SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: VARIOUS ARTISTS – STANZE FREDDE VOL. 3

VARIOUS ARTISTS
STANZE FREDDE VOL. 3
STANZE FREDDE RECORDS

Stanze Fredde is an independent label based in Turin, Italy, and this particular album, Stanze Fredde Vol. 3, is a sampler featuring some of the artists who release music on the label. It is the third in a series of sampler compilations. For the most part, the music is retro-sounding, electric-based synth-pop. This is not criticism, as most of these artists/bands still create their own distinct sound within that genre. The variety of sounds throughout the 20-track album kept me glued to the speakers, curious about what I would hear next. I was not disappointed.

Some of the bands borrow a little from their influences (Climas Interiores does tap into The Cure and goth electronica, and they do it well,) while other bands sound like extensions of the late 1970s and early 1980s, for example Andrei Rubiev, who takes their name from the 1966 film, with the song “Videodrome.” They do tap into that post-punk electronic sound, but they make a fascinating noise, and the song’s relentlessness makes it something unique and original. The same can be said for Douce Angoisse’s song “9h11,” which makes great use of sound and layering.

AvonRim does embrace the very early Human League sound with “Too Much,” a brilliant cover of “I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night,” but then they very quickly make it their very own song. And that is one of the many joys of this compilation: hearing bands adapt and incorporate a sound and style, not only making it their own but also keeping it current.

I remember buying samplers from many labels in the 1980s – Some Bizarre, Virgin, Factory, Rough Trade, and many more. They always served me well, as I discovered many bands I would not have heard otherwise. That same feeling returned when I listened to Stanze Fredde Vol. 3. It proved to be an excellent opportunity to hear and enjoy music I might not otherwise hear, and for that I am grateful. However, the music is excellent and well worth the time investment. Stanze Fredde Vol. 3 is an album one can enjoy multiple times, as new sounds emerge. In this case, the sounds tend to have a 1980s synth-pop feel, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

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