On the pop planet, the alignment of the stars that precedes a success is unpredictable, but sometimes so obvious after the fact. In the case of the Italian rock group Måneskin, which has accumulated more than six billion plays on Spotify (yes, billions!), there is most certainly the glibness of its four members, their looksthe machine of the major Sony, their shows given as if it were the last and a melodic urgency which play in its favor.
But it is clear, listening to his third album RUSH! (but his first mostly in English), that Måneskin’s rock alone would not be enough to fuel the success of the quartet formed in Rome which won Eurovision in 2021.
Måneskin drew on the best rock’n’roll fertilizers: insolence (BLA BLA BLA), carnal desire (TIMEZONE), Vice (FEEL) and glam. The group worked on several songs with a pop bonze, none other than Max Martin. So that everything is meticulously run-in, but the whole smells a little too much of the recipe, especially on an earworm like SUPERMODEL or an overly syrupy ballad like THE LONELIEST. Even the presence of Tom Morello, of Rage Against The Machine, is too harmless on GOSSIP.
Måneskin’s songs in Italian are by far the most incisive, thirst-quenching and salient. Singer Damiano David’s vocal performance is particularly exhilarating on THE THIN and IL DONO DELLA VITA.
Thomas Raggi, Ethan Torchio, Damiano David and Victoria De Angelis have their butts on fire and attitude to spare. There is a phenomenon around their band Måneskin, but there are still too many layers of varnish to their rock to fully convince us.
Rock
RUSH!
Maneskin
sony