In The Dream Book, as well as in the collective imaginary, the symbol of the horse represents true nobility of soul, intelligence and elegance, but the horse is also notoriously wild and hard to tame. All these features fit perfectly with the songs by Teo Russo, the new Italian (super) dream psych-pop band formed by Georgia Costanzo (La Camera Migliore), Francesco Fanciullacci (La Camera Migliore, Granprogetto, Farewell to Hearth and Home, Mitici Gorgi) and Federica Camiciola (Mitici Gorgi), at their self-titled debut album out on vinyl and on all digital platforms today September 23th, 2022 via Millessei Dischi, with Audioglobe’s distribution.
Costanzo and Fanciullacci have met again in 2017, a decade after their common experience in the alt pop-rock band La Camera Migliore, produced by Carmen Consoli, while Fanciullacci and Camiciola shared the stage for a few years in the electro-punk band Mitici Gorgi. All three, together, have decided to give life to Teo Russo. The curious name Teo Russo is borrowed from that of a misunderstood and extravagant Florentine painter, who loved to paint equine figures. The cover artwork, created by Lorenzo Coppini | OdioDesign, is not by chance inspired by him.
The nine songs in Teo Russo‘s tracklist enchant and reveal details listen after listen. Costanzo sang all the tracks with her magnetic voice, Fanciullacci wrote almost all the lyrics – driven by a sudden tragic loss – and played guitars, bass and synths, Camiciola took care of the programming electronic drums, additional synths and pre-mixes. Fantasy and delicacy, electro-acoustic timbres, oblique melodies and lo-fi nuances, the main influence provided by Sparklehorses (another horse as a spirit-guide…): all these elements blend together in a personal recipe. The record was entirely recorded at home and later mixed by Leo Magnolfi at the EL-SOP Recording Studio in Florence.
The songs by Teo Russo are about dreams and how to face reality thanks to them, with the aim of permuting visions with emotions. Between the words there are recurring images of astronauts, snow and obviously horses, as well as a little tribute to Elliott Smith. “Close your eyes and imagine living multiple lives at the same time, traveling multiple roads, selecting multiple choices“, the band suggests. The first single Tienilo come un segreto is dedicated to an awakening to be interpreted as a rebirth and is supported by a video with the scenography of a show by Davide Venturini, director of the theatrical company TPO. The smooth second single Calle is about abandonment and the search for how to deal with it: instead of forgetting it, we can transform it into a real “gift”. The new single Hai mai visto i fantasmi? reveals a distorted electro-rock progression, with a playful animation video made by Lorenzo Clemente. Teo Russo is the best secret to discover this autumn.
