POA

Clocking in at around 40 minutes, this one-off album from the obscure Blocco Mentale is one of the most underrated Italian Prog LPs ever. Released in 1973 "POA" is a unique sounding listen, with many amazing keyboard and vocal notes. The band includes Aldo Angeletti (bass), Michele Arena (drums), Gigi "Roso" Bianchi (guitar), Filippo Lazzari (keyboards and harmonica), and Dino Finocchi (sax and flute). All of the band members provide vocals throughout the album. Blocco Mentale was a very openly "green" band and wrote most of their lyrics and based their album on nature. This results in some amazing pastoral work on the album.

The album opens with the almost 5-minute "Capita." The opening riff of high-intensity sax and organ soon subsides into a beautiful acoustic guitar and vocal section. As a five-piece band, the band does an awesome job of incorporating every instrument, in their passages. The song is a roller coaster of pastoral sections and classic prog progressions. Toward the end, the song settles back into the acoustic passage from the start and closes. Starting in the same key, "Aria e Mele," is a sweltering saxophone and keys masterclass. Filippo Lazzari's organ, piano, and Moog arrangments sound perfect on this track. The jam progresses amazingly up until the 1:45 mark when vocals finally enter, though they are systematically cut off by cut-throat guitar and drums. My only critique is the seemingly repetitive nature of the song, and I feel they could've spiced it up a little. The album's opus, "Impressioni" opens with a haunting mellotron which is soon accompanied by acoustic guitar and flute. Sitting at a cool 8:27 minutes, the song is a show of pure musicianship and talented songwriting. After 3:00 the beautiful vocals enter and the song takes a turn for a major key. The song includes some amazing harmonies, but at around the 6:00 mark, it starts rockin'. The sax and organ chemistry between Lazzari and Finocchi is extraordinary during this period, and they navigate through complex time signatures and progressions seamlessly.

Side 2 opens with the unique and beautiful "Io E Me," one of the rare instances of a harmonica being used in prog. The song centers around blissful guitar and harmonica progressions with chill percussion and vocals. Mellotron and Piano take the acoustic ballad into the closing section with lush harmonies and organ. The track comes to an end with a joint harmonica and electric guitar solo that stops abruptly. The next song is "La Nuova Forza" a very Le Orme-esque track with heavy drums and organ. The beginning contains lots of organ that transitions into a flute and Moog riff which is one of the recurring themes on the album. The high intensity of the riff soon turns acoustic with dreamy vocals and guitar coupled with Lazzari's echoing organ. The progression soon settles on a decrescendoing theme which goes through many movements throughout the 7:38 minute song. It's honestly one of the hardest songs to analyze because of its length, lack of movements, and the fact that it's all over the place. The main theme returns nearly 5 minutes with a beautiful mellotron and gives way to the refrain for the rest of the track and fades out.

Suddenly, the aptly titled "Ritorno" (which translates directly to "Return") comes back with the riff from the beginning of "La Nuova Forza," but after about 30 seconds Emersonian piano enters for one of the passages on the album from Lazzari. The song enters the verse and leads into the powerful chorus with stunning vocals. At around the 3:40 mark of the 5:00 song the analog synths and high intensity enters after a jazzy guitar solo. After a minute of this progression, the song returns to the main riff from the album opener "Capita" to close out the track! The album closes with the 4:00 "Verde," as the seventh track. The song has an overall vibe that sums up the album beautifully with masterfully humble yet complex instrumentation. The trademark harmonies are very apparent in this song, and the chorus is stunning. Lazzari pulls out every trick in the book whether it be piano, Moog, or mellotron on this track to close out the album.

This album deserves much more recognition in the community and is criminally underrated as a whole. The flute and sax work from Dino Finocchi is on point as with the vocal effort by the band, but the real mastermind of this LP is the keyboardist Fillipo Lazzari who puts on a show. Sadly, he died in 1991 in a car accident on his way to a gig, without ever reaching mainstream success with any of his works (which is a crime in and of itself). I give this album a solid 4 stars, and I have nothing bad to say about it. The only reason it isn't a five-star is that I think that other RPI albums such as "Per un Amico" and Banco's original trilogy are on a different level and thus the rating would not match. Highly recommended to all fans of prog and music alike due to the inherent accessibility of this album.