From Italy, we have Zamen Off, a self-styled “alternative prog” outfit hailing from the beautiful city of Florence.

I was aware of Max from Juglans Regia, who have been reviewed on the site, and he reached out to me with this four-track EP, Your New Mind, the booklet for which has some lovely artwork.

I Talk to the Light kicks this strong journey off, with some lush bass melodies hitting you, the lead taken by Raggi with some gorgeously pastoral synths before Brighi brazenly shows us his chops with a deep burst of riffs, all the while, the skins pounding out a strong beat. It is a clear contender here for “instrumental of 2026” come awards time, a lot of feeling going into a song dedicated to the loving memory of Nicola Vannini, who I think would be most pleased with the outcome.

Ashes Fade, Ancient Shore is a great title for a piece of music and references a large-scale sea disaster. The acoustic guitar which brings the opening passage is rich. The words here are plaintive, but spoken, not sung, and the alternative label certainly earns its descriptor. When the words are translated to a song, they are a cry, and there is a strong hint of the Americana in parts of this track, quite dreamy as well. What this track does do very well is the sound of four musicians utterly at ease with each other, the soundscapes created bonding well with the richness of the fretwork, and, certainly, the bass guitar is up there with anything I have heard in 2026.

Your New Mind references the end of living the lie of a secret life, and I like the contrast between the opening electronic rock at the opening and what went before, a pleasing ability to surprise, because when the guitar and rhythm section join in, there is a fine cacophony created, the opening vocals decidedly gothic. There is an interesting play vocally between Brighi & Visconti throughout and there is a bright psych flourish to finish off. A very good piece of music, a lot going on in just 5.5 minutes, and embedded at the foot of the review for you.

We close with Let Me Have Some (Today), the longest piece here at 8:37. The rhythm section take the lead with a pulsing set of riffs before the synths re-enter the fray with more rich electronica. The guitar riffs again stir the consciousness, and together, this band make a fine old rock noise, auguring very well for the project as it develops, the four of them providing us with some interesting duals, and parts of this are very heavily catchy as well, a symbiosis worthy of comparison with the likes of Crimson. I did play this track, incidentally on Episode 99 of my radio show on 19th September, the vocal passage and synths taking the EP to a different plain, and when the solo guitar takes over, it is simply joyous rock music.

Thoroughly enjoyable and highly recommended.

Purchase at: https://zamenoff.bandcamp.com/album/your-new-mind

Zamen Off are:

Andrea Brighi (guitar, vocals)

Vincenzo Casini Raggi (Keys)

Massimiliano Dionigi (Bass)

Marco Visconti (Drums & Vocals)