Stoney

A record that is such a drag. The usual tired and recycled stuff that pathetically tries to achieve originality by regurgitating the same clichés, and of course fails to do so. But not because the musicians are incapable: simply because this kind of album is made with the mindset of the typical pimple-faced fifteen-year-old who usually buys it. P.S. just the presence of Labrie would immediately be worth a straight 1 without a second thought.

Ezekiel, personally, I'm not concerned that you may not have captured the ultimate essence of the film, in contrast to many up here; what matters is that you had the courage to write your own reflection, which can certainly relate to the film in question, despite the pompous little fingers that have been waving around. It's rare for someone writing a review to put something of themselves into it, and that, in my opinion, is what counts. Indeed, reviews often fall into two categories: either the classic "I liked/didn't like it" style of an elementary school essay, or the lecture on cinematography delivered by Professor Stocazzo, who unfortunately represents the alter ego of many users on this site. Few, rather almost none, manage to convey their impressions with genuine engagement and reflection. Perhaps it's because the theme of alienation caused by the standard rules of society is something that resonates deeply with me, something I feel very strongly. Perhaps it's because this film has given me the strength to express and think more vigorously about things I only felt and thought silently. Perhaps it's that it pleases me to see someone who, like me, realizes that the ethics of "work" that is propagated today and never questioned is a massive joke, perhaps the biggest in history. Because "work ennobles" only when it produces something good for oneself and for others (and I don't just mean money). Otherwise, work enslaves, and one only needs to study a bit of history to realize it has always been used as punishment and a deterrent for subversives and prisoners of war. In fact, I remember that even my elementary school teacher would give the most unruly students double homework to "punish" them. Hard work makes the masses harmless and less inclined to constructive thinking; physical and mental exhaustion makes people indifferent towards social and cultural participation. A tired and oppressed mass is easier to control because it is less clear-headed. Today, ethical and behavioral models are proposed based on "doing" without distinction: it's important to "do" and that's it, without specifying what or why, all that matters is that you work hard and "sacrifice" yourself, the rest doesn't count. Either you work like a mule or you're someone who doesn't want to do anything with their life; there's no middle ground. And it’s painful to see that the most fervent supporters of this culture are not the rich industrialists and entrepreneurs, for whom it might be understandable, but ordinary people, the poor souls who work 12 hours a day and have to pay dearly every day of their lives for food, housing, clothing, and healthcare. And if you point this out, you get marginalized. You know what? We will live in a world where there will be no more poets, writers, directors, and musicians, and all those people who have always based their existence on "not doing." They will all be eliminated by this crude and superficial culture that seeks to use hard work as an excuse not to think and not to question the reasons behind things. Already today, it's an offense to be called an "intellectual"; soon, it will be an offense to be called a "poet" or "writer." The only artists that will remain will be those integrated into the business logic, that is, those artists who will produce material wealth like any office worker. When I watched this film for the first time, I saw these things behind Chris's death: the blackmail of having to conform to the single thought from which there is no escape except at the cost of compromising one's own existence. Then, if you gentlemen believe that I too am a human case like Ezekiel, feel free to say so; I couldn't care less. Regards.

P.S. The Uochi Toki, just to mention a group that gets close to this genre and not come across as just a critic, throw in a rhyme every blue moon; let’s say that their tracks are more like monologues than anything else, but they keep you glued to listening to everything they say without missing a syllable. And that’s because they talk about sensible things, about topics that once heard, allow you to express an opinion and decide if you agree or disagree, and that's already a lot different from an idiot who just spews crap about how much better he is than others and how many chicks he sleeps with in a night. That’s the difference between those who know how to make music, regardless of the genre, because in the end they have something to say, and those who need the usual 3-4 clichés to cover their backs.

Well, in reality, all middle school kids with an average level of intelligence can write more sensible things than what rappers usually babble on their tracks. I mean, I really don't get this whole rhyme thing. Is it really that necessary? And if so, why? Does it not count if someone says something sensible without rhymes? How does it work? As far as I'm concerned, I've come up with my own explanation, which is: one day someone realized that to fit a rhythmic verse over a beat, it requires the ability of a microcephalic, so after much thought, they invented an additional difficulty to give a semblance of dignity to this type of music. That's when this nonsense about rhyme was created. It's stuff that no poet has been writing in rhyme for 400 years, and if they do, it's because it actually makes sense, not because it's a meaningless rule to be followed.

I don’t understand and will never understand the people who get “indignant” because these individuals sell out to the record industry at some point. As if they had previously produced some masterpieces or were essential to music. Instead of blaming them, blame yourselves for still looking for an identity in these intellectual nobodies. Wake up.

John and Dino Elefante. This is where the credibility of this record ends.

I saw them live once, and they just made me laugh so much. I was watching the performances they put on stage and wondering: where are they trying to go? Are they subtly criticizing our way of life, our society, our modern apathy? Is it an attempt to create a poetics of a new and different language through heavy and artificial sounds? Well, no, the answer is quite the opposite: like 99.9% of modern bands, the only thing they communicate is "getting high," chaos, noise, the disorientation that comes from noise; whether it’s represented with one style or another, with industrial, metal, brutal, or the most zora house, it is just pure theatrical effect "pro forma," point and basta. By now, I have concluded that behind the stylistic choices of certain groups there is NOTHING but a formal choice, of pure and simple taste, mystified with the aura of some hidden meaning that actually does not exist.

SOSHITO NTRONATO is fantastic.

Being outraged because Nightwish made a shit album is a bit like being outraged that Fede hosts TG4.

@GustavoTanz, comment 42. "GILEGUA NOCCI, TRAMUNTATI STELLI, TRAMUNTATI STELLI, ALALBA VIN CEROU', VIN CEROU', VIN CEEEEEEEEE ROOU". The spelling, damn it.