Young keyboardist extraordinaire and mastermind behind Il Balletto di Bronzo's seminal 1972 work "Ys," Gianni Leone tried to pick up the pieces after the band imploded following the success of "Ys" and the resulting excesses. Intact for a short time as a duo, Leone and Balletto drummer Gianchi Stringa played live a few times in 1973, with Leone performing all the instrumental parts on his keyboards. This experience laid the groundwork for his solo career, for which he changed his moniker to Leo Nero.
Leone composed the songs for "Vero" in 1974, and most of the tracks were recorded in New York in 1975. The album wasn't released until 1977. As expected, the album is keyboard oriented, and Leone plays all the instruments. Although the album is nowhere near the magical frenetic contortions of "Ys," nevertheless this is a very good album, one that should please fans of the genre. "Vero" is a concept album, centered on the feelings of loneliness and fear that Leone felt after the dissolution of Il Balletto di Bronzo. The entire album is filled with a melodic melancholy that never quite lifts. The compositions on the first half are in a more singer-songwriter style and could almost be considered as multiple parts of a longer work; in fact, several themes are repeated throughout the album. The second half is the more progressive part, with songs such as "Tastieri Isteriche," "Il Castello," "Una Gabbia Per Me," and "La Discesa Nel Cervello" that hearken back at least in spirit to "Ys," although certainly not reaching the same level.
After the release of "Vero," Leone veered in a commercial synth-pop direction. His second album, 1980's "Monitor," is frankly of little interest to progressive fans. (His backing band for part of that album was called Optical Band, which gives the title to one of the pieces he continues to perform, "Optical Surf Beat.") He continued in this vein throughout the 1980s (as evidenced by some demos which were recently released).
However, in the 1990s Leone reentered the progressive scene, first by contributing to the wonderful album by DIVAE (1995) and then by reforming Il Balletto di Bronzo (himself being the only returning 1970s member, using the rhythm section from Divae). The 1996 live album from the reformed Balletto entitled "Trys" features not only the entire "Ys" album, but also several of the best Leo Nero pieces as well, this time performed with the band. In fact, the band continues today to play liberally from the Leone repertoire, whether from Leo Nero or Il Balletto di Bronzo. Thus the past and future of Leo Nero and Il Balletto di Bronzo are intertwined, both with the genius of Gianni Leone at the center. - Leo Nero (Gianni Leone) / all instruments and voices
1. Scarpette Di Raso Blue (2:54)
2. Sono Stanco Anch'Io (3:54)
3. La Luce (3:36)
4. Tu Ti Ricorderai Di Me (4:21)
5. La Bambola Rotta (7:01)
6. Tastieri Isteriche (5:12)
7. Il Castello (5:16)
8. La Discesa Nel Cervello (4:07)
9. Rock'n'Roll Cat (0:53)
10. Una Gabbia Per Me (6:39)
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