Franklin Delano

Based in Bologna, Italy, Franklin Delano were led by singer, guitarist and songwriter Paolo Iocca and singer/guitarist Marcella Riccardi. Primarily influenced by the recent post-folk scene raised from the ashes of Red Red Meat, they released a demo with the help of Zahr Records: All My Senses Are Senseless Today (2004) was a mixture of slow pace folk-rock songs, often arranged with a dark Slint-style attitude, that created some excitement among Italian press. Perishable records distributed the record through their online shop. By that same year the core of the group comprised the trio of Iocca, Riccardi and Vittoria Burattini on drums (hailing from the legendary Massimo Volume, the Italian cult band that had broke up a few years earlier). Franklin Delanos second effort, Like A Smoking Gun In Front Of Me (2005), marked a slight change in the groups sound. While remaining steeped in the dark slow cored style of their previous album, the songs took influencial benefits from a series of new musical inputs, from psychedelia to Alt-country. Produced at Clava Studios in Chicago by Brian Deck (former Red Red Meat and Califone member and producer for Modest Mouse, Ugly Casanova, Iron&Wine), the album includes musical contributions by Califone members Ben Massarella, Tim Rutili, and Jim Becker. Like A Smoking Gun saw the band moving on Madcap Collective (Italy) and File 13 Records (Chicago, IL). It was promoted and distributed in the United States and garnered plaudits from the local music press. Most italian critics judged it to be among the year’s best records. Shortly after the release, Franklin Delano embarked on their first U.S. tour that helped them win fans and also spread the name all over the United States. Soon after, the group suffered an internal shake-up with Burattini replaced by Lucio Sagone (Ronin (8)) at drums, and Marcello Petruzzi (Caboto) at bass. At the end of 2005 the line-up included Vittorio Demarin (Father Murphy) at violin, piano, organ and Michele Sarti at percussions and glockenspiel. 2006 is a promising year for the band. They signed with Italys Ghost Records, flew to Chicago where they recorded their third album, Come Home with Brian Deck, between Engine and Soma music studios, and toured the U.S. a second time. The album has been released and the band is again on tour with a restyled line-up, including Paolo, Marcella, Marcello, the return of Vittoria at drums and the new entry Nicola Manzan at violin and electronics. In 2007, after a handful of shows, Franklin Delano decided to stop doing music under this moniker. Most of the players have their own music things and collaborate with other artists/bands/projects. Paolo and Marcella joined forces with two American musicians and formed Blake/e/e/e.