Non Voglio Che Clara
L'amore fin che dura

The early months of 2014 saw the return of several singer-songwriter offerings with their new studio works. A rich array ranging from the populist (a term used here in a neutral way, to be clear, without intending to make value judgments) and post-adolescent style of Le Luci Della Centrale Elettrica, to Dente's vintage operation, up to Non Voglio Che Clara.

The creation of Fabio De Min (singer and main composer of the NNCC project, who here is assisted in the recording phase by Giulio Ragno Favero) evokes memories of a time lived and past, of books with yellowed pages, a time when there were old creaky cameras that tirelessly screened old black and white films of weddings now consigned to memory, perhaps in a deserted and dark room.

De Min narrates a tormented love, full of pitfalls and betrayals, a love far from eternal and fairy-tale-like, a feeling destined to breathe its last sooner or later. Without forgetting to describe situations that no one would wish to experience firsthand, and even involving two murders.

The melodies, which in some cases fit perfectly with the lyrics, create small classics of Italian auteur pop, as in the opening one-two, the Battisti-esque and melancholic “Il complotto” and the equally piano-centric “Le mogli” in a cinematic atmosphere that immerses you from head to toe.

Compositions that, however, in terms of arrangements do not follow a precise and contiguous path (despite the simple titles of the songs composed only of article+noun), always seeking new tricks, such as the brass and acoustic guitars in “Gli acrobati” (one seems to hear De André giving voice to the various characters of his city), the electronics in “Le anitre” or opening up to a dramatic atmosphere in “L'escamotage.”

We prefer them when they bring out the piano from the cupboard and set up a crescendo like in the moving “Lo zio” (story of a person drowned in solitude and silence) or in the vintage and carefree “La bonne heure” that stages a film noir atmosphere.

Asking for 10 songs all on the same wavelength as the opener might have been asking for the moon, nevertheless, the pop elegance of these pieces of craftsmanship presents Non Voglio Che Clara as worthy heirs of today to what once represented the noble Italian popular song.