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One of my favorite "Pop" albums, a miracle of light music among the most beautiful ever conceived in Italy and beyond. Among the Battiato brand records of that decade, this is the most beautiful of all (including those by Battiato "in person," mind you) with the Battiato-Russo pairing (and broadening the scope, the quartet Battiato-Pio-Russo-Sisini) overflowing with inventiveness and inspiration. And then, above all and beyond everything, there is Giuni Russo. There is the Voice of Giuni Russo, unattainable for anyone. Free, in "Energie," as few other times will she be allowed to be in her career, free to express herself without restraints and to shape Battiato's pop into something unique. There’s the baroque desire to amaze and move, there’s the virtuosic beauty for the pure pleasure of art for art’s sake, but also an expressive universality that reaches everyone, soaring with songs that have extraordinarily successful melodies and rhythms; a voice of a classical soprano that transfigures the material of pop and new-wave music ("Crisi metropolitana," "Una vipera sarò," "Lettera al governatore della Libia") with unreachable inventions, colors, and virtuosity. There are 8 songs and 8 splendors (think of "Atmosfera" or the intense and surprisingly measured interpretation in "L'attesa") but it is "Il sole di Austerlitz" and "L'Addio" that stand out as two of the greatest wonders of all Italian light music. "Energie" is a Masterpiece. Unrepeatable.

Undoubtedly not at the level of the stunning "Energie", compared to which "Vox" seems to me, overall, although very pleasant, decidedly less inspired in its songwriting, which here is more in the hands of Russo and Sisini, perhaps "held back" and limited by the demands of the record label. Giuni's vocal performances, while still excellent (and at times, really spectacular here too), are somewhat less flashy and dramatic than what was heard in "Energie". That said, the remarkable voice of Russo remains the added value even in the less successful songs (like those by Battiato, who here reduces his compositional contribution compared to the previous album and achieves results that convince me much less), and still delivers absolute fireworks in the more inspired and slightly freer tracks ("L'oracolo di Delfi" and "Oltre il muro" above all).

Finally, in 1998, a stunning live performance that captures all the greatness of Giuni Russo and represents the second true masterpiece of her career, 17 years after "Energie." Following that, there were several very valid albums (especially "A casa di Ida Rubinstein," almost entirely represented in the live performance) and some that were a bit less impactful, but none had reached the same heights of excellence. Seventeen years spent finding a thousand loopholes to manage to record and publish the music she truly wanted to create or compromising with record labels (hence, obviously, the title of this live album), often forced to limit her ideas and her enormous vocal and expressive potential. "Voce prigioniera" gathers a selection of concerts by Russo in the '90s and shines as a crowning achievement in the career of an extraordinary artist, one of the greatest voices of the second half of the 20th century—there's little room for debate here—captured at the peak of her splendor and in the years of her artistic maturity. The highlight is "Nomadi" by Camisasca, which was originally written and conceived for her, then given to Alice after the usual obstructionism of the record label, but here it returns, at least in a live setting, indeed arriving in the hands of its intended original interpreter.

8.5

7.5

8.5

9

8.5

Great debut album by Gracious, a very valid band from that rich "progressive explosion" that took place between the late '60s and early '70s. Unfortunately, they are one of the many groups that did not manage to break through, remaining relegated to the "cult underground" of the genre and disbanding after two albums. However, the Gracious were very good, and you can hear that in this debut, which is, understandably, a bit raw in some places. The 5 tracks are all beautiful, starting well with "Introduction" (which clearly shows how the Gracious remain anchored to the pop-rock-blues roots of the sixties, and rightly so, blending them with the "new" symphonic-prog pop). The 16 minutes of the concluding "The Dream" are not bad either (stylistically, the same discussion applies, with jangly guitars, more "elegant" keyboards, "rock/blues" guitar solos, and classical quotes – Beethoven – which always fit well). Speaking of classical infatuations (typical of certain prog), there's the entire classic-sounding "Fugue in D Minor," which is delightful. Also excellent are the "dual" tracks "Heaven" (with the stunning mellotron introduction, used after being struck by the usual King Crimson and beautiful guitar parts) and "Hell" (more experimental, with dark guitar riffs and the nervous use of piano and harpsichord, plus other interludes perhaps thrown in a bit randomly).

7.5

Yes, yes, their peak, along with another 2 or 3 live shows.

The first recordings of the Dead collected on two albums. Not much in the studio, obviously the Live one is quite a bit better. It's interesting to hear the Grateful pre-psychedelic.

Nice little album, with some guano from cormorants but also with 2-3 more pleasant, very nice tracks. A duo that on paper looked explosive but produced music that didn't really resonate with me; it was the (brief, thankfully) period when even Hackett had become fixated on AOR. Those more accustomed to these sounds will likely enjoy it; for me, it's a decent little disc to listen to a couple of times.