C.S.I.
In Quiete

A few months after the release of the splendid "Ko De Mondo," the CSI, Consorzio Suonatori Indipendenti, were invited to participate in the "Acoustica" program for the VideoMusic broadcaster. "In Quiete" is the recording of the concert held on June 3, 1994, during the program, from which both a CD and this reviewed Home Video were derived, containing 2 additional songs. Musically, it is an unplugged performance, reinterpreted in the CSI style.

What immediately catches the eye is the unusual arrangement of the musicians: in a circle, in order, as Ferretti himself says, to recreate a more intimate atmosphere. Clockwise, starting from the singer, we find Francesco Magnelli on piano, Gianni Maroccolo on acoustic guitar, Pino Gulli on drums, Ginevra di Marco on backing vocals, Alessandro Gerby on percussion, and lastly Giorgio Canali and Massimo Zamboni on electric guitars.

The first track is "In Viaggio," completely reworked compared to the studio version: the many guitar overdubs are replaced by a soft melody of piano and electric guitar. The effect created by the band's unison singing of the text is stunning. This is followed by what I consider the best track of the concert, the unreleased "Inquieto": it's difficult to describe the atmosphere created by the whole group during the 9 minutes of the track, which starts with just piano and acoustic guitar and, in a majestic crescendo (it very much reminds me of the sounds of GYBE!), is enriched by guitars that become increasingly distorted, with Ferretti and Ginevra's dual vocals standing out, featuring lyrics bordering on poetry "Terre battute dai venti infuriati dai monti/ Sereno incanto splendente di sole di bianco/ Dense sfumate nuvole di piombo/ Grigio verde ed intenso blu/ Colpo d'occhio rotondo". Connected to it is "Memorie di una Testa Tagliata", a dark piece dominated by Magnelli's piano, lingering in a splendid solo, extending the track beyond 11 minutes. Until now, the guitars have played a marginal role, and the drums have not been considered at all; however, both instruments dominate in the extremely violent "Stati di Agitazione," a deafening bacchanal dense with feedback, which perfectly matches Ferretti's hallucinatory singing, who proclaims "Stati di agitazione in corpo e nella testa/ Occhi infossati lucidi/ Noie con il respiro mi si accelera il fiato/ Eppure sono vivo!". Played in a minimalist manner is "Palpitazione Tenue", only with the drums as a background; perhaps because it's a song I've never particularly liked, it seems to be a slightly underwhelming moment.

The first of the two additional tracks on the Home Video is "Depressione Caspica", a "nighttime" ballad that metaphorically speaks about the disintegration of the USSR. Without too many surprises, "Occidente" flows, played identically to the studio version: the same discussion applies as for "Palpitazione Tenue", a track that has never excited me much, but it's always of great value. A completely different story is "Allarme", which maintains, compared to the original made in CCCP, only the vague tango-like rhythm; for the rest, the piano during the verses and the distorted guitars in the chorus give new life to the track, making it even more claustrophobic than the original ("Allarme lampo allarme torci le labbra a curva in gesto di amarezza/ Indifferente più reale del vero che spesso sembra stupido/ Usa il cervello e i nervi con disinvoltura/ E mira al cuore mira al cuore mira al cuore..."). This is followed by a cover of "Lieve" by Marlene Kuntz, who at the time had just released "Catartica": it is a song very dear to Ferretti, as it helped him to overcome and defeat the cancer he had contracted; as Ferretti himself says, their cover is more psychedelic compared to the original, but it doesn't completely convince me, especially the vocal part. The next additional track on the Home Video is "Aria di Rivoluzione", a cover of Battiato, shouted a cappella, rather than sung, by Canali and Ferretti; the following track is one of my personal favorites from CSI, the bucolic ballad "Fuochi nella Notte di S.Giovanni", whose music terribly contrasts with the pessimistic lyrics "Muoiono i preti rinsecchiti e vecchi e muoiono i pastori senza mandrie/Spaventati i guerrieri, persi alla meta i viaggiatori/La saggezza è impazzita, non sa l'intelligenza/La ragione è nel torto, conscia l'ingenuità/Ma non tacciono i canti e si muove la danza", with a final grimace from Maroccolo; this relaxed and sunny atmosphere continues with two other old CCCP tracks, "And the Radio Plays", in which Canali, Magnelli, and Ferretti alternate, as suggested by the lyrics, in the dance, and an unrecognizable "Io Sto Bene", introduced by Ferretti's "è un eufemismo", with its anthemic chorus: "Io sto bene io sto male io non so dove stare/ Io sto bene io sto male io non so cosa fare". This beautiful concert concludes with the splendid "Del Mondo", transformed into a jewel by the piano and Canali's many distortions.

One of the best works of one of the best Italian rock bands.

RATING = 9 and 1/2