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Reviews

Sterbus — Black and Gold
(Bandcamp no#, 2025, CD / DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2026-03-03

Black and Gold Cover art

In the nearly three years in between Solar Barbecue and Black and Gold, the members of Sterbus have been contributing to others’ albums (such as Greco Bastián) and working on a set of tunes that expand their sound dramatically. Dominique d'Avanzo (woodwinds, vocals) and Emanuele Sterbini (guitars, keyboards, vocals) turn away from the frantic Cardiacs-inspired sound of some of their previous releases to a more balanced and varied sound, and the result is a superb album of progressive chamber rock. You’ll find lovely acoustic passages with guitar and flute, string quartets, and complex prog arrangements with a full complement of keyboards and rhythm section. In spite of the changes, the album plays like a long suite of many sections rather than eleven relatively short tracks. Sensitive sections of piano and acoustic guitar lead into pounding rhythms with Mellotron in the lead, and it’s always the melodies to the fore. But there is always sincerity and passion behind the music, and it’s never sappy or sentimental or pretentious. Black and Gold has a feeling of being classic progressive rock inspired by the 70s without resembling any particular band of the era. Listeners unfamiliar with Sterbus would do well to check out this great album, and then the rest of their catalog.

Filed under: New releases, 2025 releases

Related artist(s): Sterbus

More info
http://sterbus.bandcamp.com/album/black-and-gold

 

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