Elio e le Storie Tese
Peerla

THE REVIEW

I had a small idea, that is, to continue talking about E.e.l.s.t at least as far as important studio albums that have not yet been reviewed are concerned (there are not many). "Elio Samaga..." (first album) had a lot of success without the aid of advertising, "ITALYAN, RUM CASUSU..." did very well, and it is one of the most loved especially because it contains the unforgettable SUPERGIOVANE and IL VITELLO DAI PIEDI DI BALSA many have and/or remember "ESCO DAL MIO CORPO...", and their fourth album, "Eat The Phikis" is known by everyone because in that year (1996) they appeared at S. Remo with the historic "La terra dei Cachi". From that moment on, Elio becomes more difficult to follow, we know that in 1999 a song and a video on "La visione" came out with the infallible refrain: "La visione della figa da vicino...", contained in the album "Craccracriccrecr" and that finally in 2003 they made themselves heard again with "Cicciput" thanks to the songs Fossi Figo and Shpalman.
A few years ago, by informing myself, analyzing their biography, between an intervention on TV and one on the radio, among ten thousand concerts around Italy (but who knows why never in Salento) and many projects, including endless CD singles, it is discovered that in 1998, that is between "Eat The Philis" and "Craccracrccrecr" there is another album, titled "Peerla".

This intro is just to say that the album in question is the most underrated, the least known, and the least famous. considered by Elio themselves as the "rarity album". Compared to the others, this album is a bit forced and less comical, particularly concentrated on the football theme, but I certainly prefer it to Cicciput. Although there is a zoomed pearl on the cover, it doesn’t take a genius to understand that "Peerla" means Pirla.

The album is announced with the (intro) sensational discovery of Prof. Magneto about the magnet, and then proceeds with "La donna nuda (I want a new drug") a cover in "elio style" of Huey Lewis's amazing song. Then comes the first football citation: "La cinica lotteria dei rigori" a song composed by a choral trio with the participation of Mangoni, this track composed for a short time the theme song of an old edition of mai dire goal. The Dik Dik are also "covered" with the super pop song "Help Me" where the sad misadventure of Mc Kenzie trapped in space is narrated. Another football citation, this time more famous and funny "Nessuno allo stadio" theme song of Mai dire goal from 1994 where Elio, singing this song on a psychedelic background, transformed into a werewolf, in the text, besides quoting Lorena Bobbit, ingenious stanzas are fired, typical disco music of the '90s. It continues with the covers, this time by Nek with "In te" sung entirely by the perfectly-toned Mangoni. Although Urna is already present in "Italian Rum casusu..." in an almost power metal version, this time, it is proposed again in another calmer version with fusion arrangement. Then follows another theme song of mai dire goal, this was unforgettable, a cover of the base song taken from the "Rocky Horror Picture Show" film renamed by Elio "Balla Coi Barlafus-time warp"; Elio sings together with Marina Massironi and Giacomo (of Aldo Giovanni and Giacomo), in the video Claudio Lippi and Simona Ventura mistakenly ended up in this "possessed" castle by the great comedians of the show. The album gets its first "forced" or rather the first relapse that slightly lowers the quality compared to other albums with the song "Agnello Medley" where the band sings typical Christmas songs in a terrible version. Then follows a song with the base of "Lo stato A-Lo stato B" track present in the previous CD (Eat The Phikis) titled this time "il concetto di banana" and with another football theme (this was also a theme song of Mai dire gol) the most beautiful song of the album is absolutely the Christmas "Christmas with the yours" sung by Elio and Graziano Romani in Italo/English ("Panettone is on the table..."), there are also beautiful guitar solos. Follows another song (obviously on a football theme) titled Giocatore Mondiale, born as the theme song of a radio show, the ending is nice: a piano solo with the legendary commentator's voice "Italia campione del mondo".

In conclusion, the album does not come out as "bad" overall, only that it has some relapses that make its quality questionable, and moreover, it is too directed towards football as the main theme, and thus for many, it may seem uninteresting. but a listen is mandatory.