Goblin: Roller 1976 + Suspiria 1977

 

Goblin are an Italian symphonic/experimental band that evolved out of Cherry Five during the mid-1970s. Between 1975 and 1983, the band released three proper albums and more than 10 soundtracks on Cinevox. The fact that Goblin is an Italian progressive rock band already makes them

somewhat unique, but they also pursued an intriguingly unorthodox career path, recording the majority of their music for horror film soundtracks, many with director Dario Argento. Internationally, they're probably best known for their work on the Night of the Living Dead sequel Dawn of the Dead (where they were credited as the Goblins), though their work on Profondo Rosso (aka Deep Red) and Suspiria is generally more acclaimed.
                   

Formed in 1972, Goblin's roots lie in several other Italian prog rock bands of the time. Keyboardist and bandleader Claudio Simonetti and original drummer Walter Martino both played in Ritratto di Dorian

Gray, guitarist and occasional vocalist Massimo Morante was part of Era di Acquario, and bassist Fabio Pignatelli had been in Rivelazioni. With vocalist Tony Tartarini, the group initially dubbed themselves the Cherry Five and played British-style progressive rock in the vein of Yes, Genesis, and ELP. They signed with the Italian Cinevox label and issued a self-titled debut in 1975, which performed disappointingly.
                   

It did, however, catch the ear of film director Dario Argento, who contacted Cinevox after becoming dissatisfied with the jazzy work being done on his Profondo Rosso by composer Giorgio Gaslini. The Cherry Five rechristened themselves Goblin (in keeping with the horror movie theme), kept a small

portion of Gaslini's work, and completely redid the remainder of the score in a heavier, harder-rocking style. The results helped make the film a hit, and the soundtrack album topped the Italian charts. Just as the group was about to begin a supporting tour to consolidate its unexpected success, Martino and Tartarini departed, the former to start his own band (Libra); he was replaced by Agostino Marangolo, who had previously drummed in Flea and Etna.
                     

The quartet's next project was a non-soundtrack album titled Roller, released in 1976 and featuring a

more traditional prog rock sound, as well as second keyboardist Maurizio Guarini. The group, however, was unhappy with both the results and the label's promotional efforts, and nearly disbanded. Intervention by Argento smoothed things over, and he put Goblin to work creating a new soundtrack; this time, he shot the film only after hearing the music.
             

The result, 1977's Suspiria, became Goblin's most acclaimed work, combining the band's heavy

riffing and busy drum work with more eerie electronics than ever before, plus sinister experimental vocal effects. The film and soundtrack were both hits, and the Goblin/Argento partnership was firmly established. The band worked on over a dozen film soundtracks over the next two years.
                    

GOBLIN - ROLER 1976

                             

Goblin followed up the impressive Italian success of Profondo Rosso with one of the few non-soundtrack items in their catalog. Despite this fact, Roller finds the group's trademark mixture of prog rock complexity and horror movie atmospherics very much intact: The title track builds from staccato

piano passages into an epic riff powered by electric guitar and cathedral-style organ, while "Goblin" is an epic of prog fireworks that works in an array of complex solos from each of the group's members. The album also introduces a surprisingly gentle side to the group's sound through "Aquaman" and "Il Risveglio Del Serpente," two cuts that exchange the electric guitars and synthesizer excursions that dominate much of the album for quiet, delicate interplay between acoustic guitar and electric piano.
                    

However, the most surprising cut on the album is "Snip Snap," which temporarily puts aside the rest of

the album's overt prog rock style to create a funky excursion that starts with an infectious clavinet riff and builds into a spacey slice of funk drenched in synthesizer effect. The end result is a strong album that consolidates the jazzy prog rock theatrics that made Profondo Rosso so impressive while also working in unexpected elements that flesh their sound out in new and interesting ways. In short, Roller is a necessity for Goblin fans and is an album that's also likely to appeal to fans of European prog rock.

                          

Goblin – Roller
Label: Cinevox Record – CD MDF 634
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered, Stereo 2008
Country: Italy
Released: 1976
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock

TRACKS

                  

01. Roller    4:38
02. Aquaman    5:22
03. Snip-Snap    3:35
04. Il Risveglio Del Serpente    3:27
05. Goblin    11:07
06. Dr. Frankenstein    5:51

LINE - UP

                     

Agostino Marangolo: drums, percussion, vocals
Massimo Morante: Electric guitars, acoustic guitars, vocals
Fabio Pignatelli: Fender Precision Bass (fretless), Rickenbacker bass (fretted), tabla, acoustic guitar, vocals
Claudio Simonetti: Mellotron (presets: 3-Violins, church organ and 8-Choir), Elka organ, Logan violin, Celesta, Fender Rhodes electric piano, grand piano, Moog synthesizers (Minimoog and System 55)

Flac Size: 256 MB

GOBLIN - SUSPIRIA 1977 (40th ANNIVERSARY DIGITAL EDITION) 2017

                  

This stunning soundtrack from 1977 is the favorite of many a Goblin fan because it represents their sound carried to its most powerful and intense extremes. Suspiria was another score for their cinematic

alter ego, director Dario Argento, and backed up the story of a girl who enrolls in a German dance academy only to discover it is a cover for a powerful coven of witches. The music is just as scary as the film itself, blending wailing electric guitar, whooping synthesizers, and screaming wordless cries into a spooky, bombastic sound that manages to be terrifying even without the benefit of the film's gruesome images.
                 

Suspiria has long been popular with heavy metal fans because it sports a hard-rocking edge equal in

intensity to the scariest works of Black Sabbath or King Diamond: the title theme slowly builds a spooky riff on bells, acoustic guitar, and synthesizer until it erupts into a hard-rocking mid-section where nimble synthesizer solos spar with ghostly cries of "Witch! Witch!," and "Sighs" mixes panting, wordless vocals with an array of furious power chords to create an unbearably high level of suspense.
            

Even when the score downplays the gothic rock theatrics on subtler tracks like "Black Forest" and

"Blind Concert," the group's members still manage to create an intensely creepy atmosphere. The end result is an album that is guaranteed to please Goblin fans and is highly likely to appeal to fans of gothic and heavy metal sounds. [Collector's note: the 1997 CD reissue of Suspiria sports four bonus tracks, consisting of three alternate version of "Suspiria" and a slightly different version of "Markos."]
                   

Goblin – Suspiria 40th ANNIVERSARY EDITION
Label: Cinevox Record – BX MDF 002/a
Format:    CD, Album, Reissue, Limited Edition, Numbered, 40th Anniversary Edition Version Oct 31, 2017
Country: Italy
Released: 1976, Stage & Screen
Style: Soundtrack, Prog Rock, Experimental

ORIGINAL ALBUM

                      
              

01. Suspiria    6:01
02. Witch    3:13
03. Opening to the Sighs    0:32
04. Sighs    5:16
05. Markos    4:05
06. Black Forest    6:08
07. Blind Concert    6:16
08. Death Valzer    1:51

40th Anniversary Edition bonus tracks

          

  
09. Suspiria (Celesta and Bells)    1:3
10. Dario Argento Speaks About the Genesis of the Soundtrack   0:35    
11. Suspiria (Narration)    1:50
12. Suspiria (Intro)    0:34
13. Agostino Marangolo Speaks About the Differences Between Suspiria and Profondo Rosso    0:36
14. Claudio Simonetti Speaks About the Main Theme    0:32
15. Markos (alternate version)    4:12
16. Massimo Morante Speaks About the Use of the Bouzouki    0:58
17. Fabio Pignatelli Speaks About Experimentation in Music    0:32
18. Suspiria (alternate take)    3:51
19. Suspiria (Intro #2)    0:31
20. Suspiria (Main Titles)    1:00
21. Witch (Film Version)    2:40
22. Markos (Alternate Version #2)    1:43

LINE - UP

               

Agostino Marangolo: drums, percussion, vocals
Massimo Morante: Electric guitars, acoustic guitars, bouzouki, vocals
Fabio Pignatelli: Fender Precision Bass (fretless), Rickenbacker bass (fretted), tabla, acoustic guitar, vocals
Claudio Simonetti: Mellotron (presets: 3-Violins, church organ and 8-Choir), Elka organ, Logan violin, Celesta, Fender Rhodes electric piano, grand piano, Moog synthesizers (Minimoog and System 55)

ADDITIONAL MUSICIANS

              

Antonio Marangolo: Saxophone (on "Black Forest")
Maurizio Guarini (uncredited): Additional keyboards, including the Moog synthesizers and other keyboards listed on Roller

Flac Size: 336 MB

Goblin: Deep Red (Profondo Rosso) on Urban Aspirines HERE

Goblin: O.S.T - Profondo Rosso (Deep Red) 1975

Goblin (also Back to the Goblin, New Goblin, Goblin Rebirth, the Goblin Keys, The Goblins and

Claudio Simonetti's Goblin) is an Italian progressive rock band known for their soundtrack work. They frequently collaborate with Dario Argento, most notably creating soundtracks for Profondo Rosso in 1975 and Suspiria in 1977. CD re-releases of their soundtracks have performed well, especially in Germany and Japan. Goblin returned with a series of live concerts in Europe in 2009 and in North America in 2013.
                                                                           

Initially recording as Cherry Five (they had done some live gigs as Oliver), their early work spawned

one eponymous progressive rock record, and they were then called in to compose the soundtrack for Profondo Rosso. The band changed their name to Goblin, rewriting most of the score, originally written by Giorgio Gaslini including the famous main theme. The 1975 soundtrack album was a huge hit. After a reshuffle in their line-up, they put out an instrumental progressive rock album Roller, before working with Argento again for 1977's Suspiria.
                                                                                                

Other film soundtracks and a concept album (Il Fantastico Viaggio Del Bagarozzo Mark) followed, then the score for the European version of George A. Romero's 1978 Dawn of the Dead. In both this and Suspiria's opening title sequences, they are credited as "The Goblins with Dario Argento". Tracks 1, 2 and 7 from the European version are also in the American version of the film.
                                                                           

Despite their success, membership continued to be a revolving door. The remaining members continued to work on further soundtracks, and there was a partial reunification of three of the four band-members for Argento's Tenebrae (1982), the album was credited to the three band-members, not as Goblin. The last collaboration with Argento took place in 2001, with the film Sleepless.
                                                                                       

At the beginning of 1975, the band began a cooperation with Giorgio Gaslini on the Profondo rosso film project. The band replaced Martino (who went on to join the band Libra) with Agostino Marangolo (of the band Flea on the Honey/Flea/Etna) during this period. Martino recorded on all but two cuts of Profondo rosso.
                                                                                      

By chance, after three or four days of recording, Gaslini left the film after a conflict with Dario Argento, so Argento decided to try the band's hand at composing, giving them one night to write a

score, and one day to record it. To distinguish this new release from their first LP which was just about to be marketed, the band changed their name again, this time to Goblin. Their success exceeded all expectations: more than one million copies sold, enjoying 52 weeks on the Italian hit charts and ranking first in both the singles and LP categories. It launched a highly successful period for the band, which came to an end in 1978 when the band split after the recording of Dario Argento's cut of George Romero's Zombi (also known as Dawn of the Dead). (On the score for the European version of the soundtrack, they were credited as "The Goblins.")
                                                                      

The soundtrack to the film Deep Red was mainly composed and performed by Goblin. Director Dario Argento had originally contacted jazz pianist and composer Giorgio Gaslini to score the film, but he

was unhappy with his output, deeming it "awful". After failing to get Pink Floyd to write music for the film, Argento turned back to Italy and found Goblin. In the final score, only three of Gaslini's original themes were retained; however, in the film's original theatrical release, Gaslini was given full composer credit for the entire score, while Goblin were wrongly credited only as performers [i.e. "Music by Giorgio Gaslini, performed by Goblin"].
                                                                        

[ AllMusic Review by Donald A. Guarisco  [-]

This 1975 soundtrack made an impressive debut for Goblin, a legendary group of Italian soundtrack specialists. Originally known as "the Cherry Five," this quintet was commissioned by Italian director

Dario Argento to create a soundtrack for his terrifying thriller Profondo Rosso. The resulting album took the group to the top of the Italian charts and helped them build a worldwide cult reputation. Profondo Rosso is an ambitious affair that blends jazz, prog rock, and heavy metal into an effective and totally distinctive style. The title track is an impressive exercise in dynamics, building tension as it moves back and forth between a quiet, intricate riff doubled on acoustic guitar and keyboard, with a full-blooded variation of that theme led by surging, gothic-sounding organ.
                                                                              

Other highlights include "Death Dies," a frantic piece of jazz whose pounding piano riff was later

sampled by Beck, and "Mad Puppet," an atmospheric excursion that slowly adds layers of keyboard to a hypnotic, serpentine bass riff. However, the cut that prog buffs will probably like most is "Deep Shadows," a frenetic slice of King Crimson-style jazz-rock that slows down midway for a dazzling mid-tempo section where a mesmerizing rolling piano line duels it out with snaky solos from the bass and electric guitar. All in all, Profondo Rosso is a powerful album that will appeal to both soundtrack fans and prog rock addicts.]
                                                                           

Deep Red (Italian: Profondo rosso), also known as The Hatchet Murders, is a 1975 Italian giallo film directed by Dario Argento and co-written by Argento and Bernardino Zapponi. It stars David Hemmings as a musician who investigates a series of murders performed by a mysterious figure wearing black leather gloves. The cast also stars Daria Nicolodi (Argento's then-wife), Gabriele Lavia, Macha Meril, and Clara Calamai.
                                                                       

The film was released during the height of the "giallo craze" of Italian popular cinema, and was a critical and commercial success. Retrospective reviews have been equally positive, and the film is considered one of the genre's definitive entries, as well as one of Argento's best works.
                                                                    

The film was shot mainly on-location in Turin in sixteen weeks. Additional scenes were shot in Rome

and Perugia. Argento chose Turin because at the time there were more practising Satanists there than in any other European city, excluding Lyon. He had previously shot parts of The Cat o' Nine Tails (1971) in the city. Filming locations included Santa Costanza Church and Teatro Carignano.
Deep Red was released in Milan and Rome in Italy on 7 March 1975. In the United States, the film first premiered in New York City on 9 June 1976 and saw a wide theatrical release on 11 June 1976 by the defunct US independent film distributor Howard Mahler Films. The film was once again re-released and re-titled in the US on 18 January 1980, as The Hatchet Murders.

TRACKS

CD1. Original album release (1975)

01. Profondo Rosso – 4:56
02. Death Dies – 4:42
03. Mad Puppet – 5:50
04. Wild Session – 4:59
05. Deep Shadows – 5:46
06. School at Night – 2:05
07. Gianna – 1:52

Tracks 1–3 are composed and performed by Goblin (Simonetti, Morante, Pignatelli, Martino); tracks 4 & 5 are composed by Giorgio Gaslini and performed by Goblin; tracks 6 & 7 are composed, orchestrated and conducted by Giorgio Gaslini.

MP3 @ 320 Size: 72.3 MB
Flac  Size: 165 MB

CD2.

 

In 2005, for the film's 30th anniversary, the complete film soundtrack was re-released on CD by Cinevox, under the supervision of Claudio Simonetti. This release includes all the music featured in the film, as well as a remix of the main theme and two sound effects tracks from the film itself. The track list for this CD is as follows. (Takes Alternativi E Versioni Films)

01. Mad Puppets Laughs (Opening Intro)     0:21
02. School At Night (Lullaby - Child Version)     2:15
03. Profondo Rosso (Jazz Source #1)     1:14
04. Profondo Rosso (Paura)     1:49
05. Profondo Rosso (Paura #2)     1:00
06. School At Night (Lullaby - Instrumental Version     2:16
07. Profondo Rosso (Paura #3)     1:27
08. School At Night     2:30
09. Profondo Rosso (Paura #4)     1:05
10. School At Night (#2)     0:53
11. School At Night (Lullaby - Celesta Version)     2:29
12. Profondo Rosso (Paura #5)     0:40
13. Gianna (#2)     2:14
14. Death Dies (Film Version)     2:43
15. Profondo Rosso (Jazz Flute)     0:45
16. Profondo Rosso (Jazz Source #2)     5:15
17. Deep Shadows (Film Version)     1:54
18. Profondo Rosso (Paura #6)     2:21
19. Death Dies (Film Version #2)     2:43
20. Profondo Rosso (Jazz Source #3)     0:36
21. Deep Shadows (Film Version #2)     1:48
22. School At Night (Lullaby - Music Box Version)     2:47
23. Profondo Rosso (Jazz Source #4)     0:28
24. Deep Shadows (Film Version #3)     0:33
25. Death Dies (Film Version #3)     2:19
26. Profondo Rosso (Jazz Flute #2)     0:37
27. School At Night (Lullaby - Echo Version)     2:26
28. Profondo Rosso (Remix Version)     5:13
29. Profondo Rosso (Original Sound Effect)     4:02

MP3 @ 320 Size: 136 MB
Flac  Size: 316 MB

Personnel

                                                                  

Walter Martino – drums, percussion
Massimo Morante – electric guitars, acoustic guitars, bouzouki, vocals
Fabio Pignatelli – Fender Precision Bass (fretless), Rickenbacker bass (fretted), tabla, acoustic guitar, vocals
Claudio Simonetti – Mellotron (presets: 3-violins, church organ and 8-choir), Elka organ, Logan violin, Celesta, Fender Rhodes electric piano, grand piano, harpsichord, Moog synthesizers (Minimoog and System 55)
Giorgio Gaslini – orchestra conductor/arranger
Giorgio Agazzi – recording engineer