Italian Music Beyond Eurovision: 5 Artists Worth a Listen
The Italian music scene has recently received particular attention on the global stage. The winners of the Eurovision Song Contest 2021, Måneskin, quickly conquered Europe and the rest of the world with their magnetic performances and irreverent attitude, like true Gen Z-ers. The band managed to subvert at least a little bit of the stereotypes around what the typical Italian song sounds like. The truth is that the musical reality in Italy is very different from O’Sole Mio, and way more international than one might think. The lyrics of the songs are often profound, political, desperate, pungent, inconvenient. Genres range from ambient to punk, from grunge to experimental and so on.
Here I have gathered a few Italian artists that, in my opinion, are worth a listen to get a bit of an idea of what Italian music sounds like beyond the hedge of Eurovision.
Caparezza
One of the largest names attached to rap music in Italy for twenty years now. No gold teeth and drive-by shootings, just a thick lock of curly hair, a distinctive trait of the artist. “Caparezza” literally means “curly head” in the dialect of his town, Molfetta, located in the southern region of Apulia. The themes of his songs are often political, sometimes introspective. His lyrics are contentious and highlight some heavy topics with irony and lightness. His last two albums Prisoner 709 and Exuvia represent the artist’s journey through his own mind, after starting to suffer from tinnitus, a hearing disorder that provokes an acute screech in the ears.
My favorite tracks: La mia parte intollerante; Sono il tuo sogno eretico; Mica Van Gogh.
I Ministri
In theory, an alternative rock band, whatever that means. In practice, one of my low-key obsessions for the past ten years. Jokes aside, I believe I have seen them live at least twenty times and each concert is a new experience made of emotions too strong to explain without stuttering. The pen is a powerful instrument, it is used to sign laws and to interfere with them; sometimes, however, it is used to write songs. I Ministri, not to be confused with Ministry with a “y”, don't just make music, they take you by hand and lead you there. They make a mess with method, shouting at the system but are not necessarily against it. Their lyrics are often inspired by literature, and, in other cases, deal with the contradictions present in our society, particularly Italian society. They dare to be analytical and informative, but hardly pretentious.
My favorite tracks: Le mie notti sono migliori dei vostri giorni; Tempi bui; Gli alberi.
Iosonouncane
Indie? Rock? Experimental? Electronic? Pop? The answer is yes to all of that. He is, in my opinion, one of the most varied and interesting contemporary musical projects. A continuous surprise. He has song-writing influences which come to life in some tracks. Some others are instead the perfect link between a Nicolas Winding Refn and a Truffaut movie; the incredible thing is that these two extremes work together. Some months ago I went to one of his concerts at a mainstream festival in southern Italy. From the beginning of his performance until the end, the audience was shaken, swimming in unexplored waters, but absolutely enchanted by the electronic sounds and the lack of lyrics which made space for more feelings.
My favorite tracks: Tanca; Hiver; Vedrai,vedrai.
Antunzmask
Folk, grunge, sometimes punk, but always true to himself. For Antunzmask, the musical path is first and foremost a life path. In his songs, he tells about personal experience and the relationship he has with music. In this way, the tracks have a double level wherein he enters a dialogue with music as his music does the same with the public, at the same time. The technique is raw and “how it is”, perhaps a bit hard to understand immediately without any context. A style inspired by daily life and by small vexations; a hangover, a smoke, a misery.
My favorite tracks: Campari e Gin; Struppiato.
Paolo Angeli
This one-man band experiments with sound and with instruments. Folklore and modernism gently clash throughout the music of Paolo Angeli, Sardinian guitarist and composer. The guy literally invented a new instrument: the 18 string prepared Sardinian guitar. The artist is also an ethnomusicologist and combines free jazz and traditional songs in an avant-garde framework. He makes a genre accessible that might otherwise seem impenetrable and does it in a very simple and direct way.
My favourite tracks: Andira; Fuga dal mouse; Sùlu.
These are just a few of the many musicians who compose the pumping heart of the Italian music scene. Some of them sing about the state of society and injustice, others about moments of daily life, and still others do not use any words or lyrics. Nevertheless, each one of them sparks emotional reactions in a different manner and for diverse reasons. This musical advice might not be your cup of tea, but it is good to acknowledge the existence of a vast musical variety in a country that never stopped expressing itself in every way possible, beyond just the Eurovision contest.