interview
new voices from florence:
francesco garito
& marco cantini
Radici Music is an independent Tuscany la-
bel, born in 2001, promoting artists who love
to make music mixing the roots of Italian
music with different styles. A couple of mu-
sician in the roster of the label are France-
sco Garito and Marco Cantini. Both live in
Florence (also if Garito hails from Calabria)
and both are now publishing their new songs.
Garito has released L’Attesa, his new album.
Six years have passed since “Fotografie”:
why so long between your debut and “L’At-
tesa”?
As can be seen from the title of the album I
explain this choice?
Perhaps the beginning spring was curiosity,
I knew for sure what I did not want, that is,
a record that sounded “industrial” but I did
not know how to do it and Stiv was the way to
record in an analog studio (“L’amor mio non
muore” of Roberto Villa in Forlì) who does
not give you any parachutes: you bring back
into the studio what you’ve been trying at
home for months and everything is delibera-
tely left as it comes out of the instruments and
the voice, even the small imperfections that in
my opinion return heat, humanity of poetry.
In short, an artistic choice.
How did “Farenheit 451” come about and
why did you choose it as a single?
The inspiration came from Bradbury’s book,
some year ago, it was a hot spring, I was in
Rome for working and that day the Capi-
tal hosted a meeting of Heads of State, the
city was armored, closed streets, helicopters
flying over it , I’ve been through an infinity of
walking quarters and this situation made me
feel like a character in the book, I stopped in
a bar to drink something fresh and at a coffee
table I wrote the lyrics, the music came some
time afterwards. The choice as a single was
dictated by the atmosphere that the song re-
turns, I think it is a good idea for the lp’s in-
tention.
What prompted you to cover De Gregori’s
“Il Panorama di Betlemme”?
De Gregori has always been my reference
since the tender age, but I have always tried
to “avoid it” as if I did not want to show his
influence on my music. In this case, the song,
evocative and agonizing, has been completely
reinterpreted and slowed down compared to
the original and I was comforting and hug-
ging at a particularly painful moment.
Can you talk about your “Street Artist”
experience with “Open Art”?
In 2003 I made a trip to Scotland, in Edinbur-
gh I found myself in the middle of the “Frin-
ge Festival”, the biggest street art festival in
Europe, and I was blown away. As soon as I
arrived in Florence in 2004 I began to per-
form on the street as an abusive, then thanks
to some colleagues I was able to take the re-
gular permit and since 2009 I am recognized
by the City of Florence. It is a wonder-
ful experience of association because
I was the founder of “Open Art”, whi-
ch collects a large slice of artists on
the territory of Florence and then the
street offers an inimitable stage, who
listens to you in the street because re-
ally wants it without filters and in my
case I think my respect for the city is
appreciated and felt. In the end who is
in Santa Croce Square is not for me but
to admire the beauty of a place, and I
can give something more to that place.
Then there are so many encounters,
children who are enchanted to listen
expected the inspiration, to have something
to say and to say it with a sound that repre-
sented the soul of the songs. Thanks God I
do not write as if I should stamp the card and
I let the songs arrive to me at their time, wi-
thout forcing anything. When the tunes I had
in my hands seemed good, the artistic mee-
ting with Stiv Cantarelli came to an end and
six years had passed since the first record, if I
did not meet Stiv perhaps the disc would not
have been conceived.
There has been much emphasis on whether
you recorded the disc in analogic: can you
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