Almost Exactly... The Cinelli Brothers
Almost Exactly (full name “Almost Exactly…The Cinelli Brothers”) is the 4th studio album from The Cinelli Brothers.
For the first time, band producer and main composer Marco Cinelli has teamed up with New York City/Hudson Valley music producer and acclaimed drummer Rich Pagano.
Rich was intrigued after hearing of The Cinelli Brothers being of European origin and placing 2nd at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee. After being sent the band's latest demos and hearing their roots music influences and compelling vocals, he was sold on working with them. The band (Marco and Alessandro Cinelli, Tom Julian Jones and Stephen Giry) felt a creative and soulful connection with Rich and his arrangement ideas and quickly confirmed a week of studio time at Applehead Recording Studio in Woodstock, NY.
The Cinelli Brothers wanted to do something different than a solely blues-oriented, self produced record. The goal was to go into a larger studio with an inspiring team to get a new take on the band's sound. Pagano, a recording engineer himself who was tutored by legendary Beatles engineers, Geoff Emerick and Ken Scott, culled through demos to find a fresh spark in melody/sonics and to hone in on the 'songs.'
In the end, Rich chose to produce 5 of the 10 songs (with Marco Cinelli producing the remaining) and mixed all of the music on Almost Exactly at his own Hudson Valley studio, VlyLand Recordings.
The result is clearly a new sound and energy. The recording and residential vibe of Applehead bonded the band and Rich in a new and inspirational environment with the songs produced by Pagano having a more 'songwriter/hook' oriented finish and the Cinelli productions being a bit more groove and improvisational in feel. All songs are with palpable soul/blues traits yet this time with a roots rock and soul approach.
Another main difference is the uncanny evolution of Marco’s keyboard skills. Chiefly a guitarist, Marco nearly composed the entire record on piano or Hammond organ. Despite the fact that much of the material was demoed before the Applehead sessions, many song progressions and melodic pathways were created in the studio. This is partially due to the professional and nurturing environment that the studio provided and of course, the creative Catskill Mountain spirit energy. Add to that starting each day by listening to influences including, Ann Peebles, Lee Michaels, The Beatles ‘Revolver’ and Otis Redding.
Similar to No Country For Bluesmen, The Cinelli Brothers adopted the method of co-writing for many of the songs on the record. This involved friends and/or colleagues of the band. The result is a wide range of colors and influences yet with a cohesive sound thanks to Pagano and the band.
The songs on Almost Exactly were inspired by The Beatles, The Band, The Rascals and a nod to a 60’s and ‘70’s Southern Soul sound with each member of the band being instrumental in the music's sonics and arrangements, sometimes even swapping instruments when it felt right.
Almost Exactly is a body of music that grasps a snap-shot of the band in a super dynamic song oriented and soulfully honest moment of their career.