Gianluca De Rubertis
Autoritratti con oggetti

THE REVIEW

Already one half of Il Genio, Gianluca De Rubertis from Lecce leaves his musical partner Alessandra Contini (her orgasmic vocals in Pop porno are now an "Italian radical trash chic" history - but will it exist?) by releasing his first solo work. And the result, for the most part, is convincing.

De Rubertis abandons the synthesizer and sits at the piano, unfolding well-developed melodies and lyrics that move between Capossela and Conte, with the necessary, obvious distinctions of the case. Metaphors, allegories, and galleries of abstract images are an integral part of the texts of this Salento singer-songwriter. Wordplays and nonsensical constructs ("...sei sibillina/ sai di luna che si affetta/schiumo ma senza bavetta/tutta schiuma e niente agosto/luglio ligure di pesto..." from Hotel da fine), casual encounters, perhaps gone wrong and immediately forgotten with a drink ("then you suddenly leave/like someone who runs away or dies/I drink an alcoholic/drink strengthening the heart..." from Mariangela, the first single). But not everything runs smoothly. Some moments seem like fillers, overly boring (the triptych Singolare donna, Amore colbacco, and La prima vera parola after a while weigh down the ears, and not only), with quotes and metaphors too forced ("...hai un corpo, maliziosa donna/che biascichi e t'incanta Clitennestra..." from Singolare Donna). There's also room, in the opinion of the writer, for a gem: Signorina, track number 11. Contagious rhythm, almost fox trot, with lyrics that are hard to grasp but fit perfectly with the music.

In short, a good debut work, awaiting the next new (?) work from those of "Porno, popporno poppornoporno.....".