Carnera
La notte della republica

Carnera returns, a moniker behind which Giovanni Leo Leonardi, a well-known figure in the dark scene thanks to projects like Siegfried and Divisione Sehnsucht, and Yvan Battaglia are hidden. On this occasion, Yvan Battaglia is a co-author in every respect: he played a very important role in the arrangements and also took care of the mastering while the graphics are by Simone Poletti. The moniker refers to the boxer Primo Carnera, heavyweight champion, famous for his imposing stature and icon, in the 1930s, of fascist Italy. Musically, Carnera is certainly closer in style to Divisione Sehnsucht than to Siegfried: the electronic and martial sounds indeed remind of groups like Laibach and Kraftwerk or, to stay in Italy, one might think of certain Kirlian Camera. After the excellent Strategia della tensione, it is now the turn of La notte della repubblica. There is always the desire to delve into the murky past of our recent history. In the second track “Io so,” the brigatist Moretti is mentioned, while the text consists of Pasolini's famous denunciation article on those responsible for the massacres, entitled “Io so,” published in November 1974 in the Corriere della Sera. “Il caso Lavorini” instead revisits a crime story that took place in Vecchiano in 1969 where Ermanno Lavorini, a 12-year-old boy, was kidnapped and then murdered. For the case, after a series of misdirections that led to arrests and suicides of people accused of having a sexual motive, three far-right members were then accused of orchestrating the kidnapping to finance their subversive activities. In the long electronic ride “La notte della repubblica,” the era of the Red Brigades is instead evoked. The closing track is “DC 9 Itavia,” very martial and dark, and dedicated to the Ustica tragedy. With “La notte della repubblica” – released by Old Europa Cafe – Carnera hits the mark once again: the album is beautiful and superior to its already valid predecessor. It reminded me of a masterpiece like “Kapital” by Laibach. Available on the Old Europa Cafe website: http://www.oldeuropacafe.com/en/catalog/category/la-notte-della-repubblica_2.html.