THE MADS - IN ITALIANO EP (Area Pirata Records/Sexy Groovy Rhythms CD, D/L).

It kinda makes sense Italy embracing British Mod culture with a sizable scene thriving in the country. As everybody knows the “modernist” style was heavily influenced by sharp Italian Post War fashion as the Sixties changed from drab monochrome to technicolour…………and of course there are the iconic Italian scooters. As they say “what comes around, goes around”. Italian ace faces, the imaginatively named The Mads, have completely immersed themselves in the culture and iconography with their “look” and sound, with record sleeves featuring London Routemaster buses, scooters and 60s type face among other era defining references and great songs that evoke classic bands such as The Who and The Creation. Formed in Milan in 1979 and playing an energetic blend of Beat and Rhythm 'n' Blues, The Mads were probably the first Italian Mod band. In four solid years of gigging, their reputation grew and The Mads became absolute legends on the Italian Modernist underground scene. The band re-formed with their original lineup in 2012 and have since released some fantastic 7” singles and EPs of original material, plus an EP of classic 60s tunes that is available as a Bandcamp freebie here.

The Mads have always written and sung in English (the international language of all things Mod), however, dusting down some tapes from their early years, The Mads have released a 4 track EP of previously unreleased recordings from 1979 - 1983………………..sung in Italian. Limited to a 100 copies on CD only, the In Italiano EP features alternative versions of tracks in the Mads native language originally released in English and a couple of tracks from the vault that never made it onto wax first time round. ‘Sono Chiuso In Lei’ is the Italian version of the Mod/Beat ‘I'm Lonely Boy’ and ‘Psycho Rock'n'Roll Art’ is a Pop Art explosion of sound influenced by the the 60s British Blues/R&B bands………………….it’s the raw sound of a band that has tapped into the late 70s UK Mod revival and are playing with the combination of Punk, Ska and the back to basics 60s sound that was popular in 1979. Much more sophisticated, the other two tracks on the EP are a riot of sparkling guitars and Mod pop smarts…………………’Io Dirò’ combines an elaborate late Beat melody with a typical nursery rhyme chorus of The Creation and The Who, while ‘Solo Verità’ is a track inspired by Bowie’s imperial early 70s period and was the last track recorded by the first line-up The Mads before going their separate ways in 83. For long time fans of the band, the In Italiano EP is a cool addition to the Mads discography and well worth your time.

If this is your thing, In Italiano is out NOW on Area Pirata Records/Sexy Groovy Rhythms and is available on CD from the Area Pirata website or from The Mads Bandcamp page here https://themads.bandcamp.com/album/the-mads-in-italiano where you can also buy the download.

THEE PSYCHEDELICATESSEN