Tracklist:

1. White Night Walks
2. Ink on Calendars
3. Hire and Fire
4. Dear City, You Quickly Forget
5. Was Everything Really in my Hands?
6. Come into View
7. Cosmic Roulette
8. Ellipse and Lines

Personnel:

Filippo Barizza – vocals, guitars, Bontempi b3, soundscapes
Maria Robaey – violin
Fien – vocals and ukulele
Daniela dal Zotto – vocals
Eleonora dal Zotto – electric guitar
Michela Gamba – vocals
Antonio Noventa – piano
Andrea Giacon – bass
Francesco Franz Fabiano –  programming
Bruno Barizza – cover and artwork

Background and Recording

The Grid Line album was built upon the imaginary lines of my first “life atlas,” but I knew I had to expand that map for my second record. Soon after the release of my debut, I began writing new material. Interestingly, “Come into View” wasn’t the first song I wrote; that was “Ellipse and Lines.” The final version of that track differs completely from its origin; it took years for me to find the perfect arrangement. I first performed it during a solo gig in Berlin in 2013, convinced I would release an album featuring it by year’s end. Life, as usual, had other plans.

I am a bit unconventional: unlike many musicians, I often have the album title in mind before the songs are even finished. Initially, the title was Night Walks. I later added “White” as a homage to Saint Petersburg and the Fyodor Dostoevsky short story, White Nights. Experiencing the white nights of Saint Petersburg was a revelation. To truly “inhale” the spirit of the city, I avoided public transport and took long walks instead—once trekking 5 km down Nevsky Prospekt. The sequence of days and nights blurred into a wonderful contrast of light and dark, and I knew then that the title was 100% correct.

I wanted a collection of songs that sounded distinct yet maintained the “acoustic label” of my early work. I decided to mirror my first album’s formula by opening with an instrumental: “White Night Walks.” It felt like a safe, strong start. Soon, I had eight songs—eight walks through the night, eight ways to face the dark. Each song was a concept about finding one’s way after being lost.

The Eight Walks

1. White Night Walks

This first walk connects back to the final track of The Grid Line. Both are immersed in the feeling of being eternally awake and feature the haunting violin of Maria Robaey. I walked until I was exhausted, stopping only when the light from the other side of the river caught my eye—a bright, warm world filled with music and laughter.

2. Ink on Calendars

The second walk explores how reading can save us from pitfalls and indifference. When the heart is broken and directionless, literature provides the “escape route signs” we need before we fall. (Featuring Michela Gamba on vocals).

3. Hire and Fire

At over seven minutes, this is my longest recording to date—a journey through the limbo between dreams and fears. It addresses the “nervous” reality of modern employment: wage theft, precarity, and the illusion of being “irreplaceable” until the moment you are let go. It captures that sudden shift from being part of a “great team” to facing isolation. (Featuring Landart: Daniela and Eleonora).

4. Dear City, You Quickly Forget

This walk is about the specific loneliness of being an expat in a stimulating but indifferent metropolis. Cities attract us with promises of brightness and leisure, yet we are just waves in their sea. We reach out through messaging apps while feeling scattered and disconnected.

5. Was Everything Really in My Hands?

A reflection on guilt-tripping—a tool often used by manipulative people, sometimes even those who don’t mean to cause harm. It’s about the moment pieces of your identity start to drop away. This song is a reminder to recognize these tactics, reclaim your feelings, and “pull the plug.” (Featuring Michela Gamba on vocals).

6. Come into View

This song survived a difficult two-year development. After a failed initial collaboration, it was saved by Fien (vocals/ukulele) and Antonio Noventa (piano). It’s about the fundamental people in our lives—those who stay close even when things are messy. We change in an instant, but next to our deepest connections, we always “come into view.”

7. Cosmic Roulette

A critique of the human ego. We believe we are the centre of the universe, yet we are governed by microbes and bacteria. This song is a reminder that the universe moves within us, and we are no more or less important than the smallest living being. (Special thanks to Franz and Neil deGrasse Tyson).

8. Ellipse and Lines

The final walk captures the realisation that you are living a moment you will remember forever. Suddenly, the rushing crowds and the shifting clouds feel like part of a grand drawing you’ve created. It’s about the power of dreams to connect the dots of our lives. (Featuring Antonio Noventa on piano).

The Studio Process

To give these songs the “rock” framework they demanded, I moved away from a purely acoustic sound, grounding them with prominent bass and drums. The process began in the summer of 2018 at my home studio, crafting the bulk of the music with a speed I hadn’t experienced before.

I was joined by a wonderful group of collaborators: Antonio on piano, Andrea on bass, and Franz, who filled the sonic landscape and managed the sessions with total respect and efficiency. Maria returned on violin for the opening track—a symbolic “handover” from the previous album—while Michela, Fien, Daniela, and Eleonora provided the vocal heart of the record.

Ultimately, we kept the album to under 40 minutes—the classic length of a 1970s LP. It remains a self-release; while a label might offer a wider audience, I prefer the total creative control of doing it “just the way it is.”