progshine This is the first time I listen to ALBERTO RIGONI, he is a bass player from Italy and he is basically into Progressive Metal and that's what we have in 'Mizaru', the second track, with some help from KEVIN MOORE (ex-DREAM THEATER) in the keyboards.

Being a bass player, of course that the music in Three Wise Monkeys (2012), third solo album from ALBERTO RIGONI, is pretty much based on the bass. Sometimes his music is a bit more focused on songwriting like in the third track 'Three Wise Monkeys' that is a great track and has the always good GÖRAN EDMAN (from KARMAKANIC) as vocalist. And sometimes is essentially based on the bass and in what he can do as a instrumentist like in the fourth track 'Kikazaru'.

Three Wise Monkeys (2012) is pretty much based on Progressive Metal but not full time, we can hear some other influences as well, especially in the technical part of the compositions, that tries to evoke other sounds with his bass. But yeah, pretty much Progressive Metal in general, but with some personality. I, personally, don't like the overall sound of the drums, too much echo going on most of the time.

On most of the tracks the swedish singer JONAS ERIXON appears, he's specially good on 'Free Falling' and 'Coming Home'. But the final track, the cheesy 'Believe' don't please me not a tiny bit.

Three Wise Monkeys (2012) is a good record, shows a musician trying to present people the best of two worlds, instrumental/technical music and something more 'singable'. A a 3.5 rate is ok in my opinion.

J-Man Best known for his work in Italian progressive metal act Twinspirits, bassist Alberto Rigoni has also been building an impressive body of solo material over the past few years. Three Wise Monkeys is Rigoni's third observation, and although it may be relatively uncommon to see solo releases from bassists in progressive rock and metal, he demonstrates plenty of technical prowess and compositional talent here. Showcasing a host of guest musicians, as well as plenty of slick basslines and catchy riffs, Three Wise Monkeys is a recommended purchase to fans of melodic progressive rock and metal.

While most of Three Wise Monkeys falls under the banner of melodic progressive rock/metal, Alberto Rigoni exhibits a pretty eclectic style throughout this album. Fusion-styled grooves, riffs pulled straight out of the melodic metal textbook, and odd-metered prog sections blend together into a style that's actually pretty distinct. Half of Three Wise Monkeys is instrumental, while the remaining portion features the vocal talents of Göran Edman and Jonas Erixon. This provides a nice balance between more technical-edged progressive tracks and melodic hard rock tunes, and although the flow of the album is a bit disjointed, the entire observation is well-composed and flawlessly executed. Alberto Rigoni's basslines are especially captivating; I wish more bassists would play with this kind of soloistic prominence. There are definitely plenty of solid tunes here, but I feel that Rigoni shines his brightest in an instrumental setting.

As a whole, Three Wise Monkeys is the sort of album that is objectively well-executed and solid, but doesn't quite make my blood boil. With a bit more stylistic consistency and stronger melodic choruses, I could see Three Wise Monkeys being one of the year's more memorable releases. As it stands, though, this is a very good effort that is just on the brink of greatness, and I will definitely be curious to check out some of Alberto Rigoni's other solo material. Three Wise Monkeys may not be perfect, but it's a fun listen that fans of melodic progressive and hard rock should enjoy.