I wish I had gotten this in time for our September issue because it would have worked really well for the Halloween season. I suppose I could have hung onto it until the next September issue, but I opted to do it now. I have to admit to not being all that familiar with the music of Goblin. Don’t get me wrong, I know what kind of stuff they do, especially a lot of horror soundtrack music. It’s just that I haven’t really heard a lot of their music before.

Now, Goblin have had a number of off-shoots over the years, and this collection comes from one of those, Claudio Simonetti's Goblin. The music here definitely fits well under progressive rock, but it does get into more metallic zones at times. It’s often moody and creepy, but you probably got that from the horror soundtrack part in the first paragraph. It’s mostly instrumental, but there are some vocals at times. It’s all intriguing and compelling. It also all works well. I am glad this is my real introduction to the work of this artist, and I think it would probably be a great intro to you, too, if you haven’t heard them before. There are also some rarities included, so it probably has value to longtime fans.

This piece definitely has a real “Exorcist” vibe, playing on the “Tubular Bells” themes. It works out from there into more driving progressive rock for a time after the opening movement. We’re then taken back into the earlier section again, and that builds out with style as it continues. The number evolves in an organic way as it continues.

I really love the merging of symphonic elements, metallic guitar and freaky horror movie soundtrack textures on this piece. I’m reminded a little of Nox Arcana, but the operatic, non-lyrical vocals bring something different to the table and the whole thing turns more metallic than that, particularly later. There is an organ solo section later that makes me think of a proggier Deep Purple, but it also gets a little Dream Theater like. The guitar solo that comes in beyond that organ section really shreds.

That Deep Purple thing is in place as this gets underway. There is a vocal clip on this that seems like a sample. The track has a lot of progressive rock and even moves into some “Hall of the Mountain King” territory at times. There is an electronic music edge to this in some of the production – think Art of Noise. Overall this is really a powerhouse progressive rock number.

Energized and hard rocking, this powers in with a lot of style and works through like that before dropping to just piano. The track gradually grows from there with a lot of proggy texture in play. There are sections here that are more like driving metal. Other parts convey a more melodic prog sound. This is a dynamic and powerful instrumental prog rock masterpiece that pulls together a lot of flavors and even manages to shred for a time.

A keyboard element brings this into being. A creepy spoken voice says “Mother.” The track evolves into more symphonic prog with a dark vibe and that voice says, “Mother, Father.” There are non-lyrical (or indistinct lyrical) chorale vocals at points here. There are some real vocals here with that creepy sound. This has a real black metal vibe, but tempered with definite prog rock aesthetics.

This track comes in mellower, but also dark and creepy. The evil sounding vocals from the previous track are heard in an understated manner here. It remains more on the mellower end of the spectrum for quite a while. An electronic thing takes over around the mid-point. Then it really powers up to a driving, metallic prog sound to continue. Synthesizer paints some great sounds over the top of that section.

There is a rather bouncy electronic prog groove to this number. It’s more upbeat and cheery than anything we’ve heard so far. The vocals are either non-sensical or in another language. This has a drop back to strictly percussion for a time. There are sections led more by the keyboards and others with more of a guitar presence. But, it all plays well together. The keyboards bring some real classical things to the table at times.

There are proggy tendencies at play, but overall this is a very metallic powerhouse. There are some moments where the keyboards call to mind Keith Emerson. There are also some killer metal guitar soloing sections.

Pure progressive rock with some metal angles brings us in. This is a smoking hot frantic and powerful piece of music. It shifts to something even proggier with some hints of world music and fusion as it continues. There are non-lyrical chorale vocals in the mix at times. There is a drop down to vibes, and the cut begins to build back out from there with definite fusion jamming. This gets pretty crazed in jazzy ways. The organ work later brings another flavor to it, and the whole arrangement just keeps reinventing itself. There are some ELP-like moments late, too.

This is a powerhouse jam that combines metal and prog in some great ways. The call-and-response section between the keyboards and guitar is so cool. This is fairly straightforward, but also very cool.

This starts with plenty of keyboards and builds out gradually. It’s a cool prog jam that has hints of fusion in the mix in some ways. I love the guitar and keyboard work on it so much. At times this reminds me of Genesis.

This has a great melodic prog meets jazz groove. It has plenty of classical music in the mix, too. It is a potent piece that has some familiar melodies and a rich arrangement. There is some killer bass work on this tune, and it has some great changes, too.

Dripping water is on the menu at the start of this. Mellow and rather trippy prog stylings come in alongside that. The water sounds go away after a while. This evolves and grows with some real classy electronic prog stylings at play. Some metallic guitar rises up and solos like crazy later, bringing a different dimension to this piece. The track continues to evolve before eventually giving way to the water that started it.

There are some sound effects t the start of this. The cut builds out from there with some metallic textures at play. I really love some of the melodies and proggier things that come to bear as this builds. The piano really brings something special to it. A creepy music box type texture is heard near the end of the track and then we’re taken into some trippy territory that links directly into the next piece.

Coming in much more metallic and potent, this gets pretty neo-classical at times. There is great bass work and somewhat shredding guitar. Proggier elements come ever the top and bring a different angle.

Electronic textures, classical music and more merge on this thing. There is some killer jamming built into this with some great guitar work. It also has plenty of AOR prog in the mix at times.

The melodies on this feel familiar. There is some great jazz meets prog and more at play here. The bass work is pretty great. The saxophone really brings a lot of style to bear. The powerhouse guitar work on this thing is amazing.

This version of the “Halloween” theme song takes in harder rocking, almost metal directions at times. This builds out into something much bigger in the way of a hard rocking jam. That connects directly into the next song.

The closing hard rock from the previous piece is heard at the beginning of this. Then it drops to the familiar piano to continue. The track gradually builds out from there with some weird spoken things at play at times. Again, this music gets reworked into something more like mainstream progressive rock as it continues, but it’s still based on the main themes. It does get more metallic at times.