Plakkaggio
Ziġğurath

Plakkaggio are one of the most interesting acts on the Italian rock scene; the point isn't that they're particularly revolutionary or the new Joe Satriani, even though their technique and style are anything but lacking. The real highlight is the way they merge metal and punk; they're not doing straight crossover, but rather a genre that fuses the two sounds. After all, quite often—if I may put it a bit charitably—streetcore is just metal played a bit sloppily. Let me explain: bands like No More Lies or Gavroche, to mention groups not from the first punk wave, have a metal component in their sound that is indeed indirect, but undeniably present. However, in terms of attitude, both firmly stand on the punk hardcore side (and that's not a bad thing). Punk and metal have always been cousins: think of Metallica and their love for HC; yes, well, but at the end of the day, they were just metal. Also because they were metal, just like the Sex Pistols were punk. That was at the very beginning: whereas today, with decades of culture behind us, deciding to merge punk skinhead and heavy metal—well, that's no small choice.

The main punk elements are the fast tempos, call-and-response choruses, short duration, and some of the themes tackled. On the more typically metal side are the well-thought-out song structures, riffing and solos, solid technique, and a relative internal variety. Of course, in terms of sound rather than attitude, the two genres have a lot in common, and Plakkaggio manage to take the best of both; great job.

References are plentiful; the title track, for example, opens with a nice taste of Metallica and ends with a nod to Iron Maiden, including some little surprises throughout the song.

One positive point I'd like to mention is the lyrics, which once again demonstrate Plakkaggio's courage—not only in singing in Italian, an unusual choice for metal, but also in bringing a level of attention to lyrics that, let's say, is not typical of punk hardcore. The band, in fact, uses—without any unwarranted shame—expressions and phrasings that are a bit more elaborate and not just words lifted from street slang; they write choruses that go far beyond simply repeating the title and touch on topics dear to the members but without recycling the same old stuff. In fact, Plakkaggio don't churn out yet another (admittedly good) album about the adventures and mischief of skinheads, tinged with nostalgia for that scene that's long gone: here you can sense awareness, revolt, and maturity. And yes, even a little healthy swagger from a skinhead metalhead.

The sound is very incisive, clean, and sharp; in my opinion, the production really brings out the guitars for a powerful yet dry sound. In fact, the sound leans much more toward a metal component than punk: I'd say 70 and 30 percent. My impression is that the band initially had a much more hardcore approach due to the scene they grew up in, but as their songwriting matured, they honed in on their heavy side as well.

The tracks are pretty much all good, and even if Plakkaggio aren't writing earth-shattering masterpieces, they have real melodic insights, like in the track "Esumazione," whose chorus gets stuck in your head. An excellent album, then—there's not much else to add; amazing 883 cover included. Score: 85/100.