If I remember correctly, it was around 1992 when the President (let's say) Bush was in Naples. The mandate was simple. To prepare that city to welcome him with all solemnity. But when some people tried to clean the walls from the slogan 'Diego is God', the underground part of this beautiful Italian city rebelled. So the walls in Naples 'cleaned' of any other signal than this one.
The VITI DI TITANIO talked about Diego among others. Besides, their music has something of the genuine vagrancy of the greatest magician of football and those who do not believe it, they can hear 'Naguine'. Great band and an interview that I enjoyed very effectively.
1. First of all can you tell me your story as a band so far?
Maurizio: Viti di Titanio were founded by me and Marcello. We had started to play and record our first songs trying to do something like what we used to listen to. Then we have changed a lot of different musicians and instruments in our line-up: a flute player and also another guitar player recorded on "Il Giro di Vite" EP. Actually, we are touring in trio and we feel that it works in a really fantastic way. On the stage we're myself on the drums, some percussions and backing vocals, Marcello as lead voice but he also plays guitar, organ, maracas, harmonica and Massimo is on the bass and backing vocals. Massimo joined in our band 2 years ago. He used to play with a great character and he is quite into what we do.
2. And what about your influences?
Maurizio:
Basically Viti di Titanio's influences are scattered everywhere. We
used to catch our international influences and mix them with sounds of
our culture and tradition. We love a lot of bands that come from
Australian rock scene (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, The Birthday Party,
Dirty three, Crime and the city solution, The Triffids etc), but also
the 80's artistic scene from Berlin had influenced a lot our minds
(Einsturzende Neubauten, Die Haut and many others) and we appreciate a
lot of bands and song writers from France music scene. Our minds are
quite connected also to cinema, literature, theatre and others arts.
Surely people like Wim Wenders, Henry James or Bertolt Brecht are
inspiring our imagination a lot.
3. Do you really like Lucio Battisti? He was one of my favourite Italian artists. What’s going on in Italy really? Is there a new scene or something?
Marcello: Lucio Battisti was a really special singer and he has influenced a lot of modern songwriters and bands in Italy. To be honest he hasn't influenced our music so much. Italian music tradition had so many great singers especially from the past. Some others of great Italian songwriters that we love are Rino Gaetano, Domenico Modugno (in our new EP we have covered "Amara Terra Mia"), Luigi Tenco and many others.
Maurizio: About what's going on in Italy actually I think that's a little bit difficult to fix. We have a new scene of bands and songwriters. Sincerely some bands are interesting but a lot of others not. I prefer that kind of bands that try to mix rock tradition with our sounds and influences, but honestly few bands do it in Italian new scene. So too much bands try to hit off British ephemeral trends with the worst result. I also think that we had a lot great bands from the past 80/90's era and actually our scene is quite poor.
4. Have you ever been in Greece?
Maurizio:
At the moment we all have visited Greece on holiday but we wish to
perform and tour there as soon as it will be possible. A lot of bands
that we love do it and we think that in Greece people are so receptive
and interested in a certain way to do music.
5. Tell me some details about 'Naguine' a great song.
Marcello: Naguine is a reading song about a personal status. The lyrics tell about half-truths, partial visions of reality and describe it as a mirror effect. Here Henry James's literal approach had influenced a lot the lyrics writing. He had wrote the novel "Turn of the screw" never disclosing and showing the complete sense of plot to the reader and we try to do something similar with our music. The song's title is got nothing to do with lyrics story. In the same time it represents our tribute to France culture, to our passion about jazz music and gypsy culture. Naguine was also the title of a jazz song/standard by Django Reinhardt. He was a famous gypsy guitar player.
6. Being in Napoli...can you really tell me if there’s still a big 'hug' (if u wish..) for the great Diego?? He’s my favourite football player ever!
Marcello: No doubts about it. Neapolitans people still worship Diego like a god. Maradona is the only public figure appreciated in the same time by intellectual establishment, the poor, honest people, criminals, underground culture. He represents sport and social revenge of the poor south Italy against the rich north Italy where a lot of people still have a lot of silly prejudice about south Italy culture. He's more charismatic than a lot of Italian politicians.
Thank you, Dimitris
The VITI DI TITANIO talked about Diego among others. Besides, their music has something of the genuine vagrancy of the greatest magician of football and those who do not believe it, they can hear 'Naguine'. Great band and an interview that I enjoyed very effectively.
1. First of all can you tell me your story as a band so far?
Maurizio: Viti di Titanio were founded by me and Marcello. We had started to play and record our first songs trying to do something like what we used to listen to. Then we have changed a lot of different musicians and instruments in our line-up: a flute player and also another guitar player recorded on "Il Giro di Vite" EP. Actually, we are touring in trio and we feel that it works in a really fantastic way. On the stage we're myself on the drums, some percussions and backing vocals, Marcello as lead voice but he also plays guitar, organ, maracas, harmonica and Massimo is on the bass and backing vocals. Massimo joined in our band 2 years ago. He used to play with a great character and he is quite into what we do.
2. And what about your influences?
Maurizio:
Basically Viti di Titanio's influences are scattered everywhere. We
used to catch our international influences and mix them with sounds of
our culture and tradition. We love a lot of bands that come from
Australian rock scene (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, The Birthday Party,
Dirty three, Crime and the city solution, The Triffids etc), but also
the 80's artistic scene from Berlin had influenced a lot our minds
(Einsturzende Neubauten, Die Haut and many others) and we appreciate a
lot of bands and song writers from France music scene. Our minds are
quite connected also to cinema, literature, theatre and others arts.
Surely people like Wim Wenders, Henry James or Bertolt Brecht are
inspiring our imagination a lot.3. Do you really like Lucio Battisti? He was one of my favourite Italian artists. What’s going on in Italy really? Is there a new scene or something?
Marcello: Lucio Battisti was a really special singer and he has influenced a lot of modern songwriters and bands in Italy. To be honest he hasn't influenced our music so much. Italian music tradition had so many great singers especially from the past. Some others of great Italian songwriters that we love are Rino Gaetano, Domenico Modugno (in our new EP we have covered "Amara Terra Mia"), Luigi Tenco and many others.
Maurizio: About what's going on in Italy actually I think that's a little bit difficult to fix. We have a new scene of bands and songwriters. Sincerely some bands are interesting but a lot of others not. I prefer that kind of bands that try to mix rock tradition with our sounds and influences, but honestly few bands do it in Italian new scene. So too much bands try to hit off British ephemeral trends with the worst result. I also think that we had a lot great bands from the past 80/90's era and actually our scene is quite poor.
4. Have you ever been in Greece?
Maurizio:
At the moment we all have visited Greece on holiday but we wish to
perform and tour there as soon as it will be possible. A lot of bands
that we love do it and we think that in Greece people are so receptive
and interested in a certain way to do music.5. Tell me some details about 'Naguine' a great song.
Marcello: Naguine is a reading song about a personal status. The lyrics tell about half-truths, partial visions of reality and describe it as a mirror effect. Here Henry James's literal approach had influenced a lot the lyrics writing. He had wrote the novel "Turn of the screw" never disclosing and showing the complete sense of plot to the reader and we try to do something similar with our music. The song's title is got nothing to do with lyrics story. In the same time it represents our tribute to France culture, to our passion about jazz music and gypsy culture. Naguine was also the title of a jazz song/standard by Django Reinhardt. He was a famous gypsy guitar player.
6. Being in Napoli...can you really tell me if there’s still a big 'hug' (if u wish..) for the great Diego?? He’s my favourite football player ever!
Marcello: No doubts about it. Neapolitans people still worship Diego like a god. Maradona is the only public figure appreciated in the same time by intellectual establishment, the poor, honest people, criminals, underground culture. He represents sport and social revenge of the poor south Italy against the rich north Italy where a lot of people still have a lot of silly prejudice about south Italy culture. He's more charismatic than a lot of Italian politicians.
Thank you, Dimitris