SHOCK

I first heard of this band through a sampler I got about a month ago and I was so impressed with what I heard that i picked up this album. "Shock" is the soundtrack to the paranormal / suspense film with the same title, and it's a Mario Bava movie. LIBRA are often compared to GOBLIN which isn't so surprising when both are making music for Horror films, but also there are two members of GOBLIN on this record playing keyboards and drums. On guitar is the former FLEA member Maurizio Pennisi.The cover art certainly suits the music and I like the fact that they use plenty of mellotron.

"The Shock" is spacey with synths and Hammond as the drums and bass come in then mellotron. The tempo picks up and this sounds amazing. More mellotron follows as themes are repeated. An incredible track. "L'altalena Rossa" is a short piece with intricate acoustic guitar throughout. "Transfert" opens with percussion only then the mellotron takes over after 1 1/2 minutes.This stops after 3 1/2 minutes as we get electronics and drums to end it. "La Baia" has piano melodies throughout.

"La Cantina" opens with what sounds like vibes as the atmosphere with mellotron comes in. It kicks in at 2 minutes. Amazing sound here with fat bass lines. Very powerful. "Tema Di Marco" starts off like the last song with what sounds like vibes then atmosphere. It kicks in before 1 1/2 minutes. Love the guitar and bass here. Excellent track. "L'incubo" has these sounds that pulse and they get pretty abrasive then stop as a chilling atmosphere with mellotron takes over to the end. "Transfert III" has percussion sounds that create an intricate pattern. "Il Fantasma Suona Il Piano" is a short piece with dark piano melodies and strings. "Transfert IV" opens with bass sounds as an eerie vibe comes in along with other sounds. It changes 2 minutes in as electronic sounds come and go. Some laughing a minute later then piano takes over to end it.

Certainly fans of MORTE MACABRE or GOBLIN will enjoy this album. A solid 4 stars.

After touring in Italy, supporting Banco Del Mutuo Soccordo, Libra had a great chance to meet success when offered a 10-album contract by the US label Motown, the management of which had listened to the English version of the debut.They travelled to the States, playing alongside Frank Zappa, Chicago, and Steppenwolf and recorded the album ''Winter day's nightmare'' in 1976, which ended up to be a complete bust, far from the prog roots of the band.After conflicts with their manager they returned to Italy at the end of the year, only to dissolve a bit later.But in 1977 Sandro Centofanti, Dino Cappa and Walter Martino joined forces with Goblin's keyboardist Maurizio Guarini and Etna's/Flea's guitarist Carlo Pennisi to record the soundtrack of Mario Bava's horror film ''Shock''.The album was released on Cinevox.

Guarini's presence and, of course, Bava's Horror Film background somewhat inspired Libra, which now sounded a lot like GOBLIN, displaying a turn towards cinematic music with experimental flashes and, still, some strong progressive elements.The album ended up to be actually a mixed bag of sights and sounds, containing the obvious and expected leanings towards Classical and Electronic Music, but -unlike GOBLIN- they even flirted with FRANCO BATTIATO-like Avant-Garde/cosmic/minimalistic edges with lots of percussion and weird keyboard lines.''Shock'' scans different aspects and excerpts of the film and thus comes as a genuine mix of Symphonic Rock, Fusion, abstract electronics and Experimental Rock, showing flashes of a trully talented line-up and promises of a solid chemistry, which apparently didn't last long.Certain moments come close to the melodic, artistic and gentle vibe of IL VOLO with symphonic and jazzy keyboards on smooth rhythm lines, other pieces are completely outlandish with odd sound effects, a dark minimalism and a cinematic background.Apart from some chants there are no vocals to be found in the album, which often moves away from the typical music theory and delivers sinister echoes, attached to the film, usually breaking shortly afterwards in piano interludes, nice dual keyboard parts and even some grandiose organ-drenched Classicism.

The sole album by this short-lived and unconvential Libra line-up.All musicians from this formation remained involved in the music industry with decent to less succesful careers.Band's leader Nicola Di Staso continued his musical journey as a session man, playing also with Claudio Simonetti in his Daemonia project.Former guitarist Federico D'Andrea died tragically in 1978 at the age of 30, after he was ran over by a car.

GOBLIN-like diverse Prog/Avant-Garde/Experimental Rock with connections to horror movies.Really a great effort, when you're in the mood for something more cinematic and haunting.Warmly recommended, Cinevox has also made a CD reissue available.