NICK CAVE - Grinderman 2

2010 (Mute)
rock

Quando i fan dei Bad Seeds avevano saputo della nascita dei Grinderman, si erano ampiamente preoccupati pensando che i Semi Cattivi fossero ormai marciti. Poi però era uscito “Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!“, un buon disco rock che dei fiabeschi Bad Seeds aveva forse poco. I fan dei Bad Seeds avevano sospettosamente apprezzato ed erano rimasti in attesa di un passo (falso) di Re Inkiostro per capire quale sarebbe stata la strada scelta per il futuro.

Oggi esce “Grinderman 2” e questo significa almeno un paio di cose. La prima è che se Cave aveva provato all’epoca a farci passare il progetto Grinderman per un passatempo momentaneo, una cotta passeggera, ora non può certo negare l’evidenza: con i Grinderman è vero amore. La seconda è che, evidentemente, dopo che Blixa ha mollato il colpo e Mick gliene ha assestati un paio sul muso prima di andarsene sbattendo la porta, evidentemente con i Bad Seeds Cave non si diverte più.

Perché quello dei Grinderman, diciamolo, è un progetto ben più divertente, più frivolo, più ludico, basato sull’improvvisazione, quindi meno impegnativo dello strutturato mondo dei Bad Seeds, nonostante la formazione sia più o meno la stessa.

In questo “Grinderman 2”, più che nell’album d’esordio, Cave lascia che le cose vadano a briglia sciolta; e i risultati sono molto buoni. Ma qui si tratta di grandi professionisti al limite della genialità: è ovvio che i risultati siano molto buoni. Scordatevi quindi i suggestivi paesaggi musicali (più che altro paludi) dei Birthday Party o le dense storie dei Bad Seeds. “Grinderman” era votato al cazzeggio più puro, e per quanto il gruppo abbia messo la testa a posto incidendo un disco più serio, “Grinderman 2” può benissimo dirsi la continuazione dell’esordio.

Comunque distante dal blues più gracchiante e rumoroso presentato nel lavoro precedente, quest’ultimo spicca per maturità, nonostante la voglia di improvvisazione sia palese (“Evil”, “When My Baby Comes”, “Mickey Mouse And The Goodbye Man”).

Con brani che sembrano saltati fuori dal repertorio dei primi Rolling Stones (“Places Of Montezuma”) e altri decisamente più evocativi (“What I Know” e “When My Baby Comes, un incrocio tra “The Night Of The Lotus Eaters” e “Iron Man“), “Grinderman 2” stupisce per come Cave riesca ormai da oltre trent’anni a non deluderci (quasi) mai, rinnovandosi continuamente senza mai aver bisogno di reinventarsi.

“Grinderman 2” rimane comunque fedele ai principi del progetto: l’animalità nell’uomo (la copertina degli esordi raffigurava una scimmia intenta a masturbarsi, quella per questo disco mostra un lupo con tanto di denti digrignati che si aggira minaccioso nel salotto di casa) e il blues inteso come divino big bang della musica tutta (“Kitchenette”).

È un disco che mette d’accordo i fan dei Bad Seeds che si preoccupavano di questa “perdita di concentrazione” di Re Inkiostro, i fan di Grinderman e chi invece non ne era rimasto entusiasta.

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10/09/2010

This article is an English translation of the original Italian text by Magda Di Genova, published on OndaRock.it. It was translated with the help of artificial intelligence, under the editorial responsibility of OndaRock's editor-in-chief, Claudio Fabretti.

Read the original in Italian · About the English edition

Tracklist

  1. 1. Mickey Mouse And The Goodbye Man
  2. 2. Worm Tamer
  3. 3. Heathen Child
  4. 4. When My Baby Comes
  5. 5. What I Know
  6. 6. Evil
  7. 7. Kitchenette
  8. 8. Palaces Of Montezuma
  9. 9. Bellringer Blues
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