Miler72 This was Arti + Mestieri's debut album. Drummer Furio Chirco was previously in a band called The Trip and appeared on their last two albums, Time of Change (1973) and Atlantide (1972) (The Trip released two albums previously with a different drummer). His drumming was most suited the fusion genre, as it really shows here. To me, Tilt sounds like a more fusion-oriented version of PFM with perhaps a bit of Area minus their politics (for those turned off by Area's politics). It helped that Arti + Mestieri was on the same label as Area, Cramps. When the vocals kick in is when they most remind me of PFM. They use wind instruments, violin, ARP 2600 synthesizer, Mellotron, as well as the usual guitar, bass and drums. This one has a bit more of a prog rock slant to it than their following albums, so this one should satisfy the progheads as much as the ones into fusion. Let me tell you that Furio Chirico is simply one of the finest drummer you're going to hear, there are passages where he drums so fast that they sound like he's rolling when he's actually filling (I'm not a drummer, though). The reason he's not mention in the way Billy Cobham, Jack DeJohnette, and the likes of them, is because he isn't American and were involved in fairly obscure Italian bands. Had he been American and involved in the American fusion scene, you know he's be very highly regarded. This is truly an album worth having.

Warthur Arti e Mesteri's reunion album finds them taking on a much smoother, cooler, and laid-back approach to jazz fusion. Despite the presence of a few mischevious Zappa-esque flourishes here and there to remind us of the firey and mischief-loving albums of their early career, by and large this album leans much closer to the jazz side of fusion than the rock side - but when it's jazz this beautiful and soothing, I'm not inclined to complain.

Unlike many other bands, Arti e Mesteri avoid falling into the trap of making a reunion album which tries too hard to sound just like their classic-era material: instead, they've produced a piece which shows they've paid attention to developments in fusion and jazz over the course of their hiatus. The end result is a very good album which sounds like an entirely different band.

Warthur A decent fusion album which leans a bit more towards traditional jazz than Tilt, its predecessor, Giro di Valzer per Domani still shows a strong Mahavishnu Orchestra influence and proves to be a competent and capably played album in that particular fusion style. Whilst it is enjoyable, whenever I listen to it I keep finding my mind being drawn back to Tilt, which is significantly faster and more furious than this piece - whilst on their previous album Arti e Mestieri roared to the front of the pack, this time around they're scrambling to keep up. Three stars, but a well-earned three.

Warthur Like their Cramps label-mates Area, Arti e Mestieri are a Zappa-influenced Italian fusion group, but they distinguish themselves from the other band by having less influence from avant-garde rock and chamber music and more influence from sources such as the early Mahavishnu Orchestra albums. Tilt is an electrifying fusion masterpiece played at breakneck pace by the band, with exceptional musicianship displayed throughout - Giovanni Vigliar's violin playing being, to my mind, a particular highlight. Composed and performed with amazing confidence for a debut album, Tilt is a fusion classic which sets the band apart from the rest of the Italian progressive rock scene of the era.

Sean Trane Behind an extremely sober artwork, this album was recorded in the aftermath of Tilt's release (all of the tracks bar one improve are from the album), this is a first-era posthumous release, but there is a significant difference: the presence of a specific singer (Gaza), absent on Tilt, but present on the following studio album. That evening's mood is still more in the Tilt area rather than the coming Giro realm, with the Mahavishnu ghost hovering over the stage, but the mood is more energetic. It's actually fairly interesting to hear the Tilt album tracks, though not in the same sequence, in their live versions and pick out the differences, outside the obvious different vocals and the energy level. Most of the tracks are actually slower-paced (whether intentional or not), but oddly enough most of them are shorter (sometimes very significantly) than their studio version, except for the closing Gravity 9.81, which almost doubles in length and is also the highlight of the gig with some Crimsonian improvs. The balance is also fairly different as well, thus providing an interesting change of view on their music, much like a King Crimson Collector Club album. One of the attractions of this live album is the presence of an unheard-elsewhere track, a rare Vigliar composition Coming Here To Get You, which does melt fine into the A&M mass.

A rather poor-sounding album, everything being relative, because there is also much worse from greater-known groups (again ogling towards Crimson), especially from an approximative reissue label like Vinyl Magic, but this is exactly the point: this release is not a reissue. Certainly not essential, unless you're an A&M fan.