On the scene for a decade now, Milan's Bloody Mary have earned themselves a fair reputation over these years as Italy's answer to their better-known Finnish colleagues, namely H.I.M., 69 Eyes and To Die For, without forgetting the 'historical' influences of bands such as Fields of the Nephilim and The Cult. Given these premises, we believe the title of their new full-length - "Anno Zero", the close of a trilogy that began with 2005's "Blood 'N Roll" and continued with 2010's "Party music Graveyards" - does not refer to the musical course of the Milanese band, which remains firmly anchored to the sonic coordinates above.
With the exception of the martial rhythms of "Concrete Jungle", an industrial track along the lines of Kraftewark / Rammstein / Deathstars and the like, and the electro-theatrical orchestrations of "Crawling", the rest of the tracklist alternates classic goth 'n roll gallops ("I Keep Pretending", "Chase The Nowhere", "Judith", "Frozen", "I Am Gonna Miss You") with more romantically melancholic pieces ("Did You Let Me Down", "The 3rd Chance"), occasionally mixing the two, as happens in the hypnotic "So Far Away".
Few surprises, then, but a series of confirmations: if the prize for best goes by right to the charismatic frontman Aldebran, our home-grown version of the Villes and Jaris, the good work of the rest of the band should still be underlined, effective without ever overdoing it. All in all, while not reaching the level of the genre's masterpieces, be it goth 'n roll or love metal, "Anno Zero" hands us a band on top form, now able to compete on equal terms with the current incarnation of their tutelary deities.
First published in Italian; in English here. Where it appeared ↗