That Italian Band, Måneskin

Hot, steamy, raw, authentic and bold. These words describe the Italian band Måneskin to a T.

Måneskin started as buskers playing in the streets of Italy in 2015, and within a few years, became Italian artists that are known and popular worldwide, all in their 20s. 

Their top hit song Beggin’ introduced many fans, including me, to their works, with more than 1.4 billion streams on Spotify, and appears regularly on different radios.

I remember exactly the moment I first heard their song. I was taking an Uber to my mother’s place after a swim. It was the start of the fall season and leaves were starting to become yellow. The sky was high and bright; chill air breezed through the car window, and Damiano’s rich and slightly hoarse voice singing “Beggin’” on the radio pulled my consciousness to reality. After quickly shazaming the music, I clicked on their profile and became very curious because of their bold, punk fashion style. I wondered what their other works would be like. Scrolling through my phone, I picked a few of their songs to listen to other than “Beggin’”, and quickly fell in love. 

I’ve always just liked the classic, high energy, rhythmic, rock and roll songs. They took a similar approach in a lot of their fast-paced rock songs, but differs in that their rhythms and notes are way more pronounced and intense, mixed in with some distortion in sounds. Damiano, their vocalist, has an especially performative and unique voice. His vocal range is super wide, and he can sing songs with very fast tempos. Besides that, his voice is extremely deep and supported, instead of a shallow and almost whining voice that some rock song singers have, no matter if the note is high or low. With a little bit of coarseness, his vocals meshes well with the notes and lyrics.

I found myself loving their Italian songs more than their English songs. Not knowing the lyrics allows me to focus more on the sounds of fast Italian singing. I just simply love the pronunciations of Italian words. Their English song, on the other hand, shines with some god level lyrics. Coupled with a catchy tune and exciting beats, their songs have some of the best verses. I especially like these quotes from them:

“I know a place downtown, babe, if you wanna go

I'm gonna show you how this Italian amor

Is gonna love you harder than ever before

You will like it

We're gonna get sky-high and create a new world

Where somebody might die, but nobody gets hurt

And if it sounds good for you, baby, just say the word

You will like it (Ah)

It's 5 AM

We feel so good, it's almost frightening

…

Meet me there where it never closes

Meet me there where it's never hopeless

All is fair in love, oh-oh-oh

Honey, are you coming? ”

– HONEY (ARE U COMING?), Måneskin

And although there are many, many other examples, their second most listened song has some of the most iconic, fun lyrics:

“I wanna be your slave, I wanna be your master

I wanna make your heartbeat run like rollercoasters

I wanna be a good boy, I wanna be a gangster

'Cause you could be the beauty and I could be the monster

I love you since this morning, not just for aesthetic

I wanna touch your body, so fucking electric

I know you're scared of me, you say that I'm too eccentric

I'm crying all my tears and that's fucking pathetic

I wanna make you hungry, then I wanna feed ya

I wanna paint your face like you're my Mona Lisa

I wanna be a champion, I wanna be a loser

I'll even be a clown 'cause I just wanna amuse ya

I wanna be your sex toy, I wanna be your teacher

I wanna be your sin, I wanna be your preacher

I wanna make you love me, then I wanna leave ya

'Cause, baby, I'm your David and you're my Goliath”

– I Wanna Be Your Slave, Måneskin

In many songs, especially in their newest album, they portray different kinds of human relationships. “TIMEZONE” describes a long-distance relationship where the singer’s work keeps him from his lover. When he abandoned his fame and work, and went back home, to see his girlfriend and spend the night, he found out that she’s already asleep. Now that he has nowhere to go, he questions and laments: “Where I’m supposed to be in? Wish I could’ve stayed. ” When Damiano wrote this song, he said that it represents their experience in the last year, being kept from loved ones at home, because of their work.

In the song “READ YOUR DIARY”, they depicted a fictional toxic relationship through the view of a person who is emotionally addicted to another person. In their words, “the person here is represented as a suffering individual who could be really harmless, but in the end becomes really toxic as we follow their manic behavior.”

They also explore one’s relationship with oneself. In their song “DON’T WANNA SLEEP”, they desperately sang: “Dance, dance, dance, dance; dance until I die. Medicate myself ‘til my head is in the sky. Ahh ahh when I close my eyes, I get too lonely. Don’t wanna sleep at all.” It sings about the need we all have to escape from reality, and “sounds really cheerful but is actually about loneliness”. According to them, sleep represents a peaceful state with yourself, and in the song it feels like it’s almost impossible to achieve. 

In their other songs, they discuss various other issues. The hard rock song filled with heavy beats, “GASOLINE”, is written to “be an anti-war anthem”. Another song, “SUPERMODEL”, is written after they visited LA, and is intrigued by how people cared about their looks and fame. Some of their songs touch intimate topics, like the dependence on each other in a healthy relationship, and their creative and free-spirited music muse, which they symbolize in their songs as a girl named “Marlena”. 

Their work is driven by various emotional and thoughtful meanings, while all at the same time adopts beautiful, catchy, and contemporary riffs, and energetic rhythms and tempos. 

Finally, what makes all of their songs sound so full and alive is their passionate instrumentals. The bassist, Victoria, always accompanies the drummer, Ethan, and the guitarist, Thomas very well and is constantly balancing all of the other sounds in the background with its deep, resonating bass sounds. Ethan, the drummer, provides the energy and speed of the music, while Thomas shows off his rizzing guitar notes. Their sometimes distorted orchestration as a whole made up the whole auditory experience that is so rich and raw that it feels to me is unparalleled.

Last week, I went to their concert for the first time. I forgot to bring an ear plug, and we rushed there right after we got off the train. They certainly have a type of crowd, and unsurprisingly I loved their fashion styles. 

It’s my first time going to a big concert, and I was excited to see them in person. After entering the arena and waiting for an hour, the show finally started. A huge veil dropping from the ceiling separated us and them, and the lights started flickering, casting their shadow on the red veil. After a minute of hyping up the atmosphere, they came in hot and started with one of their fast tempo songs. 

The first half of the concert was quite hype. They performed a series of their iconic songs, including “Beggin’”, “HONEY(ARE U COMING?)”, and one of their newest songs – “GOSSIP”. Everyone is very excited. Then the light dimed, and a single beam of blue light showered on Damiano. They performed a few of their more emotional and beautiful songs, starting with “CORALINE”. The song is in Italian, and it sounded gorgeous. They also didn’t forget to move to a smaller stage that’s closer to the sitting audience, performing the song “TIMEZONE”. 

After some emotional moments, the boys and gals are back to partying with the high energy songs. They started playing “I Wanna Be Your Slave”, and the crowd blossomed into extreme excitements. Everyone is jumping and waving along with the saucy lyrics. They then followed up with dance songs “KOOL KIDS” and the sassy song “BLA BLA BLA”.

Finally, the show is going to an end. Naturally, the crowd asked for encores. At last, Thomas appeared and soloed a beautiful, solid 5 minutes, a prelude for the song “THE LONELIEST”. Damiano and the others came out to finish the song, only to “start the end” with another round of “I Wanna Be Your Slave”. Everyone is exhausted but so satisfied after the show truly ended.

If I have the financial resources, I would follow them around the globe. That Italian band, Måneskin: you’re one of my few favorite artists. Can’t wait to listen to your new vinyl!