When in 2021 we still couldn’t see the moment to jump again and chant (or bellow) songs in the middle of a large crowd, something clicked in the most unexpected place. The musical phenomena we love the most are the ones we didn’t anticipate, because let’s face it, no one expected a resurgence of the glam aesthetic at this point. That is the magic of Eurovision, the only place in its more than sixty years of history where you can find from the discovery of ABBA, Lordi’s monstrous rock, a questionable (and remembered) performance by Madonna or Céline Dion representing Switzerland. in one of the plot twists typical of the festival. Added to this list is the already legendary performance of Maneskin, in which four young Italians clad in maroon leather suits, demonstrated that rock continues to interest the new generations, with an attitude that crossed the screen to remind us, even if it was through a macro television event, the explosion of life that it implies listen to live music.
Since then we have witnessed one of those success stories designed in Hollywood: a group of friends who start singing in the streets of Rome achieve recognition and, after getting the crystal microphone, head to Los Angeles to rub shoulders and collaborate. with stars like Iggy Pop or Tom Morello, who not so long ago they admired from a distance. This movement more focused on the US market was somewhat difficult to understand for some of its fans, but the definitive test to know if that magnetism that caught half the world with “Shut Up And Good” It was just another viral or the beginning of something bigger, he is not behind the production layers of his new album ‘Rush!’, but on stage.
Behind a gigantic red curtain, the silhouettes of the band can be glimpsed. Far is that more modest production of his first visit to Razzmatazz 2 in 2019, which seems like a memory from another life. And perhaps it is: Damiano David, Victoria de Angelis, Ethan Torchio and Thomas Raggi have achieved the status of world stars, and that is something that is also transmitted in the sobriety of the stage. No need for a big theatrical display: they are the main attraction and nothing diverts attention. So after the first ‘Don’t Wanna Sleep’ the band already exploits the chemistry that has become their hallmark. and maybe because of the sound problems at the beginning of ‘Gossip’, It took us a long time to see Damiano David in his most recognizable showman facet.
From then on, a succession of hits led by ‘Shut Up And Good’ it is the key point to begin to approach the public, without hesitating to jump and let yourself be carried away by the fervor of an ecstatic public. Among that crowd, from children accompanied by their parents in what may be their first concert, twenty-somethings, teenagers… if something has been achieved Maneskin it is to reach all ears from the mainstream, something that also makes his latest songs not sound so genuine and seem more commissioned. Even so, wheno ‘Kool Kids’, a carbon copy of Idles that a few years ago would not have sounded natural in Maneskinovercomes that initial reluctance barrier when they invite their fans up and let themselves go in a waste of naturalness.
Because the naturalness of the band is enjoyed in short distances, especially in the most intimate moments in which we only need a voice and an acoustic guitar. Thus, when Damiano and Thomas leave the main stage to appear by surprise on the secondary stage located at the end of the venue, they are able to create a moment of silence among 17,000 people. With this more welcoming atmosphere that contrasts with the incendiary ‘Gasoline’ minutes before, start ‘If Not For You’, one of the most significant songs for Damiano.
we already know that Maneskin they have not invented anything new and that the succession of moments in their live show is a checklist a manual for every rock band, but it has never been about that. Just as her Eurovision win was something of a surprise in a year rife with ballads, her subsequent success remains a real surprise. But not because they don’t have a pop will in all their songs.
At a time when in the mainstream we are more used to seeing solo artists succeed, it is great news to see them reach the status of world stars, carrying the story of their friendship as the flag and leaving space for the personality of each member of the band so that everyone has their chance to shine.
