Panna
Fredda were an Italian prog band from Rome, one of the many one-shot
bands of the early seventies Italian prog scene. The line-up on their
first (and last) album, released in 1971, featured Carlo Bruno
(bass), Giorgio Brandi (keyboards, guitars), Filippo Carnevale
(drums, guitar) and composer and lyricist Angelo Giardinelli (vocals,
guitar, drums). They started their career playing melodic “beat
songs”, but after releasing some singles they changed musical
direction and managed to shape a very interesting mix of Italian
melody, prog rock and classical influences. Although this work was
high quality, their label, Vedette, didn’t rate them very highly,
so Panna Fredda disbanded even before the album was released. After
the experience with Panna Fredda keyboardist Giorgio Brandi returned
to a more commercial style and joined a successful melodic pop band
called I Cugini di Campagna (who are usually considered the
antithesis of prog!) while the other members were not so lucky and
gave up. What a pity!
The
dark opener “La paura” (Fear) might slightly recall Uriah Heep.
It develops from a haunting marching beat and features a good organ
solo. The lyrics describe the fear provoked by the cold shadows of
the dead gathering around you and give you a warning: when you
understand that fear, death will be inside you. Almost an omen...
The
second track “Un re senza reame” (A King Without A Throne) is
about the absurdity of power and war... “Soundless bells asking for
mercy / Smell of candles and dead flowers now / The night will bring
visions of terror / To a king without a kingdom / To a king who will
cry...”. The music features an acoustic interlude and more frenzied
parts. It could recall some works of Le Orme.
Next
comes “Un uomo” (A Man) that starts like the soundtrack of a
“Spaghetti western” and sounds like a kind of “Ennio Morricone
meets Le Orme and PFM”. It’s about a duel between love and hate
and the lyrics tell the story of a man who killed for love but was
condemned by people who didn’t understand him.
“Scacco
al re Lot” (Checkmate For King Lot) is my favourite track on the
album. It’s a kind of mini suite featuring a dark first part where
the lyrics describe Death who never tires of hunting for new prey
riding a black stallion, the Grim Reaper playing checks with his
enemy, Life... More melodic and acoustic passages follow, where
people cry for the death of their good king Lot and hope for another
good king like Lot (you can recognize here even a hint of the Italian
national anthem). Hope leads to a solemn finale... “The great
wizard is hidden / Beyond the world, above time...”.
The
long, complex “Il vento, la luna e pulcini blu (sole rosso)”
features interesting harpsichord work and baroque passages that
alternate with psychedelic atmospheres but in my opinion it is not at
the same level of the previous track. The lyrics describe a wonderful
wood, children playing with the wind, the moon and little blue
chicks, a white church, a red sun upon the altar... Unreal visions
that seem to melt against reality... “Now I’m listening to the
sounds that my mind refuses / My blood will burn what is left of
me...”.
The
last track “Waiting” is a good short instrumental with guitar
and keyboards in the forefront. On the Vinyl Magic CD re-release you
can find as bonus tracks two early songs of the band, “Delirio”
(Delirium) and “Strisce rosse” (Red Stripes). Although they’re
quite weak, comparing them with the other tracks you can see how
Panna Fredda’s style evolved.
You can listen in streaming to the complete album HERE
No comments:
Post a Comment