Calibro 35

Biography

The band started in 2007 when Italian producer Tommaso Colliva and guitarist Massimo Martellotta invited Enrico Gabrielli, Luca Cavina and Fabio Rondanini to what was supposed to be a five days long one-off studio project re-recording obscure music from Italian exploitation movie soundtracks.

The first self-titled Calibro 35 album was released worldwide by Cinedelic Records in 2008. The album mostly contains re-works of 1970s soundtracks by the genre's maestros such as Ennio Morricone, Armando Trovajoli and Luis Bacalov but also first original compositions by the band. The unexpected critical acclaim the album received led the band to perform the project live too, touring Italy and Europe.

Live concerts proved to be even more successful than the album with the band winning the "Best Italian Tour" award at PIMI/MEI 2009. That same year, the group embarked on its first tour in the United States. Calibro 35 played at HitWeek Festival in Los Angeles and at Nublu and Zebulon in New York City. They also performed on Jason Bentley's radio show Morning Becomes Eclectic on KCRW, one of the most important broadcasts of live music in the United States. In September, they co-headlined the closing event of the Milan Film Festival with Australian band Jet.

In February 2010, their second album Ritornano quelli di... was released by Ghost Records in Europe and by Nublu Records in the United States. The album contains several original songs written and recorded as the soundtrack for American documentary Eurocrime. One of the songs from the album, "Convergere in Giambellino" was used as the end titles music for Hollywood blockbuster film Red starring Bruce Willis and John Malkovich.

During the same year, Calibro 35 recorded its first full-length soundtrack for the Italian-Spanish production SAID at Ennio Morricone's studios in Rome.

On June 8, 2010 they opened for English rock band Muse at their concert at San Siro Stadium in Milan. In September, they won "Best Band 2010" at the Keep On Music Awards. In October, Calibro 35 played at the CMJ Festival in New York.

Back in the US to play the SXSW Festival in Austin in spring 2011, the band decided to stop at Mission Sound and Brooklyn Recordings Studios in New York to record their third album. The album, titled Any Resemblance to Real Persons or Actual Facts Is Purely Coincidental, was released in February 2012 by Nublu Records in the US and by Tannen Records/Rough Trade Distribution in Europe. The title track of the album would be sampled by Dr. Dre for his Compton album in 2015. In summer 2012, Calibro 35 opened for Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings in Bari.

In March 2013, the band travelled to Brazil for the Nublu Jazz Festival, sharing the stage with the Headhunters, Roy Ayers and Robert Glasper's Experiment. On June 29, Calibro 35 opened again for Muse at the Olympic Stadium in Turin. In October a new album, Traditori di tutti, was released worldwide by Record Kicks. For the first time, the album contained only original music. After the album release, the band embarked on another extensive tour playing in all major European cities.

In 2014, Italian public national broadcaster Rai Radio 1 commissioned all its jingles and library music to the band. Meanwhile, the band scored its second full-length soundtrack for the Italian film Sogni di Gloria / Daydreaming, awarded as "Best Feature Movie" at the Houston Film Fest and Rome Independent Film Fest.

They further released the albums S.P.A.C.E. in 2015, Decade in 2018, and Momentum in 2020.

Sampling

Several songs of the band have been sampled into modern style productions. Most notably, "Ogni riferimento a fatti realmente accaduti" was sampled by Dr. Dre in "One Shot One Kill" (featuring Snoop Dogg and Jon Connor)"; "Il consigliori" was sampled by Jay-Z in "Picasso Baby", "Una stanza vuota" was sampled by Child of Lov in "One Day" (featuring Damon Albarn)"; and "Eurocrime" was sampled by Demigodz in "Summer of Sam".

Personnel

• Enrico Gabrielli - keyboards, flute, saxophone, xylophone
• Luca Cavina - bass
• Massimo Martellotta - guitar, keyboards
• Fabio Rondanini - drums
• Tommaso Colliva - Sound Researches and Production

Discography

• 2008 - Calibro 35 (Cinedelic Records CNCD14)
• 2010 - Ritornano quelli di... (Ghost Records GHST 035)
• 2012 - Ogni riferimento a persone esistenti o a fatti realmente accaduti è puramente casuale - (Tannen Records FIR.Y15)
• 2013 - Traditori di tutti - (Record Kicks RKX046)
• 2015 - S.P.A.C.E.
• 2018 - DECADE
• 2020 - Momentum
• 2022 - Scacco al Maestro - Volume 1
• 2022 - Scacco al Maestro - Volume 2

References

References

1. "Home".
2. "Calibro 35".
3. "One shot one kill".
4. "Jay-Z's 'Picasso Baby' - Discover the Sample Source".
5. (19 November 2011). "Interview with Tommaso Colliva / Calibro 35 (English version)".
6. (2008). "Calibro 35 – Calibro 35 (2008, CD)".
7. "Calibro 35: "S/T" recensione".
8. "MI AMI 2008 - Il programma".
9. "- YouTube".
10. "MEI: Dente e Manuel Agnelli tra i vincitori del PIMI 2009".
11. "KCRW 89.9FM {{pipe".
12. http://www.troublezine.it/live_reports/12096/18092009-jet--calibro-35--parco-sempione-milano{{Dead link. (June 2019)
13. "EUROCRIME documentary -- EUROCRIME THE ITALIAN COP AND GANGSTER FILMS THAT RULED THE 70s".
14. (11 May 2011). ""Red": La colonna sonora del film con i Calibro 35 {{pipe}} Mondocinemablog".
15. "SAID 1 tempo".
16. "MUSE: TOUR DATES - San Siro, Milan, Italy".
17. "KeepOn Live Club Festival 2010 - 12 settembre 2010 @Live Club, Trezzo Sull'Adda(MI) - KeepOn".
18. (11 October 2010). "Announcing the Village Voice/Redeye Distribution 2010 CMJ Day Party, Featuring Marnie Stern, Hooray for Earth, and a Special Secret Guest". Village Voice.
19. (18 October 2010). "Italian Band Calibro 35 on Creating Music That's a Perfect Soundtrack for Car Rides". Wall Street Journal.
20. (May 2023). "Wax Poetics SXSW Showcase".
21. (2012). "Calibro 35 – Any Resemblance to Real Persons or Actual Facts is Purely Coincidental (2012, Digipak, CD)".
22. "Nublu Jazz Festival 2013 no SESC Belenzinho (São Paulo) em 21 Mar 2013".
23. "Vivo Concerti News".
24. "CALIBRO 35 Traditori di Tutti - Record Kicks".
25. (24 July 2014). "Calibro 35, come ti rifaccio la storia musicale delle sigle radiofoniche".
26. (August 2025). "WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival wraps up 47th season".
27. "The Child of Lov feat. Damon Albarn's 'One Day' - Discover the Sample Source".
28. "Demigodz's 'The Summer of Sam' - Discover the Sample Source".