Well, well, well, what do we have here? “Harsh pop” it seems like, as if I’m supposed to know what that means, but it sure does intrigue me. And skimming through the tracks of this record, I definitely enjoyed the aggression and the really bright synths, so I figured that I might as well properly listen to the entire thing.
Engraved in my skull
Well, well, well, what do we have here? “Harsh pop” it seems like, as if I’m supposed to know what that means, but it sure does intrigue me. And skimming through the tracks of this record, I definitely enjoyed the aggression and the really bright synths, so I figured that I might as well properly listen to the entire thing.
My big disinterest for current mainstream or indie-pop music does prevent me from saying whether the work presented here is totally new or not, even if blends of EDM and pop seem to have grown larger and larger in the past decade, but this record is quite distant from that field; I wouldn’t even actually call this pop music, as it is really intense and almost completely lacking of typical pop structures or chord progressions. All of this is just to say that this album leaves a really positive impression on me, as it is doing its own thing; it’s indeed way harsher than pop music, and the EDM side of it doesn’t solely consist of acid synth earworms, which makes me incredibly happy, as it’s not some kind of dumbed down version of EDM to solely give the music some spice.
Both melancholic synth-driven pieces and intense bits of techno or dizzying breaks make their way into this record, occasionally coexisting not only in the same track, but also at the same time. On top of that, the vocals are either gloomy and lifeless or as harsh as someone who’s just swallowed shards of glass and was spewing blood with each scream they let out, and you can kind of guess which of the two styles is used with the two instrumental approaches respectively.
Despite the eclectic nature of the record, the overall tone comes off as sad, to put it simply, as this manic juxtaposition happens to always match well with the lyrics. There’s definitely a lot of great one-liners and some good overall capabilities for writing a whole coherent song—I kind of state that generically because I wish I could make out more of the lyrics, but certain parts happen to be so loud that I seriously can’t understand anything other than a word or two every once in a while—and whether it’s with extreme shouty bits or with an apathetic delivery, the feel of sluggishness and emotional depravation depicted by the lyrics is well represented at all times, it’s a match that works in both scenarios.
The first fully developed track after the brief introductory “senza casa,” which sets a nice mood for the rest of the album and summarizes its themes, is “i minuti non passano mai,” showcasing some of the best writing on the record. The most memorable line is right there in the title, and when fully fleshed out as “I minuti non passano mai, gli anni mi sfuggon di mano” [Minutes never go by, years get out of hand] is a pretty fantastic way to sum up stress, this feeling of stasis due to being incapable of achieving anything yet in the meantime time’s just ticking by, and I’m sure it’s a pretty relatable feeling for a lot of people—I luckily haven’t got there yet. I also really like the “Ore su ore devote allo schermo o con la testa nel cesso” [Hours upon hours dedicated to a screen or with my head in the toilet], again a pretty effective way to express the album’s overall representation of a stagnant life. The song gets suddenly intense with its spazzing breaks and hammering kicks, and the shouting begins as well, for a pretty intense middle section that eventually falls back into piece to close out the track.
A similar fusion is in “C.B. II,” another of my favorites, mainly because I really like the harmonized background vocals, which sound completely tone deaf, but I absolutely love them that way. Then again the song explodes into its harsher side, but unlike the just discussed “i minuti non passano mai,” here there’s still a focus on tonality and melody even when the percussion seems to take over. This is unfortunately one of those tracks I can barely understand a word of once it gets intense, but I’m sure there’s some good lines to dig for those who want to try and decipher them.
“BILLIE EILISH” also falls in that category, and I’m gutted that it does, because I really wish I knew what Billie Eilish has to do with all of this. However, I’ll still enjoy the insane breaks on this cut, which are my favorite on the whole record, as they showcase some interesting chops; while other breaks on the LP are rather straightforward as they rely mostly on their intensity, on this piece they’re quite articulate and do have some more interesting patterns, especially the lightning fast snare rolls that sort of act as a repeated motif.
Some maniac techno bombardment ::
Another of the most furious tracks is the title track “tutto nero,” with its relentless kicks as loud as bombs. There’s also one lyric that particularly sticks out, and I’m not even sure I’m hearing totally correctly to be honest, but it’s “Nel mio dolore affondavo le mani // Per un pugno di cessi” [In my pain I’d sink my hands // For a fistful of loos], I really like that fistful there, it’s a nice way to paint an image of an absolutely terrible reward or achievement. The song overall plays like some maniac techno bombardment, and while the beat may be pretty direct, it surely gets my blood pumping when it’s paired with the screaming.
Lastly, I want to spend a bit of time talking about the last track specifically, “senza casa, coda.” As the intro did, the outro also reminds you of what this LP is about; I have to say that, despite the repeated appreciations I’ve made for the aggressive tracks, I do prefer the mellow tunes best, and this track specifically is my favorite on the entire LP and will likely end up being one of my favorite songs of the year.
First off, I love the pulsating bass, it keeps itself neatly as a background element but it’s got such a warm and smooth timbre that I can’t not pay attention to it; it may also be that it’s greatly aided by the fact that it’s the only tone this pleasant on the entire record, and really the song as a whole being as soft as it is is probably another factor that makes me love it so much, it’s like a relieving yet still rotten ending.
And speaking of rot ::
And speaking of rot, the other great point about this track are yet again the lyrics, but these are pretty fantastic all the way through; the first half of the track exalts as dimly as the album has done so far, with the opening lines (which I again hope I’m hearing correctly) “Anche stanotte, mi addormenterò vivendo in tangenziale // Per poi, così male, svegliarsi in ospedale” [Tonight as well, I’ll fall asleep living on the bypass // To then, rather poorly, wake up in the hospital]; given that the track title literally means “without a home, coda” these lines work wonderfully to picture what a rather uneasy night must feel like. The most significant moment on the entire album happens in the second half, with yet another amazing line, which is so simple, but I love exactly because of its simplicity; the repeated refrain “Chiamerò a casa” [I’ll call home] is gut wrenching, it gives this false sense of security in hearing a reassuring voice or simply finding attachment to something dear to you, but we all know it’s not going anywhere, as there’s likely no home to call. It genuinely makes me think I should be more appreciative of certain things I may take for granted, as even the warmth of a simple phone call holds value.
In this second half of the song I also love the big, bright synthesizers, and the bass I mentioned earlier makes more of an appearance as well, creating a wonderful enveloping atmosphere. I can quote lyrics all I want, but they’re not nearly as impactful if you aren’t listening to the record yourself, as it’s moments like this one with these giant chords that vastly enhance the statements behind the wrods, as well as giving them emotional appeal.
The record truly finishes off with yet another headbanging techno bit, but it’s appreciated, as it surprisingly doesn’t ruin the melancholic moment.
There are also things I’m not completely enamored with in this record, like some of the EDM parts being a bit messy and a couple tunes that I don’t find to be all that interesting—”accoltella lo spirito,” for how intense it is, is way too straightforward and leaves little to no impact on me, unfortunately. In the end though, I kind of don’t care, as I find the album to be too interesting to nitpick issues I may have.
I’m usually very stingy when it comes to saying that a record leaves a mark on me, but on TUTTO NERO I find plenty of interesting ideas, and I sincerely hope to hear more, maybe more fleshed out, with more detail, because I believe that there’s potential for something truly amazing to come out from NULLACONTA. For now, I’ll still enjoy this really good record, with the hopes of hearing artistic growth in the future, but this LP has likely already engraved itself in my skull due to how much it interested me.
TUTTO NERO is available on Solium. [Bandcamp]
![Romanowitch :: A critical season substitute (glitch.cool) — [concise]](https://igloomag.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/romanowitch-a-critical-season-substitute_tape_feat-75x75.jpg)
