Cesare Cremonini
Maggese

THE REVIEW

As a good reader and frequenter of this site, I happened to read not only the "review" by two young girls who cannot be blamed for certain musical-cultural bugs (and we should be proud that even those less accustomed to certain music visit this site), but even more, I was struck by certain Taliban-like responses unable to address a topic seriously, objectively, and free from prejudice, in fact, saying huge nonsense to support their own beliefs (often undocumented).
So what did I do? I had a copy of the album in question made (sorry if I can't comment on the graphic part), I visited the singer's website, and I formed an opinion.
I repeat, I forgot for a moment the past of the person in question, whom I followed, I confess, as one might follow a Baglioni, Max Pezzali, or Antonacci.

Well, I confess I was surprised. Surprised by the fact that it is not at all what I would have expected from a singer in his position. The album is not at all ingratiating, it doesn't wink at any other artist (a flaw that almost everyone in Italy has), and indeed, it uses music, all musical genres, as a director uses any historical era to make his films.
But even more, I find nothing flirtatious towards the audience of hormonally excessive fanatical teenagers. In other words, an adult album.

And now a small mention of the tracks.
- Maggese. A Beatles-like citation made with gloves (Penny Lane above all), but tasteful, with a balanced lyric whose concept (each of us needs a calm phase to take back our lives) is universal. The finale is explosive.
- Le Tue Parole Fanno Male. Ennio Morricone could have arranged it. Again, the lyrics are not trivial at all, with good imagery (perhaps also citations I don't know). Certainly universal.
- Marmellata. I've been a fan of Baggio and Senna and I liked the citation. Perhaps the title seems saccharine, but anyone who has cohabited at least once perceives every detail ("I explained to the neighbors that you are no longer there...").
- Ancora Un Po'. Courageous riffs and a very aggressive lyric ("ballerina of my boots, I can't stand artificial butts").
- Sardegna. What De Gregori can no longer do. Much balance, much melancholy, but no pretense of smugness.
- Quando Non Sai, Stavo Pensando Che Dio.... Nothing to praise or blame. Well-constructed ballads, the first with some interesting musical solutions.
- Carillon. Moving is his father's voice on the answering machine.
- Momento Silenzioso. The theme of death tackled with quite Floydian sounds. Airy. Certainly not meant for radio banalities. Nor for the teenagers who certainly do not understand certain musical passages.
- Linda&Moreno. A duet of pianos of fine craftsmanship (I say this from the top of my now 16 years of piano playing). Where influences and genres intertwine very well. Nothing gratuitous, including the excellent recording.
The album also contains a ghost track that says a lot about the fact that we are not dealing with some random pop star, given that the more experienced will find references of enormous school and depth.

In conclusion.
For someone like me who hasn't bought an Italian album in 30 years, it was a pleasant surprise, if only to find that not everything is as it seems to see and hear even in the field of so-called pop music. I am not a user of Italian pop music, but I recognize that this is an album made with seriousness, commitment, competence, and well-written. I hope that some big singer discovers Cremonini's composing vein and gets him to write some tracks. It would be a great test. Even more so if it were sung in English.

I close by telling the young girls who wrote the previous review that it is just because they drool over a guy who, from an artistic or credibility point of view, only leads him to be snubbed and overlooked. Even though perhaps reviewing Cremonini we are right on the edge of the genre that reigns here (Elisa's single is really much more Italian). Again, a serious album, trivialized only by some sort of hysteria.
No more and no less as Paul McCartney has always recalled about the early days of the Beatles. Coincidence.