TRIBAL DOMESTIC

"Tribal Domestic" is a studio album that was released by historic Roman band Il Rovescio della Medaglia in 2016 on the Cramps - Sony Music label with a line up featuring founder member and main composer Enzo Vita (guitar) along with John Macaluso (drums), Cristiano Micalizzi (drums), Gianluca Catalani (drums), Fernando Petry (bass), Nalle Pahlsson (bass), Rino Amato (keyboards), Vivien Lalu (synth), Chris Catena (vocals), Pino Ballarini (vocals), Jannes Stark (guitar) and the Orchestra Filarmonica Calabrese directed by Alexander Frey. This work mainly comes from the initiative of Enzo Vita, as can be guessed from the art cover where he's portrayed in the forefront with is guitar ready for action while in the background you can see many gears and wheels turning to support him. It marks the return of Il Rovescio della Medaglia to the complex structures of the band's heyday after the disappointing pop rock oriented 2011 album "Microstorie"...

The opener "Tribal Domestic Suite" is a long, complex piece divided into nine parts respectively subtitled "Le note degli idoli" (The idol's notes), "Tributo agli dei" (Tribute to the gods), "Raduno dei vecchi" (Gathering of the old men), "L'ultimo dei sogni" (The last of dreams), "La notizia" (The news), "Il diario" (The diary), "Simbiosi" (Symbiosis), "La chiave inglese" (The wrench) and "Il crepuscolo delle illusioni" (The twilight of illusions). In my opinion, it's an excellent piece, composed by Enzo Vita and arranged with the help of Rino Amato, where the guitarist and his group of rock musicians perfectly interact with the orchestra. The music flows without drops in tension as the lyrics, well interpreted by Chris Catena, conjure up images halfway between a confused stream of consciousness and divertissement. Shocking, alarming articles about a world where solidarity and freedom crumble provoking rash reactions, the sad reflections of a man on the brink of a personal crises leading to madness, the search for balance and the refuge in an inner-self able to create its own world, regret and bewilderment and finally the image of a man running barefoot in the evening without the tools to fix up his life...

"L'origine" (The origin) is another beautiful track where orchestra and rock instruments interact. The mysterious incipit sets the atmosphere, then the music and lyrics take us on inner journey to the origin of life. Birth is a big bang for everyone, it's the moment of the perception of the whole, a truth we progressively forget giving names to things and identities to persons...

On the instrumental "Mutazione X" (Mutation X) Enzo Vita's guitar is in the forefront and takes the listener on a fiery ride through the hard rocks of Sodom and Gomorrah and to the atmospheres of Il Rovescio della Medaglia 1971 debut album, "La bibbia", although with an updated sound. Then it's the turn "La sacra eternità" (The holy eternity) explicitly inspired by "La bibbia", in particular by its last two tracks, "Il giudizio" (Judgement day) and Il diluvio (The flood). Here, introduced by a dark marching beat and a hint of liturgical choir, the music and lyrics describe the protagonist's soul entering the afterlife where it joins the whole, beyond good and evil. It's a place where there's no one to judge, no measure or need to invent anything, here come those who have the dignity of looking straight in the face their own oblivion, beyond the sky and the sea, because the eternity is holy...

"L'apocalisse" (The apocalypse) is the only track featuring the vocals of Il Rovescio della Medaglia old singer Pino Ballarini. It's an ironic piece that blends hard rock, classical influences and a touch of operetta evoking a daily, raging apocalypse in a world where media confusion rules. In a story containing many other stories, restlessness carries away the protagonist, on the wings of madness, towards a place where he can enjoy a panoramic view on his memories and regrets... Last comes the sparkling instrumental "Proclama II" (Proclamation II) that concludes the album with a lively beat and electric guitar fireworks.

On the whole, an excellent work that marks a rediscovered creativity for Enzo Vita and his new and old companions.