This collection of mostly extended and alternate takes is a rewarding, amusing, and sometimes insufferable collection of themes by the band most famous for underscoring the films of Italian horror director Dario Argento (G... more »oblin's discoverer). At their worst, Goblin sound like a bunch of pre-goth druggies jamming in a dreary fusion, but their best moments spawn almost Biblical images of dismembered bodies, Satanic masses, and defiant souls forever damned. Included are longer versions of themes from Profondo Rosso (with more than a nod to Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells") and Suspiria. As the liner notes suggest, this collection attempts to demonstrate that Goblin had a musical identity independent of their famous mantle of soundtrack provider, although the tracks work best as augmented movie cues than as a concept album. --Joseph Lanza« less
This collection of mostly extended and alternate takes is a rewarding, amusing, and sometimes insufferable collection of themes by the band most famous for underscoring the films of Italian horror director Dario Argento (Goblin's discoverer). At their worst, Goblin sound like a bunch of pre-goth druggies jamming in a dreary fusion, but their best moments spawn almost Biblical images of dismembered bodies, Satanic masses, and defiant souls forever damned. Included are longer versions of themes from Profondo Rosso (with more than a nod to Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells") and Suspiria. As the liner notes suggest, this collection attempts to demonstrate that Goblin had a musical identity independent of their famous mantle of soundtrack provider, although the tracks work best as augmented movie cues than as a concept album. --Joseph Lanza
CD Reviews
Not the best, but worth having
caseyscott | 04/06/2000
(3 out of 5 stars)
"If you're a budding Goblin fan, this is not the album for you. I would recommend Vol. 1 higher because it has a sampling of just about every soundtrack they worked on. This centers on the "Profondo Rosso", "Suspiria", and "Contamination" soundtracks. While a lot of the "Profondo Rosso" tracks are great, especially "Death Dies", "Profondo Rosso", and the remix of the title song, "Suspiria" is not represented very well. The main title theme for "Suspiria" is on Vol. 1 and the tracks here are not very good. "Contamination" takes an acquired taste to appreciate, but "Connexion" is complex in its simplicity. Overall, this is for die-hard Goblin fans only, not for beginners delving into the world of Goblin."
Classic Italian soundtrack masters!
Bob Ashley | texas | 03/12/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Goblin were an italian progressive rock band who became best known for their scoring of numerous horror films,most famously for Dario Argento's(some say)best work.A casual listen might lead one to believe they were listening to an old Genesis album,but these songs worked behind scary scenes in movies.And very well,too!This volume has 6 great cuts from Profondo Rosso(DEEP RED),3 from Suspiria,1 from Squandra Antigangsters,2 from Contamination,and 4 from their rock albums(that were plundered for use in films as well).This is a great CD!"
Interesting, but not indispensible
Ulfster | 06/29/2000
(3 out of 5 stars)
"This album offers a plethora of various (previously unreleased) outtakes, different versions and theme tracks from different films. This in itself is an interesting collection, albeit with a few negative aspects:Many of the outtakes and variations have later been included on the re-releases of the various goblin soundtracks (e.g. "Profondo Rosso" and "Suspiria"). One track ("Il Resvegno del Serpente") is NOT a part of an original soundtrack but a "plain" Goblin track from their debut LP "Roller" (though it has been used as part of a soundtrack in the italian release of the film "Vampyr" later) - still, it has a very different feel to it than the other tracks and thus sticks out in an unpleasant way.Furthermore, since some variations (e.g. tracks 3 and 4, "Deep Shadows", part 1 and 2,respectively) are slightly repetitive, it can become a bit boring to listen to the complete album in one go.That is not to say the featured material were not interesting - far from it! However, the order the featured songs have been arranged could be optimized - well, what's a programmable CD player for?"
Good Compilation But Some Repeated Tracks
John Peterson | Marinette, WI USA | 03/26/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Here's another good compilation of Goblin's music but be forewarned: the first cut Profondo Rosso is not an alternate take but the original version we all know and love which is on The Goblin Collection. Death Dies is also on The Goblin Collection so there is some repetition here (four other Profondo Rosso cuts are also included). For me, the main reason to have this CD are the three excellent tracks from the Cherry Five debut album which to the best of my knowledge isn't available on CD. Rounding off the CD are good tracks from Suspiria, Roller, Squadra Antigangsters, and Contamination. Overall, this is a good CD to have in any collection."
Track Listings (16) - Disc #1