FunkFreak75 The second AREA album I'd ever heard (after Arbeit Macht Frei), there was so powerful of an impression made on me by this latter album that I failed to follow up by exploring other AREA albums for years. Luckily, I got unstuck and moved outward, into the band's other discography. Coming two years and one album after Arbeit (with Caution Radiation Area having been released in 1974), the growth in musicianship, studio mastery, and tightened song-writing skills is quite noticeable here. While Arbeit shocked with musical and lyrical force and brashness (it was the band's debut release), Crac! supplies proof that this band is not just a political force but that it must be looked at and respected from a musicianship perspective as well. It is an album of astounding musicianship--virtuoso performances that rival anything else the jazz or jazz fusion worlds has ever created. The amazing thing is that this album stands up perfectly even today--it sounds as if it could have been made today. I will go even farther as to say that this album exceeds my heretofore respect and reverence for all-things Mahavishnu as I think the sound engineering and overall production far surpass those of any of the Mahavishnu Orchestra albums. And the musicians and compositions are so tight! Thus, I find myself wanting to proclaim Crac! as perhaps the best jazz-rock fusion album of all-time! And drummer Giulio Capiozzo may be the best jazz-rock fusion drummer I've ever heard!

1. "L'elefante bianco" (4:33) Demetrio's powerful voice opens the album right in your face as he and piano declare their intentions. By the end of the first minute we've apparently heard enough from Demetrio for the song catapults into a kind of jazzy version of fast-paced folk theme. At 2:30 we return to piano and voice, but this time the band gradually joins in and builds up into a modern rock variation of that amphetamine-laced Middle Eastern-tinged folk (or is it classical?) theme. Excellent musicianship and a great opener. (9/10)

2. "La mela di Odessa" (6:27) opens with a kind of SUN RA-spacey free-form jazz sound and style, that moves quickly into a drum and percussion display before harpsichord, Arp synth and electric bass join in and move the song into structure and drive. Nice TONY WILLIAMS/MAHAVISHNU feel to this one until, after 3:10, things shift to funk land. The clavinet, synths and horns are prominent along with Demetrio's commanding Zappa-like vocal performance--all in spoken form. So tight! Drummer Giulio Capiozzo is extraordinary (as is Demetrio). (9.25/10)

3. "Megalopoli" (7:53) opens with some play on the Arp synthesizer before Demetrio joins in with multiple tracks of his voice free-styling. Electric piano and bass clarinet join in the atmospheric play before a drum roll takes us out and into a new funky jazz excursion with a great melodic base. Demetrio's wordless vocal scatting over the top is, at first, like a substitute for a lead guitar or sax, but then gives way to an extraordinary jam between drums, bass, electric piano, organ, and synth. The Mahavishnu Orchestra was never this tight or well recorded! Incredible drumming! Why is this guy never included in the talk of the greatest of the greats? (15/15)

4. "Nervi Scoperti" (6:35) Every time I hear this song I think I am listening to one of the all-time greatest prog fusion songs ever created and that, thus, it has to be a product of Corea/RTF, Miles, Mahavishnu, Cobham, Williams, Weather Report, or even a straight jazz genius. But it's not. It's AREA! Astounding, stupendous, incredible, jaw-dropping performances from everybody in the band. What a band! This one deserves extra-credit for being exactly what I said: one of the very best jazz fusion songs of all-time. (11/10)

5. "Gioia e rivoluzione" (4:40) opens like a JOHN COLTRANE, TEMPTATIONS or MAGMA song before switching radically to an acoustic guitar-based, countrified jam. The lyric of Demetrio's vocal throughout is obviously meant to be the center of attention. Otherwise, it is an okay pop song for delivery to the common folk. (8.5/10)

6. "Implosion" (5:00) a little more Zawinal/Weather Report-ish than the previous jazz fusion masterpiece. More melodic and showcasing of individuals (especially the extraordinary bass player, Ares Tavolazzi). (10/10)

7. "Area 5" (2:09) an ejaculatory expression of free-form improvisational jazz. (4/5)

An album of astounding musicianship--virtuoso performances that rival anything else the jazz or jazz fusion worlds has ever created. The amazing thing is that this album stands up perfectly even today--it sounds as if it could have been made today.

A/five stars; a true masterpiece of jazz-directed progressive rock music--mostly cutting edge jazz fusion. Amazing! Definitely one of my Top 10 Jazz-Rock Fusion Albums of the "Classic Era."

siLLy puPPy After the bleak (but brilliant) CAUTION RADIATION album, AREA return to an even more accessible sound started on their debut album. Well, accessible AREA style. Still not the easiest of listening but at least they have a template of musical scales that you can get into including the signature Macedonian scales and even some progressive funk on “L'elefante Bianco.”

This album is more about crafting cohesive songs and less about lurking into the free-jazz-fusion experimentation although some of the experiments from CAUTION are incorporated. This album is another winner for me. It's as tight as ever and Demetrio Stratos' vocal skills are still incredible (which we get more of this time.)

This is the album that made them popular in Italy and this is also the album that extended their music into France. This was also the first part of their existence where they benefited from a stable lineup (considered the classic period) that allowed them to tour. This is by far their easiest album to like on the first spin so if you are totally new to this band, CRAC! may be a better entry to this band's discography than even the impressive debut album.

Warthur Area's Crac! finds the band integrating the experimental approach of some tracks on Caution Radiation Area with their established fusion style, creating an interesting clash with Patrizio Fariselli's synths intruding on the band's fusion workouts. The result is a more compelling and successful blend than the preceding album, where the experimental tracks and the fusion tracks were carefully partitioned off from each other and the avant-garde experiments were significantly less listenable. Fast, furious, and with a hint of funk on the side, Crac! is definitely not a typical RPI album so you may want to tread carefully if you're expecting pastoral prog in the style of PFM or Banco, but fusion fans will find a lot to like here.

Sean Trane Do not be afraid of the title under their name where they describe themselves as "International POPular group", they meant this in a leftist view. Area could not be further away from pop music. This second effort is in the line of the debut masterpiece and is just as influential! We are still talking in a strange mix of jazz-rock-fusion laced with Canterbury influences and slightly RIO although this will be much more evident in the following Caution Radiation Area album. Traces of Gentle Giant influences are also evident. Elephante Bianco reminds me of a cross between Mahavishnu and Soft Machine, while the second and third tracks are more in the line of funky jazz-rock much because of the bass lines. IMHO the most interesting track is Nervi Scoperti that plays with the boundaries of dissonant music between harmony and dissonance like a tightrope walker (much the way John Coltrane did with Meditations and First Meditations albums).

A short but very joyfull and very vocal track before Implosion (my fave on this album) and an excursion into RIO-free jazz round-up an other well-worth-seeking-for album!

MEMBERS LOGIN ZONEAs a registered member (register here if not), you can post rating/reviews (& edit later), comments reviews and submit new albums.

You are not logged, please complete authentication before continuing (use forum credentials).