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Rating: The dark side of Florence. 1982.
A young group, influenced by the British dark wave movement, has just recorded their first 45 rpm record. It's December 1981, and only a few days have passed since their first performance, when Diaframma heads to Bologna to the studios of "Italian records" by Oderso Rubini. They bring with them a demo, containing tracks with very gloomy titles, such as "Effetto notte", "Illusione ottica", "Pioggia", "Disagio", and "Nevrosi". After a careful selection, the four Florentines and Rubini choose "Pioggia" for side A, while the B-side will be "Illusione ottica".
Recorded in four days, the single will see the light in April 1982, with a run of 1500 copies. The cover, very somber, features a youthful image of Arthur Rimbaud, the cursed French poet of the 1800s, who Federico Fiumani (also guitarist and lyricist) is inspired by to write his own lyrics. In the rhythm section, we have Gianni and Leandro Cicchi, on drums and bass respectively; on vocals is the DJ of RoKKoteca Brighton, Nicola Vannini, who thanks to his work brought a certain musical culture inspired by the new wave of "Joy Division". The back shows Rimbaud on his deathbed, the titles of the two songs, and various credits are written on an inner sleeve.
But let's move on to the musical contents... the record features two songs sung in Italian, an unusual fact for the time... sung over a very dark post-punk musical backdrop, but not too dark. Certainly, "Pioggia" is the darkest track, where Federico’s Fender is very angular, and Nicola's singing is pensive and dour, and if you will, not entirely in tune (this flaw will become especially noticeable in live performances), the rhythm section is formidable... real tribal and gloomy rounds. The lyrics can be considered true poetry, concluding by saying "la vita si spegne far le gocce di pioggia" (each word is interspersed with an extremely sharp guitar riff).
Side B, "Illusione ottica", is a song with more melodic hints, consisting of the first part sung and a second completely instrumental, except for some melodic vocals... it will become a staple between '82 and '85. This record received positive reviews from "Il Mucchio selvaggio" and other specialized magazines, offering the group various opportunities for live performances even outside Florence, invitations to radio broadcasts that quickly led to the depletion of the single's run.
Today, like all "preSiberia" records by "Diaframma", it is very rare and reaches very high collectible prices.
Tracklist
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