Italy
Premiere: The Backlash premiere epic lyric video for track ‘My Wrong’ and announce spot on ‘In a State of Flux’ Festival
We are extremely delighted to premiere the lyric video for Italian indie shoegaze band The Backlash. And what a track it is. Shard-like chiming guitars soar over a spine-crushing rhythm section with an epic, cinematic intro before the song rushes full tilt into a driving, insistent and pulse-quickening pace. The song crashes and recedes like …
SEE: Turin’s Cijan set out their postrock manifesto with “Homecoming”
HAILING from the northern Italian city of Turin, Cijan are quickly making a name for their themselves on the domestic scene. Their debut longform set, REA-0919, was released last year; and they were on the bill at Milan’s destination fest for all things shoegaze and post-rock, A State of Flux. New single “Homecoming” tickles all …
Droppin’ Knowledge: Slim One Shares New Single “Mass Murdering,” With Blacastan & Madhattan
Italian producer and DJ Slim One has released a new single, “Mass Murdering,” which features rappers Blacastan and Madhattan. His new album, IL GENIO DEL MALE, drops July 3rd, and will be released by the underground hip hop label Frank’s Vinyl Records. The song is the artists’ response to police violence and protests now affecting …
Track: Richard’s Orchestra – Amazing Sunrise
In the midst of the rather oppressive age of isolation, Italian band Richard’s Orchestra have released a single that is infused with a sense of bucolic joy – fitting given the band comes from the gorgeous area of Reggio Emilia. ‘Amazing Sunrise’ is a trippy, psychedelic song, seemingly born out of the sixties, haunting and …
Premiere: Unruly Girls – Black Love (Video)
Backseat Mafia is very honoured to premiere today the phenomenal new video by Italian band Unruly Girls. ‘Black Love’ is off their recently released album ‘Epidemic’ – an album I rated a 9.1 out of 10 – and is a typically unhinged, anarchic and thundering production, yet is antithetically tinged with a sense of poignancy. …
Album Review: Unruly Girls – Epidemic
Two and a half years ago, Italy’s Unruly Girls unleashed their debut album ‘Cruel Tales’, reviewed by me in September 2017. This was a stunning debut: anarchic, arrogant and infused with a refreshing punk sensibility. The noise merchants are back with the album ‘Epidemic’ (named, it must be noted, perceptively before the current COVID-19 situation) …
Track: An Early Bird – One Kiss Broke The Promise
Backseat Mafia have been ardent supporters of Stefano De Stefano ever since reviewing his first band Pipers back in our early days in 2014, through to his debut album ‘Of Ghosts and Marvels’ under the name An Early Bird reviewed by us in 2018. De Stefano has developed quite a presence in Italy where he …
Track: Unruly Girls – She Grew Up in a Shotgun Row
It’s been two years since we’ve heard from Southern Italy’s provocative and innovative Unruly Girls and their new single ‘She Grew Up In A Shotgun Row’ displays a sharpening of their incisive and slightly anarchic sound. The single is an aural assault – a pleasant and pulse-quickening one – that is inspired by the upbringing …
Track: Julia Bardo – I Wanna Feel Love
Shifting somewhere between Blondie, Gloria Gaynor and PJ Harvey is no mean feat, but the new single from Mancunian Julia Bardo manages to span genres in a seamless and thoroughly enjoyable manner. Bardo was born in Italy but moved to Manchester. Name-checked as an influence too is the legendary Lucio Battisti. Her Italian roots come …
Say Psych: Album Review: Sonic Jesus – Memories
Hailing from Dognella Di Ninfa, Italy and once described as psychedelia’s “best kept secret”, Sonic Jesus have acquired a staunch following in the underground, not least thanks to the exposure provided by Fuzz Club Records for their debut LP Neither Virtue Nor Anger which has now acquired cult status. Memories is much more than a …