Måneskin’s latest album gives the glam-rockers a Rush! to the top
After winning the euro vision song contest In May 2021, Måneskin was swept into a whirlpool of fame. From humble beginnings busking the streets of Rome, the band now boast over 27 million monthly listeners on Spotify and have been nominated for a Grammy Award for Best New Artist. You’re just one of two rock artists to ever win euro vision in its sixty-seven year history. As they were presented with the shiny glass trophy, they triumphantly raised it above their heads while lead singer Damiano David exclaimed, “We just want to say to all of Europe, to all of the world, rock ‘n’ roll never dies!” Now, with their first studio album since her victory, Måneskin tries for worldwide recognition. hurry! (2023) oozes attitude, lively basslines and raw energy, and it may be the band’s key to securing their legacy.
Although it is a Superbowl-like televised event in many European homes, most Americans are unfamiliar with it euro vision. The Song Contest is like a cross between the Olympics and American Idol, with the live performance of a halftime show doused in a glitzy camp. Representatives from different countries will perform an original song, and the winner will be determined both by the judges from the country delegations and by public voting. Two years ago, the Roman glam rock band clinched victory for Italy when they stomped onto the stage in their platform boots and performed the fiery rock anthem “ZITTI E BUONI”, accompanied by shrill pyrotechnics and an electrifying stage presence.
Most euro vision Winners disappear from the spotlight as soon as the cameras roll – with rare exceptions like ABBA and Celine Dione – but Måneskin’s success has bucked that trend. The viral success of “Beggin’,” her cover of the Four Seasons song, and her original “I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE” catapulted her to the top of the Spotify charts and into global awareness the summer after her win.
As expected, many of the tracks on hurry! are full of rebellion and promiscuity, underscored by dynamic basslines and guitar riffs that will have you stomping around in platform boots and smashing a guitar. The album also includes three tracks sung in Italian, showing that the band hasn’t completely strayed from their roots in their search for the American mainstream. The tracks “MAMMAMIA”, “SUPERMODEL”, “THE LONELIEST” and “GOSSIP” were pre-released as singles, along with music videos with flashy visuals (from a gothic funeral procession in “THE LONELIEST” to a cheeky murder plot in “MAMMAMIA”) .
The band celebrated the release of hurry! by “marrying” in a quadruple wedding ceremony in Rome, celebrated by Gucci’s creative director Alessandro Michele, which sanctified both their close friendship and their affinity for fashion. Måneskin has a longstanding relationship with the brand, having been personally chosen by Michele to work in a September 2021 Gucci aria campaign, and the brand dressed her in the delightfully provocative music video for “I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE” that same year. The band’s bold, gender-defying fashion sense, inspired by rock icons of the past, rich in sequins, bright patterns and copious amounts of eyeliner, not only attracts the world of high fashion but also reflects the rebellious exuberance of their music.
Although the album’s sonic landscape highlights the three instrumentalists – Thomas Raggi on guitar, Victoria De Angelis on bass and Ethan Torchio on drums – each track feels distinctive, with a variety of catchy melodies, energetic guitar solos and basslines that draw you in the beginning of the song and never let go. The album also showcases David’s impressive vocal range, from the playful, half-spoken staccato of “BLA BLA BLA” to the deep growl of “GASOLINE” to the melancholy languish of “THE LONELIEST”.
While the album’s tone is undeniably punk, many of the songs delve into deeper, more personal themes. One of the main lines of the album is capturing the “rush” of the band’s new found fame and the emotional challenges that it brings on tour: “The only thing that separates us is a different time zone / Fuck what I dream, this fame doesn’t mean anything.” In the same way, “LA FINE”, one of the album’s Italian tracks, conveys the isolating weariness of a busy schedule, leaving home and being in the limelight all the time: “I wake up and a year has passed / And I’m still tired… Not even all the gold in the world / Will be able to buy you what you leave behind.” Lyrics like these remind listeners that behind the electrifying stage presence and layers of glittering charisma, the members of Måneskin are people who can experience exhaustion and heartbreak.
The band spent a few months in Los Angeles while working on the album and some tracks hurry! reflect on their experiences in the city. “We were in LA for a few months and one thing that really shocked us was the amount of people posing as celebrities trying to come to the coolest party with the coolest connection,” David said ABC audio. “But in the end they are empty shells and you have nothing to share with them.” The single “GOSSIP” shows Los Angeles as a “city of lies” and a place of poisonous superficiality: “This place is a circus / you just see the surface / they cover shit under the rug.” The band’s LA experience is also reflected in the single “SUPERMODEL,” which cheekily caricatures a ’90s supermodel and evokes characters they met in the City of Angels: ” Alone at parties, she works 24/7 / When you’re not looking, she steals your Basquiat / Low-waist pants on OnlyFans, I’ll pay for it.
Måneskin also shows a softer side with heartbreaking ballads like “IF NOT FOR YOU,” which describe how empty and dreary the world would feel without true love: “There’ll be no summer / There’ll be no spring / If nicht Because of my love.” David’s melancholic vocals, combined with the warm, flowing instruments, punctuated by roaring orchestral bass lines, make this a track to listen to on atmospheric walks in the rain.
hurry! also delves into the realm of world politics, with one of the album’s most striking tracks, “GASOLINE,” which is a fiery rebuke of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. The band first posted a 15-second snippet of the song to their Instagram in April 2022, encouraging their fans to donate to humanitarian aid using the hashtag #StandUpForUkraine. The song is sonically hard as nails, with an ominous booming bass that reverberate like thunder and the sporadic notes in the guitar solo that resemble lightning. Texts that ask, “How do you sleep at night? … Live with all these lives in your hands?” and blame those who “play god with a heart of stone” and feel awfully urgent in a world shadowed by Rise of authoritarian dictators.
With hurry!‘, Måneskin have created an album that captures her chaotic rock ‘n’ roll attitude while simultaneously exploring nuanced themes and honing an addictive dance-punk sound that will appeal to her ever-growing audience. Only time will tell if hurry! will be the album that secures their mainstream fame; but regardless of the outcome, Måneskin proved that “rock ‘n’ roll never dies”.
SELECTING THE VOICE: IF NOT FOR YOU, PETROL, SUPERMODEL