JpLoyRow
JpLoyRow

Gianna Nannini — Profumo | DeRank™: 3,00

Swept up by a success that was perhaps unexpected, the collaboration with Conny Plank continues. The album goes into heavy radio rotation: "Profumo"; "Avventuriera" and "Bello e impossibile" are the passport to a triumph that is at times inexplicable. radiofonica: more
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PaxEst
PaxEst

Sun Kil Moon — April | DeRank™: 0,00

April is a river that flows slowly, dense, full of bends, sometimes stopping to watch the ducks and then continuing on its way. more
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JpLoyRow

Vasco Rossi — Il Supervissuto | DeRank™: 3,00

A compilation of already well-known tracks plus an unreleased song ("Gli sbagli che fai") of very light (to say the least) craftsmanship. He stars in a TV series, "Il supervissuto," which tells the story of his feats and legends. Despite everything, he’s still going full throttle. more
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JpLoyRow
JpLoyRow

Vasco Rossi — Buoni O Cattivi | DeRank™: 3,00

It's a sales record: Vasco seems to be totally in sync with his (inexhaustible) audience. But the album is one of the worst in his discography: as monotonous as a flatlining EEG, needlessly frivolous (and stupid) at many points, exhausting in its obsessive quest for any kind of chorus ("Un senso"). It dominates radio and TV, commercials and billboards. But it (seems) to have nothing left to say. vendite: discografia: more
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Now resigned (or satisfied?) to the joys of home life, he loses his anger, inventiveness, and anarchy (but, truth be told, he had already lost them some time ago). He calls Polanski (parbleu) and has him direct the video for "Gli angeli," but his aura does not cross Italian borders. "Sally" is a masterpiece; what revolves around it is (much) less. more
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JpLoyRow
JpLoyRow

Oasis — Definitely Maybe | DeRank™: 6,00

Seven (!) platinum records mark the debut of the most controversial group (loved and hated in equal measure) of '90s Brit-pop. The melodies and moods are typical of the most radio-friendly pop, and that’s a limitation, but the execution is of immense sophistication, which is a merit. Tracks like "Live Forever" and "Cigarettes & Alcohol" hit the mark effortlessly: young people follow them with an enthusiasm (perhaps) worthy of a better cause, but Oasis, at this moment, are in spectacular form, despite the already escalating tensions between the Gallagher brothers, destined to explode in the years to come. more
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JpLoyRow
The perfect, or almost perfect, Oasis. They push hard on the pedal of the most consumable pop and hit a series of almost admirable harmonies and choruses, riffs and melodies. "Wonderwall" is the calling card of English pop for the decade (and even Thom Yorke would fall under its spell), while the piano opening of "Don't Look Back in Anger" benignly reveals an undying Beatles passion that the Gallagher brothers have never hidden. It's also worth mentioning the remarkable "Roll with it" and "Cast no shadow," as well as the masterful closing entrusted to the nearly 8 minutes of the epic "Champagne Supernova." more
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JpLoyRow
JpLoyRow

Mango — Sirtaki | DeRank™: 3,00

Culmine by Mango is one of the most beautiful Italian albums of all time. Pleasant, soothing, charming just the right amount, it skillfully blends local pop with Mediterranean sounds closer to Greece: "Nella mia città" and "Tu... sì" are two Perugina kisses that hit the mark, but the title track and the big single "Come Monna Lisa" are gems above the average of Italian music of that era. Gran Mogol wrote the lyrics. Grecia: more
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It starts to repeat itself. The second album is, no less, a sequel to the debut, a bit less convincing but still very well played, with some spot-on riffs ("Sarà un bel souvenir"; "Urlando contro il cielo"). "Camera con vista sul deserto" leaves you speechless, other things less so. more
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JpLoyRow
JpLoyRow

Litfiba — Terremoto | DeRank™: 3,00

Having shed their skin as a hard and pure emerging rock band, Litfiba transform (to the great dismay of their early fans) into a top-chart group champions of a rock closer to pop. Scandal: come on, it’s just the natural evolution of a band that understood that the ’90s can no longer be musically treated like the ’80s. "Firenze sogna"; "Soldi"; "Dimmi il nome"; "Maudit" echo on all the radios. The quality is very high, but the disputes between Renzulli and Pelù become increasingly persistent, and the subsequent works will mark both their friendly and musical end. Scandalo: more
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Opus "elico" no.2. Their masterpiece. Played brilliantly, it is a mix of fun, beautiful music, and unrestrained quoting. "Pipppero" is the summer 1992 hit, but the songs that go down in history include, among others, "Uomini col borsello"; the most unlikely superhero of all time, "Supergiovane," and the wicked "Servi della gleba." Participating, laughing along: i Pitura Freska, Diego Abatantuono, Claudio Bisio, Riccardo Fogli. Hilarious. ridanciani: more
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The Apocryphal Gospels are the foundation of the beautiful reinterpretation of the life of Jesus, man and not God, as portrayed by the Genoese singer-songwriter. The not-yet-famous PFM plays with him, and in the bigoted Italy of the ’70s, it was a strong, and healthy, gut punch. Perhaps a bit too raw musically (the first part is quite monotonous), but tracks like "Via della croce" and "Tre madri" are ones to memorize. It closes with the epic "Il testamento di Tito," an idyll. more
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Francesco Guccini — Due Anni Dopo | DeRank™: 3,00

More musically refined than the previous one, Guccini nonetheless does not give up minimalism. Poems, more than songs. Luxurious stuff, though: "Lui e lei"; "Al Trist"; "Vedi cara"; "Giorno d'estate"; "La verità". Serving as a crown, the combative "Primavera di Praga". I Nomadi, more popular at this moment, help him as performers of his songs; in fact, he still sells very little. more
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JpLoyRow

Francesco Guccini — L'ultima Thule | DeRank™: 3,00

At the end of a long journey, the ship vanishes and even the memory of it disappears. Guccini's latest work leaves a mark, and it is his best album in many years: the title track, with its Arabian flair, works wonderfully, as does the fourth song, "Di notte" (definitive, commanding). The bitter sweetness of "L'ultima volta" portrays an existentialist and fatalist artist like no other in Italy, but what surprises most is the vaguely Fellini-esque excursus of "Gli artisti." Safe travels, Maestrone. qua: more
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JpLoyRow
JpLoyRow

Roberto Vecchioni — Blumùn | DeRank™: 3,00

Vecchioni from the late '80s and, broadly speaking, the '90s I believe is the best (perhaps even more than the, to this day indigestible, '70s one). "Blumùn" is a caress that never stops moving me: from the title track to "Euridice," from the rustic yet classy fun of "Saggio di danza classica e moderna" to the emotions, honestly never held back, of "Il mago della pioggia." Towards the end it falters (the last two tracks are mediocre), but it’s an album I will continue to be fascinated by. emozionarmi: more
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JpLoyRow

Baustelle — La malavita | DeRank™: 3,00

After two niche albums, they sign with Warner, get booed by their early fans, but sell out massively, so hats off. The album, musically catchy and narratively surprising, is a sort of tribute to the Italian '70s poliziottesco cinema, with its tones and moods. Bianconi is in a state of grace, and all over Italy songs like "La guerra è finita," "Un romantico a Milano," "Il corvo Joe," which are not easy, are bouncing around. Tracks to memorize like "Sergio," "A vita bassa," "Il nulla" smell of The Smiths, as hasn't been seen for (too) long in the Belpaese. more
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Francesco Guccini — Metropolis | DeRank™: 3,00

The slow dying of cities intersects with the slow perishing of the people who inhabit them: a record that is at times magnificent, sumptuous ("Bisanzio"), ironic ("Bologna"), narratively engaging ("Antenor"), goosebump-inducing ("Lager"), tear-jerking ("Venezia"). With some tracks hinting at filler material, but there's enough substance and plenty, plenty of meat. popola: more
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Released posthumously, Gaber's last work (a hoarse, aged, suffering voice) seems like an artistic and spiritual legacy, almost a testament. The closing track "Se ci fosse un uomo" is the final possible hope: a new civilization that replaces our inevitably sick world. The hope, however, is also found in "Non insegnate ai bambini," plus some past songs reinterpreted in a modern key. Irony is guaranteed ("Il corrotto"), but the tone is, ça va sans dire, funereal. possibile: more
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