vonneumann
NorN

Let's say you are a quartet from Rome that since 1999 has been producing records of "old fashioned free-rock with tons of electronics" and that recently, your four-member lineup (including guitars, bass/trumpet, drums, electronics plus a certain propensity for instrumental guest appearances to enhance the timbral flavor) has lost its drummer along the way.

What do you do?

a-) we liquefy in tears and hang our instruments on the wall;

b-) after reflecting on it, we make a virtue of necessity, reshuffle the lineup, start again from three and release our most rhythmically visceral album.

If your answer is B, you either play in vonneumann, or in terms of attitude, you have some affinity with them.

"Norn," their ninth album, is defined by the band itself as their funk album.

It could very well be, but although the band's releases are marked by continuous stylistic evolution, some common elements are present: a masterly ability to centrifuge influences to create an extremely original blend, a recognizable style, a fairly constant and always high average quality, and, to the point, a style that is hard to pigeonhole.

If I were to truly slot their music into a style, I would say that "old fashioned free-rock" risks being reductive: in the grooves of NorN you'll find rock beyond rock, funk beyond funk, electronics beyond electronics... plus a lot of other beautiful things that synthesize the various vonneumann souls (which are many) into what is probably their most accessible album... and when I say accessible, it's an understatement: this stuff is clearly addictive.
As is traditional, the songs are treasure chests full of intriguing musical details that multiply with each listen, jewels of arrangement, gems of composition, with attention to sound bordering on the maniacal.

Personally, I find it difficult to point out a favorite track and, contrary to my habits, I think that, given the sonic richness the band offers us, a track-by-track review could be appropriate.

The dances open with "bassodromo": that is, what would have happened if D.Boon, Mike Watt, and George Hurley (for those less familiar with the history of '80s US independent music: the legendary Minutemen) in a more mature form had agreed to create a soundtrack for an old peplum film.

After a rhythmically intense beginning, things start to get increasingly complex: with a triumph of superbly programmed electronic drums, "antiEuclid" takes us into a sound universe where the warmth of strings and electronics are masterfully integrated into a piece of romantic autumnal psychedelia (I'm not quite sure what that means, but writing about music is like dancing about architecture, as someone who understood more about music than I do once said).

In "impossibile essere possibile" we find a rarity in the band's production: the presence of vocals, here represented by the hip-hop flow of Lucio Leoni. It musically reminded me of the old collaboration between Brutopop (or, if you want to step outside national borders, I even hear some Fugazi at the height of "End Hits") and Assalti Frontali, although Lucio's speech (and lyrics) have more in common with Napo's production. Truly excellent.

DKSG is a sort of mutant IDM that, between dub-depth reverberations, gives rise to hypnotic and fascinating suggestions for a hypothetical silicon gamelan. For long-time fans of the band, I found some affinity with the fourth paradox of Parmenides' switch.

The next two tracks, "Humanoide" and "SOAOD," with the former being more rhythmically driven (with a beautifully penetrating synth), and the latter having a sweeter mood (the initial vocalizations and acoustic guitar arpeggios are splendid), are united by brass parts that made me think of the collaboration between the late Ethiopian tenor saxophonist Getatchew Mekuria and the Dutch band The Ex.

I reiterate, given the experience of vonneumann, when I bring up these suggestions, it's not about copying, but rather about reminiscences. Stimuli taken, reworked, and spit out in an extremely personal way (that's what's called Style).

After the gathering of "SOAOD," the last two tracks close the work with the liberating catharsis (glitch) rock of "DwORD" and "anti-Reprise."

...and the laughter when the music ends generally finds me in a slightly exhilarated mood with a great desire to listen to it all over again (did I already tell you this stuff is addictive?).

Taking on the risk of disappointing long-time fans, vonneumann continues to amaze with yet another convincing album (setting the bar at the highest levels of their excellent production): an album that seems the result of the freshness of a debut group, but thought out, composed, and performed with the expertise of seasoned musicians... don't say I didn't warn you, and don't be provincial, because if a Brooklyn band released an album like this, you'd all be shouting about a miracle.

Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to vonneumann the attention they deserve.

Oh, and since appearances also matter, I must mention the splendid artwork by Valerio De Luca.