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Rating: After an excellent start, Litfiba showcase their abilities once again by delivering their second full-length, this '17 re' which will remain their best work ever.
The conditions to proclaim it a masterpiece are all there, from the new wave atmospheres to the ethnic ones, moving from moments of pure rock to times of claustrophobic musical clarity. A superb piece in both composition and execution makes this album a masterpiece for all Italian rock. 16 songs that, willingly or not, stay in the listener's mind, who, if attentive, will catch every nuance, every overdub, every stroke of harmony in this journey into the minds of the five Florentines.
The trip begins with "Resta", a happy marriage of rock and new wave, fast and obsessive, then makes way for the legendary "Re del silenzio", a dark song with an extremely introspective lyric, with that "perché non so più amare" echoing in the dark room where Pelù drowned his demons. "Cafè mexcal e Rosita" is a divertissement where the quintet's drinking tendencies are apparent; noteworthy is the masterful keyboard work. "Vendette" presents us with the first masterpiece of the album. It starts with an acoustic guitar, an unconceivably good drum and bass work, and chilling sounds. A final solo filled with rock and roll. And after a song of this caliber, breathless, another pearl of rare beauty appears, "Pierrot e la luna", a refined and romantic dark song where the moon truly appears in the listener's mind. "Tango" lives on ethnic reminiscences, and although it has nothing of a real tango, it captures with its progression. Next is "Come un dio", the only piece (according to this writer) that doesn't match the rest, being boring, long, and with one too many trallallerolà in the middle. Right after, the claustrophobic "Febbre" brings the quality back on track needed for such a work, making the concept of immobility and -I must repeat- palpable and present claustrophobia.
At this point, Litfiba decide it's time to enter music history, and at track number nine, they gift us "Apapaia": suffocating bass start, rock bridge, and obsessive chorus. Perhaps the greatest song of this group. It's followed by the dreamy "Univers", a declaration of love for travel and experience, where the spirit tends to feel as light as the piece requires; "Sulla terra" instead is a material journey into a hell filled with hatred and greed, with a dreamlike interlude generated by the now perfect Aiazzi-Maroccolo duo. Next is "Ballata", another song that risks becoming a masterpiece, with Renzulli's endless acoustic guitar taking the lead, a bass ever-present and protagonist, and Pelù's singing, to say the least, stunning. However, it's nihilism that is the main theme of the next two songs, "Gira nel mio cerchio" and "Cane", rock and hard, with lyrics full of anger. The oriental "Oro nero" (direct offspring of Robert Smith) is a dark ride highlighting Ringo De Palma's exquisite work, as well as Renzulli's wild guitar. Closing this harsh journey into reality (a reality Litfiba force us to live throughout the album) is the antimilitarist strike of "Ferito", a very harsh song that live would cause disasters…
At this point, we can press stop and plunge back into the gray life of always, light-years away from the patches of color this album paints our eyes with and intoxicates our mind; or, wisely, rewind, return to track 1 and let ourselves be kidnapped again by this musical universe created by five Florentine guys who named themselves Litfiba.
BAND:
Antonio Aiazzi - keyboards
Ringo De Palma - drums
Gianni Maroccolo - bass
Piero Pelù - vocals
Ghigo Renzulli - guitar
G.C.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
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 David Bowie
"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."
"Piero Pelù, a modern Iggy Pop whose famous shamanic registry makes even the simplest lyrics original."
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.
