L'ISOLA DI NIENTE

The last truly classic PFM album, L'Isola di Niente was released in 1974 and it is truly their most ambitious release to date. Opening with the title track, we are greeted with a huge church-like choir echoing a capella (an odd and daring choice for sure), it shifts to uncharacteristic crashing chords and the nimble bass of Patrick Djivas (recently pooched from the seminal band Area). Crisply recorded the song veers between flickers of Genesis, Yes and King Crimson that really don't sound as much like their influences as a synthesis that is now fully original. This is one of the better and more representative songs in their repertoire and it transitions through acoustic sections to electric sections smoothly. Echoes of Fripp from Franco Mussida over a delicate arpeggiation take us out. Second song Is My Face on Straight is the lone English lyric song on the album and sounds closer to the songwriting on their next album, Chocolate Kings. Some might find this the weak point of the album as it could sit comfortably on the second Kansas album. But with flute and convoluted bass and drum interplay-nobody is mistaking this for Kansas. Awkward lyrics that seem like this is the sequel to Mr. 9 to 5 are one of the drawbacks (it's sometimes an advantage to speak little Italian-as subpar lyrics still sound magical!). Instruments fade as the vocals repeat the question 'Is my face on straight?' to side one's fade out.

Side two begins with the violin and percussion invitation to the dance-the distinctly tarantella infused La Luna Nuova (oddly retitled Four Holes in the Ground for their US/UK release). The repeating figure gives way to a joyous synth line rivaling the seminal E Festa (or Celebration in the States). This song is one of their epics-it builds from simplest to complex very quickly in several movements. Yes fans will resonate with this song that has sweeping slow mellotron lines that underpin convoluted synth, bass, guitar and drums chasing each other in something that could have been an outtake from Relayer. Dizzyingly good stuff. This is the one tune I'd play first for any prog fans trying to dip their toes into RPI. Second song on side two is the genteel and delicate Dolcissima Maria -an acoustic guitar and flute ballad that again has some Fripp-like leads (this time the jazzy first album stylings). It leads to an instrumental outtro melody that is one of their signature themes, and one of the only times I've seen people sing along with a song that has no words Final song Via Lumiere is the jazziest this band ever got close to with a bass solo intro from DJivas that veers into a quiet Weather Report section before Mussida and Pagani introduce a violin and electric guitar duet over complex drums from Di Coccio. Electric piano keeps a faint jazzrock vibe underneath as Djivas introduces some Chris Squire impressions on bass as the band heads off into the sunset with an elegiac touch. This instrumental song is another tune I'd play for non RPI prog fans.

Overall, this album is vastly superior to the US/UK version and is well worth tracking down. I'd only owned the US version on vinyl until I recently ran across a late 70's repress on Numero Uno. The sound quality is light years beyond my US copy of The World Became the World. Djivas' abilities on bass give the band yet another weapon in their bag of tricks to make this PFM's most varied and dangerous album in their whole catalogue. Its release in the UK (and minimally in the States) as an aforementioned drastically different version with English lyrics from Peter Sinfield is easier to find. HIghly recommended-one of the best albums from one of the best bands to ever come from Italy. This one transcends RPI and belongs with the best of all 70's prog. Five stars