With reference to motown music and the ‘60s soul scene, represented by artists of the caliber of Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye, Back to Black stands as a classic that perfectly exemplifies the influence that musical era has exerted on contemporary music.

Produced by Mark Ronson, the masterpiece by Amy Winehouse looks to the past in order to define new standards of its own: from the iconic quality of its musical motifs (think of the piano in “back to black” or the drums in ... read more

In an era dominated by rock, Stevie Wonder returned to the scene with “songs in the key of life”, a parallel musical and thematic universe celebrating love, life, and fatherhood.

Not reluctant to address social issues, the album unfolds as a collective soul expression: a universe of human and musical convergence that moves freely between funk, reggae, and gospel influences.

More specifically, the record is often associated with the distinctive motown sound, referring to the ... read more

L.A. Woman is a strongly bluesy project, following in the footsteps of the band’s previous productions, but enriched with particularly seductive guitar grooves. These elements help recreate, on a sonic level, the very scenario described in the lyrics: a man, his car, and his nocturnal adventures wandering through the city.

More precisely, these are the adventures of “Mr. Mojo Risin’,” an anagram of Jim Morrison’s name mentioned in the title track, which here ... read more

What the Gorillaz attempt with “the mountain” is, above all, a kind of cure for the soul. The album feels like a farewell to a past shaped by love, pain, and loss, a goodbye that is as exhausting as a climb. And yet, even the simple act of setting out becomes an achievement (“tired, but not forever so”).

The record leans toward sounds of indian origin, both through the artists involved and through its rhythmic and instrumental palette. These elements intertwine with ... read more

This album requires the same willpower that Taylor Swift’s did in listening to the story of a love so pure and, above all, so banal.

In leaving behind the funk experience and the power ballad with Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars’s experimentation in a more soul/r&b world turns into a commercially safe project that ultimately leaves a bitter taste, given the artist’s potential and the comparison with the weight of an almost excellent discography.

We find Mitski at the end of a relationship, turning inward and examining herself through disappointment and solitude, moving through a symbolic death and the changes that follow.

The sonic structures are layered. While the foundation leans toward folk, the record takes unexpected turns into country, rock, and even hints of bossa nova. There’s a palpable sense that expressive urgency outweighs strict conceptual planning: it feels driven more by the need to say something than by the ... read more

each song unfolds as a loop, without a traditional structure, built instead on recurring reflections, guitar arpeggios, and rhythmic elements that blur and disrupt the project’s folk foundation.
overall, it works as a solid introduction to the artist, though it still feels like a work in progress.

With Aaron Dessner at the helm of production, Prizefighter presents itself as a blend of folk and country, built on restrained motifs that both support the narrative and generate emotional tension.
This tension emerges from the resurfacing of an unresolved past, from the memories of a love that has ended, and from a conscientious yet unstable present, one the protagonist struggles to control in the aftermath of a breakup.

From a lyrical standpoint, the textual developments often feel ... read more

I don’t have direct points of reference with Willow’s previous projects, but i found the way she integrates a discourse on spirituality into her reinterpretation of Prince’s “i would die 4 u” to be a genuinely brilliant choice.

The album feels highly cultivated in itself, particularly in how it evokes sacred imagery and incorporates sanskrit, all while remaining firmly within a pop framework. Jazz emerges more in the dynamics than in form, alongside clear ... read more

I find myself speechless when faced with reviewing The Dark Side of the Moon, an album that marked an indelible turning point in the history of music and possesses a communicative power capable of leaving no generation untouched.

The banality of the ordinary, the ephemerality of existence and money, the fragmentation of the self within a society devoid of values (or governed by values that no longer align with the primordial nature of being) are the themes through which the incoherence of our ... read more

🎵ascolto in vinile #1 (ita)

Compilation “Prime Impressioni” pubblicata da Linea Tre, ristampa italiana anni ’70.
Include brani estratti dai primi due album della PFM.

Lato A
1. Impressioni di settembre
2. È festa
3. Dove… quando… (parte II)
4. La carrozza di Hans

Lato B
1. Per un amico
2. Generale
3. Il banchetto

È una selezione essenziale, tutta in lingua italiana, che restituisce bene la prima fase della band.
D’altronde riunire ... read more

Compared to his debut album, the construction of the lyrics is far more stripped down, yet exquisite: the metaphors become more vertical, drawing on an inspiration that, as in the great romantic poets, seems to descend from the moon, a silent and distant presence, more observant than consoling.

The guitar becomes the central instrument: the orchestral embellishments that once helped sustain emotional tension are no longer present. It is precisely in this essentiality that Nick Drake ... read more

Being a singer-songwriter in the ‘60s meant searching, through music, for one’s own poetic style. In this regard, an interview on CBC with Leonard Cohen is particularly illuminating, in which he compares his search for words to the work of a shoeshiner: a patient, repetitive, artisanal gesture.

If on the one hand Cohen finds inspiration in the carnal figure of the woman, on the other Nick Drake seeks in nature and in the female presence a form of contact capable of leading him back ... read more

I came to this project through “want your feeling”, a track produced by the unmistakable Blood Orange, which i consider the album’s standout moment. That said, Tough Love is a remarkably solid record when taken as a whole.

There is an underlying sense of sweetness and sensuality running through this portrayal of a cruel love: from the ethereal harmonies to the elegance of the production, which guides the rhythm without ever overwhelming the emotion. Everything feels measured ... read more

🎵Listened to on vinyl #1

Recorded in the studio with overdubbed crowd noise to simulate a live atmosphere, this is one of those works that definitively consecrates the artist’s iconic status. With a selection of now legendary tracks, most notably Sex Machine, for which a remix version has recently been released, James Brown proves himself strikingly ahead of his time: from the deliberate construction of his own myth to his approach to funk, adopting musical and performative solutions ... read more

It feels like being at a rave in the middle of the ocean, with pop girlies randomly popping up as guest stars. I’m serious.

I especially like the texture of the sounds and the bass programming, not to mention Caroline Polachek’s touch of class: i find her divine in this electronic setting.

The flaws i noticed are the lack of a solid evolution throughout the album, and the accordion in “island”, which completely ruined the mood.

The 12th studio album marks a clear departure from the idea of sonic perfection that had defined Pet Sounds.
Smiley Smile is built on stripped-down arrangements and the constant presence of ambient noises, used at times rhythmically and at others to create dissonance. The result is an emotionally honest chaos, bizarre and almost theatrical in approach, standing in sharp contrast to the meticulous care of the previous record.

The album’s strengths lie primarily in its vocal constructions ... read more

jazzy frank ocean is sick af

Vulnerability and indelible scars on the skin: Charli xcx’s work becomes a physical interpretation of the inner turmoil caused by love. In the line “my mind is torturing the body” from Altars, the very essence of the project clearly emerges.

Through violas, double basses, and violins, Wuthering Heights fully embraces music as a visual medium, pairing incisive lyrics with a language that welcomes modernity while remaining firmly rooted in the historical context of its source ... read more

Repeating the same formula over and over can end up being counterproductive. Yet sombr plays his cards well, evolving his sound in a minimal but effective way. In this case, the synths of 12 to 12 fade into the background, making room for a more pronounced guitar groove. It remains the kind of aching single he has accustomed us to, but there is a clear sense of a more mature and self-aware approach to his emotional expression.