D.F.A.

On their first album, disc 1 of the current set (which dates from 1995), they initially seem a little lost (the first two tracks are terribly noisy - the band were probably trying too hard to sound like Gentle Giant) but from track 3 onward, things keep improving: there are a couple of instrumental tracks which strongly remind me of "The Cinema Show" (with some flashy Tony Banks-style keyboard solos), but on the remainder of the album (and particularly on "Space Ace Man" and "La Via") it is lead guitarist Silvio Minella who impresses me most. His solos truly reach for the sky: no bombast but passion, intelligence and ecstasy.

On the band's second album (here represented by disc 2) those National Health/Bruford influences really kick in. At times I felt like shouting: "Wait a sec, you nabbed that riff from ONE OF A KIND!" But the music always moves on fast, and usually there's yet another exuberant solo just round the corner.

Over all, disc 1 in this collection probably sounds more daring and original than disc 2 (if I remember correctly, D.F.A. would take their British-inspired jazz-rock to even greater heights on the album "4th") but the studio part of the second disc ends on a lush ballad featuring female vocals, which proves D.F.A. were also capable of delivering heart-meltingly beautiful SONGS. As a bonus, there are some live performances of 3 of the original studio tracks.

Two songs with the vocal ? philosophical "The Mirror" (drummer and the band's main composer De Grandis singing) and charming "La Ballata De S'isposa E Mannorri" (with Sardinian female vocal group Andhira) are real jewels. The long "Baltasarus" (over 14 min) and "Mosoq Runa" (almost 19 min) are the very fine examples of symphonic fusion. Pretty pieces on the flute by the keyboardist Bonomi and cello contributions by Zoltan Szabo make the music quite diverse and bearable. It is amazing how this long and intricate epics are arranged and played: they don't even start to bore after quite a few listens.

It is unfortunate, that D.F.A. is not a very productive band. Since their start in 1991 they have recorded only 4 albums. The previous one ? "Duty Free Area" was issued 10 years ago. They also don't play awfully lot on stage. I won't be surprised if all their shows could be counted on the fingers of two hands. I won't go speculating what are they doing while not playing music, but it could actually make funs of fusion music more happy if they shifted their life stile balance to making more music.

"Work in Progress" is the title of this live album that Italian band D.F.A. released, after having it performed and recorded back in 2000, in their NEARFest invitation. This also marked their first concert ever in the USA. What this band offers is an exquisite exhibition of musical skills, challenging compositions, instrumental tracks made by four people who play the "basic" instruments: guitars, bass, drums and keyboards; the music that you will find here can be described as symphonic, or even fusion, but let's say it is progressive rock, and that's it.

Six are the songs performed here, three of them ("Escher", "Caleidoscopio" and "Ragno") taken from their "D.F.A" album, while the other three ("Trip on metro", "La via" and "Pantera") from their magnificent "Lavori in Corso" disc. The total time of this live album is one hour, so as you can imagine here you will find long songs, ranging from 7 to 15 minutes. I am sure that the people who saw them left the place with a big smile.

A cool mixture of symphonic-like keyboards, some jazzy bass, rockier guitars and drums, and some even spacey moments can be appreciated here. Worth mentioning that vocals can be also heard in some moments, which is not usual in this band, however, when they appear they do not harm at all, on the other hand, they help. My two favorite songs are "Pantera" and the long 15-minute epic "La Via", I love the dynamic and diversity of this band.

I would have loves one or two more songs, no matter the length, you can't feel tired or bored when you listen to this. My final grade will be four strong stars (4.5 would be more accurate), highly recommendable.

Enjoy it!

While Lavori in Corso is a more blend of RPI and Jazz, the Duty Free Area is a blend of space rock, jazz, canterbury and symphonic prog. In short; you get two pretty different types of albums here, but both loosely within the fusion/jazz genre. These two CDs are not that different from each other, but different enough to really make this box interesting. So four stars for the music.

The packaging too deserve four star. The booklet is not like a book, but it still contains enough reading material to complement the music.

In short; this is a very good box sold for a reasonable price and an excellent addition to anyone's record collection.

4 stars

D.F.A created quite a successfull formula on the Lavori In Corso album. So it speaks volumes about this band's courage and not at least; abilities that they have changed course in these stormy waters and gone for a slightly more adventerous route.

This album is much more a fusion of jazz, space rock and ELPism like symphonic prog than on previous album. D.F.A really surprises me here. Not at least when they also have Genesis like melody lines too. That made my eyebrows really stand vibrate. The Italian vocals should indicate some RPI influences, but they are not. The music is much more like vocals based Jazz than RPI. There are also some Canterbury scene influences here. And that more in the direction of Caravan than the likes of National Health. But it is obvious that D.F.A is influenced by National Health and Hatfield & The North too.

In short; this is a huge mouthful.

Despite of changing course, D.F.A has again pulled off a great album..... again ! The musicianship is absolute top notch. The melodies are great. This album is a very good example of how to be progressive as a band. It is an exploration of musical landscapes too. In short; this is a great album. Nuff said.

4 stars

D.F.A is a fusion band on it's right. A fusion between rock and jazz. A fusion between Jazz Rock/ Fusion and Rock Progressivo Italiano. A fusion between Rock Progressivo Italiano and Canterbury Scene. Although that latter fusion is not as clear on this album though.

Lavori In Corso includes some reworked versions of songs from their impossible-to-find debut album too. That means clever jazzy RPI songs and this time with vocals as opposed to their more recent work. The vocals are good so no complaints from me. But the vocals drags the music on Lavori In Corso a lot closer to the Rock Progressivo Italiano scene. All musicians does an excellent job here and the small details they dishes up is mindblowing excellent. In short; this band knows what they are doing.

The music here is of a high quality and up there along the better of the albums in this scene. La Via is a killer track. In short; this album is a must have in my view.

4 stars

Lavori In Corso is a part of a 2 CD package called Kaleidoscope, which also include their 3rd album.

D.F.A or Duty Free Area as they also call themselves, I believe...... is not the most profiled Italian band. Which is a shame because they really have something to offer. Their albums also has this knack to slowly creep up on the listener over a time. Their material is not immediate hit music. But I am now well ahead of myself. Let's take this from the beginning.......

4th is strangely enough D.F.A.s fourth album. I have been listening to their second and third album and I knew what I was in for. And I got what I wanted plus some more. D.F.A does a blend of Jazz Rock/Fusion and Rock Progressivo Italiano. I would even describe D.F.A as the bridge between those two styles. Their music is not either of those two styles. It is a fusion of them. But on this album, D.F.A has also inflused a lot of Canterbury Scene too. No, not Caravan or Soft Machine, although a couple of melody lines gives me some Soft Machine vibes too. I am actually thinking more along the lines of National Health and what Alan Gowen did throughout his far too short life. There is a lot of National Health hidden on 4th. Being a National Health fan (in more than one sense.... but it is better to leave my personal life out it), this album album really touches the right tangents. In other words; this is a true fusion album, but not a Jazz Rock/Fusion album.

Most of the album is instrumental keyboards and guitar driven music. The final track La ballata de 'isposa 'e Mannorri is a female vocal track backed by some great keyboards. The album is full to the brim with small inttricate details and subtle, but still very infectious melody lines. The album sounds bland at the first listening sessions, but really springs to life after a while. So give this album plenty of time and attention before making up your mind.

The quality is great throughout. With the exception of the final track where the female vocals makes this a standout track (but not the best on the album), this album can be regarded as one piece of music. The best track is the opening track Baltasaurus. But the rest of the album just shades it. I am pretty sure this is an album I will love more and more during the next years and decades. In short; this is a great album from a great band.

4 stars

I am fed up with live albums where track 1 is taken from Wembley Arena in London, track 2 is from a gig in Los Angeles and track 3 is from a gig in Cape Town. A live album should be a recording of one gig and that's it. I can accept Made In Japan whose taken over three nights on three different venues in Japan, but that is as far as it goes.

D.F.A and Moonjune seems to share my views. Work in Progress Live includes everything. And I mean everything. From the public announcement announcing that the gig is running slightly late and the organisers will make it up to you somehow. Yes, this live album is recorded at Nearfest on the 17. June 2000. This live album btw is one big advert for Nearfest too. It is also an advert for D.F.A, although the gig took place over ten years ago.

It is my understanding the material here is taken from their first two albums. I am not an D.F.A expert and I could not be bothered doing the decent thing and check this out. But I am pretty sure about this. The music is within the fusion/jazz genre, but with a lot of references to the RPI genre. Hence; if you love RPI, D.F.A is your friends to the left of that genre.

The music is very good throughout. The same is the sound. What also makes this album a joy to behold is the band's obvious surprise and delight over the audience's warm reaction towards them. Everlasting friendships was forged during the recording of this live album. That makes this a warm, organic live album. It is obvious that D.F.A. is one of the better fusion bands out there and they really rams that home during songs like Caleidoscopio and Pantera. This album has some vocals, but most of the tracks here are innovative, melodic fusion. This can be a bit boring, but D.F.A spices this up with some interesting time shifts and melody lines.

In short; the full package is a great listening experience. It is a toss of the coin between a three and a four star. I am a very conservative reviewer and do not like to spread stars around me so this is a three stars live album for me......... with the added help from Nearfest adjusted up to a four stars live album.

4 stars

Kaleidoscope is a special re-release of remastered versions of D.F.A.'s first two studio albums, Lavori in Corso and the self-titled Duty Free Area, orginally released in 1997 and 1999 respectively. Moonjune Records took the opportunity to issue this 2-in-1 package to meet the demand of sales, which is always good for any prog group.

I'm not sure exactly how to describe D.F.A.'s music. It has an otherwordly feel to it. There are definitely jazz and jazz/rock fusion influences, but not being a specialist in this area, nor not having listened to enough from this area, I can't really comment on specific artist influences. From the rock side of things, I definitely hear some Gentle Giant and some symphonic prog in numerous places. The musicianship is absolutely amazing.

I love the instrumentals on this, absolutely love them, with highlights including Trip on Metró, Space Ace Man, Escher, Ragno, and Ascendente Scorpione. Now you'll note I specifically stated instrumentals, in order to separate them from songs with vocals. The reason I did this was because the vocals I found somewhat distracting. They really do need some work, even though they're sung in the native tongue.

The only other negative I have to mention is that some of the songs seem to meander off and lose their focus. Nothing terribly bad to complain about, really.

Absolutely wonderful musicianship, and some really crazy, foot tapping music. I love it. Both albums are not quite masterpieces, but they're surely an excellent addition to any prog music lover's collection. I even highly recommend this to those of you who haven't explored jazz rock/fusion. This is great place to start if you haven't. Four excellent stars!