Manuel Agnelli
Ama il prossimo tuo come te stesso

Habemus Manuel!

After months of waiting, "Ama il prossimo tuo come te stesso" has finally arrived.

The first single was released with "Diabolik," then a couple in June, a summer tour with a few pieces; you have to admit that Manuel played the launch of his first solo work well.

From the first listens, it's clear that "Ama il prossimo tuo come te stesso" was primarily created for two reasons:

1. Afterhours, given the numerous parallel projects of everyone (from Winston, to Buñuel, to solo projects, collaborations...) have been more like a super group than a true band for years, with rhythms that probably no longer aligned with Manuel's creative urgency to make music.

2. Phenomena (in music as in sports) are divided into two major categories: those who like to make great music sharing the spaces with other stars, and those who like to leave the mark of the Mamba (a reference for NBA fans) on their successes, clearly defining who is the "boss" of the group.

For me, Manuel definitely falls into the second category and wanted to show everyone his remarkable musical talent, by playing and co-producing the album.

That said, the album is compact, musically varied (rock, prog, industrial, singer-songwriter ballads with pop nuances), excellently and creatively played (riffs, distortions, noises, changes in rhythm and tempo, sound switching from abrasive to melodic) with great production.

I found the lyrics more accessible compared to After and some simply wonderful.

The live performance was also great with a cohesive, talented band with the right "cazzimma" (I find LPOM an extremely interesting duo doing the right apprenticeship and Beatrice A. the glue every band would want to have).

Moving on to the tracklist, in my personal ranking there are 4 great pieces:

"Signorina mani avanti"

For me, the masterpiece of the album, modern, in the comfort zone of those who love aggressive and present drums and scratching guitars.

"Proci"

The most prog and interesting song, with a genius use of the piano. Lyrics that recall the times of "Germi."

"Milano con la peste"

Beautiful lyrics, young musicians take note on how to write a love song without being clichéd and sugary.

"La profondità degli abissi"

It's difficult to make a great piece, it's extremely difficult to make a great soundtrack.

Here Manuel proved to be a well-rounded artist because he understands the film (off topic, I think the Minetti Bros made one of the best Italian films of 2022).

Those who listen to the song having seen the film will understand what I mean.

Among the definitely notable pieces, I include:

"Tra mille anni mille anni fa," "Pam Pum Pam," and the title track.

3 clean ballads that leave space for voice and deep, sometimes dramatic lyrics.

The piano knocks on the listener's door; if after a few listens you decide to let it in, it invades and overwhelms you.

The use of strings is sometimes orchestral, sometimes distorted, and precise.

"Severodonetsk"

A nice old style rock piece with the guitar intro alone worth the price of admission.

"Guerra e pop corn"

Another super interesting piece, first the "violated" piano then the tempo changes to unleash his innate desire to experiment always and anyway.

I close with "Lo sposo sulla torta," catchy, pleasant but for my tastes the weakest song of the lot.

It might be that I'm not a great fan of duets, although I admit I'm curious to know who the mysterious Vaselyn Kandisky is (another genius idea, even if it were just for the nickname...).

P.S. Even after 4/5 listens I think there are bands in Italy (like those who, doing only covers, draw 80,000 people to concerts) that would take 3 lifetimes to write a piece like this...

In conclusion, a really remarkable album that rivals Close by Messa for the title of my best Italian album of 2022 (by the way guys BREAK A LEG and get well soon!!!).

The hope is twofold, that this album will soon have a follow-up, but also that Manuel's solo career will not mark the end of one of the most exciting, creative, and talented bands we've had the pleasure of listening to in the last 30 years.