...A Toys Orchestra

...A Toys Orchestra formed in the summer of '98, and in June 2001 they released their first album called "JOB" (Fridge). In 2003 they took part in and won MusicalBox-notturno musicale, a festival organised by the infamous Frequenze Disturbate based in Urbino, where attentive industry people quickly took notice of them. In the fall of 2003, the band left Fridge and signed on with Urtovox, and started working on their second album, Cuckoo Boohoo which was released by Urtovox in mid-October 2004. IT was unanimously acclaimed one of the loveliest records of 2005/2006 and got rave review thanks in part to the much talked about video for "PETER PAN SYNDROME," which was written and directed by Fabio Luongo and was not only aired on all TV stations, but was also awarded two prestigious Fandango prizes including: - Best Original Video ((premio speciale Musica! di Repubblica) - Best Photography (premio Fandango: "Video Clipped the radio star) Furthermore, the video was included in Musica di Repubblica's top 10 videos of 2004. In 2005, it was awarded with the MEI clip estate 2005 award, which was presented to them at the acclaimed Capalbo film festival. It was also selected at the International Exhibit of short film in Montecatini as well as at the O’CURT Short Film Exhibit, organised by the media library of S.Sofia di Napoli.
A series of solid reviews, interviews and TV and radio airings supported by an incessant live tour in the best rock venues and Italian festivals (over 160 gigs in 2005/2006) have rendered ...A Toys Orchestra an indisputable ray of light on the current Italian music scene and ready to take on the European and International markets.
Technicolor Dreams," which was released on 19/03/2007, saw the band collaborate with DUSTIN O'HALLORAN (DEVICS) who was the artistic director. This marks the young band's further growth and which in turn, lead to their winning the PIMI Award (Premio PIMI) for the best album of 2007, presented to them in Faenza at the Independent labels meeting. This came as no surprise considering the general consensus among journalists who asserted the band's talent by writing ample articles in both major national papers as well as in non-specialised newspapers and magazines.
In September 2007, the band received an impressive invitation to take part in the most important live event organised by RAI RADIO 1 in collaboration with "powder on the words," on all RAI channels. Their clip also aired on specialised channels and was thus a sort o preview for all European and English distribution and promotion (by CARGO) of the album. It, too, was welcomed with the same enthusiasm on the part of journalists as their previous album. Within a few weeks, two of the songs off Technicolor dreams were chosen as single of the week on BBC radio 2 in the UK.
They've since played many live shows (over 150 throughout 2007 and 2008, including a 15-gig European gig), with crowds growing bigger every time, thanks to word of mouth and major music social networks.
It was therefore not by chance that Afterhours wanted to band to take part in a project called "Il paese è reale," with their unreleased track "What You Said." This collaboration marked the band's return to Rai studios to particapte in a concert along with other musicians including Beatrice Antolini (who is on the same label a they are), and other prominent musicians such as Paolo Benvegnù and Roberto Angelini.
Also noteworthy is the fact that three of the tracks off Tecnicolor Dreams were included in the soundtrack for Jess Manafort's film called "The Beautiful Ordinary" (in theatres across the US in 2008). Two other tracks were also selected for an Italian TV show called "I Liceali," which was produced and aired on RTI//Channel 5. Finally, "Invisible" (another track) was included in Edoardo Leo's film debut "18 anni dopo," soon to be released.
Their latest record, Midnight Talks, was released in April 2010 and led the band to win the PIMI Award as Best Band of the Year (…) and the KeepOn 100% Live Award as Best Live Performance and to collect an impressive amount of press. This led the band to an extensive tour with numerous sold out dates in the most important Italian venues - each time with a bigger following – and to a new collaboration in the soundtrack of a movie (this time ”Febbre da Fieno”, released in Fall 2010. In the meantime, the band also worked to some new material which was released on May 2011 as an EP called Rita Lin Songs, comprising of, among the others, the cover of the track The Chauffeur by Duran Duran, and the Italian version of Celentano. The EP, offered in free download for only 6 days, almost reached 10000 downloads and represented a real preview of the new album, which will be released in October 2011 by Ala Bianca / Warner. A track by the band will also be included in the soundtrack of the new Fabio Volo's movie, out on July, 14th.