Label: Epic
Released: 20th January 2023
Since winning Eurovision in 2021, Italian rockers Måneskin have released a string of urgent, stadium-ready bangers. Along the way, they’ve been co-signed by legends of the scene like The Rolling Stones and Iggy Pop as well as becoming the most exciting thing in rock’n’roll.
New album ‘Rush!’ is actually Måneskin’s third album (following on from 2018’s ‘Il ballo della vita’ and 2021’s ‘Teatro d’ira: Volume 1’) but so much has changed for the group over the past couple of years, it may as well be their debut.
Swaggering opener ‘Own My Mind’ sticks carefully to Måneskin’s established successes as the pulsating rock track flirts with chaos while ‘Gossip’ sees Rage Against The Machine’s Tom Morello add squealing guitar solos to another party-starting cut that takes aim at the celebrity rumour mill. Baiting the same tabloid whispers, the hammering ‘Feel’ talks about “cocaine on the table” with a smirk.
Despite their rapid growth from local legends to globally adored rock icons, Måneskin have constantly looked like they’re having the absolute time of their lives. It’s no surprise then that ‘Rush!’ features plenty of songs designed to inspire giddy joy.
‘Bla Bla Bla’ is an ode to the sort of self-destruction that comes from the wildest of nights, while there’s a flamboyant decadence to ‘Gasoline’ that’s pure Panic! At The Disco. Elsewhere the snotty ‘Kool Kids’ is unfiltered rebellion, with vocalist Damiano David doing his best impression of Idles’ Joe Talbot. “We’re not punk, we’re not pop, we’re just music freaks,” he spits before laughing at the idea that rock and roll is dead.
The band aren’t afraid to shake things up either. The brilliant ‘Baby Said’ is perhaps the poppiest Måneskin have gone since their X Factor days while a trio of Italian-language tracks (‘LA Fine’, ‘Mark Chapman’ and ‘Il Dono Della Vita aka The Gift Of Life’) cover heartache, euphoria and escapism with the same theatrical flair that made their second album such a success.
Slowing things down, The Pixies-inspired ‘Time Zone’ sees Damiano wanting to trade world tours for one more night with the person he loves, while For You is a sickening sweet, slowburning ode. And you don’t need us to tell you how wonderful recent singles ‘MammaMia’, ‘Supermodel’ and ‘The Loneliest’ are, with that trio of hits rounding out ‘Rush!’.
Despite the pressures attached to ‘Rush!’, it’s everything we’ve come to expect from Måneskin. Brimming with personality and not giving a shit about what’s expected of them, the 17-track album is a confident collection of guitar-driven bangers that are going to sound brilliant in arenas around the world. Måneskin don’t waste any time trying to claim the throne on ‘Rush!’ – they already know it’s theirs.
