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Rating: 17 RE
There exist in multiple creative paths, not only musical but linked to the most varied creative expressions (visual, philosophical, cinematic) zeniths.
Namely, peaks of inspiration that once reached, create indelible milestones of comparison difficult to surpass and difficult for the authors themselves to match, who have crystallized the work. It is no coincidence that this zenith is often reached by young minds, still strongly ignited by the pure act of passionate creativity and an absolutely uncontaminated desire for expression. It is no coincidence that 17 Re was conceived by the minds of five youngsters, not even adults yet. The zenith in this case is a never again achieved (neither before nor after) alchemy of thoughts, images, and sounds of total beauty and complete freedom.
These Litfiba, organize a complex palette of atmospheres and suggestions with highly projective and coherent modes. This alone is enough to earn applause for five boys who only a few years earlier were channeling their sound input into chaos. These grooves go well beyond the new wave that had inadvertently marked the Litfiba beginnings to coin new formulas of musical experimentation, often in "non-rock" architectures. And this is one of the album's greatest merits, namely that of developing according to unexpected morphogenetic codes and totally unpredictable ones. The quintet's zenith produces an ambitious and multifaceted journey opened by the dark and furious incipit of the splendid Resta and closed by the dramatic hypnotic and expressionist sense of Ferito.
An Alpha and an Omega between which expanded, rarefied yet sophisticated atmospheres (Febbre, Univers), daring but totally successful ethno/sonic contaminations where seeds of French chanson, Mediterranean and/or Oriental traditions are grafted (Pierrot e la luna, Tango, Oro nero), pursuit of dissonance that through avant-garde schemes produce raw emotion surpassing in ambition and result the esteemed English ensembles (Gira nel mio cerchio, Cane, the already mentioned Ferito), marble proof of unassailable stylistic/compositional elegance (Vendetta, Come un Dio, Ballata, Sulla Terra).
The Zenith of Litfiba is such because it makes its own contemporary musical influences but re-manipulates and recodes them in a radical and highly personal way, as none of the renowned fellow citizens of the Florentine renaissance (Diaframma and Neon, for now rightly or wrongly, remain faithful to generally "English new wave" schemes), while others more radical (even more than Litfiba) like Pankow concentrate on a more martial and Germanic Central European sound.
The influences here are absorbed and reinterpreted with skillful and radical approach, thus opening up to very original and exciting inventions within the DNA of a generally post-punk sound, veiled with almost cinematic darkness that will actually lead to a unique record for the Florentine quintet (the subsequent Tre will indeed explore different territories and even more stylized ambitions of the '90s) but also for the rock scene of the '80s.
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 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 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.
