Giardini di Mirò
Dividing Opinions

Too many times I happen to hear the word "consecration" used improperly, disturbed without reason to praise truly questionable works by even more questionable authors far from perfection. We're human after all, even though less and less, and we enjoy basking in the error of judgments made hastily and without depth, only to regret not having known how to wait. The case of Dividing Opinions by Giardini di Mirò escapes these considerations because the boys from Cavriago with this album deliver the decisive blow and climb to the top step of the podium, the one reserved for those who reach the most brilliant point of their journey.

Dividing Opinions is a magnificent album, nine excellent tracks that stir genuine emotions, traverse diverse and complex territories, and convince with their firm and definitive progression.

The sound, although always mournful and twilight, now seems decidedly purer and deeper; the songwriting has finally matured and become essential, and the previously overly sing-song and redundant tone of some past "slow" arrangements has been almost entirely abandoned. Here everything seems faster and more frantic, resulting in a decidedly more aggressive album, with compelling rhythms that at times brush against the atmospheres of a certain more or less recent Indie/New Wave (Blonde Redhead comes to mind, followed by Piano Magic and even The Psychedelic Furs).

However, Giardini di Mirò have shown that they have reached such a level of awareness and greatness that they deserve to move beyond comparisons and similarities (which people still seem unable to give up) and to be considered simply for their absolute dimension. Dividing Opinions has the depth of a great international album and surprises in how even in the most secondary aspects of its production and post-production, everything seems perfect.

The album opens with the title track "Dividing Opinions" itself, and from the very first moment, the sonic impact is violent and highlights the more powerful and forceful tone of the record. The track is pounding and distorted, two minutes and seven impetuous and killer seconds that then make way for the beautiful second track "Cold Perfection", which begins with a fast, classic, and simple arpeggio, gradually unfolds through a New Wave chorus and ends by expanding into a fantastic, slow, and rarefied finale. The third track "Embers" seems like a homage to the beloved Blonde Redhead, almost a citation, but no less convincing for that.

Allow me a separate paragraph for "July's Stripes", the fourth track, the only instrumental one, simply stunning. It begins with a slow and hypnotic progression, a clear bass line, minimalist piano, psychedelic atmosphere, the guitar played like a sitar, and soft strings in the background. Then, after two minutes and thirty-nine seconds, the song explodes grandiously and magnificently in a monumental frenzy that makes the soul tremble and the heart bleed. A monstrous song that leaves you breathless.

Then comes the splendid "Spectral Woman", sweet and melancholic, pop-electronic and once again New Wave at the highest levels with a chilling guitar. Equally chilling is the attack of "Broken By", which surprises with an airy and sunny tone, only to explode into a suffering yet sparkling bridge. In my opinion, there's a slight drop in tone with "Clairvoyance", featuring a 70s acoustic atmosphere that's a bit dated, resembling many things already heard, a tired track and decidedly too long.

The level rises immediately with the subsequent "Self Help", in which the great Glen Johnson (Piano Magic) appears to weave a perfect melody laid on a full and rich bass sound, very sad strings, and a super-reverberated guitar. The voice and acoustic guitar are his, and it shows. The album closes with the ninth track "Petit Treason", a long rock ride with a simply stunning two-and-a-half-minute finale that recalls in the last moments the notes of Dividing Opinions, closing the album just as it began, like a perfect circle, almost as if it never wants to end.

In conclusion, Dividing Opinions is a great album, convincing and at times exhilarating. It represents a clear step forward in the evolution of Giardini di Mirò's music. It is a captivating and emotionally charged album, decidedly wintry and with dark tones, yet angry and aggressive for the most part, characterized by a powerful progression and an enormous amount of surprising ideas resolved in a writing in a state of grace, probably the offspring of an exceptional state of creative inspiration.

This time, yes, we are witnessing a true consecration.