STORIA DI UN MINUTO

If you check the prog rock page on AllMusic there is not a word about the Italian scene. There isn't even a link in the more then a 100 artists counting list. What a mistake to make on an otherwise pretty comprehensive site. No wonder that I and so many others hadn't heard about RPI in our entire lives.

Premiata Forneria Marconi is the most popular band of the scene and there are moments where that status seems deserved. They are just so sweet, emotive, creative and accessible. However, judging from the little I heard from this scene, there are bands out there that appeal more to me. I also don't find PFM albums to be entirely consistent. There's always a dip in the song writing or an experiment to digress from their basic romantic sound that doesn't feel really accomplished. I sure appreciate their willingness to take risks and progress their sound, but the result can't always convince me.

The debut is quite consistent though, the only track that feels out of place is E'Festa. It has a charming playfulness but overall it isn't very impressive and has aged pretty badly. It's decidedly less compared to the wealth of beautiful dreamy music around it. I even like the fanfare at the end.

Another reason why I prefer their debut over the second album is that I hear a much more personal sound here. On the second album, the presence of the great UK prog bands is felt much more prominently then here. This one is all gentle sounds, acoustic guitars, flutes and mellotron with at least as many campfire moments as your average Simon and Gartfunkel album. Of course PFM plays in another league where it concerns composition and musicianship, it's just that the gentle melancholy feels similar. There are some toy synths in Impressioni Di Settembre that are somehow inadequate but overall the use keys is not too disruptive.

This album only lasts for 34 minutes. Given that I could have lived without E'Festa, the album is unsatisfactorily short. Nevertheless, the 30 remaining minutes are very solid and packed with creativity. Something that is largely preferable over 80-minute albums that don't get to the point.

Now, I really wonder what further surprises this scene has in store for me.