Verdena
WOW

I have been following this band for many years, perhaps too many, and I am particularly attached to them because I grew up with them, especially musically. I have spied on them thoroughly, sometimes even maniacally through interviews in magazines, TV, and the web. Thanks to them, I have discovered many bands they were inspired by, so their tastes have become my tastes. Today, perhaps fifty percent of the things I listen to and love come from their world, and I am very happy about this.

Verdena is the Italian band I admire the most because I find in them a creative approach that few have, that is, that ability to lock themselves up for years composing music, experimenting, and delving into the past of rock music and beyond, exploring vintage sounds and making them current, renewing their style album after album. With "Requiem," they had surpassed themselves and had shown us that we were no longer dealing with three kids driven by the mainstream with videos on MTV, magazine covers, and so on. There was something deeper, and with this new double album named "WOW," it is perceived even more.

After all these years of loyalty, I had the privilege of receiving this new record from Universal in advance. I was able to listen to it in preview, paying close attention to everything that happened around this important band in these years of absence. To better understand the evolution of this album, it is good to listen to the vinyl "Betoschi" from the parallel project 8370$CH1 that they put together two years ago with friends with whom they sometimes enjoy long jams at their Henhouse studio in Albino. It is important because "Betoschi" was conceived in parallel with the recordings of "WOW"; in fact, it is better to say that "Betoschi" was a test both in the studio and live for what would later become Verdena.

In this album, rich with 27 songs, Verdena has a broader setup, in the sense that we no longer find the tried and tested power trio of guitar, bass, and drums. Now we also regularly find piano, percussion, and various effects with synthesizers, but the extra element is the vocals. The first thing you notice is the brightness compared to previous works, also evident from the choice of the title, which is very close to "Smile" by the Beach Boys. But besides being a palindrome, "wow" was also "the first message received from the universe in the form of radio waves," says Luca Ferrari in an interview. If "Requiem" was conceptually meant to embody the end of a period, "WOW" represents a new beginning in great style. In the intro of the first track "Scegli Me," you hear a "Forse" that immediately disorients you, as was the explosive start of Requiem. Alberto is not on the guitar but sitting on a stool playing the piano, like John Lennon and Paul McCartney after the Beatles' first albums. Verdena has never hidden that they have worn out the "White Album" by the Beatles over the years, and we will find references to it in this work as well. "Loniterp" has a name chosen because it could have been written by Interpol, perhaps the only track that reminds us of the very first Verdena, but in the end, they surprise us like never before with choirs singing "sarà che la mia mente galoppa." While in "Per Sbaglio," there is a rhythm and singing very close to some typical atmospheres of the less hallucinatory Syd Barrett. "Mi Coltivo" reassures the listener who might have already thought they had lost the band for a more moderate pop-style, but the Stoner is still there and enriched with electronic rhythms. Reviewing all the tracks would result in a lengthy article, but to give an idea of what "WOW" is, one could say it has a sound like a union between Pink Floyd, Beatles, Melvins, and believe it or not, Lucio Battisti. Alberto Ferrari confessed a few months ago to the newspapers that he had listened to "Anima Latina," a 1974 record by Lucio Battisti, for the past three years, and this is highly noticeable. "Sorriso in Spiaggia" Part 1 and 2 is one of the most beautiful and particular on the record, with a clear reference to "Smile On The Beach" by the Beach Boys, while "Rossella Roll Over" has an intro very similar to "Obladi Obladà" by the Beatles. "Attonito" has a Black Sabbath-like riff but then expands into Sludge Metal. "12.5 mg" is an instrumental piece composed solely by Luca, who, besides being a monster, as usual, behind the drums, also ventured, as in previous works, into composing tracks on the synth, such as "Regressioni all'Infanzia," a track that was not included in the album but was present on their website with a dedicated page. As I said, the peculiarities of the album are the increased use of keyboards and vocals echoing Mgmt and the vocal effects of Mars Volta. Listening to the entire album at first will be difficult; probably many will also find it tiring, but once you get used to it, it will soon become a beautiful pastime.

An album destined to become a milestone of rock made in Italy, which definitively distances them from their beginnings, showcases the talent of real musicians they have always been, and consecrates them to finally become one of the most important Italian bands, no, in this case, it is better to say European.