Subsonica

Subsonica were formed in Turin in 1996 by underground producer and Africa Unite guitarist Max Casacci and singer Samuel Romano, who soon also enroll keyboardist and long time friend Boosta, together with Ninja and Pierfunk to complete (on drums and bass respectively) a straight forward and top notch rhythm section, for what is immediately nicknamed "an unidentified musical object". The eponymous debut album comes in '97, shortly followed by a stunning performance, opening for U2, on the MTV Day main stage. The album includes the collaboration with iconic pop singer Antonella Ruggiero: the cover version of her "Per Un'Ora D'Amore" becomes a radio hit, and paves the way for the album, which sells over 200k copies. The follow up album comes in 1999: for "Microchip Emozionale" (winner of the Italian Music Award), Vicio becomes the band's new bass player. The buzz around Subsonica is huge, but still most "official media" seem not to care about the band. Until they decide, surprisingly, to compete at the following year's Sanremo Festival with an explicit and uncompromising track, "Tutti i miei sbagli", in which they mix house-beats with furious electric guitars. Subsonica are now definitely on the map both for the critics and the more mainstream audience. Thus they can go back to touring, just in time to gain the award for "Best Italian Act" at the MTV EMA's.

Negrita

Negrita start their musical career in 1992 as Pau, Mac and Drigo hang around the same places and schools in the provincial town of Arezzo (Tuscany) with a wild love for rock and blues. Well before being signed, they show the Italian audience their great impact and energy, building their profile as a unique live rock band. Their debut album released in 1994 Negrita (Polygram/Mercury) immediately reveals the essence of the band: irresistible guitar riffs, "stainless" rhythm section, powerful bass grooves and incisive vocal lines delivering relevant messages to the audience.

Since then each album rises the media and audience attention by a constant growth and experimentation of new musical and contents lands, both thanks to their eagerness for cross-over and their journeys. They soon tour beyond the national borders in Switzerland, France - "Printemps De Bourges Festival", Belgium, Turkey -"European Rock Festival", more recently in Argentina (last tour in march 2009), Uruguay, Chile, Brazil, Spain supporting the band Bersuit Vergarabat (releasing their album "Helldorado" in Argentina in April 2009).

Though keeping their unmistakable style, they achieve to express themselves in many genres: from the authentic blues vein of "XXX" (recorded in the U.S. in 1997), to the hard rhythms and electronic sounds of "Reset" (1999, platinum award in Italy from which the single "Hollywood" was nominated in the European MTV Music Awards, the first nomination of three ), going through the new rock/funk/blues vibrations of "Radio Zombie" (with a great tour following it) and the multi-cultural sounds & lyrics of "L'uomo Sogna Di Volare" (2005).