Modwheelmood
Pearls to Pigs

Modwheelmood is the project of Italian multi-instrumentalist Alessandro Cortini. The name comes from the combination of "Modwheel," which is a control found on most synthesizers allowing a parameter to be positively or negatively adjusted, and "Mood," meaning state of mind.

The boy's story seems straight out of a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. He was born in Parma in ’76, lived and studied in Bologna, moved to Los Angeles in '99 where he still resides and composes. Alessandro moved to L.A. mainly to further his studies and graduate in guitar, but in interviews, it appears that the more scales he tries with the metronome, the more he longs for the keys of the piano and the art of singing in which he is a master. He plays keyboards in L.A.'s underground venues with the Mayfieldfour to make ends meet and occasionally returns to Italy where he even finds time to compose a song for Jetlag together with Livio Magnini (Bluvertigo). In California, he meets Swedish guitarist Pelle Hillstrom, with whom he forms the first embryo of his project, called "Gift." The duo composed their first Ep in 2003, simply titled "?". Six pieces that are still a bit "raw" and a bit too American pop-rock style like "driving down route 66 with the top down and elbow out," yet hinting at their potential. Good melodies and excellent singing, emphasized by the absence of bass and classic drums. Alessandro writes, mixes, plays synth, keyboards, drum & bass, classical guitars, sings, and produces his pieces. Pelle contributes a good electric guitar, a good voice, and that unmistakably Nordic touch in the "mood" of the pieces.

In 2005 "Ale" responds to an audition request and finds himself doing a casting with Trent Reznor. In 2005, he officially becomes part of "Nine Inch Nails" as a keyboardist, but often on tour, he also plays the second guitar and performs as a backing vocalist. So, he joins the world tour of "With Teeth" and on April 1, 2006, our eyes meet in Milan during the Italian leg. I ask: "but who is the phenomenon on the keyboards?" Answer: "boh"? I inquire upon returning home and discovering he’s Italian piques my curiosity, and today I tell you that... I've followed the boy with interest. I start listening to him for free on "My Space," buy his tracks on "I Tunes." As for tastes, we're aligned, and I got confirmation with the release of the second Ep "Enemies & Immigrants" (April 2007, cover with a drawing of Bologna's station clock stopped at the hour of the B.R. attack), which opens with the beautiful "Things will change", whose lyrics allude to the massacre, and that much takes me back to the cold sounds of my beloved Royksopp.

Obviously, the Reznor influence is felt, more in the atmospheres actually than in the melodies and rhythms. The music has become more mature, fuller. Basically, the boy has learned from the master, as if he were a Jedi, that sadness is the basic condition for every respectable artist. A real change of mood (as the group name would suggest) begins to be felt within the various songs (especially in "Money for good") moving from the melancholy of the singing and arpeggios to the melodic joy of the choruses, aided by good rhythm changes. We are there, although some unconscious allusions to the "Radiohead" are, in my opinion, too garish. The emigrant does not miss out on a good remix of tracks from his first two albums in a much more dance-oriented style (another clear teaching from good Trent), collaborates again with Reznor for the remix of "Year Zero" (notable his version of "The Great Destroyer") and for the last minimalist industrial masterpiece "Ghosts," in which he writes, in my opinion, some of the most beautiful pieces on the cd.

Finally, the talent blossoms. Like every classy artist, he embarks on a trilogy of 5-piece Ep’s, under the beautiful title of "Pearls to Pigs" vol. 1, 2, and 3. The first is released on Christmas Day 2007, the second at the end of February 2008, the third will be released in June but can already be partially heard on My Space. However, I limit myself for correctness to review only the first two volumes to generate anticipation for the release of the next.

Vol.1 opens with "Problem me", a piece of infinite sadness whose background is a clear reference to '70s German electronics. It moves to "Mhz", which instead begins with a beautiful distorted guitar in full bending and saturation. The change in "mood" from the first to the second piece is truly remarkable. The sound is fully rock, complete with a distorted bass and classic drums. The artist's eclecticism is thus celebrated, and the entrance of dripping synths on the vocal melody (which honestly I am not clear when it is his and when it is colleague Pelle’s, as they alternate singing sublimely, but it is still stunning throughout the album). Third piece, title: "Forlì". 1.28 minutes of melancholic choirs. "Bellevue Ave." is a somewhat flatter piece, the most "pop" of the Ep. The bass returns, the well-played guitar returns, fewer strong emotions. It ends with "Too late", an acoustic piece with just voice and guitar at the start, quite "grunge." It is then enriched by the entrance of synths that warm the atmosphere. The whistling sketched in the finale is that of "Patience" by GN'R.

Vol.2 starts with "Crumble", a piece I adore. Distorted bass driving the rhythm, very '80s Depeche Mode electronic drums, two-voice singing, guitar with simple Elvis Costello-style chords, and NIN-style syncopated synths. A truly remarkable track, which in its rhythmic simplicity then opens into a very pop chorus that vaguely recalls the British sounds of Placebo and Muse. It's a track that starts rock grunge and ends pop. The second piece "Sunday morning" is the classic radio edit single of great "class." That something typically Scandinavian arrives very sharply, bringing me to the atmospheres of Royksopp, Trentemoller, Quant. Yet the piece is less electronic than it seems, as evidenced by the arrival of a vaguely glam rock electric guitar refrain, reminding us that we are still dealing with two classical musicians who converted to electronics. "If I was you" is a less successful, more banal song, too predictable and too pop. "Domenica pomeriggio" is a 90-second interlude with an almost reggae vibe leading the way into the EP's final piece "Scene". The closing track intends to be an electronic slow with epic airs, but I don’t like it. It reminds me a bit too much of the unsuccessful sounds of Planet Funk's last album. De gustibus...

Overall, my judgment on Modwheelmood is more than positive. Pearls to Pigs 1 and 2 contain at least 6 out of 10 high-level songs. It's like watching a child who grows with each release, becoming more mature from song to song. I foresee a very bright future, albeit in a very niche genre in Italy.