Raw Power (band)
Encyclopedia
Raw Power is an Italian
hardcore punk
band from Reggio Emilia
. They were formed in 1981 and are still active today.
's third album
. Previously, the Codeluppi brothers had played in another band called Off Limits. Other members in Raw Power's first line-up were Silvio (guitar and vocals), bassist Maurizio Dodi (who came from punk band Chelsea Hotel) and teenager drummer Helder Stefanini.
In 1983 they recorded a 19-track demo (sometimes referred as Brown Studio Tape) and two songs appeared in the Italian punk compilation, Raptus. The tape also included the song «Fuck authority», which appeared in Maximumrocknroll's international punk and hardcore compilation, Welcome to 1984. Their debut album, You Are The Victim, was released in 1983 (or 1984, depending on sources) through the same small independent Italian label that released the Raptus compilation (Meccano Records). Raw Power had another two tracks in the second Raptus compilation, Raptus: Negazione e superamento (1984).
A small tape label from San Diego, USA, called BCT Tapes released in 1984 their demo (untitled, aka Brown Studio Tape) and some of their live stuff in the Last White Christmas compilations (recorded in December, 1983). Through the BCT contact, in the same year the band flew over to the States for their first US tour, which happened in August–September, 1984 (the band have since then returned to tour the USA a total of six times). Second guitarist Silvio was replaced by Davide (ex Chelsea Hotel) before the tour.
While touring in the USA in 1984, the band played in Los Angeles with punk legends Dead Kennedys. It was at that show that they were spotted by Bill Sassenberger, owner of Toxic Shock Records. The band signed a record deal with Bill, which resulted in the album Screams From The Gutter. "screams" sold more than 40,000 copies strictly through independent distribution and shops. Almost simultaneously, BCT released a Live in the USA tape (BCT 17, 3/85), compiling some of their best shows.
In 1986, Toxic Shock released the EP Wop Hour and the LP After Your Brain.
In the years to come, other records including Mine To Kill (Southern Records, 1989), Live Danger (TVOR Records, 1991) and Too Tough to Burn (Contempo Records, 1992) were released, but none of them sold as respectively as the first two recordings on Toxic Shock.
During their tours in the U.S.A. Raw Power have shared the stage with the Circle Jerks
, Adolescents, D.O.A., Bad Brains
, Agnostic Front
, Minor Threat
, Dead Kennedys
, Suicidal Tendencies
, among many others. As a trivia fact, it can be mentioned that in 1986 in a small club in Seattle the band Guns N' Roses
opened for Raw Power.
In 1995 they recorded the Fight album for Godhead Records, trying to achieve a sound more akin to their live shows. A video clip was made to promote the album, which was broadcast by MTV
. Their next album for Godhead was Live from the gutter, recorded live on March 1, 1996 in the Maffia Club from Reggio Emilia (Italy). It contains twenty-seven songs with no overdubs.
In 1998 the band came back to Bill and Toxic Shock, who had changed its name to Toxic Ranch Records, releasing Reptile House. Reviews of the record were all incredible, calling it the best thing the band had done since their debut release. With that, the band decided to return to the U.S. for their first American tour in several years. It was at that time that they met a long time Raw Power fan named Tony Patino. A person that would be instrumental for the band in the next few years.
The 1998 tour, which was organized by Patino, started and ended in New York City, and covered most of the eastern states. It was on the first night of that tour that the band stored some of their gear in the support bands vehicle, only to find out the next day that some of their guitars were stolen. The support band, Infected, a then unknown band from Lexington, Kentucky, had mistakenly parked their van and left it unattended in New Jersey, and had to explain how they did not have Giuseppe's Gibson Les Paul that he had played for roughly twenty years.
Another tour of the states was underway the following year, but had to be scrapped midway through when Mauro was hospitalized in Indianapolis. He was suffering from kidney stones and had to have a stone surgically removed from his panic stricken penis. Several dates on the tour had to be canceled due to the nature of his illness, which made it nearly impossible for him to sing.
In 2000 Raw Power released their next album "Trust Me" on Hello Records, a label that Patino, their American booking agent had started. This was the first recording since "Fight" that Silvio played guitar for the band. Just as the album was released, they hit American soil once again. This time, the tour support was a radical band from Los Angeles called Tongue, featuring a female vocalist/artist named Liz Mcgrath. The tour started in Los Angeles rather than New York, and the West coast welcomed the band with open arms. It was their most successful American tour since the first one in 1984.
The following year, in 2001, the band toured the states once again, supporting the "Trust Me" release. This time with old 1985 tour mates, Decry supporting. The tour started in Atlanta and ended in Denver, and was the last time founding member Giuseppe would ever see the United States. Band members from that tour have said that it was the most redeeming tour of the states ever for him.
In 2002, Raw Power went back into the studio to record Still Screaming After 20 Years, a celebration of their two decades as a band. Shortly after finishing it, on October 6, guitarist and founding member Giuseppe Codeluppi suffered a heart attack while playing soccer, and died. The cover of the "Still Screaming" album was the only record cover where the band used a photo, rather than artistic images. It's a photo taken by Patino at Meteor Crator, Arizona, where a meteor had allegedly hit the earth over 50,000 years prior. It was the last photo of Giuseppe with his band ever taken in America.
After his death, the remaining members debated on keeping on. In the end, it was decided that Giuseppe would have wanted the band to continue, with or without him.
European tours followed in 2004-2005. In 2005 Roberto the drummer was replaced by Fabio because of health reasons.
In 2007 Tommi replaced the guitarist Luca.
April 13, 2010 Beer City Records released the first 'Raw Power' box set entitled 'The Reagan Years'. This set contains
1 DVD and 2 CD's. All the material featured in this set compiles most of the material recorded by the band during the 80's. Henceforth the title ' The Reagan Years'.Also included is a full DVD sized lyric book with liner notes by Mauro 'singer' and co founder of 'Raw Power'.Beer City also brought back Vince 'Rancid' Packard to do the cover art. Packard had done both the covers for 'Screams From the Gutter' and 'After Your Brain'. The cover features the monster (being torn apart by Ronald Reagan complete with a monkey on his shoulder with Oliver North's face) seen on many 'Raw Power' covers along with the familiar sewer setting and rat. The CD's total 63 tracks and the DVD contains 2 live performances. One from 1986 and one from 1987. Both were filmed on US tours the band had done.
October 2010 P.I.G. records released the band's new album, Resuscitate, 8 years after Still Screaming.... It's been recorded in Seattle's Studio Litho (owned by Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard) during the 2009 US tour. It features 24 new songs plus two stooges covers ("I wanna be your dog" and "Raw power") and a remake of the band's 1988 classic "mine to kill" as ghost track
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
band from Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
. They were formed in 1981 and are still active today.
Biography
Raw Power was formed in 1981 in Poviglio (RE), Italy, by brothers Mauro (vocals) and Giuseppe Codeluppi (guitar). Through the years the band has lived through several line-up changes and the two brothers were the only stable members until Giuseppe's death in 2002. The band's name came from The StoogesThe Stooges
The Stooges are an American rock band from Ann Arbor, Michigan first active from 1967 to 1974, and later reformed in 2003...
's third album
Raw Power
Raw Power is the third studio album by American rock band The Stooges. Though not initially commercially successful, Raw Power gained a cult fanbase in the years following its release and, like its predecessor , is generally considered an influential forerunner of punk rock.-Recording history:After...
. Previously, the Codeluppi brothers had played in another band called Off Limits. Other members in Raw Power's first line-up were Silvio (guitar and vocals), bassist Maurizio Dodi (who came from punk band Chelsea Hotel) and teenager drummer Helder Stefanini.
In 1983 they recorded a 19-track demo (sometimes referred as Brown Studio Tape) and two songs appeared in the Italian punk compilation, Raptus. The tape also included the song «Fuck authority», which appeared in Maximumrocknroll's international punk and hardcore compilation, Welcome to 1984. Their debut album, You Are The Victim, was released in 1983 (or 1984, depending on sources) through the same small independent Italian label that released the Raptus compilation (Meccano Records). Raw Power had another two tracks in the second Raptus compilation, Raptus: Negazione e superamento (1984).
A small tape label from San Diego, USA, called BCT Tapes released in 1984 their demo (untitled, aka Brown Studio Tape) and some of their live stuff in the Last White Christmas compilations (recorded in December, 1983). Through the BCT contact, in the same year the band flew over to the States for their first US tour, which happened in August–September, 1984 (the band have since then returned to tour the USA a total of six times). Second guitarist Silvio was replaced by Davide (ex Chelsea Hotel) before the tour.
While touring in the USA in 1984, the band played in Los Angeles with punk legends Dead Kennedys. It was at that show that they were spotted by Bill Sassenberger, owner of Toxic Shock Records. The band signed a record deal with Bill, which resulted in the album Screams From The Gutter. "screams" sold more than 40,000 copies strictly through independent distribution and shops. Almost simultaneously, BCT released a Live in the USA tape (BCT 17, 3/85), compiling some of their best shows.
In 1986, Toxic Shock released the EP Wop Hour and the LP After Your Brain.
In the years to come, other records including Mine To Kill (Southern Records, 1989), Live Danger (TVOR Records, 1991) and Too Tough to Burn (Contempo Records, 1992) were released, but none of them sold as respectively as the first two recordings on Toxic Shock.
During their tours in the U.S.A. Raw Power have shared the stage with the Circle Jerks
Circle Jerks
The Circle Jerks are an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Los Angeles, California. It was formed by Black Flag's original singer, Keith Morris, and future Bad Religion guitarist Greg Hetson. They were among the preeminent hardcore punk bands of the L.A. scene in the late 1970s.The band...
, Adolescents, D.O.A., Bad Brains
Bad Brains
Bad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...
, Agnostic Front
Agnostic Front
Agnostic Front is an American hardcore band. The band began playing hardcore similar to their contemporaries, and were thrust to the forefront of the burgeoning New York hardcore scene in the mid-1980s with their widely regarded 1984 classic Victim in Pain before evolving to incorporate thrash...
, Minor Threat
Minor Threat
Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1980 and disbanded in 1983. The band was relatively short-lived, but had a strong influence on the hardcore punk music scene, both stylistically and in establishing a "do it yourself" ethic for music distribution and...
, Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
, Suicidal Tendencies
Suicidal Tendencies
Suicidal Tendencies is a U.S. crossover thrash band founded in 1981 in Venice, Los Angeles, California by Mike Muir, its leader and only permanent member. The band is sometimes credited as one of "the fathers of crossover thrash"...
, among many others. As a trivia fact, it can be mentioned that in 1986 in a small club in Seattle the band Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...
opened for Raw Power.
In 1995 they recorded the Fight album for Godhead Records, trying to achieve a sound more akin to their live shows. A video clip was made to promote the album, which was broadcast by MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
. Their next album for Godhead was Live from the gutter, recorded live on March 1, 1996 in the Maffia Club from Reggio Emilia (Italy). It contains twenty-seven songs with no overdubs.
In 1998 the band came back to Bill and Toxic Shock, who had changed its name to Toxic Ranch Records, releasing Reptile House. Reviews of the record were all incredible, calling it the best thing the band had done since their debut release. With that, the band decided to return to the U.S. for their first American tour in several years. It was at that time that they met a long time Raw Power fan named Tony Patino. A person that would be instrumental for the band in the next few years.
The 1998 tour, which was organized by Patino, started and ended in New York City, and covered most of the eastern states. It was on the first night of that tour that the band stored some of their gear in the support bands vehicle, only to find out the next day that some of their guitars were stolen. The support band, Infected, a then unknown band from Lexington, Kentucky, had mistakenly parked their van and left it unattended in New Jersey, and had to explain how they did not have Giuseppe's Gibson Les Paul that he had played for roughly twenty years.
Another tour of the states was underway the following year, but had to be scrapped midway through when Mauro was hospitalized in Indianapolis. He was suffering from kidney stones and had to have a stone surgically removed from his panic stricken penis. Several dates on the tour had to be canceled due to the nature of his illness, which made it nearly impossible for him to sing.
In 2000 Raw Power released their next album "Trust Me" on Hello Records, a label that Patino, their American booking agent had started. This was the first recording since "Fight" that Silvio played guitar for the band. Just as the album was released, they hit American soil once again. This time, the tour support was a radical band from Los Angeles called Tongue, featuring a female vocalist/artist named Liz Mcgrath. The tour started in Los Angeles rather than New York, and the West coast welcomed the band with open arms. It was their most successful American tour since the first one in 1984.
The following year, in 2001, the band toured the states once again, supporting the "Trust Me" release. This time with old 1985 tour mates, Decry supporting. The tour started in Atlanta and ended in Denver, and was the last time founding member Giuseppe would ever see the United States. Band members from that tour have said that it was the most redeeming tour of the states ever for him.
In 2002, Raw Power went back into the studio to record Still Screaming After 20 Years, a celebration of their two decades as a band. Shortly after finishing it, on October 6, guitarist and founding member Giuseppe Codeluppi suffered a heart attack while playing soccer, and died. The cover of the "Still Screaming" album was the only record cover where the band used a photo, rather than artistic images. It's a photo taken by Patino at Meteor Crator, Arizona, where a meteor had allegedly hit the earth over 50,000 years prior. It was the last photo of Giuseppe with his band ever taken in America.
After his death, the remaining members debated on keeping on. In the end, it was decided that Giuseppe would have wanted the band to continue, with or without him.
European tours followed in 2004-2005. In 2005 Roberto the drummer was replaced by Fabio because of health reasons.
In 2007 Tommi replaced the guitarist Luca.
April 13, 2010 Beer City Records released the first 'Raw Power' box set entitled 'The Reagan Years'. This set contains
1 DVD and 2 CD's. All the material featured in this set compiles most of the material recorded by the band during the 80's. Henceforth the title ' The Reagan Years'.Also included is a full DVD sized lyric book with liner notes by Mauro 'singer' and co founder of 'Raw Power'.Beer City also brought back Vince 'Rancid' Packard to do the cover art. Packard had done both the covers for 'Screams From the Gutter' and 'After Your Brain'. The cover features the monster (being torn apart by Ronald Reagan complete with a monkey on his shoulder with Oliver North's face) seen on many 'Raw Power' covers along with the familiar sewer setting and rat. The CD's total 63 tracks and the DVD contains 2 live performances. One from 1986 and one from 1987. Both were filmed on US tours the band had done.
October 2010 P.I.G. records released the band's new album, Resuscitate, 8 years after Still Screaming.... It's been recorded in Seattle's Studio Litho (owned by Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard) during the 2009 US tour. It features 24 new songs plus two stooges covers ("I wanna be your dog" and "Raw power") and a remake of the band's 1988 classic "mine to kill" as ghost track
Current members
- Mauro Codeluppi "MP" - vocals
- Giuseppe Codeluppi - guitar
- Tommi Prodi - guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- Marco Massarenti - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Fabio Ferrari - drums
Past members
- Davide Devoti - guitar
- Silvio Stefanini - guitar
- Niccolò Bossini - guitar
- Luca Carpi - guitar
- Maurizio Dodi - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Alessandro Paolucci - bass
- Alessandro Ronchini "Ronko" - bass
- Helder Stefanini - drums
- Paolo Casali - drums
- Emanuele Castagneti - drums
- Fabiano Bianco - drums
- Roberto Colla - drums
- Fabio Ferrari - drums
- Andrea Cavani - drums
Studio albums
- You Are the Victim (1983)
- Raw Power (1984)
- Screams From the Gutter (1984)
- After Your Brain (1986)
- Wop Hour (1986)
- Mine to Kill (1989)
- Too Tough to Burn (1993)
- Fight (1995)
- Reptile House (1999)
- Trust Me! (2000)
- The Dirty Rotten Power (2001) (split with D.R.I.Dirty Rotten ImbecilesDirty Rotten Imbeciles is a thrash metal/crossover thrash band from the United States that formed in Houston, in 1982. The band currently comprises founding members, vocalist Kurt Brecht and guitarist Spike Cassidy, as well as drummer Rob Rampy and bassist Harald Oimoen.D.R.I...
) - ...Still Screaming (After 20 Years) (2003)
- Resuscitate (P.I.G., 2010)
Live albums
- Live in the USA (BCT, 1985, live)
- Live Danger (TVOR, 1991, live)
- Burning the Factory (Grand Theft Audio/BCT, 1996, live + Raw Power BCT tape tracks)
- Live from the Gutter (Godhead, 1996, live)
Compilation albums
- We Can Do Whatever We Want (1986)
- Rat Music for Rat People, Vol. 3 (CD Presents, 1987)
- Burning the Factory (1996)
- The Hit List (2004)
- Fuck Authority (2005)
- Coverones (2007)
- S-hits (2008)
- Corruption of american youth vol.2 (2010)