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"One rainy day, Andrea and Giuliano meet Licia by chance... Then Mirko, after the rain, meets and clashes with Licia and so..."
The rest, as we know, is history.
We are faced with the first animated series featuring true rock stars (Japanese!?!), reminiscent of the hair metal and sleazy rock bands of the '80s, with a post-punk look that would make the Crass themselves blush.
The lineup included: Mirko, the undisputed leader, with two-colored blonde hair tufted with red, leather jacket, an earring that’s too rebellious (worn only live), combined with an outfit unthinkable even for the old teased-up Axl Rose in his prime, on vocals (and what a voice!), Satomi (what kind of name is Satomi?), with long (purple!!) hair and a (fake) well-mannered boy look, sometimes with suspenders, on keyboards (the intro of Lonely Boy will serve as a lesson for many prog bands to follow), Tony, the mysterious one, always hiding his shyness behind sunglasses, on guitar, Steve on bass, with gelled hair and a small tuft on the forehead, never saying a word, but with that bass, he was the true engine of the band (the ride of Freeway speaks for itself) and Matt, the ugliest of the five, poor thing, but a real machine behind the drums.
The album opens with the catchy theme song, sung by one of the voices that most tormented us when we were little, present in every theme song, the immortal Cristina D'Avena, who later takes the permanent role of Licia (though Licia was more alluring...) in the bland TV show that ruined a legend!
After the somewhat lackluster first track, comes the first gem: I’m talking about the legendary hard rock ride, slightly progressive, with a spine-tingling guitar intro, and a liberating lyric, child of freedom, child of the flowers, the wind, a spider, just you and me... Freeway... FREEWAY! Chills and goosebumps on the forearms. You can already tell what the musicians are made of, especially the bassist, a real metronome, and the guitarist who makes Petrucci jealous with his creativity and central solo. Freeway, freeway, I Need Your Love Tonight. And I’d add Yeah!
If you haven’t realized from this first jewel, the four (Mirko doesn’t sing to make space for the virtuosity of his companions) present the instrumental Fire, where keyboards intertwine with a great guitar riff, combined with a funky slapped bass, and a drum that dictates the tempo with numerous blues virtuosos, stop & go, and off-beats.. We're all waiting for the lyrics to properly complement this masterpiece.
We have to wait a little longer because here comes the legendary ballad "Lonely Boy": I Love you but I know, I Love you that for you I am.. A rock & roll boy.. Just this and nothing more.. Remember? With this piece, Licia, and I think all the girls in the world, finally fall prey to the macho and rebellious charm of the handsome bi-colored-haired one.
The piano line is the backbone of the track, Mirko’s voice is sultry and would make any person of the opposite sex melt in their underwear, the others do their duty following Satomi’s magical notes and the frontman's melodic vocal lines.
Another instrumental piece ("Baby I Love You") where the musicians' skill is confirmed, keeping us on the edge of our seat, but then comes another weak link in the chain "Andrea and Giuliano", an ode to friendship between a child, Mirko’s brother, who lost his parents when young and has an obese cat as his only friend, who eats omelettes at Uncle Marrabbio’s tavern (what kind of name is Marrabbio?), father of Licia, an uptight man with a deep love for old Japanese traditions, hence at war with the rockers with long hair trying to ensnare his daughter. Heartfelt...
For the best tracks, we still have to wait because our beloveds first place the instrumental version of "Freeway" just to remind us that they can play as God commands, and then there’s space (Ah, damn generosity), and here’s an applause for the message of friendship that must exist among bands, even a piece by their androgynous rival Shiller, another prominent figure in the rock world of the era. Indeed, the female audience was undecided between this handsome piece of man with ambiguous charm swinging between being a man and a woman, and the macho Mirko.
Let me Feel is a great tear-jerking slow song, with a text that scratches the heart and sends you twirling among the clouds. And here come the two masterpieces: "Baby I Love You", immediately placed afterward to ignite the comparison (damn record companies, you know one more than the Devil).. Keyboard intro and sweet guitar harmony, red carpet for Mirko’s entry with love phrasing:
"I’d like to see you, you know, but I know you won’t come
Yes because you don’t think of me
But I know here I think only of you
I always dream of you, you know.
Who knows if one day you’ll look for me, who knows
But for now, you don’t want to think
That I live for you, only for you.
Baby I love you I wonder thing undone
Baby I need you, I’d like to see you but you
No you don’t want to come, I’ll only go crazy without you".
Have you ever heard more profound and touching words, right?
Note the exquisite phrasing and the subtle wordplay, the use of Anglicisms that strengthen the piece in the chorus. If we want to mention Tony’s fantastic solo in the middle... Let’s mention it.. To make the knees tremble!
Even though Let me feel by Shiller is a good track, with a truly inspired text, this simple play on words (Even Nirvana made simplicity and immediacy their winning weapon, let’s remember that..), combined with a truly captivating melody, leaves no doubt about who the better band is. Bee Hive - Shiller: 2 - 0, scored by Satomi with a big pompadour on Tony’s cross from the left, ball to the center.
We head towards the grand finale, where, after minutes of agonizing wait, the stunning "Fire" awaits us, finally adorned with lyrics worthy of the music, previously mentioned in the instrumental version.
Here Mirko outdoes himself and delivers a text to be enshrined in the annals of music poetry, read it to believe it:
"Baby, on your face there’s always
Baby, a beautiful smile but for whom.
Baby and I always hope that
Baby that smile is for me.
Baby, in your eyes there’s always
Baby, a bit of light but for whom
Baby and I always hope that there’s
Baby, a bit of light for me too.
It’s only my love
Only love for you
And now my heart
Beats only for you.
And I dream only of you baby
I always dream of you yes baby.
I love baby (fire), I love baby (fire)
I love baby (fire), I love baby (fire)".
Breathtaking, right?
The cadence and strength with which Baby is repeated in each verse perfectly convey the apprehension and tension of knowing if the smile and light are truly dedicated to whoever sings these wonderful verses. Great.
They conclude the work with the instrumental version of the theme song (which I would have avoided, as it diminishes the greatness of the album) and the ode to the friendship between little Andrea and his inseparable friend Giuliano.
An album full of songs that defined a generation and inspired various musicians in the wake of rock, to be listened to in one go and definitely placed among the top ten favorite listens of all time, alongside sacred monsters like Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, etc..
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