PALEPOLI

Third album and only one I have heard from this Italian band. Palepoli is highly regarded by many but I don't share the enthusiasm. This is a good and enjoyable album, but I've heard better Italian prog than this. The sound and mixing is pretty awful, even for something from 1973. Some of the music itself sounds dated for a 1973 release. The sounds of the Mellotron and synthesizer are tiny and thin. The actual music and performance is actually quite good. You can hear some Crimson and VDGG influences on this album.

You can listen to the first song "Oro Caldo" here on PA. A pounding of a drum and busy street noises lead to a very Mediterrenean sounding folky part. After 2 minutes a rocking part gets faded in, this part sounds more like 1970 than 1973. Backwards effects for awhile. Gets more Crimson sounding and some harmony vocals. Later gets more Crimson sounding when the saxophone and Mellotron enter. After 9 minutes things start to rock out with some Tull-like flute playing. More KC style sax and Mellotron later, this is followed by another late '60s sounding rocking part. Goes into a section with seemingly everything but drums. That situation is remedied when the drums come in and it switches to a jazzy hard rock section with some of the better synth sounds on the album. Then a more folky and ballady part before the music stops. Goes into a very VDGG sounding section at the end.

"Stanza Citta" is the same as the folky beginning of "Oro Caldo" but with backwards sounds coming and going. "Animale Senza Respiro" is the longest and best track on the three song album. After a more energenic beginning, settles into a more relaxed vibe. Music picks up again and eventually gets more rocking. What sounds like wah-wahed sax at one point. Shortly after switches to a very Crimson sounding part, more late '60s style rocking along with it. Hawkwind style synth noises before acoustic guitars bring everything back to ballad mode. Gets spacier later.

Eventually gets more of a hybrid VDGG/KC sound. More folky and symphonic for awhile. After 12 minutes some wonderful Bee-Gees style vocals appear; that was a nice surprise the first time I heard this album. Music changes to more late '60s style rocking. A freeform improv section before some great hard rockin' guitar leads to some VDGG style rocking freak-outs. Some earlier parts get reprised and then a squealing sax and a drum solo. Reprises the opening part but now with vocals. Music fades out, then a very symphonic ending. Not extremely original and not good sounding, but still good music. 3 stars.

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