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Rating: THE REVIEW
After albums like "Desaparecido" and "17 Re", masterpieces that delved into new wave by combining a distinctly English musical attitude with finally poetic and credible Italian lyrics, and a less successful episode like "El Diablo", in which the group began to abandon the political ambitions expressed in many episodes of their past production and started to lean towards a more boisterous and less refined hard rock, comes this "Terremoto", the band's fifth album (excluding live and compilations) essentially rooted in the sounds proposed by the previous album, perhaps adding a vague grunge nuance and a rediscovered polemical vein.
"Dimmi il nome" is pure assault rock, an epic and angry ride that accompanies an unflinching portrait of organized crime ("on the market the violin sings the ballad of immunity") while "Maudit" starts dark and unsettling to explode into verses filled with hard rock fury with Pelù raving sarcastically ("at night I want to go on television, dress up as a balloon and then tell you everything"). All in all, these two opening songs represent the album's most vibrant and visceral side, while "Fata Morgana" ventures into pure poetry, in a surreal vision of deserts and endless skies ("I thirst, thirst for you who are not here, star fallen from the eyes") amid sandstorms and unlikely mirages, all highlighted by sounds that transform from subtle and psychedelic to aggressive bursts of riffs and syncopated rhythms. In these realms of poetic and rarefied psychedelia also lies the sorrowful antimilitarist ballad "Prima guardia", the visionary peak of the album, with more glimpses of hallucinated poetry ("towers like pears, but the enemy does not exist") highlighted by excellent work from Ghigo Renzulli on guitar (but applause also goes to keyboardist Daniele Aiazzi). "Dinosauro" exudes anger and power from every pore, while "Sotto il vulcano" represents the unsettling finale of a fascinating and decidedly well-executed work.
In short, a redemption after the half-misstep (in my opinion) of "El Diablo". Litfiba had not yet succumbed to the allure of the market and could still create quality music.
As far as I am concerned, especially knowing their latest dismal production, "Terremoto" is an album to discover.
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Summary by Bot
Terremoto is Litfiba’s fifth studio album, marking a strong comeback after the less favored El Diablo. The album blends hard rock and grunge with poetic, politically charged lyrics. Standout tracks like 'Dimmi il nome' and 'Prima guardia' showcase the band’s renewed creative strength. The mix of aggressive riffs and surreal psychedelia highlights a mature, well-executed work. Terremoto remains a recommended discovery for fans and newcomers alike.
Litfiba
Litfiba is an Italian rock band formed in Florence around 1980. They were central to the Italian new wave/post-punk scene of the 1980s and are widely associated with the early trilogy of albums Desaparecido, 17 Re and Litfiba 3. The core public figures in reviews include Piero Pelù and Ghigo Renzulli.87 Reviews
Other reviews
By Samuele
"As soon as I hear the first notes, I start recovering. It seems even angrier than usual, a bit like me, the fight against silence and mafia organizations."
"A very pleasant album to listen to, pieces for a young audience like myself after all, and despite the lyrics being written twenty years ago, they remain very relevant."
