Raw Power (band)
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Raw Power is an Italian
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier punk ...
band from
Reggio Emilia Reggio nell'Emilia ( egl, Rèz; la, Regium Lepidi), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has abou ...
, formed in 1981 and still active.


History

Raw Power was formed in 1981 in
Poviglio Poviglio (Mantovano: ; Reggiano: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Reggio Emilia in the Italian region Emilia-Romagna, located about northwest of Bologna and about northwest of Reggio Emilia. Poviglio borders the following mun ...
, in the Italian province of Reggio Emilia, 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 Stooges’s
third album ''Third Album'' is the third studio album released by the Jackson 5 on Motown Records, and the group's second LP released in 1970, on September 18. ''Third Album'' featured the group's fourth consecutive No. 1 single on the US pop charts, " I' ...
. 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 ''Maximumrocknroll'', often written as ''Maximum Rocknroll'' and usually abbreviated as ''MRR'', is a not-for-profit monthly zine of punk subculture. Based in San Francisco, ''MRR'' focuses on punk rock and hardcore music, and primarily featur ...
'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 San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
in the U.S. 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 U.S. a total of six times). Second guitarist Silvio was replaced by Davide (ex Chelsea Hotel) before the tour. While touring in the U.S. in 1984, the band played in Los Angeles with punk legends
Dead Kennedys Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk rock, punk bands during its initial eight-year run. Dead Kennedys' lyrics were usually political in nature, sa ...
. 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, which sold more than 40,000 copies strictly through independent distribution and shops.Band's story on Raw Power's website
Almost simultaneously, BCT released a ''Live in the USA'' tape (BCT 17, 3/85), compiling some of their best shows. In 1986, Toxic Shock Records released the EP ''Wop Hour'' and the LP ''After Your Brain''. In 1987, Raw Power appeared on the compilation album "Rat Music For Rat People", recorded in San Francisco by producer
Sylvia Massy Sylvia Lenore Massy is an American record producer, mixer, engineer, instructor and author. Massy is renowned for her multifaceted production/mixing and engineering skills, with her first major breakthrough occurring with 1993's '' Undertow'', th ...
at
CD Presents David Ferguson was an American international outsider-culture impresario, activist, music producer and concert promoter. Over his career, most of which has been spent on the West Coast, he worked with musical acts such as the Avengers, John Ly ...
. 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 Toxic shock syndrome (TSS) is a condition caused by bacterial toxins. Symptoms may include fever, rash, skin peeling, and low blood pressure. There may also be symptoms related to the specific underlying infection such as mastitis, osteomyelit ...
. During their tours in the U.S. Raw Power have shared the stage with the
Circle Jerks Circle Jerks (stylized as Ciʀcle JƎʀᴋs) are an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1979 in Los Angeles, California. The group was founded by former Black Flag vocalist Keith Morris and Redd Kross guitarist Greg Hetson. To date, Circle ...
,
Adolescents Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...
,
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,
Bad Brains Bad Brains are an American rock band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1976. Originally a jazz fusion band under the name Mind Power, they are widely regarded as pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members have objected to the use of this ...
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,
Minor Threat Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Washington, D.C. by vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson. MacKaye and Nelson had played in several other bands together, and recruited bassist Brian Baker and guitaris ...
, Dead Kennedys,
Suicidal Tendencies Suicidal Tendencies is an American crossover thrash band formed in 1980 in Venice in Los Angeles, California by vocalist Mike Muir. Muir is the only remaining original member of the band. Along with D.R.I., Corrosion of Conformity, and Stormtr ...
, among many others. In 1986 in a small club in
Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
, Washington,
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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 (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
. Their next album for Godhead was ''Live from the gutter'', recorded live on March 1, 1996 at the Maffia Club in Reggio Emilia. It contains twenty-seven songs with no overdubs. In 1998 the band came back to Bill and Toxic Shock Records, who had changed its name to Toxic Ranch Records, releasing ''Reptile House''. Reviews of the record 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 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,
The Infected The Infected (or simply, Infected) is one of the longest standing punk rock bands from Lexington, Kentucky, formed in 1993 and having released twelve albums and EPs. The band, signed on the Eugene Records label, went through many iterations, ...
, a then unknown band from
Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...
, 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. In the late 1998, Marco Massarenti joined the band, replacing bassist Alessandro Paolucci. 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. 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 Alessandro Ronchini replaced Marco Massarenti and 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 Crater, Arizona Meteor Crater, or Barringer Crater, is a meteorite impact crater about east of Flagstaff and west of Winslow in the desert of northern Arizona, United States. The site had several earlier names, and fragments of the meteorite are official ...
, 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 Prodi was back in the band replacing guitarist Luca Carpi. In 2008 Marco Massarenti was back in the band replacing bassist Alessandro Ronchini. April 13, 2010 Beer City Records released the first 'Raw Power' box set entitled 'The Reagan Years'. This set contains one DVD and two CD's. All the material featured in this set compiles most of the material recorded by the band during the 1980s. Thereforth the title 'The Reagan Years'. Also included is a full DVD sized lyric book with liner notes by Mauro the 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 Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
complete with a monkey on his shoulder with
Oliver North Oliver Laurence North (born October 7, 1943) is an American political commentator, television host, military historian, author, and retired United States Marine Corps lieutenant colonel. A veteran of the Vietnam War, North was a National Secu ...
'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 two live performances. One from 1986 and one from 1987. Both were filmed on U.S. tours the band had done. October 2010 P.I.G. records released the band's new album, ''Resuscitate'', 8 years after ''Still Screaming...''. It was recorded in Seattle's Studio Litho (owned by Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard) during the 2009 US tour. It features 24 new song, plus two The Stooges covers ("
I Wanna Be Your Dog "I Wanna Be Your Dog" is a song by American rock band the Stooges. Released as the group's debut single from the band's 1969 self-titled debut album. The riff is composed of only three chords (G, F♯ and E), is played continuously throughout th ...
" and "
Raw Power ''Raw Power'' is the third studio album by American rock band the Stooges (credited as Iggy and the Stooges), released on February 7, 1973 by Columbia Records. The album departed from the "groove-ridden, feel-based songs" of the band's first two r ...
") and a remake of the band's 1988 classic "Mine to Kill" as ghost track. In 2012, the Italian F.O.A.D. Records started reprinting all of the classic albums of Raw Power, starting with the first demo tape printed for the first time on vinyl, entitled Birth, passing through the first four records, and adding for the first time totally new audio material, including the discovery of a totally unknown demo dating back to 1982. For the same label, the same year, the split 7” with D.R.I. released in 2001 is reprinted , this time in double flexi 7″ colored, with a previously unreleased bonus track. The same year also saw the release of ”No More Borders”, a 4-way split 7 “together with MDC, Som-Hi Noise and Naked Aggression. The record is co-produced by different European and American labels and contains an unreleased track for each band. On October 7, 2012 Luca Carpi died at 34 of pulmonary embolism. Throughout 2013 the band plays continuously in their own country and across Europe, returned to the U.S. in April and recorded a new album with Beer City records, "Tired and Furious", released in mid-2014 . In 2013 Paolo di Bernardo on guitar Gianmarco Agosti on drums joined the band. In 2014 and in 2015 Raw Power toured the U.S. In 2016 the band toured Europe, playing with
Agnostic Front Agnostic Front is an American hardcore punk band from New York City. Founded in 1980, the band is considered an important influence on the New York hardcore scene, as well as a pioneer of the crossover thrash genre. History First era (1980–19 ...
and H2O. In 2017 Indiebox Records released the new album "Inferno" and Raw Power played the biggest Italian punk rock festivals. At the end of the year the band toured Australia for the first time. In 2018 Mattia "Berta" Bertani replaced Gianmarco Agosti on drums. In 2019 Raw Power toured Japan for the first time, together with Cripple Bastards.


Legacy

Raw Power are considered to be one of the most seminal hardcore punk bands. Contemporary fans include
Cripple Bastards Cripple Bastards is a grindcore band from Asti, Italy. They were formed in 1988 in order to keep their area on the hardcore punk map as most of the other bands around them were breaking up. Biography They were formed by vocalist Giulio the Bast ...
and
Napalm Death Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in 1981 in Meriden, West Midlands. None of the band's original members has been in the group since 1986. But since ''Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch ...
's
Barney Greenway Mark Andrew "Barney" Greenway (born 13 July 1969) is a British extreme metal vocalist who is the current lead singer of Napalm Death and a former member of Extreme Noise Terror and Benediction. Greenway has stated his nickname "Barney" came fr ...
.


Current members

*Mauro Codeluppi - vocals (1981-) *Marco Massarenti - bass (1998-2000, 2008-) *Paolo di Bernardo - guitar (2013-) *Mattia "Berta" Bertani - drums (2018-)


Past members

*Silvio Stefanini - bass, guitar, vocals (1981-1984, 1986-?) *Maurizio Dodi - bass, guitar (1981-1989) *Helder Helder - drums (1981-1985) *Davide Devoti - guitar (1984-?) *Fabiano Bianco - drums (1985) *Ale Paolucci - bass (1986-1998) *Andrea Cavani - drums (?) *Niccolò Bossini - guitar (1997-1999) *Alessandro Ronchini - bass (2000-2008) *Tommi Prodi - guitar (1991-?) *Paolo Casali - drums (?) *Roberto Colla - drums (?-2005) *Fabio Ferrari - drums (2005-?) *Luca Carpi - guitar (2007-2012)


Discography


Studio albums

* Raw Power (Demo Self Rel. 1983) * You Are The Victim (Meccano 1983) * Screams From the Gutter (Toxic Shock 1985) * Wop Hour (EP) (Toxic Shock 1985) * After Your Brain (Toxic Shock 1986) * Mine To Kill (Sonik Attack 1989) * Too Tough To Burn (Contempo 1993) * Fight (Godhead 1995) * Reptile House (Mad Mob 1998) * Raw Power / D.R.I. split EP (Killer Release 2001) * Trust Me (Hello 2001) * Still Screaming, After 20 Years (Six Weeks 2003) * Resuscitate (P.I.G. 2010) * Raw Power / MDC / Naked Aggression / Som-Hinoise split EP (D.I.Y. Labels 2012) * Tired & furious (Beer city records 2014) * Inferno (Indiebox / Demons Run Amok Ent. 2017)


Live albums

* Live In The U.S.A. (B.C.T. 1985) * Live Danger (T.V.O.R. 1991) * Live From The Gutter (Godhead 1996)


Box sets / Compilations

* Screams From The Gutter / After Your Brain ( Westworld 1994) * Burning The Factory (Grand Theft Audio 1996) * The Hit List (Sudden Death 2004) * Fuck Authority (S.O.A. 2005) * The Reagan Years (Beer City 2010) * Birth (F.O.A.D. 2012) * You Are The Victim / God's Course (F.O.A.D. 2013)


Various Artists

* Raptus – LP (Meccano 1983) * Music on fire – TAPE (B.C.T. 1983) * Alcoholic for the Evil One (Tape) (Unknown 1983) * Raptus 2: Negazione e Superamento (Meccano 1984) * Maximum Rock’n’Roll: Welcome to 1984 (M.R.R. 1984) * 4xA = A x Tutti – 7” (Totò alle Prese coi Dischi 1984) * I’m Buck Naked! (Tape) (B.C.T. 1984) * Last white Christmas (Tape) (B.C.T. 1984) * I Thrash, Therefor I Am (Tape) (B.C.T. 1985) * The Raw Power of Life Vol.2 (Tape) (Unknown 1985) * We Can Do Whatever We Want (B.C.T. 1986) * World War III? (Rot 1986) * Eastern Front III: Live at Ruthie's Inn (Restless 1986) * I’ve Got an Attitude Problem (B.C.T./Loony Toons 1987) * Rat Music For Rat People Vol.3 (CD Presents Ltd. 1987) * Decade of Disaster (Toxic Shock 1994) * All For One…One For All (Grand Theft Audio 1995) * Punk Territory Vol.7 (Anthology/F.O.G. 1996) * Network of Friends Vol.2 (Plastic Bomb/Ataque Sonoro 1998) * Street Punkers (Mania 1998) * Rock Sound Sampler Vol.14 – CD (Rock Sound Mag. 1999) * Bite the Bullet(Know 1999) * Anarchy For Money (Detroit Noise 1999) * Last White Christmas (Schizophrenic 2000) * I Thrash, Therefor I Am (Schizophrenic/B.C.T./Human Stench 2000) * Against Your System (Versus 2001) * ''
The Dirty Rotten Power '' The Dirty Rotten Power '' is a split EP with three songs by the American crossover thrash band Dirty Rotten Imbeciles, D.R.I. and two songs by Italian hardcore punk band Raw Power (band), Raw Power, and was released in 2001. It was released e ...
'' (2001) * Uncage Your Punk Side (Dave 2001) * Time to Move (No Brain 2001) * Rock Sound: Punk Rock Vol.14 (Rock Sound Mag. 2002) * Punkadeka Compilation(Punkadeka 2002) * Hate Love (Lovehate80/S.O.A./Mele Marce 2005) * Hate Love (Lovehate80/Valium/Agipunk 2006) * Coverones (Tornado Ride 2007) * S-hits! (Tornado Ride/Senza Culo 2008) * Mass Prod. Anniversary (Mass Prod. 2008) * Shut the Fuck Up and Listen Vol.3 (P.I.G. 2011) * The Zombie Pit (P.I.G./Manic Pogo 2011) * Born Sick/Raw Power "Sick with Power" (Die Laughing Records)


References


External links


Official site1994 interview from Suburban Voice magazine
(
PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...
file)
Info on Raw Power's 1998 US tourDiscography at Discogs.comRaw Power USA tour 1984
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raw Power Italian hardcore punk groups Musical groups from Emilia-Romagna Demons Run Amok Entertainment artists