NOT A GOOD SIGN
Pianist Paolo Botta reveals why this Italian four-piece are giving 70s prog a modern sound.
Throughout history, Milan has proved fertile ground for all kinds of art. It’s from here that Not A Good Sign have emerged and reignited the fires of 70s Italian prog with their brand of thoughtful self-expression.
“We’re a band that have one foot in the past and one foot in the present,” says pianist Paolo ‘Ske’ Botta, talking from his home on the outskirts of the city. “We’re just as inspired by PFM as we are by Snarky Puppy.”
Formed as a more accessible counterpoint to Botta’s avant-prog act Yugen, Not A Good Sign settled on a sound that marries British and Italian prog from the 70s with a fresh modernity. Although there’s a vibrant affinity within their sound to King Crimson and Gentle Giant – the former especially entrenched within their DNA, filling their music with the kind of exciting oddball-isms that Robert Fripp made his career from – there’s a greater, intrinsic bond to the progressive rock of their homeland.
“Italian prog takes a very melodic approach to compositions,” says Botta, “It has a really tight bond with classical music in terms of a compositional influence where you’ll recognise smaller fragments of thematic material developing across different sections of a song. Every nuance I can add to a song is more than welcome and that’s why I’m so inspired by Banco del Mutuo Soccorso,” he adds. He also cites fellow Milan band Area as another big influence on their off-kilter rhythms.
As a band determined to “expand melodic ideas and horizons”, Not A Good Sign’s well-timed melodic developments helps keep their musical intrigue piqued. From the reverential violins and Van der Graaf Generator’s David Jackson’s swathing saxophones on last year’s Icebound to their perpetually evolving ideas, the four-piece’s songs are colourfully orchestrated affairs.
“There’s no real taboo in this band,” says Botta, “there are no instruments or ideas that would be out of context in the music we write. There’s even a [rapper] Snoop Dogg sample in one song. As we don’t earn any money from our music, it’s very important that what we write satisfies all of us, otherwise what’s the point?” POW
“We’re just as inspired by PFM as we are by Snarky Puppy.”