Although we were promised a new Carmen Consoli record in autumn there hasn't been much information on that front and so I've been spending my time with Neve Ridens, the fifth CD from Marco Parente, released on Mescal/Sony. It's the first installment of two "gemelle". The second part is due for release in February.

Complex and diverse, Neve Ridens, sounds like one of the more coherent works by Britain's Radiohead. That is spacious arrangements that draw on a wide range of instrumentation to convey emotional songs.

The opening track, Wake Up, which despite its title is sung mostly in Italian, features an almost classical piano figure, with staccato strings providing the rhythm track. Electric guitars provide the counterpoint, rather than the bass, turning this sort of instrumental pairing upside down. In a pop we except the guitar to rule, don't we?

Il posto delle fragole has fast pace and a guitar line that recalls the '80s work of Nigerian superstar King Sunny Ade and a frenetic modern rock mid-section.

And so goes Neve Ridens, which is undoubtedly a rock and roll record. But Parente isn't content to resort the old clichés. Instead he tinkers with arrangements to draw the listener in and keep him rapt.

Bobby Tanzillo