AFTERHOURS - Ballads For Little Hyenas

"Ballads For Little Hyenas", the English version of the wonderful Ballate per piccole iene, is now also out for the Italian market.

The involvement of three native speakers meant the lyrics weren't translated word for word (some passages were rewritten entirely), but instead underwent a kind of linguistic transmigration, one that succeeds in introducing new imagery and descriptions without distorting the meaning of the lyrics, keeping both the metre and the content intact.

It's especially interesting to hear how certain tracks - such as "White Widow", "Fresh Flesh" and "The Thin White Line" - originally written in English and then adapted into Italian, have now undergone this sort of poetic back-version. The new vocal takes have led to the album being completely remastered, and the sharpest ears will pick up on an atmosphere that's a touch "warmer" and more "welcoming".

As for the pronunciation, it's really not bad at all.

We probably already know the Italian versions by heart (how I wish that, especially when talking about "Ballate per piccole iene", people would say "we know it by heart" in Italian too).

The slightly slower songs are perhaps the most convincing, like "Sparkle", "Fresh Flesh" and "There's Many Ways".

Or maybe it was all down to the accent Agnelli kept correcting: the Australian one of ex-Cousteau man Davey Ray Moor, or the English one of John Parish.

No, apparently Dulli's wasn't the issue: legend has it Dulli insisted on having Agnelli sing with a Southern US accent, a truly tough task for someone who'd spent a lot of time in England. And I can just picture it: Dulli losing patience because the result is questionable, and Agnelli getting discouraged, feeling a bit like Rocky Robert.

An album the Italian market might well consider "superfluous" (what a horrible thought!) and Afterhours fans might call "minor", but it's still an album worth appreciating. Recording it and getting it released by prestigious labels (the American One Little Indian isn't affiliated with the British One Little Indian, they're two entirely separate labels) first in Europe and then (from March 2006) in the United States is already a major achievement.

I've always thought good Italian music gets undervalued, by Italians first and foremost, and it's a shame, because many of our artists have nothing to envy in their foreign counterparts — and the more I listen to "Ballads for Little Hyenas", the more convinced I become of it.

One last thing worth noting: a track that wasn't on the Italian version — a cover of Lou Reed's "The Bed", sung as a duet with Greg Dulli.

Let's hope for the best. In the meantime, congratulations.

Ride the wave of great music

Add OndaRock to your favorite sources on Google Discover. Don't miss our reviews, milestones and latest news straight in your feed.

Follow on Google

15/12/2006