zaireeka

Guys, but what is the real state of things?????
Below is an excerpt from the review by Giacomo De Poli from the site pigmag.com.
"(..) But it is not, as many feared, a blatantly 'dullian' album; or rather, the influence of the magnetic Greg can be felt, but it doesn't shift the balance of an already codified sound, of a poetics, that of Agnelli, which has rather found new vital breath in this collaboration(..). The ethereal grip of 'Carne Fresca' freezes the muscles like morning frost (..). Those longing for the early albums can find solace in the fervor of 'E’ La Fine Più Importante,' the most impetuous track on the album, or with the cryptic ardor of 'Chissà Com’E’,' just before the bare vein of 'Il Sangue Di Giuda' (set against a vaguely 'doorsian' long take) erupts into a chorus that has no longer any 'fear of the dark'..."

Anyway, Josi, reading it again, great review. Really beautiful. I'm almost tempted to look for the book you mentioned. Speaking of fantastic stories, what do you think of Buzzati?

Anyway, let me know how it went. It’s really hard for me to imagine what an acoustic performance by the MR could be like since their music is mainly made up of sound alchemies.

Josi, to say that I envy you is putting it mildly. Not that I particularly want to live in Milan, but around here, certain things are just dreams for me... If the MR came to do a little concert from Rome downwards, I would probably be willing to travel a few kilometers to see them, just like I did for Sparklehose and the FL (well, for them I made it all the way to Rimini).

So Christmas On Mars... What can I say, if it ever comes out and is released on DVD (I don't think it will hit theaters in Italy....) I will buy it. Attached to one of the EPs there is also the trailer. It's pure FL style! Humanx4, Clouds Taste Metallic is great. Just the lines from When you smile:
"All of the subatomic pieces come together and
Unfold themselves in a second...
Every single molecule is right,
when you smile"
are worth the entire album.

Come on Josi, it's not that serious not to know the very first FL!! Nobody's perfect after all!! Certainly, in the first three albums, which are still very amateurish and raw, there are the seeds of what they will become (including, for example, UFO Story, that passion for film music that has taken tangible form in TSB). One thing I haven't mentioned yet about FL is that I really love their themes, which are definitely not light as their way of presenting themselves might suggest (with fake blood splattered in your face, Bugs Bunny, etc.). They tackle existential themes that often speak of death and the ultimate meaning of life. Speaking of which, there's something I wanted to suggest. In your review of The Secret, you mentioned that you are reading a collection of fantasy stories. I had an idea. An album as a soundtrack for a book. For example, The Secret Migration as the soundtrack for the collection you were talking about. Who has other ideas?
PS. Recently, while I was absentmindedly watching the credits of a cartoon (Duck Rodgers or something like that) on RAI2, I saw the name The Flaming Lips as the authors of the cartoon's theme. Incredible, but with these weirdos, you can expect anything, like a song (There You Are, beautiful) that digresses on the meaning of life, telling us about a guy who while driving "wishing the stars" ends up off the road "face on the road, fuck as dead," and who, after a day, composes the soundtrack for a cartoon.

I accidentally gave a high rating to the review. I'll fix it right away...

Thank you for the wishes everyone. At first, I didn’t understand Josi’s. Then I remembered I had left my birth date on the forum… Thank you so much also to Cleo, especially for what was said about my reviews. I hope I can remember yours too, but that’s not really my strong suit. Ah, how I feel… antennas!!
PS. Josi, I know I seem like a longtime fan of the FL, but I only discovered them in 2001.

Josi, maybe I need to clarify one thing to avoid confusion. My judgment on this album is relative to what the MR are capable of doing. If this album had been released by one of the many (most) medium/small-sized bands around, I might have given it at least 4/5. But it's the MR. In general, however, in my opinion, but it’s just my opinion, the FL are greater both because they have managed to consistently produce 6 high-level albums that are quite different in ideas and styles (Hit To Death In The Future Head, Transmission From The Satellite Heart, Clouds Taste Metallic, Zaireeka, The Soft Bulletin, Yoshimi) and because they continue to maintain their naturalness and spontaneity (at least until now, but I’m waiting for disappointments...)

OK, we just need to remove some white space in between...