Baustelle - Restless adolescence in the chronic provinces

by Claudio Lancia

Exactly ten years ago, at a moment of stagnation for the Italian independent music scene, a flash of genius appeared on the horizon. Four young men from the province of Siena, bearing a strange name of German origin, released a stunning debut that quickly established itself as a kind of concept album about adolescence and youth in general. Word of mouth spread fast, and the ten songs that made up "Illustrated Primer of Youth" (from here on shortened to "Sussidiario" for convenience) became genuine generational anthems, with the album selling out in no time.

A series of contractual disputes has so far made any reissue impossible, and original copies have become highly sought-after cult objects, capable of fetching considerable sums. Meanwhile, the creature known as Baustelle has grown up, released four more phenomenal albums plus a soundtrack, earned major recognition, and seen the quartet turn into a trio. Francesco Bianconi, Rachele Bastreghi and Claudio Brasini are today considered among the most important Italian pop artists of our time. These days "Sussidiario" is finally being reissued in two versions: the first identical to the original, the second in a deluxe edition, packaged in a special box set that will delight the most hardcore fans. So, having just completed a chapter of their artistic journey that led them, only a few months ago, to make their most adult and mature record ("I mistici dell'occidente"), Baustelle now return to engage powerfully with their own beginnings. It's time for the Montepulciano trio to take stock.

We reached Francesco Bianconi, Baustelle's singer and main songwriter, by phone for a warm, wide-ranging chat…

Hi Francesco, today we're talking about the reissue of "Sussidiario". These songs, which were extraordinarily effective ten years ago, do you think they still hold up as strong and relevant today?

I find that the songs on "Sussidiario" are still strong and thoroughly relevant. I notice it personally at our concerts, through the consistently great response from the audience. Everyone kept asking for the album to be reissued, and now it's finally happened.

"Sussidiario" established itself as a kind of concept album about adolescence and youth in general. How much, and in what way, have young people changed in these early years of the new millennium?

Maybe they've changed a little; we observe them both through our professional experience and through everyday life. "Sussidiario" portrayed them in a romantic, universal way.

They've certainly changed in the way they consume music: today it's all about mp3 files you can transfer around, whereas ten years ago records were still selling reasonably well. I think young people today are, musically speaking, victims of background-listening culture, which leads them to dig ever less deep.

In "Sussidiario" there's a fine parade of very well-drawn characters. Martina (the protagonist of the album's second track, ed.) has grown up by now. How might her story have unfolded?

Martina has grown up: today she could be an outraged thirty-something. Or she might have become an escort herself, in a society unable to find her anything else to do. Society has slowly turned her into something she never wanted to be.

Even the kids who came out of the reformatory (a reference to the theme of "La canzone del riformatorio", track number 7 on "Sussidiario", ed.) find a harsh reality staring back at them, one that could push them into new kinds of trouble…

Yes, I completely agree. We live in a country that is in urgent need of a reset. (This is the same idea Francesco expressed last summer from the stage of the Roma Rock Festival, in one of the few remarks he addressed to the audience: it's clear this is a concept he cares about deeply, ed.).

Your well-established love of quoting other works has often led you to drop explicit cinematic references into your songs. Give us three key films you consider essential, or that you'd recommend to Baustelle fans.

(Bianconi looks visibly delighted by the question, revealing a boundless knowledge of cinema, ed.). Well, if I had to choose, I'd like to mention three titles that somehow connect to the stories told in "Sussidiario". First of all, the Antoine Doinel cycle, the character created by François Truffaut and played by the young Jean-Pierre Léaud. There are five films in total, and you could start chronologically with the first one, "I quattrocento colpi" ("The 400 Blows"), for which the French filmmaker won the Best Director award at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival. This cycle connects very well to our early work, since it deals with themes of adolescence.

Then there's a 1970 film by Dario Argento, "L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo" ("The Bird with the Crystal Plumage"), which was his directorial debut and the first part of the so-called "Animal Trilogy". I mention this film because "Sadik" (track 3 on "Sussidiario", ed.) contains an explicit reference to it. Finally, Federico Fellini's "La dolce vita", since there are clear echoes of it in "Cinecittà" (track eight on "Sussidiario", ed.).

You and Alberto Ferrari of Verdena (with all due differences) are seen by fans as a kind of messiah for the new generations. You're a bit like what Manuel Agnelli and Cristiano Godano represented for young music listeners in the previous decade. You in particular, in certain respects, seem to be taking on, for a large section of fans, the role of a kind of homegrown Eddie Vedder. How do you experience this situation? With fear? With the tremendous weight of responsibility?

Honestly, I live my life without any issues, without feeling like a spokesperson for a generation. It's up to the audience to view a musician however they see fit. The important thing is not to feel the weight of it, not to be crushed by it. I simply write in my songs what I have inside, without compromise. Of course, it's nice if people find a message in those songs that someone decides to take as an example.

In Baustelle's catalogue, which are your two favourite songs, the ones you care about most? And which one would you erase?

There's nothing in Baustelle's discography I would erase. As for my favourites, well, I have to say they keep changing. Lately, if I really have to pick two titles, I'd go with "Il sottoscritto" and "L'indaco" (both featured on the recent "I mistici dell'occidente", ed.).

So we can expect to hear them again on the tour that's about to start?

This tour was conceived to promote the reissue of "Sussidiario", so the setlist will be centred on those songs. There'll also be room for other things, but I can't promise you those two will be included. And I don't want to give away too much.

Great, see you on 1 December at the Atlantico in Rome. Let's talk now about the Italian independent scene, which is going through an important new season. You've been with a major label for a while now, so I wonder whether you still keep a close eye on what's happening in the "underground". Which artists from this scene have caught your attention or curiosity most recently?

(Here Bianconi will surprise anyone who still pictures him lost in Beethoven-style classicism, dreary Italian singer-songwriters and retro sounds, ed.). I follow the scene very closely, and I have to say there's a huge amount of new stuff I like. If I have to pick one name, there's an Italian artist whose debut work I find has a lot in common with our own first album. I'm talking about Vasco Brondi (Le luci della centrale elettrica), whose second album is coming out right around now. The buzz around his first album reminded me of what happened to us with "Sussidiario". I hope this parallel brings him luck.

Interesting collaborations are also emerging within the Italian independent scene. You, on the other hand, give the impression of always wanting to stay a bit on the sidelines…

Collaboration for its own sake isn't really my thing, it's not in my nature. Sometimes it's better to say your own piece on your own. Collaborating should happen naturally, not be forced. I don't think the Italian independent scene has to be seen as one big circle of friends. That might well happen in each of our private lives, and in fact it would be a welcome and desirable thing. But professionally speaking, everyone has to follow their own path.

And among international artists, who has impressed you most lately?

I've listened to a lot of stuff, and among the most recent, I found "Halcyon Digest", the latest album by Deerhunter, really excellent. Hats off to them.

Do you get a lot of demos from up-and-coming bands?

I get a huge number of demos, especially at our shows. Unfortunately I don't have the time to listen to them all. Nowadays technology helps young musicians a lot: with a modest financial outlay you can put together decent gear to record your own music - a PC, a good sound card, and you're set. But the sheer proliferation of small bands makes it impossible to follow, listen to and judge everything.

I can listen to some of the demos I receive, but all I can really do is give an opinion on the content. I can say whether I like something or not, but I can't do anything beyond that. It's possible some people expect help from me, maybe to be introduced to a contact, even just an initial one, at a record label. But at most I can offer a personal opinion, especially in these times of crisis for the record industry.

There's a curious but very widespread phenomenon I wanted to explore with you, one that affects young musicians in particular. At the start of their journey you find them everywhere - on MySpace, on Facebook - eager to engage with everyone, seeking out as many contacts as possible both with industry insiders and potential fans. Then, once they achieve even a modest amount of success, they begin what I'd call a process of scaling back their presence. I don't think it's simply a matter of time constraints...

Staying in touch with your audience is important, but you need to keep a certain distance, otherwise the situation ends up backfiring on you. You have to maintain healthy communication with fans, be as available as possible, but always within certain limits. Communication is something I now consider essential for keeping relationships sound and proper. It's a different story for superstars on the level of Zucchero and Vasco Rossi, who risk having their privacy constantly violated, with thousands of fans potentially showing up to throw stones at their windows. Figures with that kind of overwhelming public exposure need to protect their personal lives and safety in some way, constantly under threat from fans whose actions could go beyond any reasonable bounds.

Does Francesco Bianconi finally consider himself a "Modern Chansonnier" these days?

Thanks for mentioning "Il musichiere 999" (track 10 on "Sussidiario", ed.). I still aspire to that. I've probably become one - according to some people I already have - but I'm still writing songs and looking for a worthwhile path. Still, I don't feel I can consider the mission accomplished.

Do you plan to keep taking on work as a songwriter for hire?

Definitely, if the right situations come along.

Still open to composing film scores?

Ah, we even wrote it in a little note on the back of the booklet that came with "Sussidiario" ("Baustelle is available for film scores", a line that now seems both touching and prophetic, ed.). After the happy experience of "Giulia non esce la sera" we'd like to give it another go. So the answer is yes, absolutely.

Satisfy my curiosity: how did the dispute with the mayor of Follonica turn out?

As far as I'm concerned the dispute is over, I consider it closed - in fact, I consider it as if it never even started. We dealt with it without ever giving any response.

How do you feel about the now long-running issue of illegal downloading?

I'm against illegal downloading. If the culture of illegality were to continue, all musicians would end up out of work. The only people left on the scene would be "hobbyist" musicians, making music for fun in their spare time, and the result would be a drastic drop in the average quality. I find all of that completely wrong.

Of course, you can't stop technological change. Serious action needs to be taken at government level, with well-targeted awareness campaigns and adequate subsidies. Music needs to be paid for, just like a book. We need to foster a culture of legal downloading, perhaps even by pushing prices down towards free.

I'd say the experiment of the nice celebratory box set for "Sussidiario" is a smart way of sidestepping illegality, a way of returning to the cult of the object…

Sure; there's a whole separate discussion to be had about the "deluxe" market, aimed at people who feel it's worth owning a special package, with a beautifully curated booklet and nice photos. You can't download a package like that, you can only buy it. With the reissue of "Sussidiario", which comes in a basic version and a more luxurious one, that's exactly what we did.

What should we expect from Baustelle tomorrow?

I really couldn't tell you. Right now I'm not writing, since lately we've been completely focused on conceiving and promoting the return of "Sussidiario".

Baustelle's success has led Italian music to reclaim the pleasure of telling small stories in a descriptive, narrative way.

Drawing on the vast heritage of Italian singer-songwriter tradition, you created an approach to music for which you can be considered pioneers and modern points of reference…

I don't know. When "Sussidiario" came out in 2000, Baustelle were seen as the new Marlene Kuntz or the new Afterhours, because of a certain attitude and the similarity of some sounds. Then, as time went by, we carved out our own distinct identity. If new bands today choose to draw inspiration from us, and see us as points of reference, it means we did a good job, that we communicated well with our audience. If that's the case, I can consider myself satisfied, at least on that front.

So ends the pleasant phone conversation with one of the most sensitive Italian songwriters of recent years, who has managed to play retro music in a modern way, winning unanimous praise from critics and audiences alike. An artist who has by now left behind the strictly youth-oriented themes so well expressed on Baustelle's early albums, moving on to more mature subject matter.

All that's left is to follow them on the short tour accompanying the reissue of "Sussidiario" and wait for the band's next artistic moves, which are sure not to disappoint.