Ritornano Quelli Di...

Ritornano Quelli di… Calibro 35
Reviewed by Sadie O., 7/31/10
Retro lounge instrumentals, seemingly the soundtrack for a spaghetti crime drama of the 60’s-70’s. Apparently these 5 Italian crime movie buffs have soaked seriously in the music of the genre – there are a few covers (track 10 is Morricone, even) but mostly originals, and they’ve got the essence down perfectly. You can see the whole filthy business play out in your head as you listen – huzzah!
No FCCs – instrumentals. I like tracks 1, 4, 11 best.
1. 2:57 ****fuzz guitar intro, then funky loungy retro uptempo groove with feel of a police drama TV theme.
2. 5:17 ***intro organ chord fraught with drama! Then slow, slinky crawl with lots of bass and farfisa and a myriad of bitchen sounds.
3. 2:18 ***upbeat, back on the beat (as in the crime scene), retro, reverby, bitchen.
4. 3:34 ****goofy vocal intro, then very funky midtempo groove.
5. 2:59 ***funky midtempo with prominent horns, a bit relaxed vibe.
6. 3:20 *funky intro, stop, and then reverby farfisa, rather light and groovy. The romantic interlude in the crime drama? Yet a molecule of menace remains…
7. 2:57 **big menacing riff, the tension mounts… last minute or so is back to softer with farfisa.
8. 2:56 ***downtempo super funky but relaxed. I think this is the search scene. Whether it’s in cars or inside an abandoned factory with flashlights, I’m not totally sure.
9. 3:10 ***flute and bass, rather Pink Panther-esque, sense of urgency.
10. 4:22 *insistent 4/4 beat, odd and complex and slightly dischordant melody line. Goes funky in a rather strange way after a minute and a half, then back, then to the Twilight Zone.
11. 3:31 ****super-funky! Drenched with bitcheness and reverb.
12. 6:30 ***big fat intro, then slow ponderous chords that give way to farfisa and flutes and many different moods – the outro credits, recapping the moods of the movie. Very moody for last minute or so.