Brother K
Degeneration beat

Four people from Brescia and a Russian for a surgical operation on music.
For an album that is defined as an Italian tribute to Jack Kerouac.

I must preface by saying that I know very little about the beat generation, unfortunately, although the little I do know fascinates me greatly. But this album is well on its way to becoming my favorite album of 2006.
The five creative minds I mentioned are some of the most enjoyable within the realm of certain unconventional Italian music, and they are Boris Savoldelli on vocals, a character influenced by the likes of Mark Murphy, Demetrio Stratos, Bobby McFerrin, Sting, Paul Rodgers, Ian Gillan, and Paul Carrack. He studied lyrical singing for years and now also delves into the vocal experiments of Demetrio Stratos, delving into all his vocal techniques like diphony, triphony, etc. Then there's Alessandro Ducoli involved in writing the lyrics and various spoken “cameos.”
The keyboardist is Andrej Kutov, born in Russia beyond the Arctic Circle, graduated from the Rostov school and who has played, among others, with Pat Metheny. On guitars, there's Andrea Bellicini (recently also known as Van Cleef Continental), and the "experimental composer" is Federico Troncatti (for his biography, it’s best to visit the site http://brotherk.cusipusi.com, it’s too long. Also, you can listen to and download the entire album there), with the extraordinary participation of Matt Murphy, who recites a piece from “Subterrans” by Kerouac, and that of Fernanda Pivano who recites a text by Ducoli.

As we said, a surgical operation where everyone contributes something of their own, a part of themselves, that merges into a fantastic blend of jazz, blues, soul, and rock. Boris’s voice is always expressive, with a tone that is both enveloping and "destabilizing," if that makes sense, maybe you’ll understand by listening.
In my opinion, the entire album is at very high levels, but there are at least five tracks that go well beyond average, especially the track with which they participated in the finals of the 2006 Musicultura Award in Recanati, "Disarmonia," which critics of the event described as "a strongly innovative piece" for "its exhibited jazz influence" and "poetic technique." I totally agree; to me, it's a splendid song, rare to hear in Italy, it personally reminds me a bit of Donald Fagen.

“Sotterranea 1” is also fantastic, a bit reggae, a bit blues, with those wind instruments and Savoldelli’s vocals making it truly beautiful. Another great track where jazz dominates (but I repeat, there isn’t one that isn’t at least beautiful), is “Sulla strada,” more Ducoli’s text than ever and another great vocal performance by Savoldelli. “Maladea” is very interesting with those spoken parts by multiple voices intersecting without apparent logic, but by listening, one realizes there is a logic. “Brain Strike” is also beautiful, pure jazz in “Punto di luce” (Ducoli reciting), while Bellicini's "noise" guitar can vent in “Qui dentro 2” and thus accompany Savoldelli’s voice that adapts.
Finally, more jazz with the keyboards of Andrei Kutov in an enchanting final song titled “Gennaio 1971.” The lyrics are significantly important, it's as if Ducoli transported himself into the era of Kerouac, Corso, and Ferlinghetti.

"I observe my pocket, There's a machine that mixes drink and gasoline. It ignites it when it crosses the line. It starts pumping again, the cerebral piston. A colored key for the door of the door. My defective key for the brain's door. A ticket of land where corn grows, And a meal ticket to know where to go. To succeed in returning, you have to walk here. There’s a fabric covered in filth and penury That detaches from my nose. That walks and heads toward the center of the room, without wheels It goes to the system I need to reason. To know if the pressure moves. If it decides my coloration, when it rises, it rises badly. There’s a tiny handful of coins, the lowest known. Those immediately counted and despised by the masses. There’s a pen to mark what I do if I move. My moves controlled by the usual movements. By the gospels built to keep the memory more updated. There’s a feather to fly, walk. With the worn pens I need to dry."

It’s already one of my favorite albums of 2006. It could become yours as well.