The origins of Vasco Brondi
Vasco Brondi Today he turns 40. Next March she will release her second album titled “A sign of life”after making his debut in 2021 with “Landscape after the battle” (read the review here). A debut, that of 2021, relating to the name Vasco Brondibecause the musician who grew up in Ferrara previously signed himself The Lights of the Power Station and with this moniker he released four albums between 2008 and 2017. It is with our review of “Songs from defaced beach”, debut album by Le Luci della Centrale Elettrica that we would like to wish a happy birthday to Vasco Brondi.
The Power Plant Lights is about to become a case. Or maybe it already has. We’ve been talking about him for a while, in the “right” circles and places of Italian music; a demo in 2007, a blog, this album, released last May, and concerts. Just to give you an example, the other evening at the final evening of the Milanese LiveAcross festival, La Casa 139 was packed. Now the attention is moving to more visible places: the news of winning the Tenco prize for best first work came just a few hours ago. After having reported the album to you a few months ago, we at Rockol are back to talk about it too; we are sure that, if we are not the first, we certainly will not be the last to do so.
“Songs from the defaced beach” is a great album.
It’s different from anything that’s come out in repetitive Italian independent music lately. A 24-year-old boy who sings with anger and fury about the contemporary post-industrial world, with irregular and sparse songs: acoustic and electric guitars, a charged (and imperfect) voice and little more. Musically, much is owed to Giorgio Canali, guitarist of CSI-PGR and soloist with his RossoFuoco, who produces and plays electric. One of the references that is often brought up is precisely that of the world of CCCP (mentioned directly in “La gigantic pop writing” and in spirit in songs such as “Fare i waiteri”); the other is Rino Gaetano, also evoked at the end of “Nei garage a Milano nord”. Both true, even if the last one Brondi lacks the irony and desperate lightness of the Calabrian singer-songwriter.
There is only desperation in these songs, with original writing, at times truly brilliant. In some cases perhaps a little forced, with images that go beyond the grotesque and that give rise to the initial doubt, namely that Vasco (the furthest thing from his namesake) is doing something about it.
We do not quote specific sentences, because the risk is that of making a commentary and ending up in simple sociology. We invite you to listen to the album, and discover them, because Le Luci Della Centrale Elettrica is there, and if you happen to see it live you will realize it. “Songs from the defaced beach”, however you think, is a record worth listening to. You may find in it the voice that tells you about the desolation that surrounds us, or a voice that will irritate you, depending on the answer you give to the question above. But it is a record that does not leave you indifferent, like many other Italian disks. Does it seem like little to you?
