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Rating: The Ladri di Mescal made their recording debut in 2011 with a self-produced album with an emblematic title: Caso o Necessità. It is not a "chance," in fact, that in a quality band there is a singer like Marcella Bellini, with a powerful and deep voice, close in tone and range to vintage soul, and two guitars, Marco Mancini and Francesco Giacalone perfectly in sync with the pop/rock genre. Is it a "necessity," today, to write catchy songs with such a striking melodic line? Well, in a country like Italy, where by searching in the indie scene more and more quality is discovered, one is not so lucky to find a good pop product.
The Ladri di Mescal seem, in fact, designed to assemble good melodies and rock instrumental cues, as evidenced by the track "Nonostante la realtà" with a beautiful introduction, created with an interplay of bass (Riccardo Fortuna) and keyboard that well launches an easy listening chorus. The same pop atmospheres are present in tracks like "Non resta niente" and "Inutili ragioni," where the band musically positions itself between Italian light music and 90s overseas rock.
Among the best moments of the album, we also remember the "charming" "Gaia," marked by a decisive "snare" (Giorgio D’Orazio), which keeps listeners glued to the stereo, even if it moves away from the overall sound of the CD. For its simplicity and the warmth that only a song with a more South American sound manages to have, it convinces even after several (repeated) listens.
There are no other such captivating moments in Caso o Necessità, but ballads and rhythms that wink at the new sounds of indie made in the USA, like "Inevitabilmente Bianca" and "Nuova dimensione," which, in any case, might prove interesting for the elegance of the arrangements.
In closing, a bit of "retro" atmosphere in "Il tuo respiro" and "Blues dell'anima," compositions that are simpler, more raw, and "typical" for a band that is only debuting. Certainly, it can be said that the qualities for a next, more mature album seem to be there. Let's believe in it!
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La violenza del benessere helps us understand how a good listen is important (at least once in a while), especially if it evokes expressions and situations that are very close and tangible.
A good Italian band that doesn’t wink at commercialism at all costs (the lyrics by Mancini and D’Orazio are elegant and never banal), with sounds that catapult backward like a time machine showing us what is and what perhaps will never be again.
