Consisting of six members, namely: Giuliano Sangiorgi (voice, piano and guitar), Emanuele Spedicato (guitar), Ermanno Carla’ (base), Danilo Tasco (drums), Andrea Mariano (piano, synthesizers, programming and editing) and Andrea de Rocco (sampler), the group from Lecce formed in 1999. They took their first musical steps performing in Italy’s alternative music scene. Their name was inspired by the wine produced in the Salento region Negroamaro, which is dark, full bodied and smooth and these qualities are reflected in their music. Their debut album was released in 2003 self-titled Negramaro and was the beginning of their rise to fame. However, their third album “Mentre tutto scorre” affirmed their place as one of the best rock bands in Italian history. The album attracted many awards one of which was the Critics Award for Radio & TV at the 55th Festival of Sanremo and went six times Platinum – their most successful album to date.

Italian songs are often fraught with emotions – whether it be love, pain or sadness. Italians are a passionate people and this shines through in their artistic pursuits. This passion exudes from Sangiorgi’s delivery of the songs, none more than the group’s rendition of Domenico Modugno’s “Meraviglioso”. A song about a desperate man who has lost the will to live and, as he is walking over a bridge, thinks of throwing himself into the river until an angel appears and makes him change his mind (Look around and see the beautiful things that have been bestowed on you. You say you have nothing but what about the sea, the sun, love? Do they seem nothing to you?)

Spedicato’s guitar solo delves into the depths of true emotion capturing the essence of Modugno’s lyrics. The video clip is dark and moody totally in black and white and the camera work captures the inner turmoil of the protagonist.

“La Rivoluzione sta arrivando” (The Revolution is Coming) is the group’s most recent album and does not disappoint. The album’s title song is also one of the greatest songs in Negramaro’s history. An ode to the tumultuous world we live in today and the need for a radical change of the way people live and think of life.

The album has spawned a national tour, which has been an unprecedented success. Before the tour had reached its end, the group was already planning their next Album. Sangiorgi said in a recent interview with Radio 105 Network (www.105.net) that the group’s “…flow of energy is continuous, even when we go on holiday we are never really on holiday. The hard part is to make others understand this.” Any creative pursuit, but especially music, takes hold of your mind and soul and Sangiorgi is a fine example of this. He said that the next album will “make your mind explode but above all your heart and blood…”. Negramaro’s music speak to the very core of our mind and soul.