Title: Roller
Year: 1976
Composer: Goblin
This time
I’m reviewing a studio album by the band Goblin who also wrote film music. The
album is written in their usual instrumental prog-rock style and should please
anyone who’s a fan of their film scores. However the album let's them loose from the constraints a film score might have and gets to show their versatility as an actual band. The version I own is a part of the 6CD
compilation album The awakening from
2012 which also includes two bonus tracks, namely a single release of music
from a TV series called Chi? also from
1976 which I couldn’t find any information about.
The opening
Roller is very similar to Goblin’s Profondo rosso with its irregular
staccato rhythms, church organ and groovy guitar solo playing the main melody. The
overall mood isn’t as menacing as its inspiration but rather playful and
extremely fun. Once again the track ends with a giant organ conclusion to a
glorious major chord that sends shivers down my spine. A brilliant opener! The
following Aquaman opens in a much
more restrained manner with sounds of waterdrops and otherworldly, echoy synth
melodies which slowly make room to a mellow, improvisatory electric guitar solo
over the established base. Eventually the cue’s starting sounds make a return bringing
it to a perfect circle.
Snip-snap is a complete departure from the previous two
tracks. It reminds me of funky riffs artists like Herbie Hancock would create. The sound is typical for the era and doesn’t
really bring anything new to the table. It isn’t bad by any means but unfortunately
not that memorable either. Il risveglio
del serpente begins similarly to Aquaman
with surprisingly jazzy harmonies and progressions for a clear piano solo. It’s
probably the most accessible cue on the album and offers a nice breather
between the more experimental tracks. The short addition of a saxophone at the
cue’s last portion is a nice one too.
Enormous
11-minute Goblin starts the album’s
latter half with sound effects resembling flames. Then a piano ostinato appears
which then turns to the cue’s main melody, easily the best one on the album. It
begins with a longlined synth tune whereas the B section is more mischievous
with its irregular rhythms and odd synth sounds. From that on the ostinato and
main melody start to appear in short snippets through the controlled chaos of
different musical soloists. From the 5-minute mark the cue cools down to moods
similar to tracks 2 and 4 but the soundscape is more outer space than underwater.
As the end draws nearer the track gains momentum through those funky riffs of Snip-snap before the main melody returns
with a glorious final rendition after a long drum solo. Compared to the
previous cue, Dr. Frankenstein is a
bit of a letdown. The ominous starting sounds are quite fun though and sound
like a part of a Goblin film score. The problem is that the track isn’t able to
form a memorable melody and hence sounds more like a filler than a closing cue.
The last 2-minutes of the track try to redeem it with much faster, absolutely
bonkers synth sounds and renditions of the beginning’s melodies but it’s a bit
too little too late and the sounds are so out-there they actually become
somewhat irritating.
The CD ends
with two bonus tracks for a TV series. I’m not sure whether Goblin wrote more
music for the series but judging by the single I would certainly hope so. Chi? part 1 begins with mysterious
tinkling guitars before the main melody is introduced. It sounds like a cop
show theme from the 70s complete with those signature staccato brass chords.
Eventually the mysterious opening sounds sneak in underneath the main melody
and end the track into a menacing note. Part
2 is even more threatening once again returning to the style of Profondo rosso with rhythmic synth textures
and a more longlined main melody that is played on top of it and then reprised
with an organ and guitar solo. Though the melody isn’t as memorable as in Profondo rosso or Roller it’s again nice to hear a cue like this which is both
menacing and quite beautiful at the same time. If there are more cues from the
series somewhere, I would certainly like to hear them based on this marvelous single.
Roller is a bit uneven album because the abundance of contrasting
styles can be quite distracting at times. Nevertheless it shows great versatility
of the musicians and is a must buy for the fans of the band. I also love the
additional EP-release which luckily resurrects the CD from the letdown of the
actual album’s closing track.
Rating: ****1/2
Tracklist:
1. Roller
(04:38) *****
2. Aquaman
(05:22) *****
3. Snip-snap
(03:37) ***
4. Il
risveglio del serpente (03:27) *****
5. Goblin (11:10) *****
6. Dr.
Frankenstein (06:00) ***
Bonus
tracks:
7. Chi?
part 1 (single A) (03:15) *****
8. Chi?
part 2 (single B) (03:20) *****
