KUBLAI - Lezioni di canto

Of the seven songs on “Lezioni di canto” (“Singing Lessons”), the new album by Teo Manzo, aka Kublai, one struck me in particular. It's called “Belva rara del ritorno”, and from the very first listen it brought to mind the so-called “Baustellismo” phenomenon – that approach, adopted by many musicians over the past twenty years or so, of replicating sounds, atmospheres and constructions (both musical and lyrical) similar to those devised by Francesco Bianconi in Baustelle. Listen closely too to the way the opening track “Prima” unfolds, with its acoustic filigree and string interventions: we're very much in that territory, but with the intent of reworking certain influences in a personal, and even more singer-songwriter-oriented, key.

“Lezioni di canto“, arriving more than two years after the EP “True Dream” and a full five years after his self-titled debut, is a gateway opening onto a contemporary Milan made up of domestic interiors (“Casa di Vincent”) and faded decadence (“Fashion Week”). The “Milano da Bere” of the Eighties no longer exists; it's a distant memory, long since replaced by a generational malaise that is paving our days with disenchantment and disillusion. Stylistically, this is a mature work of electro songwriting, with arrangements that are never intrusive, embroidered with taste and discretion.

The aesthetic harks back to the school of the great historic Italian singer-songwriters, Francesco De Gregori above all, but also makes room for soft beats and orchestral touches, delivered with delicacy and elegance.

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08/01/2026