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Rating: A few years ago, in a specialized magazine, there was a special on the 100 best Italian albums of all time, and I remember that among the top 20, this old work by Litfiba was featured. I had heard about it before, and both the title and the cover intrigued me a lot, in addition to the fact that it was a Tuscan rock band that I personally appreciated. But that critical recognition made me think of an album that was particularly ambitious and different from the rest of their successful discography. After listening to it for the first time last month, I understood why it was so important (especially in that musical Italy of 1987).
17 Re is, in all probability, the least easy and most fascinating album by Litfiba, able to withstand the test of time with an innovative sound that embraces the best New Wave tradition and Italian-styled Progressive. Above all, we must remember the magical inspiration of those members: Gianni Maroccolo, who, besides being the inventive bassist, was the first mind of the group; Ghigo Renzulli, a guitarist with a dry and effective timbre; Antonio Aiazzi and his soaring keyboard flights; the precise percussive touches of Ringo De Palma and last but not least, the histrionic voice of Piero Pelù, a modern Iggy Pop whose famous shamanic registry makes even the simplest lyrics original ("stringi la mano e vieni via, ti porterò lontano" maybe doesn't mean much to you, but sung in that way by Pelù...).
Still possessing undeniable modernity, 17 Re opens with the immediate "Resta" and "Re del Silenzio", which will maintain strong ties with the future style of Litfiba. "Cafè, Mexcal e Rosita" is a minor but still fun episode, with those bouncy keyboards and raw, playful guitar. "Vendetta" unleashes unknown emotions, accentuated by a strange chorus that becomes more liberating in the end, led by Renzulli's electric acidity; a separate discussion for the nocturnal "Pierrot e la Luna", a chronicle of an unrepeatable dream ended by Aiazzi's memorable solo.
Following this, we scroll past a Tango in Rock time, a compelling energy that transforms Pelù Come un Dio in the skies, a hallucinatory, mysterious suffocation of Febbre, an exciting Apapaia (with that adamant "rispetta le mie idee" and Renzulli's spine-chilling guitar riff), a fascinating journey into the Univers, an evocative Ballata like that splendid bass line by Maroccolo, a hammering Gira nel mio cerchio... or even the crime-drama-like keyboards of Oro Nero, accompanied by a pleasantly choral refrain to end with the menacing, epic, poignant epilogue of Ferito.
Those who only know the Litfiba of El Diablo or Terremoto, be warned: you will find a sonic chest of impenetrable visionariness that will gradually dazzle you, like its beautiful bright red cover.
Tracklist Lyrics and Samples
01 Resta (02:53)
Uh!
Tu mi hai cercato fino a qui,
Sono ancora un po' stonato
Sto oscillando su una lama
Fra orizzonti e vertici
Tu sei venuta fino a qui
Superando i sette mari, volavi
Oh! tu sei forte, mi ferisci
Regina della pioggia
Forte pioggia
Strana pioggia
Strana pioggia
La-la-la-la la-la-la-Eh! Uh!
Tu mi hai legato i una scatola
col corpo da scorpione
Non posso stare
Il mondo cambia colore alla mia pelle
Non al sole
Resta
Una parte di me
Quella piu`, quella piu` vicina al nulla
Resta
Una parte di me
Quella piu`, quella piu` vicina al nulla
Vicina al nulla
Resta
Una parte di me
Quella piu`, quella piu` vicina al nulla
Vicina al nulla
Resta
Una parte di me
Quella piu`, quella piu` vicina al nulla
Vicina al nulla
Resta Resta Resta Resta
Resta Resta Resta Uh!
02 Re del silenzio (04:05)
Ti stavo a guardare
Nel silenzio..
Il senso dello spazio dello spazio ci divide gia`
Mi fermo qui, davanti a questo muro
Ogni parola non ha piu` peso dell' aria
Che si confonde in noi
Non respirare
Questo momento non ha eta`
E un vago senso di vuoto ci colora
Ti prego lasciami solo!
Io, scatto senza volo!
Io, cuore senza amore!
Io, re del mio silenzio
Gia`...
Tutto e` lontano
La gioia e la malinconia
E ogni pensiero non ha piu` peso dell' aria
Che si confonde in me
Quando tutto e` qui, quando tutto e` fermo
Non chiedo pieta`, chiedo di lasciare che tutto passi
Perche` non so piu` amare!
Io, scatto senza volo!
Io, cuore senza amore!
Io, cuore senza amore!
Io, re del mio silenzio!
Volo, volo
Volo, volo
Volo, volo
Volo, volo
CADO!!
07 Come un Dio (05:00)
Io sono come Dio
E potrei rapirvi il cuore per un attimo
In non ho mai incontrato Dio
Ma conosco un' altra verita`
Trallallerolla`
Io sono come Dio
E gli uomini li rifarei come ora
Occhi per non vedere, bocche per non parlare
Meglio cosi`
Trallallerola`,
Trallallerlerolla`
L' energia corre via,
L' energia si trasformera`
L' energia corre via,
L' energia si trasformera`
L' energia corre via,
L' energia si trasformera`
Io pazzo come... come Dio
Vi farei morire di paura
Promettendo l' inferno o la pieta`
Promettendo l' inferno o la pieta`
Io sono come Dio e gli uomini li rifarei come ora.
Trallallerola`,
Trallallerlerolla`
Energia corri via
L' energia si trasformera`
L' energia corre via,
L' energia si trasformera`
L' energia corre via,
L' energia si trasformera`
L' energia corre via,
L' energia si trasformera`
La la lalla
Trallallerolla`, la la lalla
Trallallerolla`, la la lalla
Trallallerolla`, la la lalla,
la la lalla
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Other reviews
By Perez
"You can win a war in two and maybe even alone, you can extract the heart even from the blackest murderer, but it’s harder to change an idea."
"I felt they were mine! Because they had a beating heart, because like me, they didn’t fit in with anyone, because they were charged."
By the clash
"'17 Re': 16 masterpieces, a double album, new wave, post-punk, decadent and irritating visions, sensuality, darkness, apocalypse, war…"
"A riff repeated endlessly, just as space will remain endless around that heart, the one on the cover, barbed and filled with the pain of wars, silences, deaths, and vendettas."
By ms
"‘17 Re’ remains with ‘Desaparecido’ in the Olympus of Italian rock."
"Tracks ‘gira nel mio cerchio’ and ‘oro nero’ are two of the best songs ever produced by Litfiba, alternative music to the pale pop of those years."
By Ferito
A superb piece in both composition and execution makes this album a masterpiece for all Italian rock.
'Apapaia'... Perhaps the greatest song of this group.
By popmusic
The zenith in this case is a never again achieved alchemy of thoughts, images, and sounds of total beauty and complete freedom.
These grooves go well beyond the new wave that had inadvertently marked the Litfiba beginnings to coin new formulas of musical experimentation.
