01	Luglio, Agosto, Settembre (Nero)						04:27
	02	Arbeit Macht Frei						08:00
	03	Consapevolezza						06:10
	04	Le Labbra Del Tempo						06:04
	05	240 Chilometri Da Smirne						05:15
	06	L'Abbattimento Dello Zeppelin						06:52

Arbeit macht frei (il lavoro rende liberi) 1973

Testi: Frankenstein
Musica: Fariselli
Editore: Cramps/Milano
Produzione: Area


1a parte

Luglio, agosto, settembre (nero) (4'00")
Arbeit macht frei (7'56")
Consapevolezza (6'06")

2a parte

Le labbra del tempo (6'00")
240 chilometri da Smirne (5'15")
L'abbattimento dello Zeppelin (6'52")



Ance: Victor Edouard Busnello
Percussioni: Giulio Capiozzo
Basso/Contrabbasso: Yan Patrick Ehrard Djivas
Piano/Piano elettrico: Patrizio Fariselli
Organo/Voce/Steel drums: Demetrio Statos
Chitarra/VCS3: Paolo Tofani




Art Director: Gianni Sassi
Designer: Edoardo Sivelli
Fotografo: Fabio Simion
Media effects: al.sa sas





Meccanico del suono: Gaetano Ria
Sala di registrazione: Fonorama c.a.r. /Milano
Voce araba recitante: registrazione pirata in un museo del Cairo

Esperti collegati: Marco M. Sigiani, Francesco Siliato, Massimo Villa, Paolo Giaccio, Maria Vittoria Carloni





Artist

AREA

1973:
Demetrio Stratos (vocals, organ, percussion)
Paolo Tofani (guitar, synth)
Victor Busnello (sax)
Patrizio Fariselli (keyboards)
Patrick Djivas (bass)
Giulio Capiozzo (drums, percussion)

from 1974:
Busnello and Djivas left, added:
Ares Tavolazzi (bass)


Area (international popular group), as the cover of their first album says, were in fact an international group, with greek singer Demetrio Stratos coming from the beat group I Ribelli, french bass player Djivas and belgian sax player Busnello.
The first line-up, in 1972, also included pianist Leandro Gaetano and guitarist Johnny Lambizzi, the latter soon replaced by Paolo Tofani, that had the longest musical experience, having played in Samurai along with Formula Tre keyboardist Gabriele Lorenzi, I Califfi and Noi Tre, that also included future Triade bass player Agostino Nobile.

Arbeit macht frei is an essential album in the italian rock of the 70's, full of different influences yet totally original in its sound. Stratos' voice is stunning, used like an instrument, and the backing band is powerful, formed by top quality and inventive musicians. Some jazz and eastern folklore influences are easily distinguished, and the music is not easy to categorise. The group image is characterised by the style of Cramps label designer Gianni Sassi, that adds a distinctive visual style to their music.

Second LP, Caution radiation area, is more experimental with tracks like Lobotomia and ZYG (Crescita zero) that show strong free-jazz influences.
The following album, Crac, released the same year, returns to a more prog style, with some of their best rock tracks in Gioia e rivoluzione and L'elefante bianco, yet retaining the long instrumental parts that were the group's trademark.

The strong political influences in Area music emerge in their rendition of the popular socialist hymn L'internazionale, released as a single in 1974 and a concert classic, as demonstrated in the 1975 live LP Are(a)zione.

1976 sees a radical turn in the group's style, with the help of external musicians such as sax player Steve Lacy and percussionist Paul Lytton, playing in Maledetti. The band is turning toward jazz and the following albums, even the posthumous live recordings from 1976 tours seem to demonstrate it. Maledetti is the last chapter in the long Area/Cramps connection, with the group signing a recording deal with Ascolto and releasing less important albums at the end of the 70's.

Demetrio Stratos died in 1979, probably one of the most important singers and music researchers of all the italian (and probably european) musical scene. The day after his death a big concert, with 60000 people, was held at the Arena Civica in Milano to honour him (this had been originally organised to collect funds to support Stratos expensive medical therapy), and a double album was taken from the event.



LP
Arbeit macht frei Cramps (CRSLP 5101) 1973 gatefold cover with lyric inner first copies include a cardboard gun
Cramps (5205 101) 1978 same as above
Get Back (GET 5101) 2000 same as above
Caution radiation area Cramps (CRSLP 5102) 1974 single cover with lyric inner
Cramps (5205 102) 1978 same as above
Crac Cramps (CRSLP 5103) 1974 gatefold cover - first copies had a sticker on the shrinkwrap
Cramps (5205 103) 1978 same as above
Get Back (GET 5103) 2000 same as above
Are(a)zione Cramps (CRSLP 5104) 1975 gatefold cover with inner
Cramps (5205 104) 1978 same as above
Maledetti Cramps (CRSLP 5105) 1976 gatefold cover with inner
Cramps (5205 105) 1978 same as above
Akarma (AK 1009) 2000 same as above
1978, gli dei se ne vanno gli arrabbiati restano Ascolto (ASC 20063) 1978 gatefold cover
Event '76 Cramps (5205 107) 1979 recorded live in 1976
Akarma (AK 1038) 2002 gatefold cover
Tic & tac Ascolto (ASC 20224) 1980
all the albums have been reissued on CD


VARIOUS ARTISTS COMPILATION LP'S
Parco Lambro
(with Gerontocrazia) Laboratorio (LB/LP 201) 1976 live recordings from the 1976 Parco Lambro festival - also features Sensations' Fix, Ricky Gianco, Agora, Canzoniere del Lazio, Toni Esposito, Paolo Castaldi, Eugenio Finardi.
1979: Il concerto
(with Danzanello and L'internazionale) Cramps (5203 001) 1979 2LP - gatefold with inner - from the Demetrio Stratos tribute concert - also features Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Angelo Branduardi, Francesco Guccini, Antonello Venditti, Roberto Vecchioni, Roberto Ciotti, Eugenio Finardi and others
"1979: Il concerto" has been reissued on a single CD by Akarma (AK 1026) in 2002

SINGLES (with picture cover)

L'abbattimento dello Zeppelin
Arbeit macht frei Cramps (CRSNP 1701) 1973 two tracks from their first album
L'internazionale
Citazione da G.L.Jackson Cramps (CRSNP 1703) 1974 unreleased tracks


PROMO-ONLY AND JUKEBOX SINGLES (with blank covers)

Luglio, agosto, settembre nero Cramps/Bla Bla (JB56) 1974 split jukebox single coupled with Aktuala - Mina - no cover
Hommage a Violette Nozieres Ascolto (YD 521) 1978 split jukebox single coupled with A.Bertoli - Rosso colore -no cover

CD

Concerto Teatro Uomo Cramps (CRSCD011/12) 1997 2CD - recorded live in 1976
Parigi-Lisbona Cramps (CRSCD018) 1997 recorded live in 1976
Acrostico in memoria di Demetrio Le Matango (LM 97003) 1997 live recording from 1978
La mela di Odessa Black Hole (BH 001/2) 1998 2CD - live recordings from 1976 and 1977
Revolution box set Akarma (AK 1036/4 CD) 2002 4CD box set including Arbeit macht frei, Caution Radiation Area, Crac, and Are(a)zione
The Cramps CD's have also been reissued in a 3-CD box set called "Live concerts box" by Akarma (AK 1030/3)



All the albums by Area are still easy to find in Italy, as they have been issued in large quantities. Around 1977-78 the Cramps label changed distribution and adopted a different numbering system replacing the CRSLP-5 prefix with 5205 (CRSLP 5101 became 5205 101 and so on). Many of the albums released until then were reissued with the new catalogue numbers, but are easily identified for this reason.

Hardest to find are the first album in original form with the gun insert, and Crac with the sticker.
A counterfeit of the first album was released in late 90's and also included the gun insert, this is very similar to the original but can be identified with a side to side comparison, having a slightly miscoloured label.

Japanese issues exist of Arbeit macht frei (Pioneer-Warner P-10286C), Are(A)zione (Pioneer-Warner P-10393C), 1978, gli dei se ne vanno gli arrabbiati restano (King GXF2053) and Tic & Tac (King K22P116).


Area's keyboardist Patrizio Fariselli has an official website at http://www.fariselliproject.com that contains lots of information on both Area and Fariselli solo career.




Area [Italy]
Updated 9/29/02

Discography
Arbeit Macht Frei (73) Caution Radiation Area (74) Crac! (75) Are(A)zione (75, live) Maledetti (Maudits) (76) Event '76 (76, live) Anto/Logicamente (77) Gli Dei Se Ne Vanno, Gli Arrabbiati Restano! (78) Il Concerto - Ommagio a Demetrio Stratos (79?, includes various artists) Tic and Tac (80) Area '70 (80?) Parigi Lisbona (96, recorded '76) Concerto Teatro Uomo (96, recorded '76) Chernobyl 7991 (97)

Reviews
An inventive Italian jazz rock fusion band. Their first 4 albums are classics of inventive Italian jazz rock fusion featuring the stupendous vocalist Demetrio Stratos who may have been one of the most unique singers in history. Stratos unfortunately passed away so many years ago. Their first four Arbeit Macht Frei, Caution Radiation Area, Crac! and Areazione are only recommended to the explorative but will reward the listener with their uniqueness.
One of the most unique bands ever. Riveting ultra-high energy schizophrenic jazz-rock fronted by the operatic vocals of Demitrios Stratos. The band's Instrumentation was guitar, bass, drums and keys with trombone, bass clarinet and flute. There are five albums I know of: Arbeit Macht Frei, Caution Radiation Area, Crac!, Areazione, and Maledetti. I've only heard 2, 3 and 5, but these are all pretty much equal in intensity. Probably not recommended for the Marillion/Alan Parsons crowd.
Crac! is a phenomenal album. It is hard to describe but, to my ears, it often sounded quite a bit like a cross between National Health and Mahavishnu Orchestra. But this band was out long before National Health. There are several places where the classic Stewart Hammond organ tone is used. There is incredible interplay here. Demetrio Stratos, the vocalist, can't be described by me, but he is rather unique and very good. He takes vocal excursions to places where few vocalists dare to tread. Italian lyrics. Only the last cut is a hard listen, being similar to "crash and bang" Henry Cow, but it's only two minutes long so I usually listen to it. Fans of National Health and Mahavishnu Orchestra (and I think Gentle Giant fans) would really go for this. Highly recommended to those who like spice in their music!
This is the best italian progressive band, in Italy they are a cult band and the voice of Demetrio Stratos is unforgettable. They started with a free-jazz sound like Soft Machine and Nucleus. Then they became more experimental with an interest in Arabian and Greek popular music (Stratos was Greek).
These guys are great! Crac! is one of the better early Italian efforts. Area can be described by one word ... insanity. They play complicated pieces so fast, so well, and feature a general weirdness that puts them almost in the avant garde mold. No one sounds like Area and no one ever will. They use fast, intricate, overlapping rhythms and their vocalist alternatively howls, whines, growls, moans and yodels (occasionally he even sings!) The singing in in Italian so I have no idea what he's saying but the singing style makes me wish I did. This is a classic for the experimental.
Crac! is the only one I've heard all the way through. It's one of the most original Italian bands. They do a sort of dramatic jazz-fusion with some unbelievable vocals by Demetrio Stratos. I can't really compare them to any other band, because there never really was another band like Area. The band is quite adept at playing in odd time-signatures, like the fast 11/8 meter on "L'Elefante Bianco." Notable is bassist Ares Talovazzi, because it's not often that a bassist can catch my attention unless he's really good. The band makes occasional use of horns, woodwinds and multiple synthesizers; the latter played not only by keyboardist Patrizio Fariselli, but also by guitar player Giampaolo Tofani (Stratos also plays some keyboards). Stratos' vocals give an air of avant-garde to the music, yet it's accessible enough to be appealing to the less adventurous. A good starting point for people exclusively familiar with symphonic prog, but wishing to try something more experimental. -- Mike Ohman
One of the really interesting bands from the '70s. Briefly: They sound like a mix of Balkan music, Weather Report, Cecil Taylor and King Crimson. Technically they are on the same level. Their records are as different as King Crimson's, so do not give up if you dont like the first one you hear. The singer, Demetrio Stratos (unfortunately dead now), has a powerful, overwelming voice. He experiments with all the sound possibilities of a voice, and also with more than one tone at the time. He made three solo records that were 10 years ahead of their time. A tribute live-2CD to him is also available. The bass player from the first record went to PFM, I think he was not versatile enough. The guitarist Gian Paolo Tofani made a solo record: Indicazzioni (1977), that probably would make Robert Fripp or Henry Kaiser raise their eyebrows and maybe even blush from envy. It is partly played on a Les Paul mounted with an EMS prototype guitarsynth, making sounds that I have not heard anywhere else! -- Michael Bohn Fuglsang
Parigi Lisbona and Concerto Teatro Uomo are live recordings never before issued. Concerto Teatro Uomo is a complete two-hour show.
Gli dei se ne vano, Gli arrabbiati restano! is the last album in which Demetrio Stratos sings, before the collaboration he did on Mauro Pagani's 1978 solo album and his own solo albums. At first, I thought the sound of the band would be oriented to the 80's prog, but no, the comparison I can make from this album is with Area's Crac!, but this time in a more heavy jazz fusion mix with the addition of mediterranean and arab folk music. Not much to say, just a great album an highly recommended to fans of this band & jazz-fusion in general. "Il Bandito Del Deserto" and "Vodka Cola" (first and last tracks) prove the wide range and maturity in musicianship of this band. -- Marco Antonio Gomez Urbina



Who cares?
The novelized biography of Patrizio Fariselli

"The story of my life
in the third person
as is appropriate
for megalomaniacs
and schizophrenics."

Our man (that would be me) was born on a laughable morning in July of 1951, on the laughable Romagna coast, in the laughable city of Cesenatico.
The person who wasn't laughing quite as hard was his mother, given the fact that she went through 12 hours of labor to give birth to him.
As a result, our man was left with a slight case of claustrophobia in the face of elevators, caves and the like, and his mother was left genuinely mistrustful in the face of musicians.
For this reason she attempted to thwart his music studies whenever possible, encouraging him to look into more lucrative professions: "I don't know, a doctor, a lawyer :we already have more than enough musicians in this house!" she would often say.
And it was true! She was surrounded, besieged, plagued by them.
Her husband, her brother-in-law, her father-in-law; she wouldn't have been able to bear having another musician in the family.
In the beginning it seemed as though our man was yielding to her wishes, seeing that he couldn't stand studying piano and solfeggio. His father had gotten him started at the tender young age of eight by playing a sneaky trick on him.
He had said: ":trust me. When you're older, girls will be crazy about you if you play the piano!"
This statement turned out to be anything but prophetic. Only once did a girl ever give herself up for the magic evoked by his music, but she was a hooker, and he ended up almost getting shot by a bunch of gangsters as a result, but that's another story.
As we were saying, his studies continued with great difficulty and few material gains, until the age of seventeen when a beat band called "The Telstars" was forced to hire him. Their pianist had left for military service, and the club that had booked them for the entire summer season didn't want them without keyboards.
It was a question of life or death for them! Given the scarcity of gigs on their horizon, they would've even let a clergyman into the band if he had his own instrument.
Very weird!
This was in the height of the Beatles and Rolling Stones era, and Gilberto, manager of the restaurant-pizzeria-dance hall "Il Boschetto" in Riccione, was adamant that there absolutely had to be a pianist in a beat group.
Without Gilberto, would our man's life have taken a different turn? Probably so!
His father was in fact so pissed off about the fact that he had failed a grade (at the technical institute, a total nightmare!) that he was seriously considering sending our man off to work in the salt mines. However, there was a major lack of salt mines in Cesenatico, so his father decided to make him work as a waiter at the dance hall "La Caravella" instead.
Saved just in time!
In any case, our man soon began having fun with "The Telstars". The repertoire included: Animals, Wilson Pickett, James Brown, but also Jimmy Smith, Brian Auger; and then there was the psychedelic era: Deep Purple, Jimi Hendrix, Vanilla Fudge, Cream and so on.
Forli, where the group was based, was an important crossroads for musicians from the Romagna region, because at that time 60% of the dance halls in all of Italy were located there (or so they claimed).
On Monday mornings a human meat market was held at Bar del Commercio, meaning that there was a convening of musicians, club managers and producers to stipulate "contracts", or rather set up the gigs that would determine the survival or extinction of the various species of "bipedes musicalis" (not yet a WWF protected species).
Bar Giardino was instead open every day until dawn. Here, the weary remains of those who had worked in the area were gathered together and pumped back to life by means of tagliatelle with Ragu sauce, gossip and bad jokes.
It was during that time that our man realized that his land's heart beat primarily in ? time.
"Thewaltzthepolkathemazurka" they would plead, and groups of youthful musicians struggled to survive.
Over the winter of that same year, his curiosity pushed him towards jazz, which was getting a lot of attention both among friends and family. Thus our man ventured out for the first time to hear it live at the Bologna "Jazz Festival".
He was witness to quite a strange evening. There were these guys, some of whom were black, who were passionately massacring their instruments in the midst of insults and shouts from a tie-wearing, jazz-loving public. The drummer (we'll call him that for simplicity's sake) was spraying the contents of two aerosol deodorant cans at the audience while jumping about the stage, and then he suddenly disappeared without a trace.
Our man was disoriented! Terribly perplexed!
He just hadn't expected that kind of behavior from such a composed, educated audience like the one that night in Bologna. Though it must be said that they did have their reasons.
At a certain point, annoyed by a particularly savage yell which rose above the din, he turned to see who was making such a racket, only to see that it was, guess who, it was him, the drummer-sprayer!
He was stationed just a few rows away, insulting his own band even more vociferously than the rest of the crowd.
It was a trap!
Everyone there was providing the musicians with a lively, extroverted background, perfect for ferocious free-jazz improvisation.
Young Fariselli didn't realize it at that time, but the event left a sinister harbinger at work in his brain!
That same evening, following the warmongers, was the performance of one of the most beautiful formations in the entire history of jazz, the Bill Evans Trio, with Eddie Gomez on bass and Jack De Johnette on drums around the time of their famous record "Live in Montreaux". What a sublime concert!.
Our young hero was dumbstruck!
One of those deadly cocktails of pills you find in clubs today probably couldn't have made his brain explode like that. He, who just a few weeks before had to be bribed if you wanted to get 2 scales out of him on the piano, began pestering the entire world with the typical invasiveness of an enthusiast, the long-windedness typical of those just learning to improvise, and presumptuousness (not too much, though) as soon as two notes came halfway together.
Soon after, the valiant "Telstars" came to the end of their career when they were swallowed up into the dance hall orchestra led by our man's father, who had been left without a rhythm section as a result of a rebellion. (the penalty paid by deserters was a keelhaul under the bus).
In the school led by his father, our man learned his first, fundamental lessons on life.
He learned at his own expense how boorish the lower class is, how tough it is to please the bourgeois, and how bad average musical taste is.
But he also learned how good cappelletti in broth are, made especially for the New Year's Eve dance, how beautiful the singer's breasts are, and of his grandfather's light-hearted waltzes.
And of his father's great talent.
With his trusty trombone in hand, his father wasn't afraid of anyone or anything. He brandished that trombone with the same confidence of a samurai with a saber (I know, it's called katana, but I like saber better). With a glance, a shake of his head or a wave of his slide, he directed the sound traffic that his ten "henchmen" (that's what he called them) were sometimes too casual in putting out. He was able to interpret the evenings with rare insight and a discerning eye.
And the arrangements. Mountains of music of his own writing, in beautiful penmanship, that each musician had to preserve as if sacred: bible and refugium peccatorum for semi-professionals and the forgetful.
Arrangements and reinterpretations of everything, numbered for practicality - those were the only words that came from the stage, like some sort of surreal Bingo: "Two-hundred thirty-five!" And we'd go into Blue Moon. "One hundred two!" and a waltz would begin. "Thirty-two!" ":oh shit, I don't have thirty-two, quick, let me look off yours!"
At that time I believed, like many others, that the orchestra was supposed to perform the pieces "like the record", meaning they should be as much like the original as possible. My father was of another idea.
He would change the parts, add harmony, invent endings. He would say: ":a musician worthy of his name has the duty to reinterpret things, to intervene and give his own version of the pieces!".
If not, "un vel gnint!" (it's not worth a damn!).
Holy words! Words that stuck with our man like scarlet fever.
It was during this time that his demanding friendship with Giulio Capiozzo began.
Brought together by the same passion for jazz and improvised music in general, they suffered from the lack of opportunities to practice their art.
Even the slightest opportunity was taken advantage of voraciously.
From the basements of their homes to the interminable jam sessions organized at the "Cantalupo", a beautiful farmhouse that had been set up as a club by some friends.
The stall was a particularly fabulous jazz club. The dividers for the cows were transformed into intimate booths.
As many musicians as possible were called, Dad's instruments were taken on the sly and so on: blues and sausages, pork ribs and swing, "up tempo" and sangiovese wine.
Their college. The university of the self-taught.
Never satisfied, with the determination of drug-addicts they would go into any club where they knew someone who worked there. They would listen for a while, and then they would ask with nonchalance if they could play a piece (":at the most two")
It would inevitably end with the power being turned off on them!
The issue of the power being turned off seemed, for quite some time, to be an inescapable fate. It would always end like that, and I'm not kidding.
On the other hand, the club managers weren't completely without reason.
Their exploits occurred in dance halls, German beer rooms, night clubs and whatever else the Romagna coast had to offer. Two impetuous young guys improvising jazz weren't exactly what everyone wanted to listen to.
The guys reached their greatest height however during one of their first appearances in Milan.
Finally at a true jazz club, "Club Due", where exclusively jazz was performed, they asked the pianist if they could play a piece (":or two at the most"), and as usual they were given the opportunity.
The power was turned off on them.
You're free to disbelieve, but that is exactly what happened. Once again they found themselves "unplugged".
Our heroes began to have serious doubts, ":maybe we don't know how to play, or maybe we're breaking people's balls too much" they wondered to themselves.
Shortly thereafter, with the band Area, they would be paid for all that ball breaking.
During those years, the conservatory of Pesaro was trying to provide our man with the technical instruments necessary for him to knowledgeably lash the cabinet (meaning the piano), but Mozart was too heavy for him. Bach posed questions that were too far off, and Haydn didn't hold up.
Only Bela Bartok kept him awake. In fact, feeling fairly confident with syncopation, our man even succeeded in winning a few grains of respect from his adored teacher Sergio Cafaro.
The height of his scholastic experience occurred during his performance of "6 small pieces op.19" by Arnold Shoenberg during an end of the year recital, which miraculously made both his teacher and the school director forget about how badly he had done on his last exam.
But it couldn't last, and it didn't.
The call to military service forced everyone to draw a veil over his labored and contradictory career as a classical musician, where the high points had been meeting his teacher and the discovery of the John Coltrane quartet, made at the record store in front of the conservatory.
But if his scholastic career was nothing special, his military career was even worse.
The stifling atmosphere was already clear to him in the three preliminary days, during the "behavioral tests" that were carried out in Bologna. Our man did everything he could to let his mild sentiments be known, ":I study music, I read poems, and I smell flowers!" he wrote on his introductory form.
He was sent to the operative assault troops!
Up and down the mountains with a machine-gun (they said it was light) around his neck, his pockets full of hand grenades, and bandoliers full of ammunition worn Pancho Villa style. Our man completed the entire assault course, replete with day and nighttime firing assaults, guerilla courses and other similar delicacies.
The gaiety of military life hit him like a head on crash with an eighteen-wheeler.
Our man's mental health had already begun to waver when he devised a plan. He said he knew how to play a wind instrument. They believed him, and they transferred him to the "Mantova Division Band" stationed in Palmanova (UD).
It was, once again, his salvation!
The following six months seemed like heaven to him. Fourth chair baritone sax (he learned to play as much as necessary in a short time), he came to know Zen philosophy, he began reading about structural anthropology, he gained political awareness (that's what was said then), and he furthered his knowledge of Coltrane, Coleman, Davis, Tyner, Monk, Dolphy, and Taylor. He got excited over the fight of the Black Panthers, and he went crazy over Archie Shepp.
And they say that military service isn't educational!
During that time he met Alessandro Benvenuti, future actor, film director and theatrical writer, with whom he would later create supreme masterpieces.
A year later, in 1972, he became part of the band Area.
Our man was part of Area from the very first to the very last note the group ever played.
During those years, he went further in depth with his studies - self-taught - of composition, and over the course of his career he went on to write and record music for cinema, theater, dance and television. (Am I forgetting something?)
From cartoons to advertising, from music for (very small) children to Jazz to contemporary music.
He started to get a big head. He began bragging that the job of composer no longer held any secrets for him, that if he were challenged to write anything in any style it would be no problem for him, even if he had to do it while riding a horse. (They still remember him affectionately in the loony bin).
Like a surreal tailor, he learned to provide the most suitable sound score for works by others: music linked to a precise request. (What's that face you're making? Bach and Stravinsky were commissioned to make music as well, weren't they?)
The most fun experience for him was writing music for the Albero Azzurro television series, a program for pre-school age children.
Under the secret identity of "Maestro Fariselli", for four years he wrote and recorded hour after hour of music inspired by one simple, fundamental principle: children are small, but they aren't stupid.
He worked particularly hard to obtain a proper mix between musical simplicity and complexity, clearing away urges to use any "childish" language whatsoever. Simplicity and complexity, which are not necessarily synonymous to banality and abstrusity.
He treated kids like adults, and from that moment on he began treating adults like children.
He tried to take full advantage of children's ability to easily deal with material they've never heard before. New things for them are a daily occurrence, so they were able to effortlessly follow him wherever he wanted to go, provided that he was able to perk their curiosity and "grab" their attention, even for a short time.
It is easier to talk about musical creativity with a five-year-old than with an adult who abounds with superstructures.
With a laugh, children can get rid of any sort of preconceived idea that is attempting to settle down within. For an adult that is instead a complicated and sometimes painful process. (Preconceived ideas induced by superficial education have extremely contorted roots once they're full-grown, even worse than wisdom teeth)
One of the great masterpieces produced by "Maestro Fariselli" during that period was "Concert for Baying Dogs " which he directed himself on television, brandishing a bone in place of a baton. Children at home could "tail along" (this is great!) with the orchestra by playing the "xylophone".
Previously, Master Fariselli had provided them with the instrument by attaching it to a series of videocassettes where, among other things, he taught them how to use it.
In short, through play rather than teaching them "what" to listen to, he attempted to teach them "how" to listen, to open their ears to the beauty of sound, whatever it comes from and however it's organized.
(Happy new "ear" wished Cage)
And by now we're talking about recent history.
If you had the guts to get to this point ( . ), now you're ready for the rest: juicy little moral stories that our man probably wrote (or so the gossip mongers say) under the ominous influence of a fifty-year crisis soon to come.
When in this predicament, there are those who buy a motorcycle, those who find a lover. Our man is writing a book. It's schizoid and should be taken lightly. It's to be read with no particular order, like how a newspaper is commonly read or how certain contemporary music scores are played.
In the meantime, recent news has him shut in his studio in Milan recording a new CD under his own name.
It's called "Lupi sintetici e strumenti a gas" (Synthetic wolves and gas instruments).
It seems as though participants will include some of his old companions from Area, Freak Antoni of Skiantos, some members of the Modena City Ramblers and various, devilish young musicians of the highest level.
If he's able to find some foolhardy person to publish it for him, I advise you to listen to it before they arrest him.





Area
(see also: Demetrios Stratos)

Discography
Arbeit Macht Frei (1973)
Caution Radiation Area (1974)
Crac! (1975)
Are(a)zione (Live 1976)
Maledetti (1976)
Gli dei sei ne Vanno, Gli Arrabbiati Restano! (1978)
Event 76 (Released 1979, Recorded 1976)
Tic & Tac (1980)
Concerto Teatro Uomo (Released 1996, Recorded 1976)
Paris-Lisbon (Released 1996, Recorded 1976)
Chernobyl 7991 (1996)

County Of Origin: Italy
Established: 197?
Styles: Avant-Garde, Jazz


Biography

What can be said about what is one of the vital, unrelentingly experimental bands of the 1970s? Indeed, the Italian group Area's place in the history of progressive rock is firmly cemented; nearly a decade's worth of unparalleled output that has approached legendary status in the minds of collectors. Area were a radical collective both ideologically and musically, creating three studio albums, Arbeit Macht Frei, Crac!, and Caution Radiation Area, that can be firmly hailed as clear and utter classics, with others such as Maledetti and live albums like Area(a)zione and Concerto Teatro Uomo not far behind.

Equally inspired by rock, free jazz, electronic music, Mediterranean folk and the avant-garde in general, Area emerged from the radical political and musical environment of the late 60s. Originally a singer for various pop and conventional rock bands throughout Italy, vocalist Demetrios Stratos evidently found his calling in the fiercely experimental stylings of Area. His ability stretch the limitations of the human voice (7000 Hz) provided Area with one of the most powerful vocalists in the history rock music. Their first album, Arbeit Macht Frei, announced the revolution. Arguably their best, and most accessible, effort, the back cover said it all. From the liner notes to the Cramps CD issue: "The five Area members are posed alongside each other between the logo from the Nazi concentration camps ('Arbeit Macht Frei': 'Work is Freedom') and a Palestinian 'kefiah' wrapped around the head of Giulo Capiozzo, between the Communist hammer and sickle and the figure of a flying angel, typical Catholic-Christian emblem. The entire spread is set in a "militant", almost Manichean context where the white of the floor and the background contrasts with the black clothes of virtually all the group members and the "darkness" of Paolo Tofani and Demetrios Stratos' feet."

Though bassist Djivas would go on to record with PFM, two more studio albums, the wildly experimental Caution Radiation Area and the possible high point of Crac!, firmly established the band's legacy. Subsequent albums showed the band moving further and further "out there", as live releases illustrated the band's improvisational tactics; more noise, more power, and more unrelenting chaos to test the limits of even the most patient listeners. Stratos went on to release a number of solo recordings, generally filled with vocal experimentation, throughout the later 70s. Tragically, Demetrios Stratos' died in 1979 of leukemia, though the band went on to record one more album, the more fusion oriented Tic & Tac, before disbanding.

Surely one of the most unique, challenging, demanding, but ultimately most rewarding, listens in the history of progressive music, the first three or so albums from Area are not to be missed. - Greg Northrup [July 2002]

Source: Liner Notes to Cramps CD reissues of Arbeit Macht Frei, Caution Radiation Area, and Crac!


Reviews:


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Mike Borella 11-Feb-2001 Area: International POPular Group

Area: International POPular Group
(Originally written in the Spring of 1995, updated in February 2001)
I: Genesis

1973 was a fertile time for music and musicians. There were many minds questioning the so-called conventions of music and the music industry. The time was ripe for experimentation and the combining of disparate sounds and styles. However, in the early 70's in Italy, artists did not automatically consign themselves to obscurity by doing so. Area was born of a strong political commitment, largely due to the polarized, fragmented political climate in Italy. Their political message was not hidden in comfortable and familiar pop-song structures; instead they challenged the listener with music as unsettling and difficult as their radical social ideas. Though excerpts of Area albums (and in some cases, entire albums) could be labeled as harsh and dissonant, the music was never mechanical nor was it cold. The warmth and charm that many of the Italian groups of that time period displayed was prevalent in Area's studio and live albums.

Formed in 1972, the original lineup consisted of Demetrio Stratos (vocals and organ), Patrizio Fariselli (keyboards and piano), Paolo Tofani (guitars), Victor Busnello (sax), Yan Patrick Djivas (bass) and Guilio Capiozzo (drums and percussion). Subtitled International POPular group (notice the emphasis on pop!), what one hears on their recordings goes far beyond the mercantilism that popular music was at that time and still remains. Although they combined elements of jazz, rock, avant-garde, Middle-Eastern folk musics and modern classical, Area is mostly known as an experimental jazz-rock outfit. Perhaps this label is most fitting (if we must label the band), as the contributions of Busnello, Fariselli and Capiozzo are distinctively jazz-influenced, and the compositions were often improvisational.

Arbeit Macht Frei, their debut, was released in 1973. The title is German and reads "Work will make you free," which had been written in Nazi concentration camps. The opening track, "Luglio, Agosto, Settembre" is representative of what Area was to become. It begins with spoken Arabic, which segues into singing (more like vocal-chord stretching) by Stratos. The song structure soon kicks in with a spiraling riff, the style of which is soon to become a trademark of the band. After a few bars it may seem that the typical verse-verse-chorus construct is going to be used, but instead there is no chorus. Where one would expect a solo, a chaotic mass of sound from sax, keyboards and guitar slowly builds into free-jazz, with Stratos' yodels and howls intertwined between the instruments. Then the riff begins again, and we have a reprise.

While there is no doubt that Area had a penchant for doing the unexpected, their most surprising element has to be the vocals of the Egyptian-born Greek, Demetrio Stratos. He elevated rock singing to new heights with his vocal gymnastics. With a range reputedly close to 7000 Hz (the theoretical limit of the human voice), he could not only hold notes for long periods of time, but he would modulate them vibrato-like, or leap and dive from low to high and back again, with pinpoint accuracy. His voice sounded out the lyrics as much as sung them, as it dropped to conspiratorial whispers, then sprung to shouts and laughs. And yes, he could sing. Without Stratos, Area still would have been a formidable outfit. Not many bands have ever been as much of a total package. Every member pulled their weight; even the rhythm section didn't fall back on repetitive clich's. While prodigiously talented, it was Stratos' sense of experimentation (as later was evident on his solo and collaborative works), his desire to go beyond the established norms of jazz and rock, that pushed Area over the edge into legendary status, and garnered them praise from luminaries such as John Cage.

Between Arbeit Macht Frei and the second Area album, Caution Radiation Area, Djivas abdicated the bass chores, and joined PFM in time to record L'Isola di Niente with them. His replacement was Ares Tavolazzi, who was proficient on both electric and acoustic bass, as well as trombone. Busnello left the band, but was not to be replaced until sax-legend Steve Lacy briefly joined the band in 1976.

Twenty years later, Caution Radiation Area seems an experiment in structure. None of the pieces have a familiar style. One wouldn't think that blistering jazz-rock would combine so smoothly with electronic soundscapes and noodling, but it can when in the right hands. The most immediate track is "Cometa Rossa," which features Stratos chanting in Greek, in a style that sounds like it is right out of "Arabian Nights," sandwiched between spiraling riffs. Also remarkable is the appropriately-titled closing track, "Lobotomia," which is a sonic assault in the style one might expect from modern classical composers Ligeti or Xenakis. Digesting Caution Radiation Area, one must question why music (which essentially is a group of sounds) needs structure or form. Perhaps that is what Area wanted.

1975 found the now-established core members of Area (Stratos, Fariselli, Capiozzo, Tofani and Tavolazzi) return to the song structure (sort of). The compositions on their third offering, Crac!, are (for the most part) listenable, contagious and delightful. But they are also complex, weird, and (yes, I'll use the word again) experimental. Somehow, they manage to push the envelope of creativity and musical vitality, with melodies you can (try to) sing along with. More than ever before, the sheer musicality of this band is evident. Showcased are Fariselli and Tavolazzi. Whether they are trading licks on "La Mela di Odessa," backing Stratos in "L'Elefante Bianco," or jamming together on "Megalopoli," their precision and creativity shines. A particularly remarkable performance by Fariselli is the piano solo on "Nervi Scoperti." Rounding out this offering is the crash-and-bang piece, "Area 5," composed by fellow avant-gardists Juan Hidalgo and Walter Marchetti, which may sound more at home an a Henry Cow record! However, Crac, remains the most accessible album from the early version of Area, and is often recommended to listeners who are wondering which Area release to open their ears to first.

Late 1975 brought us the release on the first live album, Are(A)zione. As the reader might now expect, rather than just reproduce their studio recordings, Area chose to treat their live audiences with extended versions, lengthy improvisations and non-album pieces. Nearly half of Are(A)zione" does not appear on a studio album, including the 14 minute title track, as well as "L'Internazionale," Area's take on the International Hymn of the Communist Party. In a sense, Are(A)zione was the capstone of the early history of Area, summarizing the musical and political statements of their first three releases. The lineup was mostly static for these years, and the band developed a trademark style, as well as a penchant for the unexpected. Over the next few years, the band moved in several different directions with some very surprising results.

II: New Directions, New Faces

1976 was a year of flux and change. For the recording of the fifth Area album, the core membership of Stratos, Fariselli, Tofani and Tavolazzi were present, but drummer Capiozzo only appears on about half of the album, replaced on various tracks by either Walter Calloni or Paul Litton. Steve Lacy augments the band, as do several other studio musicians (including a string quartet). Perhaps it was the contributions of this eclectic group of guests that gives Maledetti its bi-directional feel. On one hand, the opening tracks show Area softening their jazz-rock style to a more comfortable fusion orientation, but then "Scum" features the Fariselli playing an angular piano style that would seem at home on "Crac!" From the string quartet of "Il Massacro di Brandeburgo Numero Tre in Sol Maggiore" to the inspired sonic, vocal and free-jazz experiments of "Caos (Parte Seconda)," Maledetti defies all attempts at pigeonholing. In particular, the latter track foreshadows what was to come on Event '76. Unfortunately, the original CD release of Maledetti suffers from a poor pressing, as the latter half sounds muffled. The 1994 repressing of Maledetti has this problem fixed, and it features an extra track (an interview) as well.

Next was the release of the first compilation album, Anto/Logicamente (which features the otherwise unavailable track "Citazione da George L. Jackson"), as well as the recording of a second live album, Event '76 (although it was not to be released until 1979). The lineup was Fariselli, Lacy, Litton, Stratos and Tofani. These five gentlemen engaged in a total free-form improvisation, which was broken up over three tracks. Critics (including many Area fans) have put down Event '76 as unlistenable noise. The emphasis seems to be on producing new sounds with old instruments; thus, rather than any coherent structure, this album keeps the ears busy with squeaks, drones, trills, farts, clangs, bangs, and even an occasional melody. As one might expect, Stratos is at home in this environment, as he stretches his voice more than ever. While I wouldn't use this release to introduce someone to Area (unless that individual has a background in free-jazz or avant-rock), I still have to list Event '76 among my favorites. The exploratory nature of the sounds and the rejection of conventional style and form make this an important and ground breaking recording.

After a brief hiatus in which spin-off projects and solo albums were recorded, Area was reincarnated in 1978 to record and release an album named after the year (full title: 1978: Gli dei se ne Vanno, gli Arrabbiati Restano!). A four-piece this time around (Stratos, Fariselli, Tavolazzi, Capiozzo), the opening tracks recall the first generation of Area, with spiraling melodies and a Middle-Eastern influence. As the album progresses, the band moves toward new territory, including more quirky jazz-rock (with a feel similar to that on Maledetti). Naturally, bass and keyboards take a leading role on this album, as it lacks a full-time guitarist (surprisingly however, Capiozzo's contribution to the fullness of the Area sound is minimal on certain tracks). Towards the end of the album are a few surprises (as might be expected), including a demented doo-wop theme.

In a sense, 1978 was the last true Area album - who knows where they might have gone had Stratos' battle with leukemia not taken a turn for the worse? In early to mid 1979, Stratos left Italy for cancer treatment in New York City. His friends and admirers organized a benefit concert on his behalf to be held in Milan on June 14th of that year. The proceeds were to help defer the costs of his medical bills. Stratos died in New York on June 13th. What was to be a benefit became a tribute, with over 60,000 people attending (some report the number closer to 100,000). Music was provided by Banco, Venegoni and Co. (featuring the former guitarist of Arti+Mestieri) and the remaining members of Area, as well as many other Italian rock bands. Readings were given by poets. The tribute is immortalized on 1979 - Il Concerto Omaggio a Demetrio Stratos, a double length album and CD. While the music is not experimental nor is it challenging, the performances by Area, Banco and others, as well as the purpose behind it, make it worth a listen.

III: Post-Stratos Area

Area didn't fold immediately after Stratos' untimely death. In 1980, the quartet of Fariselli, Capiozzo, Tavolazzi and saxophonist Larry Nocella recorded Tic & Tac. This album has always been criticized as a bastardization of Area, and not representative of the band at all. To a certain degree the critics are correct. Rather than breaking down boundaries and pioneering new forms of sound, this Area produced mellow, slick jazz fusion. The sound and feel is quite typical when compared to the fusion standards of the late seventies. Although they chose the role of followers rather than leaders, the prodigious talent of the musicians shines through. While formulaic and perhaps a bit too plain when compared to their earlier offerings, Tic & Tac, when taken out of the Area context, is a reasonably interesting release.

In this time frame, a second compilation, Area '70 was released. As far as I know, the only otherwise unavailable piece of music on this album is the studio version of "L'Internazionale." As of the time of this writing, this compilation has not been reissued on CD.

After Tic & Tac, Area did disband. I am not sure of exactly when, as there are reports of Area playing live in 1981 (performing a modern rendition of Aristofane's "Byrds"). Fariselli wrote music for soundtracks and theater, while Capiozzo toured with jazz bands and did guest work on studio albums. In the mid to late eighties, there was a band called Area 2, which I believe to be comprised of some former Area members (my guess would be Fariselli, Tavolazzi and Capiozzo, or some subset thereof). They released an eponymous debut in 1986 and a follow-up, City Sound, in 1987. Both were put out on the Italian Gila label, and as far as I can tell, are out of print and difficult to find. I have not heard these albums.

In 1994, Fariselli and Capiozzo teamed up with the classically-trained guitarist Pietro Condorelli and bassist Paolo Dalla Porta to form yet another version of Area. This lineup played about small gigs around Italy before releasing Chernobyl 7991 in 1997. I have not heard this album either, but I've been told that it contains tracks that hearken back to early Area (sans Stratos of course) as well as the Tic & Tac sound.

IV: Spin-off and Solo Projects

While there have been dozens of collaborative efforts and guest appearances by the former and current members of Area, many of these recordings are very difficult to find. Thanks to Artis, some are finally seeing the light of CD, yet many are only available on out of print LPs. Some of the more significant spin-off and solo albums are discussed below.

IV.A: Demetrios Stratos

Stratos was born in Egypt in 1945 to parents of Greek descent. As a child he studied piano and accordion at the Conservatoire National d'Athens. In his 17th year, he moved to Italy to study architecture at the Politecnico di Milano. In 1967, he joined the Italian rock group I Ribelli for a short stint as keyboardist. He soon quit the band and focused his time and energy on vocal research (which was to remain a major part of his life). In 1972, he formed Area, but his vocal studies continued and they brought him a small degree of fame. He was invited to lecture at several European Universities, he met with prominent music researchers, and of course, gave live voice performances. He recorded a solo vocal version of John Cage's Mesostics, which he subsequently performed to large audiences. Impressed by his work, Cage invited Stratos to participate in some of Cage's concerts.

Many of Stratos' groundbreaking vocal techniques can be found on his six solo albums, two collaborations, and various guest appearances. His albums Metrodora and Cantare La Voce are entirely vocal. Stratos pushes his vocal chords more than ever, and while creating sounds that notation does not exist for, he consigns himself to the extreme avant-garde. Needless to say, these albums are very difficult to describe, and even more difficult to listen to. With Stratos performing multi-tracked combinations of hums, screams, moans, howls, clicks, pops, and laughs, these pieces are not necessarily appealing even to the hardcore Area fan. However, for fans of the uncategorizable, or students of voice or linguistics, Stratos pushes the limits of voice far enough to keep one's ears busy.

"La Milleuna" is a 60 minute piece recorded for a dance routine by Valeria Magli. It consists of Stratos voicing 100 Italian words starting with the letter "S", all of which have a sexual connotation. He repeats the set of words several times, voicing each one differently every time. This piece is not music in the strictest sense. Additionally, the recording is only the audio half of an audio/video performance, so I also feel like I'm missing something when I listen to it. However, fans of Stratos' techniques are sure to be pleased by his diversity.

In the late 70s, Stratos performed a live duet with violinist Lucio Fabbri. This event is captured on their album Recitarcantando. Most notable is their nearly-ten-minute cover of "Cometa Rossa." This is a very raw recording, and both musicians make a few mistakes, but it is more immediately listenable than Stratos' purely vocal albums. Another live recording from the same time period features Stratos, Area guitarist Paolo Tofani, and PFM violinist Mauro Pagani covering old rock and roll classics. Perhaps the most pedestrian of all of Stratos' work, Rock and Roll Exhibition is more of a conversation piece than anything else. While it is humorous and enjoyable to listen to this trio's takes on "Blueberry Hill," "Hound Dog," and "Can't Stop Loving You," they add little in terms of the expected Area weirdness to their versions.

Finally, Stratos, as well as Fariselli, Capiozzo, and Tavolazzi, contributed to Mauro Pagani's 1979 self-titled solo album. Two tracks in particular, "Europa Minor" and "L'albero di Canto (Parts I & II)" are extremely Area-esque.

IV.B: Patrizio Fariselli

Patrizio Fariselli was born in July, 1951. He studied piano at the Conservatory of Pesaro as a teenager. Aside from his work with Area in the 1970's, he recorded an experimental piano album entitled Antropofagia in 1977. Sadly, this recording is still difficult to find in North America, despite its recent release on CD.

Since the early-eighties breakup of Area, Fariselli has written movie and theater soundtracks, including: Zitti e Mosca, Benvenuti in Casa Gori, and Belle al Bar of Alessando Benvenuti, and the theater works Andy & Norman, Sete, and Piume of Zuzzurro e Gaspare, and Colchide of "Quelli di Grock." In 1982 he composed music for the ballet Itineraire Bis for "Le Ballets Jazz-Art" of Paris. He has also collaborated (mostly in live situations, I think) with the jazz artists Steve Lacy, Paul Lytton, Curtis Fuller, Howard Johnson, and Art Farmer.

IV.C: Guilio Capiozzo

Born in February 1946, Guilio Capiozzo remains one of the most underrated drummers in both the rock and jazz fields. While did not record a solo album, Capiozzo has studied percussion with a wide variety of artists, and collaborated with many of them. They include: Arze-Anaiak Brothers, Kenny Clarke, Ali Mohammed, Elvin Jones, Trilok Gurtu, Roy Haynes, Freddie Waits, and Jimmy Owens, Ellis Marsalis, George Coleman, Harold Land, Art Farmer, Gary Bartz, Steve Turre, George Cables, Charles Tolliver, Gabin Dabire and Rassmin Paad. Sadly, Capiozzo passed away in 2000, apparently of a heart attack.

IV.D: Ares Tavolazzi

Tavolazzi's prodigious bass skills have, to the best of my knowledge, not been extensively recorded since the early 1980's. His one solo album, Kars was released in 1989. It features Tavolazzi on acoustic and electric bass leading a trio lineup through traditional-styled jazz. While not breaking new ground, it is an enjoyable listen for those into mellow, late-night music. The bass and drum tracks are particularly strong. Tavolazzi has also taught bass in small towns around Italy.

(Originally published in Expose #7, p. 4-7, Edited for Gnosis 2/11/01)


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Sjef Oellers 25-Feb-2001 Arbeit Macht Frei

Area was a 70's Italian band of accomplished musicians who played (rhythmically) complex and/or improvised music with great ease, but at the same time they had a talent for beautiful melodies and great riffs. The greater part of their albums is incredibly inventive jazz rock, which can easily endure comparison with the best of Mahavishnu Orchestra or Return to forever. On their debut, Arbeit Macht Frei, all the hallmarks of their sound are already fully developed. Intense and complex jazz rock is combined with musical themes from the Middle East / Mediterranean, occasional free jazz outbursts and improvised or experimental sounding parts. Some great drumming can be heard and there are beautiful themes and solos for saxophone, guitar and keyboards. A sensational feature of this band was vocalist Demetrio Stratos, who had one of the most remarkable voices I have heard so far in progressive rock. He very much uses his voice as an instrument and extracts all kinds of sounds from his voice, but mostly he uses it for conventional singing. His vocalizing might be an acquired taste though. Overall, a mix of Soft Machine/Nucleus, Frank Zappa, Mahavishnu Orchestra and a completely unique singer should give roughly an idea what to expect from Area.
All Area albums that followed were, in my opinion, continuations/variations (fantastic and slightly perfected continuations nevertheless) of what was first presented on Arbeit Macht Frei. For me, Arbeit Macht Frei is one of the best debut albums ever made.


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Sjef Oellers 25-Feb-2001 Crac

Crac! is Area's third album, which contains mostly their characteristic and excellent mix of jazz rock, free jazz and elements from Middle Eastern music. This album has some lighter touches as well in comparison to their first two albums. The track "Gioia e Rivoluzione" is a lighthearted affair with lots of acoustic guitar and an almost (country) pop-like feeling to it. Demetrio Stratos' are as expressive and diverse as always. As Crac! is slightly more accessible than their other early albums, this might be the best place to start with this band.

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Sjef Oellers 24-March-2001 Tic & Tac

Area's last album and the only one without Demetrios Stratos. On this album they sound like a rather straight jazz rock/fusion band, executed very well, but the typical Area sound is missing and Stratos' vocals are also badly missed. Solid, but uninspired jazz rock.

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Sjef Oellers 24-March-2001 1978 (Gli Dei se ne Vanno...)

The classic Area sound heard on Crac and Arbeit Macht Frei can still be heard on this album. Although the music is perhaps slightly less hectic and complex, as compensation they sound more diverse and melodic. Some orchestration, brass, and other instruments add more variety to their sound. Demetrios Stratos is vocally a bit more present on this one. Great, somewhat underrated album.

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