In the cover evening Angelina and Ghali excite. Only an upheaval in the press and radio can take Sanremo away from Geolier.
The Friday cover evening of Sanremo does not disappoint and gives us 5 and a half intense hours full of beautiful performances, also accompanied by some glides on karaoke and trash useful to help us keep our eyes wide open. The final outcome has a bit of the flavor of mockery: Angelina Mango had masterfully interpreted “La rondine” by her father and had received a well-deserved standing ovation, but there had also been other performances that would have deserved greater recognition. Instead, Geolier triumphed, confirming himself as very strong in the televoting, despite a medley that he knew was homework and composed of three songs completely devoid of a musical leitmotif that held them together.
If Geolier managed to impose himself even tonight, it is reasonable to think that his victory at the Sanremo Festival is now a foregone conclusion, considering that the composition of the vote in tomorrow’s final will be the same (34% televoting, 33% press and 33% radio). There Syphilitica for the scenario to change is that he does not receive flattering votes from the press and radio juries, but above all that they converge in a compact manner on another name to bring forward. However, a turnaround cannot be ruled out, paradoxically due to the outcome of this evening, which could act as an incentive for the juries in question. However, there remains some doubt as to the possibility that they will agree on the artist to “oppose” Geolier; in particular the probable presence of both Annalisa and Angelina Mango in the five finalists could lead to a division of the votes which would benefit the Neapolitan singer-songwriter. Once upon a time, the quality/expert jury acted as a “balancer” for the televoting choices, but it was swept away with populism after it was decisive for Mahmood’s surprising victory in 2019 (spoiler: there had seen a long way).
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There are two schools of thought regarding the shape that the evening of covers has taken on in recent years. There are those who find it a beautiful show and unique in the musical panorama, capable of providing iconic moments. However, there are those who criticize its slide towards a sort of karaoke without rules. The truth is that both parties are probably right, because a bit of everything happens on stage on Fridays, but this is not necessarily a negative note. Furthermore, it is always nice to see so many big names in Italian music at Sanremo, even if only for a duet. Two particularly appreciable things about the evening: the smaller presence of guests unrelated to the competition, given the 30 performances; the homage to those who work behind the scenes, such as the dog unit and the stage manager – are small gestures, but they demonstrate the attention towards those who help create the show without ending up on the covers. However, it is better to ignore the uncritical support for farmers thrown in at random with the reading of a press release attached. Coming then to the race, a brief overview of the best and worst:
The best:
Angelina (10) – Impeccable in the execution of this delicate tribute to his father, with a voice full of emotion and intensity, which made it almost impossible not to be moved.
Alfa and Roberto Vecchioni (9) – towards the end the professor sings “There’s only one line missing from that poem, you can finish it” and points #Alfa, stepping aside and letting him rewrite his historic song, confirming himself as having an extraordinary sensitivity. Alfa sings happily like a child and even if he misses a few notes, amen. The standing ovation at the end says it all about this tribute to a wonderful song.
Expensive (8.5) – A medley simply constructed to perfection, which contains a piece in Arabic and The true Italian of Cutugno and has its history as its common thread. She should be shown to all aspiring artists “busy” with random slogans, they could understand what it means to truly convey messages within a performance.
Mahmood and Bitti’s Tenors (8.5) – In an evening full of (understandably) paracule choices and catchy, as usual he goes his own way, chooses traveling companions little known to the general public and tries his hand at Lucio Dalla, practically the Mount Everest of Italian songwriting, surprising us once again with his versatility. Mahmood managed to show another of his souls, interpreting with originality but without distorting a complex song like “How deep is the sea”.
Annalisa and the List Representative (8) – The risk Sanremo-trash was just around the corner, but instead they put out a performance that makes the most of their excellent vocals, of which we feel the need for a studio version.
Fiorella Mannoia and Francesco Gabbani (7.5) – first and second of the 2017 edition which give us a medley of their respective songs from that year. To have such self-deprecating singers.
Il Volo with Jeff Burns (7.5) – It may not be a very popular opinion, but the 3 tenors are having an excellent Sanremo. Right choices, excellent performances and cleaned up from the excessive trappings of youth.
The worst:
Sangiovanni (4) – If at the age of 21 you bring one of your own songs to the evening dedicated to covers (which is not a memorable one), either you are ill-advised or your narcissism is decidedly out of control.
Emma (4,5) – not even Boris’s screenwriters could have thought that it was a good idea to have her bring a medley by Tiziano Ferro, with a vocal style that was clearly out of her league, and moreover together with Bresh (!). She seems to be clearly searching for a new artistic identity but, unlike Mahmood who manages to show more soul, she doesn’t give the feeling of having found the direction.
Rich and Poor with Paola and Chiara (4.5) – pass the trash, pass the karaoke, but these 4 minutes of the pickled pepper festival seemed very long.
Dargen D’Amico (5) – passing off a medley of his songs as a tribute to Ennio Morricone has the flavor of someone who says “I listen to you, but let’s talk about me”. He certainly is busy promoting himself.
The Three with Fabrizio Moro (5) – textbook case in which the guest singer monopolizes the duet, based on his own songs, penalizing the competing one. Reviewable choice, which appeared unfortunate from the moment of the announcement.
Rose Villain and Gianna Nannini (5) – see above. Making covers of the guest singer at Sanremo doesn’t seem to be a great idea, especially if he has a cumbersome ego. In this case, even the matching between the voices doesn’t work at all.
Mr. Rain with the Different Twins (6) – in itself it wasn’t even a bad moment for Sanremo, but from the very good Mr. Rain it would be reasonable to expect – at least for once – a less paracula choice.