The passion for music is the basis of this new label. I have always lived my passion for music next to my brother Francesco. In 1981, I was 20 years old, with Francesco and four other friends we went to hear the concert of 11 April of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Bandat the Hallenstadium in Zürich. It was I who pointed out to Francis that we had before Big Man (the nickname of the late saxophonist Clarence Clemmons NDR) and close to him Bruce. The first meeting from which was born a friendship with Francis and me».
In the garden of waterbirdsStudios, there is a lot of emotion in the story of Simona Virlinzi ready to debut as a record label with Tillie Records, in the footsteps of what was done twenty years ago by his brother Francesco with Cyclope Records, when Catania was the beating heart of national rock. First disc to come out with the brand Tillie is "paper Leaves", debut of Roberta Finocchiaro, young blues girl Catanese. The disc is released on September 30. After the death of Francis (28 November 2000 NDR) There were dark moments, suffering. Then with my mother we decided to reopen the Waterbirds studies...». At that moment a leaf falls on the strings of the acoustic guitar held by Simona, guitar that returns a net note. "This is Francis, it is a signal-instinctively comments the Virlinzi-. He's the one who says, "you're doing well." He's with us right now. "
The waterbirdsbrand, for years name of a state-of-the-art recording studio, in 2008 became a label thanks to the common effort of Mamma Nica, aided by her daughter Simona, and who produced in 2008 the album of the Acappella Swingers "Let's On Doo-Wop ", followed the year after by Christmas" Merry Christmas ". Then in 2014 came "the Eternal Dreamer" of the Hang player Marco Selvaggio, and this year has produced "There is always a reason" of Samuela Schilirò. "I have now dropped and I opened my label, Tillie Records, and I intend to produce everything that gives me emotions-Announces Simona Virlinzi-. Roberta likes me for her talent, for how she plays the guitar, how she sings, how she writes the songs, I find it unique in its genre. Now the goal is to make it sound and make it known, even abroad, in America above all». In the young stable Tillie also Giovanni mazzarà in Arte Jo M, 29enne Catania singer-songwriter waiting to know if he will be admitted to the selections of Sanremo Giovani. Virlinzi: "The disc is ready, it was produced by Roberto Vernetti, if he passes the selections will be released after Sanremo, otherwise will be released in December." the name of the label is a tribute to the Boss as it comes from a character from a mural of Ashbury Park that became a symbol of the town where Bruce Springsteen grew musically. And Tillie's sneer also stands in the handmade electric guitar that Simona bought from a craftsman from Ashbury Park.
"Paper Leaves" comes 20 years after "two words", the debut of Carmen Consoli at the hands of Francesco Virlinzi. Twenty years later, thanks to his sister Simona, Catania expresses a new girl with the guitar as the Cantantessa was baptized at her beginnings. Roberta: "This is something that if you think about it excitts you a little, for the story that they lived together. I feel very close, even if not musically, to what Carmen experienced, she also came from the premises as I did. Like you are a girl with a guitar. '
"Paper Leaves", the leaves sing and play at the Waterbirds studios where the disc was born. The disc of the almost 23-year-old Finocchiaro, accomplishes them on October 10, suffers from the writing of the newcomer: simple texts and great musical construction above. The songs are played with Christian Cosentino on bass and Roberto Coco on drums, in practice the New generation Class, the band with which Roberta has played for almost six years. Roberta: «A union between nature and music. Music for me comes from nature. The leaves and paper are the songs written. I prefer to be direct, as Americans do. I do not like the texts too complicated, I want the music to come better and more emotions».
Daughter and granddaughter of art, Gino Finocchiaro, Roberta's grandfather, is the well-known accordionist and pianist, already in the first formations of the Beans. The Father Salvo plays for years the piano with Mario Biondi when he sings in Sicily, also the uncles Giuseppe and Diego are musicians. ' It was natural for me to make music, I always knew it. I must say that it is all my mother's fault that one evening she asked me, I could have nine years: but you would not like to write songs, make music, play guitar? There I opened a world, I realized that that was the thing I had to do forever.
The album was produced by Alberto Bianco, recorded in the Waterbirds studios and mixed by Riccardo Parravicini, mastered by Giovanni Versari. "I left a lot out of this record, I have lots of songs that we will propose in the future." Single track opener is "white" which also opens the disc. "It's the most pop song of the 10. Today everything is in our hands we decide what to do with our life, make it positive if we want. Let's start with a blank sheet. ' Compared to the New Generation Class, where Roberta sang only in English, now the main language is Italian. English that only resists in the song "Invisible", where the pin is the phrase "I'm invisible but I don't feel lonely, my best skill is spending time with myself". "This is a piece that comes from the repertoire of the New Generation Class that we had written to participate in the soundtrack of the film" The Invisible Boy "by Gabriele salvatores." For the film released two years ago, Salvatores had called a competition inviting young musicians without a label to compose a song for the soundtrack, which would be added to the songs of Ezio Bosso and Federico de ' robertis. "Invisible" was not chosen. "The film talks about adolescent problems, a boy who feels invisible in the crowd, an inner invisibility. A song that I could represent a few years ago, when I attended middle school and I felt an invisible girl, because of bullying against me. The music saved me and made me emerge. '
All in a natural way, when Roberta takes the guitar, the melodies, the songs, are born flowing. On stage he pulls out all his grit but in everyday life is a simple girl: «Sincere I think – adds-. I'm very careful also to my look, I do not leave the house if I do not feel good. " the perfect look of the new country girl, glasses, hat and brick red lipstick. And by Brava country Girl, nature is also an environment that Roberta loves a lot: "I love the mountain, Etna inspires me a lot." And in the wild nature of Iceland will be born in the next few weeks the video, filmed by Stefano Tiozzo, of "23", song not included in the album: "It will be my next single, I will give the launch to work on the new album. In This song there are my emotions after the band has melted but we were cultivated different dreams». And what dreams does a girl of almost 23 years grow? "I'd love to travel by playing. I'm not looking for success right away. Pe me success is having an audience that follows me, I would not even want to show me on television in a talent». Not even with Manuel Agnelli as a judge? "The only judges he recognizes are John Mayer and Bruce Springsteen," replies Simona Virlinzi who introduced him to the Boss at the recent concert in Zurich on August 1. "Good Luck for your music" has ruled the Boss for Roberta who still does not believe in herself for the meeting made.
In the world of Roberta there is no hip hop of his peers but another world "black" more vintage, that of blues. "The Blues comes from the soul, and all I do is born from within, as I am, from the feelings I feel when I play. For this I love the Blues, the folk, the country, the music of the years 70, songwriters like Joni Mitchell. My singing teacher, the jazz musician Rosalba Bentivoglio, told me that I remembered a young Joni Mitchell. ' In "Love (The Butt)" almost discreetly, with awe, with embarrassment, Roberta pronounces the Anglo-American word for antonomasia, distant light years from the verbal violence of rock harder. "It's the downside of love, where love is the conviction of being well in that period."
on October 2nd, at the Teatro Ambasciatori in Catania, the show case of Roberta Finocchiaro, at the free entrance. With the Finocchiaro on stage Roberto Fiore on bass and Roberto Coco on drums. Guests Grandpa Gino Finocchiaro on the accordion (on disc he plays in "rips" and "out of focus", the saxophonist Antonio Alma (on disc plays in the song "Blues") and the violinist Vincenzo Di Silvestro (guest on disc in "White"). "In addition to" paper Flowers "I will propose some covers of Norah Jones, John Mayer and Johnny Cash. Artists who opened a world to me. John Mayer is "my teacher" of guitar, Johnny Cash...». ... is Johnny Cash, the Black Knight knows no time limits. After the show case, Roberta will open the live of Alberto Bianco, October 6 in Bologna and October 8 at Milan.
06/10/2016 – 10:49 by Gianni Nicola Caracoglia (Click here to see the original article)