Customer Reviews

Onda

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Much of Fiamma Fumana's music is founded upon Northern Italian traditional folk music, with many a nod to Scottish folk music as well. FF seasons these traditional sounds and themes with contemporary ideas - for example, waiting around in airports between flights, in "Check In" - and modern sounds - perhaps most notably, Medhin Paolos's electronica, which is laced throughout their albums; but also Lisa Kant's vocals, which sometimes strike a traditional, soulful stance, just as they at other times strike a modern rock pose. It is this amalgam of the traditional and the modern which is FF's defining characteristic.

Onda is a superb album. Lisa's vocals display remarkable virtuosity on each and every song. She simply has a beautiful voice, at times gentle and soothing, at other times, bursting with good-natured energy. Another distinctive feature of FF music is the often unexpected and delightful presence of Alberto Cottica's piano and acoustic guitar, which are often subtly interlaced throughout the electronica. Lady Jessica's pipes and whistles and Alberto's accordion are also defining sounds.

I mentioned before that Onda is bursting with good-natured energy. Let me add that this characteristic is indeed one of the things that makes this album so much fun: it is genuinely upbeat. While it is in many ways "modern" music, there is nothing cynical about it. On the contrary, it is a celebration of human perseverance, comradery, and talent. These latter items define FF's philosophy. If you read around on their website, it becomes very clear that these are very smart, good, and talented people who want to preserve great music, along with an emotional connection with the past, but who also want to bring these traditions forward to effect positive change in the here and now. If this all seems too heady, don't worry: this album is extraordinarily danceable and sing-along-able. Anyone with half a soul won't be able to resist smiling and tapping a toe. (Side note: For anyone who has seen FF live, their studio albums are NOT a letdown. I saw them play in Bloomington IN back in '06, and immediately purchased all their albums, and have not been disappointed by a single track. For anyone who has not seen them live, do so if you can - they're amazing.)

One more thing: If you listen to some Fiamma Fumana and like it, do an Amazon search for "Contatto." "Contatto" is Lisa Kant's remarkable solo album; but since it features her Fiamma Fumana cohorts providing instrumentation, hearing it is almost like discovering a lost FF album. See my review.

If you want to listen to something different in a good way, this is for you. You'll be singing along, even if you only speak english. This is a musical treat that will give you a new perspective on contempoary music with an international flavor.

I saw Fiamma Fumana perform live at Lotus Festival in Bloomington Indiana back in September of 2006 and they really know their stuff. I bought this album along with their previous album 'Home' and have listened to it numerous times in the car. This group has a really great sound that's composed of world music with strong european influences along with very catchy head-bopping electronic beats. Beautiful vocals. Beautiful artists! They use unique instruments such as the Accordian and the Bag pipes which combined with some of the newer instruments and they really work and sound well together! It's not exactly electronica and it's not exactly world music but rather perhaps a fusion of the two. Very very good stuff! Get it!

"Prendi l'Onda" is the track that hooked me in. I saw the video on LinkTV and had to have this CD. This disc did not disappoint, and I get a musical tickle every time one of these tracks comes up on my playlist.