Roberto Grossi, the track by track of “Le stelle della sera”

“Le stelle della sera” is Roberto Grossi's first solo album, after his experience as leader and voice of Subbuglio!. After the four singles released between 2023 and 2024, this album represents the new musical course of the singer-songwriter from Savona, who maintains the rock matrix of his music, enriching it with various collaborations and new electronic experiments.

All the music and lyrics of the unreleased songs are by Roberto Grossi except “Ali ecatena” and “Neve” where the musical part was written with Alessio Briano. The artistic production involved the singer-songwriter together with Lisa Brunetti (aka Helle) who arranged almost the entire album, and Marco Barusso who also took care of the mix and the master, as well as the pre-production and recording of the album together with Alessandro Mazzitelli. Among the guests Chiara Buratti, Paolo Archetti Maestri, Lorenzo Monguzzi, Fabrizio Casalino, Alessandra Ravizza, Edmondo Romano and Marco Vignera Carusino.

The cover artwork was created by Silvia Grandi while the booklet of the physical version is embellished with photographs by Alma Vassallo.

Here are the songs from the album presented by the author and performer.

01. THE EVENING STARS

It is a song inspired by the theatrical show K2 by Patrick Meyers, which tells of a mountaineer who gets injured on his return from climbing this peak and is forced to stay there and convince his expedition companion to abandon him in order to save himself at least. I imagined his sensations and his thoughts, also a metaphor for the general condition of man. The warm chalumeau phrasings of Edmondo Romano, an extraordinary multi-instrumentalist, fit into the cold tones of Helle's electronic arrangement.

02. BUT WHEN YOU COME TO THE SEA

The song tells of what Eugenio Montale defined as “the evil of living”, the discomfort, suffering and confusion that are often encountered in dealing with a daily life made up of routine, social conditioning and communication difficulties. The song was born from a series of post-pandemic telephone conversations with a friend (Mauro Ermanno Giovanardi of La Crus) which always ended with an invitation to come and visit me in Liguria. Internal suffering is contrasted with solidarity and friendship, the emotional exchange seen as the only relief and possibility of a way out. I then also wanted to talk about how the sea itself has a therapeutic effect in itself, with its power to amplify our emotions and be the ideal backdrop for sharing them with kindred spirits.
The atmospheres of synthesizers and drum machines are enveloped by the warmth of Marco Carusino's acoustic guitars and Roberto Rosa's bass; in the background the voice of Helle who sang all the backing vocals.

03. CALL WHEN YOU WANT

Also in this song the theme is friendship and solidarity, the importance, in complicated moments, of making ourselves feel close to the people we care about and of feeling them close when we need them, of how it is essential to continue to encourage and be encouraged to fight for the things we want, without ever giving up.
Musically this song is a key to understanding the album: it is the last song in chronological order born in the rehearsal room with the band and recorded with a decidedly rock imprint but at the same time it already contains the artistic contribution of Lisa Brunetti (Helle), who he arranged and produced much of this musical project, making extensive use of electronic experimentation.

04. GENOVA feat. Fabrizio Casalino

Genoa is a contradictory, chaotic, difficult city and at the same time of extraordinary, disarming beauty and intensity. As with any female creature, it takes time and dedication to grasp its deepest essence. I lived for two years in a house in the historic center and this song was born from the memory of that period. I wanted Fabrizio Casalino to sing it with me, a dear friend from Genoa, famous as a comedian but an extraordinary singer-songwriter who in his own way also embodies the riches and contradictions of this city.

05. GAZA (SONG FOR CHILDREN IN THE DARK) feat. Alessandra Ravizza

It is a song that I wrote in 2009, after the bloody military operation “Cast Lead” by the Israeli army and which I then published a few years later, with my band, with the title “Song for children in the dark”.
Faced with the immense tragedy taking place in Palestine, I decided to republish it with its original title: I therefore asked Marco Barusso to remix it and a great artist, Alessandra Ravizza (vocalist of Rebis), to sing it with me.
I certainly have no illusions that a banal song can change anything, it's perhaps more a personal need to vent the anguish and anger over this tragedy.

I believe that in any case it is important not to remain silent, not to turn away in the face of such horror for which there is no justification. I did it like this.

06. SNOW feat. Chiara Buratti

It's the only true love song on the album and it's a song I care about a lot. It had already been released as a single a few years ago with my band and I wanted to include it in this project, remixing it and embellishing it with the beautiful voice of Chiara Buratti. The accordion is played by an extraordinary Nico Rosa, unfortunately no longer with us today.

07. WINGS AND CHAINS feat. Helle

It is a song about change, about moments in which it is necessary to make decisions that imply leaving behind things that we are still tied to but which hold back our aspirations.
This song is also part of the three that I had already released as singles with my band and that I wanted to welcome in this album with a new look, remixed, with the strings reworked by Marco Barusso and sung with Helle's intense voice.

08. OUR HEADLIGHTS OFF feat. Lorenzo Monguzzi

Our dim headlights are our desires and ambitions that go out crushed by social conditioning, stress and the sometimes unsustainable pressure of our lives.
Helle's electronic experiments and voices blend with the warmth and depth of the voice of Lorenzo Monguzzi, leader of the “Mercanti di Liquore”.

09. OPHELIA feat. Paolo Archetti Masters

The song is a cover of the well-known song by Francesco Guccini. The melody has always fascinated me greatly, which I find extraordinarily hypnotic and precisely to enhance this characteristic I asked Lisa Brunetti (Helle) to experiment with a new version together, with an electronic arrangement.
To embellish this tribute to Francesco Guccini, I asked another extraordinary artist who made the history of Italian music to sing this song with me: Paolo Archetti Maestri, voice and composer of Yo Yo Mundi, to whom I am also very grateful for his precious friendship.

10. WHICH MAN

It is a song that expresses the rejection and anger towards the indifference, superficiality and disengagement of an increasingly selfish, individualistic, narcissistic and apathetic society.
I wanted to contrast the deliberately angular text with a very sparse electronic arrangement with an essential rhythm.