Italy-born but Denmark-based multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer Alex Puddu continues his exploration of 80s-flavored grooves in new album Professione Reporter, a collection of 10 polished and ear-friendly tracks connecting the dots between italo funk, nu disco, and indie pop.

It was less than a year ago that Italy-born but Denmark-based musical artist Alex Puddu released his latest album Deliria, an enticing blend of erotic disco, soulful grooves and electronica inspired by Italian pop music of the late 70s / early 80s, which went on to enjoy extended radio play across the globe including on BBC 6, NTS, KCRW, and national Spanish station Radio 3, to name a few.

But it wasn’t long thereafter that indefatigable groove purveyor Puddu travelled back to Rome for a new musical adventure, heading straight to The Sound Work Shop, the recording studio of legendary Italian composer Piero Umiliani, where he recorded the 10 new tracks that are included in his latest musical opus, Professione Reporter, another funky and soulful adult-oriented disco-pop album entirely sung by himself in Italian.

Professione Reporter tells the story of a photo reporter who travels the world following and stalking rich recently-widowed women whose husbands died in mysterious circumstances. Attracted by their charm and wealth, our protagonist transforms himself into a gigolo, becoming a dedicated lover-boy to these rich sugar mamas and a slave to the sweet life, going so far as to become an accomplice in their criminal plans to ensure the inheritance of their dead husbands.

The A-side of the album opens with the titletrack “Professione Reporter”, a luscious boogie / jazz-funk number that builds into a classic Alex Puddu 80’s groove, with smooth vocals that evoke Enzo Carella’s cult-classic “Riflessione Finale” while setting the scene for the kind of intimate, voyeuristic atmosphere that will accompany the whole full-length.

We’re immediately transported across the globe for “Un’ Estate A Rio”, which brings the sunny sound of summer with a sweet Brazilian vibe and the jazzy touch of an electric piano, while “Salon Privé” serves up top class italo disco, with a killer bassline and a contagious melody, taking you back to 1983 and the golden era of Italy’s music TV show “Discoring”.

The tempo slows down with “Spiagge Bianche”, a soulful ballad inspired by George Michael in his Wham era, as well as on “Manuela Di Notte”, which closes the A-side of the album with a shuffling groove and a rousing synthesizer theme, before the lead vocal harmonies enter at the halfway point, in an erotic movie soundtrack meets west coast soft rock kind of mood.

The B-side begins with “Amanti Diabolici”, an uptempo and organic electro-funk number with acid house bass synthesizer and a catchy hook, which was released as the first single alongside a video to tease the album.

“Marrakech” tells the intriguing story of spies and secret love in Morocco, with a groove based around the bossanova beat of a vintage organ, evoking images of warm climates and hazy atmospheres, while latin conga, wah wah guitar, jazz-piano and big band horns are the ingredients of “La Mezzaluna”, which takes us back to the world of 60s Italian easy listening and exotica.

“Velenia” is another contagious track, blending jazzy inflections with disco and avantgarde 80s pop, complete with a sexy saxophone, Rhodes synthesizers and vibrating guitars, and “Sabato Sera” closes the album like a chill Saturday afternoon on the beach, with smooth vocals over a lazy midtempo beat.

Once again Alex Puddu has hit the mark with a collection of polished and ear-friendly grooves that tell the alluring story of a private eye embroiled in a web of love affairs, wealth and deceit, evoking images of satin sheets, champagne and dim lights set against the backdrop of one of the most hedonistic decades so far.