Iggy Pop has dubbed Maneskin a “really strong band”.
The punk icon featured on a new version of the band’s hit ‘I Wanna Be Your Slave’ last year, and he’s paid each band member a massive compliment, notably comparing guitarist Thomas Raggi to Aerosmith legend Joe Perry.
Speaking to NME for this week’s Big Read feature, he said of the ‘SUPERMODEL’ rockers: “That’s a really strong band. [Damiano David] is an amazing singer and the bass player, [Victoria de Angelis] really handles that position well and doesn’t overplay, but on stage and in their videos, she really stays with the message, woo, she’s a firecracker. The Guitarist [Thomas Raggi] is smooth and powerful, somewhere north of Joe Perry. The drummer, [Ethan Torchio] is really clever, he plays rock but I get the feeling he understands there’s a wider group of people who’ve heard dance music, techno and synthetic music so he also plays some very simple four, four beats.”
He added: “I read an interview with them that said they started out busking on the street in Rome and had to fight other groups for good positions. You can tell they have that background, that they’ve done something together where they got a little taste of poverty and obscurity, and I think that gives them a really nice edge.”
The ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog’ hitmaker, 75, was blown away by Damiano, 23, delivering his vocals with just one take.
He said of their time in the recording booth: “I had a hell of a time doing that vocal, and they were very, very kind about, they were listening to each take and, you know, I got a little applause when I did something well it was just impossible. I finally asked [David], I said, ‘Did you sing all in one take?’ ‘Yeah, man, I sang it all at one take’. I was like, ‘That’s amazing’. I just couldn’t breathe that much, you know? He’s, he’s really got it, that guy.”