass through this incredible world of dreams……today let’s talk about: L’EGO, a band from Treviso, are on a musical quest carved out by the “old masters”, paying particular attention to lyrics, where however, the compositions are pleasantly torn apart by a rockin’ guitar that really takes over and high-lights the more intense parts of the songs. The band’s intentions are really commendable, deliberately creating a dark atmosphere, closed inside themselves, with melodic refrains on the part of the vocalist that are particularly repetitive to the point of being somewhat arrogant. It’s a type of expression with roots in the past and in the songwriting traditions of “Bel Paese”, revived and relived however, through the eyes of the third millennium, where musical sounds and even a certain discomfort with existential urban life give a distinct flavour to the music. At times the rhythmical choices are too simple, which nevertheless is proof of these guys’ genuine intentions. At this point the group’s growth depends on being relentless about cleaning it all up, as the technique is still not completely together, and then further down the line to make some changes in the compositional arrangements. From Montreal, Canada, we have the band SWAY. Listening to them, you find yourself taken in by an enjoyable rock ‘n’ roll. They play impeccably and sing even better, with their choruses that are just “right”, followed by captivating “solos” that come in at just the “right” time. (which, thank heavens, don’t overwhelm the whole song!!!!!!!!!). In fact, I would even dare to say that they are an “authentic stereotype”, “American” to the bone. In my opinion, at this point the problem that surfaces certainly isn’t of a technical nature (as it could be for L’EGO), nor compositional, but of “choice”. Where can this type of music be played today? It seems to me that SWAY are on a road that’s been beaten down to the point that any traces of the true path have completely disappeared…….! And so, are they playing something original and spontaneous, or are they playing because “the important thing is to be produced”? Are they really looking into the depths of their souls to understand what they want to express, or are they looking to the ears of the listener? Do you want to be, or to be approved of?……To the ardent posthumous judgement………. And that’s all for today from the Wonderful World of Oz!!! Don’t worry, just keep on beating those drum-sticks to get out all that extra energy, certainly by now, your neighbours have no idea which saint they can appeal to just to get you to turn down your guitar amps……until next time!