1. Buone motivazioni
2. La vita dei gaggi
3. Quei bravi ragazzi, pt. 2
4. Nel Jet Set del Rap
5. Stando alle regole
6. Già conti i secondi
7. Mai più
8. WHOO! WHOO!
9. Chissà ora con chi sei
10. Chi meglio di te
11. Amor de mi vida
12. (Come mai) Proprio a noi
13. Tu cosa fai?
14. Da dove scrivo
15. Ma sei b*st*rd*
16. Non stop
17. I soliti MC's
18 Sotto lo stesso effetto
Review
by Bessie B
This is Sottotono's 3rd album. The group has been around since 1994 when they first released a single from the Italian rap compilation Nati per Rappare (Flying Records).
Although a majority of the canzoni on Sotto lo stesso effetto are in a new Miami drum & bass mode, there are songs that stick to the smooth sounds of R&B/West Coast rap alla Dr. De, Bones- Thugs-N-Harmony, and Ice Cube that have come to be associated with Sottotono.
Fish and Tormento are a perfect combination, with singing and rapping skills that best resemble American counterparts singers/rappers Warren G and Giunuwine. Their soft rueful ballads and lush production are what have kept Sottotono on Italy's Billboard Top Ten charts for the past 3 years.
The first track, "Buone Motivazioni," is one of the new drum & bass sound that is actually passable; I like the way they count out 15 reasons (or "motivations") why they are "the bomb." But the next 5 tracks sound similar and tired. Track 3, "Quei bravi ragazzi, pt. 2" (with contribution by Italian rappers Lyricalz and Left Side was a great disappointment seeing how "Pt. 1" on the previous album Sotto Effetto Stono was very good. Anything after track 12 to me is just redundant. I really don't like the experimentation with the new sound — it's like Ice Cube performing 2 Live Crew's music.
Tracks 7 thru 12 are the essence of the CD. "Amor de mi vida" (also released on 12" remix) and "Mai più" are follow-ups to 1996's love hit "Solo lei ha quel che voglio." "Mai più" is off the hook, with a collaboration with hot new R&B songstress Shola Ama from the U.K. Shola sings melodic riffs of "Baby, baby, you know how I feel/this feeling inside me/ you know that it's real" as Tormento raps why he is her one and only. This is a perfect song for non-Italian speakers & would be the most likely song to cross over into the English language market. It's similar to Sottotono's remix of Mary J. Blige's "Love is all we need."
Duets with Italian R&B female singers & rappers include "Chi meglio di te" with Irene Lamedica, "Chissà ora con chi sei" with Jasmine, and "Ma sei b*st*rd*" with Sab Sista.
My advice to Sottotono — stick with what you know . . . nice & smooth!
http://www.italianrap.com/artists/artists_bios/sotto_tono/sotto_stesso.html