883 (or Otto Otto Tre in Italian) was an Italian band of the '90s, formed by singer Max Pezzali and co-songwriter and composer Mauro Repetto. They're known for a stylish mix of rock, pop, hip-hop and disco.
Formed in 1989, Max and Mauro had met during high school in Pavia, and they started writing music after Pezzali flunked out of his class. They started under the name "I Pop"; a pun of the word "Hip Hop". However, this changed to "883" as both Max and Mauro were fans of motorcycles, particularly the Harley Davidson Sportster 883.
Their first album and its big single, "Hanno Ucciso L'Uomo Ragno" ("They Killed the Spider-Man". Yes, really.), was released in 1992. According to Pezzali, its central song was about the murder of childhood innocence by an adult world, with Spider-Man being the symbol of childhood, while its chorus points fingers at adult institutions like the Mafia, the Advertising Business and the Coffee Industry.
The song was a surprise smash hit, and its album immediately hit Number 1 on the Italian charts. The band would go on to win several awards for 1992's best musical band and best album, from the then-active Telegatto awards and World Music Awards.
Following this was their legendary 1993 album "Nord Sud Ovest Est" ("North South West East"), which surpassed their first album with 1,400,000 copies sold; making it Italy’s biggest selling album of the year. The album is considered by many to be 883's magnum opus, with Pezzali and Repetto having fleshed out their lyrical and musical chops. This is evident in the title track "Nord Sud Ovest Est", which uses a catchy Latin American-style beat with mariachi horns, and tells the tale of a man chasing his lost love while on a spiritual quest through Mexico.
In 1995, Repetto left the band to pursue an unsuccessful career in film. Afterwards, he was replaced by several other artists, including future Italian music duo Paola and Chiara. 883 continued touring and releasing albums like "La donna il sogno & il grande incubo" ("The woman, the dream and the great nightmare") and "La Dura Legge del Goal" ("The Hard Law of the Goal"), until they disbanded in 2003.
Though they're utterly unknown outside of Italy, 883 has become synonymous with 90's Italian nostalgia, with the band's heyday being the teen/tween years of Italy's millenials. Much of their songs relate to everyday lives of provincial Italians, especially young people in the outskirts of northern Italy. From messing up party plans with best friends ("Rotta x Casa di Dio") and finding pleasure in miserable hometowns ("Weekend", "Tieni Il Tempo" and "Con Un Deca"), to glorious and nightmarish one night stands ("Sei Un Mito" and "Il Grande Incubo"), dwelling on lost love ("Nessun Rimpianto"), and dealing with the disappointments of growing up ("Come Deve Andare" and "Gli Anni"). Oh, and don't forget having boyhood crushes on female dancers in a nightclub ("La Regina Del’ Celebrità").
Adding to the nostalgic tone of their music, one of 883's most iconic songs is "Gli Anni" ("The Years"); a ballad about a world-weary adult looking back at his younger years. Though the song was inspired by Pezzali's life in the 1980s (complete with references to Happy Days), it has become a Tear Jerker anthem for countless Italian 90's kids, many who can still belt out the song by heart.
Max Pezzali is still active today, and has his own solo career with songs like "Eccoti" ("Here You Are") and "L'Universo Tranne Noi" ("The Universe Except Us"). He's also known for the Italian version of "I'm Still Here" from Disney's Treasure Planet, and has been a guest judge for Italy’s version of The Voice. Recently, he and Repetto have reunited for several live performances, and they're still in good terms.
883 has influenced many modern Italian artists, including the band Pinguini Tattici Nucleari. Even today, there’s as many 883 tribute bands in Italy as there are UK tribute bands for Oasis.
A snippet of 883's song "Un Giorno Cosi" ("A Day Like That") appears in the film Letters to Juliet, during a scene where the main character's texting her boyfriend on a car ride. If you listen closely, you can hear the song awkwardly fading out the swear word "stronzi" in the chorus (stronzi meaning "assholes"). To date, this is 883's only appearance in any non-Italian film or TV show.
Studio Albums
- Hanno Ucciso L’Uomo Ragno (1992)
- Nord Sud Ovest Est (1993)
- La Donna il sogno & il grande incubo (1995)
- La Dura Legge Del Gol! (1997)
- Grazie Mille (1999)
- 1 in + (2001)
883's music and videos feature the following tropes:
- The '90s: It's hard to find any Italian who spent their childhood, or teenage years, or early adulthood in the 90's without listening to 883's songs. Even in the lyrics of their songs, there are many references to the 90's lifestyle, which sound very nostalgic nowadays.
- Addiction Song: "Cumuli" is the story of an old friend who struggles with drug addiction, and it's based on a friend of Max and Mauro in real life. It's probably their song with darkest lyrics.
- Animesque: The video for "La Regina Del Celebrità", and maybe "Nient'Altro Che Noi" ("Nothing Else But Us").
- Break Up Song: "Nessun Rimpianto" is one of the "Love Hurts but I don't want you back" version of this trope. The title means "No Regret".
- Creator's Culture Carryover: The music video of "Rotta x Casa di Dio" is clearly set in the US and shows the adventures of four American guys. But the lyrics of the song mention them eating Camogli sandwiches, which are only eaten in Italian autogrills (roadside restaurants).
- The Diss Track: Some of their early songs ("Non Me la Menare", "6 1 Sfigato", "Te La Tiri", "Il Pappagallo", "Ma Perché") are about the singer's extreme dislike for a certan kind of person, who is mostly a representation of the fake and hypocritical people who believe they are superior to the others.
- Driving Song: There are several songs about driving and road trips, such as "Con un Deca", "Nord Sud Ovest Est", "Rotta x Casa di Dio", "Come Deve Andare", "Quello che Capita", "Viaggio al Centro del Mondo", and others. Many of them are just used metaphorically to talk about life.
- The Everyman: Their songs are popular partly because they have simple and relatable lyrics, while narrating life experiences of an average person. This is true for both their melancholic songs and the "at least we have fun" songs.
- Exactly What It Says on the Tin: "Una Canzone D'Amore" (which literally means "A Love Song") is... a love song. The lyrics are about the singer trying to find the words to express his feelings and write a romantic song to the person he loves.
- False Friend:
- "La Dure Legge del Gol" is about disappointing friendships from the past, specifically fake friends who end up using you and disappearing from your life. In the song, there's also the theme of True Companions, who are the few friends you can still count on.
- The second part of "Non Ci Spezziamo" is about false friends being worse than enemies.
- Giallo: The video and themes of "Il Grande Incubo" are partly inspired by the Italian giallo horror genre, as well as classic horror comics.
- Gosh Dang It to Heck!: Averted with "Rotta x Casa Di Dio" and some other 883 songs, which sprinkles various swear words through their verses.
- Gratuitous Spanish: The song "Nord Sud Ovest Est" includes some Spanish words like "cantinero", "gringo", "caballero", and "Adios, mi amor" because of the Mexican setting of the song and the music video.
- Growing Up Sucks: "Gli Anni" is about a weary man looking back on his happier youth. "Hanno Ucciso L'Uomo Ragno" is about the adult world killing all that was once innocent and child-like, while "Come Deve Andare" is about someone struggling with adulthood, while everyone else seems to have 'made it' (or as Pezzali puts it, like a broken-down Peugeot struggling up a hill, while everyone's zooming by and laughing).
- Hell Hotel: The motel in "Il Grande Incubo".
- I Don't Want to Ruin Our Friendship: "La Regola dell'Amico" is about a woman friendzoning her male friends who are all attracted to her. It's a 1997 song and the word "friend zone" was not part of the pop culture yet, but the song is all about this, and it's called "la regola dell'amico" ("the friend rule") instead.
- Lighter and Softer: While their music has always been pop and teen-friendly, their earlier songs have more edgy and rebellious lyrics, and several swear words. Due to the popularity of their first ballad "Come Mai" (a song from their second album), in their later albums there are a lot more soft and romantic songs (though not all of them), with the swear words becoming extremely rare. This also applies to Max Pezzali's solo career nowadays.
- Lust Object: Quite a few songs mention hot women lusted after by guys and specific songs are even dedicated to a Ms. Fanservice woman, such as "Sei un Mito", "La Regina del Celebrità", "Bella Vera", and to an extent "La Regola dell'Amico" (although the woman in "La Regola dell'Amico" is not lusted after by the singer, but is described as a Dude Magnet to other guys). This is in contrast to some of their other songs about love and romantic feelings for someone ("Come Mai", "Ti Sento Vivere", "Una Canzone d'Amore", "Se Tornerai", "Nient'Altro che Noi", etc.)
- Mythology Gag: The song "La Dura Legge Del Gol" mentions a guy named Cisco, who is probably the same Cisco mentioned several times in "Rotta per Casa di Dio", another song of one of their previous albums.
- Never Trust a Title: "La Dura Legge del Goal" is not song about football, even though the album's cover features a football player. It's actually a melancholic Friendship Song.
- Precision F-Strike: While their later songs are Lighter and Softer and have much less swearing, there is still the occasional swear word. For example, the lyrics of both "La Dura Legge del Gol" and "La Regola dell'Amico" include the word "cazzo", used as the Italian equivalent of the F-word.
- Shout-Out:
- "Gli Anni" has some shoutouts to Max Pezzali and Mauro Repetto's childhood, including Happy Days and its character Ralph Malph, the Real Madrid football team, and Roy Rogers jeans (a famous Italian denim brand. No relation to the actor Roy Rogers).
- "La Regina del Celebrità" refers to the Celebrità nightclub, a now-closed nightclub in Pavia that Max Pezzali visited in his youth.
- Small Town Boredom: A recurring theme in 883's music, and part of 883's appeal with Italians living in rural Italy. This likely comes from Max Pezzali and Mauro Repetto's own experiences growing up in Pavia.
- South of the Border:
- "Nord Sud Ovest Est" is about a man chasing after his lover on horseback through an old west version of Mexico. He takes drinks at a Cantina and pays with Pesos, he runs into a Native American shaman in the desert giving advice, and then he's in a town fiesta where he sees his former lover kissing a Caballero. All in a song with incredibly catchy Mariachi horns and guitars.
- The story is retold in the song's music video. Instead of a rider on horseback, though, it's Max Pezzali and Mauro Repetto riding a modern red convertible though the Mexican desert, and the Native American shaman is also a gas station attendant. During live performances, Max often performs the song with Mexican-dressed folk dancers.
- Translated Cover Version:
- "Ci Sono Anch'io" is the Italian version of "I'm Still Here" from Treasure Planet, as it was sung by Max Pezzali for the Italian dub of the movie. It was one of the two new songs introduced in their 2002 compilation album.
- There is a Spanish version of the song "Nord Sud Ovest Est", with the title En Los Espejos De Un Cafe
, made by Mexican group Kairo in 1994. The lyrics are very different from 883's original song.
