8/10

Following multiple singles, three sold-out tours, and a nomination for the Europe Talent Award, Berlin-based FIL BO RIVA (Filippo Bonamici) has returned with a record that could very well be used as a masterclass in indie-pop. Written over the last two years, the debut album 'Beautiful Sadness' is a self-assured statement of artistic prowess, which is destined to blow up. Driven by crashing percussion, crunchy blues-infused guitars, and gritty vocals, this new body of work explores both the euphoria and the tribulations of romance to an invigorating instrumental.

A restrained sense of melancholy flavours the entire record, not dissimilar to one of the album’s key influences – Coldplay’s moody debut. Bonamici explains that he wanted to create “songs that can stand the test of time, in the same way that Coldplay’s ‘Parachutes’ has. I just wrote about things I was going through”. This perspective has cultivated lyrical content that is sure to resonate with listeners as he balances the colloquialism of lovers’ everyday dialogue with the plaintive and poetic.

Produced with Felix A Remm and Robert Stephenson, the sonic landscape of 'Beautiful Sadness' blends crisp modernity with Troubadour song-writing sensibility to create a riot-worthy collection of thirteen tracks. With unmissable moments ranging from the infectious attitude of ‘Radio Fire’ to sensuous slow jam ‘L’impossibile’ sung in his native Italian, FIL BO RIVA has all the punch and swagger necessary to fill stadiums.