ROYAL ACADEMY

From the book Rock Progressivo Italiano: an introduction to Italian Progressive Rock

Reale Accademia di Musica were formed in Rome in the early seventies and rose from the ashes of another band called Fholks. In 1972 they released a very interesting eponymous debut album with a line-up featuring Henryk “Enrique” Topel Cabanes (vocals), Federico Troiani (keyboards, vocals), Pierfranco Pavone (bass), Roberto Senzasono (drums, percussion) and Pericle Sponzilli (guitar) who left the band soon after the recording sessions and was replaced by Nicola Agrimi. The album was produced by Maurizio Vandelli and the overall sound features pleasant melodies and pastoral acoustic passages. This work doesn’t shine in originality and the lyrics sometimes are a little bit naive but it’s well played and recorded and I’m sure that Italianprog fans will love it.

 

The opener “Favola” (Fairy tale) is soft and dreamy. Delicate pastoral melodies depict an enchanted world of songs and fairy tales where Time calmly “weaves its story”...

Then comes the long, complex “Mattino” (Morning) which is about the end of a happy childhood when dreams are blown away by cold reality. The music starts softly, led by piano and vocals... “Open your eyes / Mind that your childhood is over / And you have no time to dream anymore... The simplicity of ingenuity will burn like a candle...”. After a piano interlude the music becomes tense and the rhythm takes off for a beautiful instrumental ride through reality. When the music calms down again it’s time for a new awareness... “Now you are a man / And as a man you have money, a job, dignity and a woman who warms you but... / Even heaven can’t give you back the happiness of childhood...”.

 

“Ognuno sa” (Everybody knows) is a melodic ballad inviting you to live like a carefree child, dreaming of endless roads towards the blue sky... “Life is a flower that you can pick if you want, when you want it / Because it’s the only gift that you can have for nothing in exchange / And if you want you can give it to the people who love you, to those who are with you...”.

On the next track, “Padre” (Father), the atmosphere is definitely more troubled and heavier. It’s a complex piece featuring intense instrumental passages and heartfelt vocals. The lyrics are about the generation gap... “Father, you ask me what I think / You ask me where I want to go, how will it end... You never think of your way of living, walking in circles and killing your dreams...”.

 

“Lavoro in città” (Work in the city) is a beautiful track in three parts. After a short piano intro the music drives you into a nightmare. The lyrics depict a sick world where machines have taken over and freedom is the bed you sleep in. Images from Fritz Lang’s film “Metropolis” come to mind... “The radio can’t sing / It shouts that my civility is dying now / Around me there are faces of people scared like me...”. The atmosphere of fear and alienation melts into a dreamy invocation for a peaceful, simpler life, full of magic songs and sounds... “Everything is divine, you know / Just if you want it / And if you want it, it will be so...”. The third part is a lively, jazzy instrumental finale.

The last track “Vertigine” (Dizziness) concludes the album with a full tank of dark, heavy energy. Electric guitar riffs and organ patterns underline gloomy lyrics. Long rivers are carrying clouds of gas and a threatening shadow is approaching... “Your door is closed but you know that you can’t stop it / It’s coming here, it’s coming here!”.