GUDRUN

As I was saying in my review of the previous album , you can expect a band with such a name to have a close relationship with Schoenberg's oeuvre. This was not really the case in the debut but very much so with Gudrun. The music is much more daring here taking operatic elements and fusing them with electronics doodling worthy of Edgar Froese or Eno and also a more conventional prog. The result gives an album sometimes veering towards RIO but still accessible top most progheads. The opening title track is simply asounding.

We are , however light years away from their debut , but one can still hear that this is the same group. Much recommended also but be careful .

Three years passed before Pierrot Lunaire recorded and released the follow-up to their debut album. They returned as a totally refurbished act, with guitarist Caporaletti out and mezzo-soprano extraordinaire Jacqueline Darby in. "Gudrun" is an album that drifts apart from the realms of bucolic melodic prog with a slight dissonant twist; now, the repertoire is design to defy structure and convention, in order to create a sonic journey led by the volatile ruling hands of surprise, radical experimentation, and free form. The link between all tracks is marked by the clicking of a photographic camera, as if each number of the repertoire was some kind of scenario immortalized by the machine and turned into a permanent reminder. If Pierrot Lunaire's previous album was some a catalogue of reflections about the inner world, now Stalteri, Chiocchio and Darby turn their eyes and look at the world in its splendorous chaos and multicolored facets. The 11-minute long title track kicks off the album with a great deal of synth layers and sequenced ornaments, over which Darby's singing, piano lines, stormy guitar leads, and some other occasional stuff lays its print in a daring amalgam. If you can mentally picture a mixture of Klaus Schulze, drumless RIO and Brecht's operettas, then you may have an idea about what I'm trying to describe here (perhaps not too successfully). In sharp contrast, now comes a subtle piano nocturne titled 'Dietro il Silenzio', which sounds quite Satie-inspired to me: a really beautiful piece where the silent voids are as important as the actual piano sounds. The following number is a two part chanting displayed upon disturbing guitar and synth soundscapes: in the middle, a piano and conga drums revisit Darby's line with an air of simplicity that seems to portray some sort of high-spirited joy. 'Gallia' is a Darby-penned number, mostly a showcase for her well crafted dissonant operatic stuff, while her fellow men once again indulge themselves in a background of random dissonances on electric guitar and synthesizer. 'Giovane Madre' is the most symphonic (or should I say the least anti-symphonic) number. It basically consists of a recurring attractive motif on organ and synth, solidly founded on a 6/8 pattern laid by Chiocchio's bass and guest drummer Massimo Buzzi; somewhere in the middle, a gentle, joyful Renaissance-like motif enters abruptly, creating a weird tension that directly defies its own delicate beauty. Simultaneously, you can hear Darby whispering or laughing in some places. Many times I've found myself listening to this particular track three or four times in a row only to take pleasure in the challenging effect that the structure of this track causes in me as a listener. The weirdness never ends. 'Sonde in Profonditá' starts with the sound of an old radio speech, accompanied by a tenuous, evocative organ theme, with sitar, synth and acoustic guitar providing some additional colours until it all disappears under crashing waves. 'Morellia' begins with a Baroque-inspired piano solo, alternating with a Renaissance-like zither melodic line: then comes Darby, together with the piano, string synth, bass and drums (once again, guest Buzzi makes an appearance), delivering the most moving passage in the album. This same structure is reiterated, until a Cabaret-piano motif accompanies Darby's dramatic laughter. This piece is inscrutable, yet it manages to move the listener's heart in a way that they can't fully understand. Finally, 'Mein Armer Italiener' closes down the album with a successive combination of parody military march, psychedelic rock, pastoral stuff, slogan chanting - all comprised in an ambience of radical dadaist humour that may somehow remind us of Zappa's most theatrical pieces. An excellent but not recommendable prog recording due to its massively cryptic nature: anyway, "Gudrun" deserves to be regarded as a classic of the most experimental side of 70s progressive rock.

This is one of those "the whole is more than the sum of its parts" albums. The conceptual glue that holds it all together boosts its rating from 3 to 4 stars. I'm talking about little things like the sound effects that begin many of the tracks, and the short, Gong-like vocal asides that crop up here and there. The songs themselves are all pretty good, although I have a tough time getting all the way through the opening track, which wears out its welcome two or three minutes before it ends (likewise, the bonus track version of the same song, which deletes the wonderful introduction). Darby's vocals may seem new and different to prog music listeners, but as someone who's heard a lot of avant/new music female vocalists, I'd have to say she's only a fair singer. Musically, I feel that this album is miles beyond what their first album presented, with more complex melodies here and there, and less "soloing". A nice addition to the Italian Prog section of your record collection, since it's in a class by itself.

OK. Now THIS..is delicious.

This is an album I could not have enjoyed just a few years ago as I didn't have the patience for something this weird/challenging. Many people listen to music and consciously look for riffs or vocals to grab onto so they can relate, so they can just enjoy and rock out. You can't do that here. You have to surrender your expectations about what music is and let Pierrot Lunaire paint the picture for you. This is one of the wildest albums you'll ever hear so if you like your music easily digestible, Gudrun is not for you. This album is for the adventurous listener. But so rewarding and the most unique spin I've had in ages.

Pierrot Lunaire is an Italian band from the 70s but this is not your typical "Italian classic" cd. Gudrun is more like avant-garde, free thought, stream of consciousness, melodic madness. It is completely bizarre music with some similarities to Opus Avantra but not comparable to anything really. Conventions go out the window as we are treated to all manner of instruments and free-form vocals in these mini trips. It is held together by the dodging presence of tasteful melodies which are not obvious but they are there. Plenty of them. This is experimentation at its finest but unlike some trippy albums which are just dissonant to an annoying level, Gudrun is enjoyable and beautiful. The album is split into tracks but plays out like one long dream sequence separated by the click of a camera, an effect that makes us feel like we're viewing photos of a person's trip.

"Gudrun," the long title track, starts out promising, dreamlike, mysterious. But I agree with another reviewer that the 11 minute opener runs out of steam and therefore I can't go 5 stars here. The first half is great but the latter part goes on unnecessarily long. But we're that close to a masterpiece so if you have a deep enough collection to have an "avant" shelf, then this is an essential release for that shelf. "Dietro il Silenzio" is a gorgeous piano solo that is all too short, just a brief wistful moment needed to recover from the first song. "Plaisir d'amour" is street sounds and vocal loops that border on insanity until some very obnoxious synths kick in. "Giovane Madre" actually sounds a bit like a song with normalcy contributed by some really outstanding percussion work, but the normalcy won't last. Another refuge from the strangeness and an absolute knockout track is "Morella" which is pure Italian prog beauty, lush melody, great vocals, piano, acoustic, bass, drums and perfect arrangement. It's a perfect song that ends in an outbreak of laughter signaling that reality has begun to slip away again. But I can't get enough of it! I wish this were a double album.

A must for fans of Italian prog, avant-garde, and for daring listeners of all stripes. A must for lovers of truly progressive music! 4.5 stars.

The band already released quite a decent work before this one, but when you will listen to the title and opening song, there will be only one question left: why is this band so much ignored???

The music displayed during ''Gudrun'' is just sublime: form symphonic in its birth, it evolves to sweet and folkish atmospheres and features some wild female vocals in the middle part (probably a little bit too much prolonged to my taste). This is a complex song that could be included in several prog genres: the band is very ''eclectic''?which means at time not very accessible to all ears.

The effort is still rewarding. Of course, you have to be prepared for quite a ride (maybe that an inclusion into the eclectic genre would be more appropriate). Of course ''Plaisir D'Amour'' opens with some very suggestive female vocals. This is an old French song totally revisited. It is part of the French patrimony and is here combined with some afro-beats during the second part. Quite an astonishing mix!

The overall feel is quite bizarre actually. Erotic vocals, psyche mood and some avant-garde impression as well. All combined! This is not an easy work to get into. Some very old radio programme recordings are opening the almost clerical ''Sonde In Profondit'' which later on conveys into some more symphonic territories.

Some of the tracks are quite embarrassing though: I can't really be laudatory about such a mascarade as ''Mein In Armen Italiener''.

To be honest, this album is overshadowed by the title track (but only partially). Three stars for this album which is quite difficult to categorize. Symph? Italian? Eclectic? Maybe a portion of each, but prog folk is alien here.

Italian band PIERROT LUNAIRE was a band active for a few years in the second half of the 1970's, releasing two albums prior to folding in 1977. They are best known for their blend of folk music and highly experimental avantgarde compositions, as well as their albums being rather hard to get hold of until they were reissued on CD. "Gudrun" from 1977 is their second and last album, and has been reissued on three occasions prior to the latest version issued by Italian label MP Records in 2011.

If one should choose one word to describe the musical exploits presented on this production, my choice would be eccentric. Highly experimental, most certainly not conforming to any ordinary approaches in terms of composition and most likely sporting a few avantgarde touches in performance too. At least I suspect that musicians might discover a few oddities i that department.

The dominating feature is the epic length title track, clocking in at just over 11 minutes Gudrun is a massive, sprawling experimental escapade. Following an elongated prologue sporting gentle ambient resonances as well as medival sounding folk music a Bo Hansson sounding guitar and organ theme kicks off and gradually develops into more and more of an offbeat experience. Spoken children's voices are replaced by dramatic operatic female vocals, the guitars starts veering off the interplay with the organ and distorted noises starts appearing in fluctuating textures. The organ taking more and more of a backseat, and eventually the track fades out to effects and spoken words. An interesting endeavour for sure, but arguably much more so than enticing and intriguing as such.

The remaining parts of the album are at times vastly different. Dietro il Silenzio a careful piano ballad exploring resonances and careful inserted contrasts in a most excellent manner, Plaisir D'Amour more of an experimental and offbeat thematic construction with a strong cinematic feel, recurring themes and again dramatic operatic lead vocals, the latter grabbing the limelight on the following Gallia now backed by distorted and possibly electronic sounds.

Giovane Madre stands out as the clear highlight for me, sporting a circulating organ motif, energetic rhythms, twisted yet melodic sound effects and a few inserts of a spoken female voice, with a dramatic folk interlude briefly appearing at the halfway point. The following two songs are arguably rather more experimental in scope and approach, but not quite as compelling. They do share one common trait though: They are quite different from the other songs on the album.

The additional tracks present on the 2011 reissue are nice additions, the least interesting also the most experimental of these in the shape of Mein Armer Italiener. The alternative versions of Gudrun and Giovane Madre that ends this disc are possibly more compelling than the original versions, at least in the case of Gudrun. Omitting the elongated introduction and the vocal parts of this tune transforms it into an almost hypnotic psychedelic/kraut-inspired effort that should appeal strongly to fans of those styles.

Apart from the variety at hand on this disc I'm left with a feeling that this entire album in one form or another was conceptualized as a cinematic production. The clicks and noises that end each track might just indicate an old film reel that have played through, and as such might have given me the idea in the first place, but the strong and distinct moods explored on each song and the great span in variety both compel me to think that these compositions were either inspired by movies or crafted with the idea in mind that they could act as supplements to scenes in a movie. This might be dead wrong of course, but it is a thought that came to life after exploring this album, and does yield some additional information as to the overall scope and sound I hope.

All in all a recommended purchase for those fond of highly experimental music that strays well of most known paths, and I suspect that those familiar with expressions like avantgarde will form the core audience for this album. Those who enjoy the initial efforts by artists such as Magical Power Mako might also want to try out Pierrot Lunaire. That is, if they haven't done so already.

Listed under Folk but these guys really push the envelope having a strong Avant-garde flavour with electronics and that shrilling female soprano vocalist. A lot of obscure instruments are used in this 33 minute album. I appreciate how adventerous they are and the ideas they came up with but this is not an enjoyable listen for me whatsoever.

"Gudrun" has this spacey intro as vocal melodies come in around 2 minutes.Keys and harpsichord follow. A child then can be heard speaking after 4 minutes then the soprano vocals arrive a minute later. Keyboards and distortion after 6 minutes then electronics of some sort. Vocals return 8 minutes in. "Dietro Il Silenzio" has laid back piano only throughout. "Plasir D'amour" opens with traffic sounds and strange repetitive vocals. We then get distortion and female vocals which sound like she's singing in a church. Not a fan at all. Percussion and vocal melodies that sound like they are from India follow.Yikes !

"Gallia" has those soprano vocals throughout. "Giovane Madre" is much better as we get what sounds like organ and a beat. "Sonde In Profondit" opens with samples of a silly song then spoken words as the organ joins in then electronics.The sound of waves ends it. "Morella" is led by piano then this picked ethnic intrument comes in.Vocals after a minute as drums and a fuller sound arrive. Piano only once again then we get some insane laughter around 4 minutes.

The vocals are the toughest thing for me to digest here but they certainly have an original sound.

Pierrot Lunaire continue their esoteric experiments in electronic prog on Gudrun, with synthesisers a greater presence than ever. At points showing the influence of challenging, discomforting electronic artists such as Richard Pinhas of Heldon, the album mingles a Tangerine Dream/Klaus Schulze style of electronic music with Italian folk elements to create a mix which will not to be every listener's taste, and if I'm honest isn't to my taste. But at the same time, I can see that the album will appeal a lot to those who become accustomed to its unique and different flavour. Three stars seem the right pick to make - I don't think you'd be absolutely missing out if you skip over this one but if the experiment it embodies sounds like it might appeal to you then go for it.

An easy listen as far as 'out there' experimental 1970's bands go. This appeared on the 'Nurse With Wound List' in 1980 and is the sole the reason I discovered this album.

'Gudrun' has some commendable high points that are nullified by other parts. This is a real hit and miss affair. Track 4 is a real cracker in the form of 'Giovane Madre' which sounds more 60's psychedelia than '76 prog.

Jacqueline Darby's unfeasibly high pitched operatic vocals appear and dissipate throughout, but somehow, they gel the whole album together. I always get confused and annoyed by the time 'Plairis D'Amour' appears, where that rank rotten UB40 cover 'Can't help falling in Love' rears it's ugly head, but is sung in an Edith Piaf style that confuses the hell out of me. It leaves me not knowing whether I like this album or not.

An accessible and vaguely tuneful experimental Italian album that just borders the fringes of Prog. I just can't imagine it being anybody's favourite album of all time.

A unique mix of folk, electronic, and avant-garde with operatic vocals.

Definitely one of the most interesting bands to come out of Italy in the '70s, and even into the 21st century, Gudrun remains as one of the most unique albums I've heard. Being drawn to this group by their name and hoping that they sounded nothing like the A. Schoenberg work, I dived right into the first, self-titled track; with the sounds of acoustic piano noodling coupled with German-esque electronic music had me hooked. This first track is oddly one that I can actually compare to another Italian group, Albergo Intergalattico Spaziale, which is also mainly experimental electronic music with operatic vocals.

But immediately following one of the most unique tracks is one of the most beautiful tracks, "Dietro Il Silenzio", which starts off with a metallic Neptune-like intro before turning into one of the most depressingly beautiful piano melodies I've heard by heard that wasn't by F. Chopin.

Also featured on this album are tribal drums, Henry Cow-like noisy guitar playing, occasional folky melodies, and straight-up '70s rock licks. There is no shortage of variety on this album, and the grandiose attitude of it all gives it an undeniable Italian feel. This is what RPI fans should listen to once all of their favorite RPI artists have begun to sound the same; this is where that RPI mentality was taken to its limits.

Gudrun is compelling, unique, bizarre, and beautiful.

Electronic High Priestess

Originally a book by Belgian poet Albert Giraud as well as a musical piece by Schoenberg, Pierrot Lunaire were also an Italian group back in the 70s that dug out a musical path of their own. Whether the name is taken from the melodramatic pantomime figure - or the musical soundtrack to this white painted moon lover - remains to be proven, but everything points in every direction with this group. Literally...

I remember when Jim recommended this album to me a little while back - knowing my affinity for the mad and slightly left-field in music. I heard the opener of Gudrun and was absolutely floored! I felt this deep tingling tickling sensation inside me - like a musical salamander dancing in my stomach. Sure thing - I knew I had to get my hands on this record.

Gudrun is a remarkable record - one that fluctuates between electronics, folk and avant guarde tendencies without ever loosing a certain 'togetherness' - that unique musical core. Take the opening track here simply called Gudrun. This one throws it all on the table with extensive usage of caterpillar electronics with a hovering characteristic to them that more than anything remind me of Franco Battiato's early albums. In fact, most of this album wouldn't feel out of place snuggled up against a warm fire with those first 4 Battiato albums - sipping grappa and telling stories of once great pasta cooks and the fabulous night life of Venice.

Add to the worming synthesizers a serrated clean operatic voice executing some creepy and foreboding vocals - like a high priestess with her finger stuck in an electric socket whilst serenading a sailor's crotch. Some weird constellation anywho... And wam bam thank you mam: You've got Gudrun! (weirdly enough that sounds uncannily like the name of a Danish milkmaid from the 19th century...)

These convoluted ramblings probably explain Gudrun pretty well - apart for my rather ridiculous parallels, - but the fluid, expressive and wonderfully progressive usage of electronics this album offers, is really the main deal here. They overtake the folk element of the band, that again much like Battiato's work, tower above any sort of sticker you can throw at them. Then again, it is also the complexity of all the little things here - the way beats and tempers rise ever so slightly - the tempo turning around on its heels for then to run madly in the opposite direction with those Italian operatic female yearnings overhead.

Then all of a sudden you get a familiar feeling listening to Plaisir D'Amour. The melody seems common and right at home, and then bang! you realise that by changing the high pitched female opera singer for a hamburger eating side burn wielding leather wrapped hot dog named Elvis Presley - the tune magically transform into 'I Can't Help Falling in Love with You'..... Yes, this is a rearrangement of the old classic with Italian vocals - a million trillion miles away from home - with a murky, demented fairground feel to it - like had you been sitting with your newly found love in an unstoppable carousel after 4 pounds of bacon soft-ice...

Just like most culinary feats need something that opposes the prevailing ingredients of the dish - something tangy, salty, sweet or hot - this album too holds that little extra that manages to cut through the larval unspecified mush of the synthesizers. Mostly that turns out to be the piano. It splits open the textures of the music - dissects it and then conjures up an idiosyncratic melody line on which the vocals take their cue from. It's not that Gudrun is a lean mean fighting machine - stripped down to a few epochal instruments, -no it is chuck full of exotic and vivacious features such as organ, spinet, cembalo, Glockenspiel, acoustic guitar, recorder, tambourine, violin, mandoline, harpsichord, Shaj Baja, zither tirolese, sitar and the odd bell chimes - yet it is the alterations between the high priestess, electronics and piano that truly make this album a thing of mad, clumsy and refined elegance.

Recommended to all you pantomime fans out there! Buy this astonishing record instead of your next bash of white make-up. You won't regret it - not even slightly.

Towards the end of 1975 Pierrot Lunaire entered the studio for the recording of a second album.However Vincenzo Caporaletti had already left the band to work as a session musician in the USA, before returning to Italy and participate in several collaborations.Instead of him the remaining duo of Stalteri and Chiocchio recruited Welsh female soprano Jacqueline Darby.The album initially was planed to be released in 1976 on the Vista label, eventually it came out a year later on It label, entitled ''Gudrun'' from the eponymous figure of the Norse mythology.

The album is of course centered around the 11-min. self-titled track, a complete Avant- Garde/Folk Rock experience filled with obscure keyboard sounds, wordless vocals, fast piano paces and sound effects, characterized by the impressive voice of Darby and the high level of experimentation and dissonance.The rest of the album contains seven shorter tracks with a diverse but always experimental sound.Most of them are based on Classical Music, Folk Rock and Opera, either driven by Stalteri's piano and organ or the haunting operatic voice of Darby, which is excellent but a bit too excessive for the average music fan.A few of them are closer to traditional Prog sounds like the nice ''Giovane madre'' with the fiery organ work and massive synths' parts of Stalteri along with the great bass/drum support, the dreamy ''Sonde in profonodita'' with its folky atmosphere, characterized by the ethereal acoustic guitars and elegant organ sounds or the delicate ''Morella'', which is closer to Classical Rock with a fine combination of piano, synthesizers and operatic vocal lines.

Pierrot Lunaire disbanded soon after this release with Stalteri releasing the solo album ''Andre sulla luna'' in 1979, while Chiocchio became a musical director for It and was involved in the 80's band Effetto Notte.He, along with Caporaletti, tried to revive Pierrot Lunaire's sound in the 90's, but no recorded tracks were ever released due to his sudden death from heart attack in 1996.The CD ''Tre'' on MP Records from 2011 contains material for a third album scheduled for release in 1978 along with alternate versions and cover songs by contemporary groups of old Pierrot Lunaire material.

''Gudrun'' shows a tendency by this unique band towards more groundbreaking and innovative realms compared to their debut, it still is a good album with plenty of interesting parts, but its more experimental moments are really hard to get into.Recommended overall.

PIERROT LUNAIRE started out as a more normal Italian folk band when it released its first eponymous album in 1974 but after a few years when the more adventurous side of progressive music was waning rather than waxing the band took the absolute opposite approach and created a more experimental, avant-garde and progressive approach with their 2nd album GUDRUN. Despite the folk aspect being weirded out to the nth degree it is still to be found alternating with strange electronic embellishments, diva soprano vocals and a healthy dose of the avant-garde without overdosing on any particular element. In fact, the whole thing comes together quite well despite there being seemingly totally disparate sounds fighting for dominance at any given moment. Once usurpation of a particular sound or style has settled in, thankfully is allowed to run its course before the next one intervenes the possible boredom that could occur if allowed to ramble beyond its approved time slot.

The band took their name from the famous classical composition by Arnold Schoenberg, who is known for his avant-garde approach to classical music incorporating atonality and developed the twelve-tone technique. Likewise with the band's namesake, they utilize the avant-garde to really spice up their folk influences to the point it doesn't often sound like folk anymore. This is one of those albums where you can put aside any expectations of what you think will happen and just surrender to the music and let PIERROT LUNAIRE do the driving. You do have to put on your seat belts because they do come awfully close to driving off the cliffs yet always at the nick of time are saved by a mysterious chimera pushing the brake pedal. I am very intrigued by this album to say the least. It nourishes my inner freak-a-zoid like very few albums can. The fact is that there is really nothing else that i've personally heard that sounds anything even close to this one. The weirdness and the accessible play together like a tiger and a lamb giving the impression of eminent mortality but always emerging unexpectedly in a truce between the polar opposites. A must-hear for all you demented sonic sluts who just can't satiate your appetite for the weirdest and wildest that experimental music has to offer.