Contaminazione is Il Rovescio della Medaglia's 3rd album and quite a departure from their heavier early works. Now with a keyboardist, and fully orchestrated in the same way as the New Trolls Concerto Grosso and Osanna's second album, RDM brings about some Bach n' Rock to the table. Take away the window dressing though, and it's your prototypical Italian prog album, mixing harder passages with romantic songwriter tendencies. Many twists and turns, but with a highbrow flavor. Highlights are the more radical heavier pieces such as 'Il Suono del Silenzio', 'Scotland Machine', and in particular the heavy metal riffing 'Alzo en Muro Elettrico'. Contaminazione is considered table stakes for any self respecting Italian prog collection, and it's easy to see why. Though it's by no means the best album Italy offered in those days, it is indeed very representative.
Ownership: LP: 1973 RCA. Gatefold. Acquired from Infinite Records in Houston (1988). It was there staring at me for all of $1, was a perfect copy of Contaminazione. In the Classical section. Which makes sense, considering the cover definitely looks like an album from that genre. I doubt it had been played prior (like most classical records haha). A very special album for me, and I still maintain that exact copy (and always will). This wasn't my introduction of the music though, as I had already purchased the English LP version on Peters International only a few months prior. That version I sold to PPR Jeff the first time I met him in 1989. I wonder if he still has it? I'll have to ask him... (8/14/22: just did, and it's gone. He had multiple copies and he's not sure where it went. Ah well...)
CD: 2004 BMG (Japan). Papersleeve edition.
1988; 2004; 8/29/22 (new entry)
1988; 2004; 8/29/22 (new entry)
No comments:
Post a Comment