AA. VV.
I-Day

September 4, 2010, Parco Nord, Bologna.

Scorching heat, not a cloud in the sky, 35,000 people filling the arena. It is under these circumstances that the tenth edition of the I-Day Festival will take place.

Let me preface by saying that I'll try to make this review as objective as possible, so forgive me for any thoughts and sympathies that may appear between the lines.

After entering at 4 PM, after almost an hour’s queue, the Leeches, the only Italian band that will open the Festival, had already begun playing. Good, relatively unknown to most of the people there, of course, but they move well on stage, the singer calls us "his banana-pulling piggies", jokes, interacts.. they spread joy, in short, and they don't bore you to death, as unfortunately (or fortunately) the next two bands will. I didn't know All Time Low before the concert, but they disappointed me quite a bit: they play a deliciously commercial pop-punk, a style already heard and re-heard. They seemed off-key even in the performance. However, here's one of the best moments of the entire day: Mark from Blink 182 makes his way onto the stage and throws water and stickers, while the chords of "Dammit" are being played. Needless to say, general joy and surprise for most of those present. Renewed interest in those coming on stage for everyone else. 

It's 5:30 PM, the heat doesn't stop, and under the stage, there is already a disproportionate number of empty bottles. It's the turn of the first of the two Canadian bands, Simple Plan. I already disliked them before. But I would have given a negative analysis in any case: the four start well, to be fair, they play all the hits that have been on MTV a thousand times and that everyone has heard inevitably. Then they get lost in their fairy world and continue with a painfully long series of cheesy songs that only the squealing girls know, which makes you fall asleep standing up. A pity.

7:40 PM. Still hot. A significantly larger group of people gathers under the stage compared to before. Guitar intro, "Hell Song". It's time for Sum 41, the other Canadian band. And with "Hell Song", chaos erupts. We immediately find ourselves pushed ten meters back, people are falling and keep screaming at the top of their lungs, a guy passes in front of us crying and holding his stomach. The people in front start pushing back. One could say the real concert begins now. The Canadians play only 50 minutes, though. Ten minutes less than Simple Plan and half an hour less than planned. This could be related to Derick's back problems, the frontman, or the desire to end the Festival earlier (which indeed closes at 10:30 PM instead of midnight). However, there are negative notes: besides playing too little, the four leave without saying goodbye and suddenly, after whipping the crowd into a frenzy with all of their most famous songs. In the end, it almost seems like it was a burden for them to support the Blink. And then they lose themselves by putting a few too many words against Simple Plan; spectacular is Tom's, the guitarist, phrase when after imitating Simple's guitarist's voice and playing the first chords of "Smoke on the Water", he says: "I can do only this!". General laughter but a bottle is nonetheless thrown onto the stage. They leave, bringing much fun but also many doubts.

9:30 PM. Blink 182. The festival headliner band starts well, with famous singles like "First Date" and "Rock Show". In the general euphoria, people sing and mosh, they seem to have gone back to their goofy selves as before, before the split. However, the first doubts soon emerge: Mark is off-key, mangles words, and doesn't sing in rhythm. This obviously doesn't have any effect on the die-hard fans, but for those there not only for them, it becomes noticeable. Mid-performance, Blink retreats for five minutes, and in testimony to what was said, a "SUM 41, SUM 41" chant is raised. They return, Travis's platform lifts, and he performs a show that for most would be worth the ticket price: Travis is truly phenomenal, among the best drummers in the world. Precise, punctual, and powerful, he executes a ten-minute solo, at times even playing upside down. Really impressive. Then they start playing again, and earlier doubts resurface. "Dumpweed", "Dammit", "Adam's Song", "What's my age Again", "All the Small Things": the big hits sound like different songs, sung by Mark, who really seems to have lost the high pitch of the past, favoring a voice incapable of reaching the higher notes. At times, he even seems to fragment.

As mentioned before, the festival closes at 10:30 PM, and the 35,000 leave with more joy than disappointment, certainly, but the I-Day could have been better. The acoustics and the postation sound system also leave many doubts. Despite the flaws, the most memorable performance remains that of Sum 41. The Blink, after having a reunion perfectly commercialized, perhaps do not realize that it’s not 1999, and they are not the only ones in the music scene anymore.

Overall rating for the day 8.5. Despite everything, would do it a thousand more times.

I apologize for any mistakes, but I don’t really feel like re-reading.