Wilson Project – Atto Primo (Ma.Ra.Cash Records, 2025)
Wilson Project is an Italian progressive rock band that fuses the vintage essence of 1970s progrock with a contemporary, distinctive sound. Deeply rooted in both Italian and international progressive traditions, the quartet balances innovation with homage, drawing inspiration from legendary acts like PFM, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Genesis, and ELP.
With Atto Primo (First Act), Wilson Project dives headlong into the velvet-curtained drama of opera, dragging the high-stakes emotion of the opera house onto the proscenium of progressive rock. It’s a bold move, one that conjures echoes of mid-1970s ambition, when hihgly creative bands weren’t afraid to make a concept album that took up an entire side of vinyl. Each track becomes its own little stage, reinterpreting classic operatic motifs through the lens of rock’s most theatrical subgenre.
At the heart of Wilson Project is the keyboard, fluid, expressive, and front-and-center, as it should be. You hear it in the piano’s emotional pulse, the cathedral swell of the organ, and those synth solos that seem to flicker with the spirit of Wakeman and Emerson. When the keyboardist leans into the Mellotron sounds, there’s warmth and a nostalgic authenticity that anchors the music beautifully.
But not all keyboard sounds land with the same grace. Some orchestral patches, likely sourced from modern synths or samplers, feel overly synthetic, a bit too plastic. Still, there’s no denying the vision here: it’s an ambitious and often exhilarating fusion. The album invites listeners to immerse themselves in a type of music where western classical inspiration and modern performance coexist.
Equally important are the lovely and captivating vocals of Annalisa Ghiazza and the solid, creative, rhythm section throughout the album.
Wilson Project’s career has been marked by a growing presence in the Italian prog scene. In addition to crafting original compositions, they have performed early works of PFM, even collaborating with former PFM bassist Giorgio “Fico” Piazza. Over the years, their repertoire has expanded to include British progrock influences, integrating covers of Genesis and ELP into their live shows.
Wilson Project has shared the stage with key figures in Italian progressive rock, opening for New Trolls (2022, 2024), Le Orme (2024), and Osanna (2024). Their accolades include the Critics’ Award at the PEM Festival (2022), victory at the Intervallo…Prog contest (2023), and a performance at the 2Days Prog + 1 festival in Veruno.
Their debut album, Il Viaggio da Farsi (2022, Ma.Ra.Cash Records), was a concept work exploring the emotional turmoil of a woman embarking on a journey to Mars, mixing themes of reality and illusion.
Musicians: Stefano Rapetti on bass, vocals; Annalisa Ghiazza on vocals, aerophone; Andrea Protopapa on keyboards, vocals; and Mattia Pastorino on drums, vocals.
Buy Atto Primo.