Come in Un'ultima Cena＜Red Vinyl＞

Come in Un'Ultima Cena is the last "classic" Banco album. After an instrumental album with orchestra (Di Terra, 1978), the band would favor a more commercial approach throughout the 1980s. Also the last one to feature the classic lineup of Gianni Nocenzi, Vittorio Nocenzi, Renato d'Angelo, Rodolfo Maltese, Pierluigi Calderoni, and Francesco Di Giacomo (since the latter does not sing on Di Terra), this LP shows sings of breathlessness. Songs are shorter and less engaging than what can be found on earlier masterpieces like Darwin! and Io Sono Nato Libero. Two tracks stand out: the powerful "Il Ragno" and "Slogan," one of the most energetic songs the band had recorded at that point. Of the seven other tracks on the album, none leave a dent in the listener's memory: melodies are blurry and undefined. Nevertheless, musicianship remains strong, even though Di Giacomo tries to sound more like a rock singer and less like an Italian singer. Guitarist Maltese gets more exposure on this LP. Come in Un'Ultima Cena was simultaneously released in Italian and English versions (as As in a Last Supper), the only difference between the two being the vocal tracks. The merits of each are debatable, but boil down to whether one prefers to understand the lyrics (even if it means suffering Di Giacomo's heavy accent) or to keep the melodious quality of the Italian language. ~ Francois Couture