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Rating: 7 years. Fans of the place have been waiting for this moment for 7 years. Here we are.
The family man sitting next to me makes a strange face for half of the concert, as if he couldn't believe what he was witnessing. It was particularly curious to see his expressions of (amused) disapproval and (poorly hidden) embarrassment when hearing words like "sborra", "cazzo", "puttana", "culo" flow like a raging river. Not to mention when during "Il vitello dai piedi di Balsa" Mangoni makes the theatrical gesture of screwing Elio-Catoblepa: and there goes the rock. Perhaps he thought he would see something more "television-like". But here it was 90% (or almost) Elio, in one of the rare occasions when it was possible to enjoy him also in southern Italy, after 7 years.
All this took place inside the Altomonte Amphitheater (CS), which is truthfully somewhat cramped: the idea of making people sit for over 2 hours on cement without being able to move was crazy, even more insane was the idea of reserving the front rows for the "authorities" and "recommended" people with a pass. Beyond these bitter considerations, which justify the non-full rating of the concert, let's move on to describe the performance of our favorite artists.
The differences compared to the 1999 tour (which I had the chance to see) are significant: first of all, alongside the cordial and very likable Rocco Tanica is the second keyboardist Jantoman, accompanied as usual by the beats of Christian "human-octopus" Meyer. However, the main role belongs to Tanica, capable of terrifying symphonic interludes and capable of making people laugh during the intermission where he "imitates" Fossati, and talks to Bisio about "his" new CD ("Canzoni noiose", subtitle "Songs that, however, if you look closely, but really closely, are not so bad after all"). All of this with "Osteria numero mille" and real sparks (!) on stage.
As you might have guessed (and as both the gentleman mentioned above and the splendid young lady I commented on many parts with understood), our artists present in this show a "middle ground" between theater and music: in fact, the stage was literally furnished with nightstands, a sofa, armchairs, a bed, a table, and a fridge(!). It was truly hilarious to witness Elio-monociglio singing literally sprawled out between a digression on the flute and another, while Faso and Cesareo churned out notes as if it were nothing.
The show was accompanied by the brief interludes of Bisio, capable of involving even non-fans (a good part of the audience, who came at the comedian's call), and also of excellently singing some classics ("Cara ti amo"). I was very pleased by the proposal, at the start, of "La saga di Addolorato", one of the band's funniest and best-orchestrated pieces. Not to mention the classics "Mio cuggino", "Nubi di ieri sul nostro domani odierno", and "Tapparella".
A small "reproach" would have to be made for not delighting us with the hard rock of "John Holmes", but you know, time passes for everyone except the fans. Among the memorable moments, the "Shpalman" medley proposed almost "by chance" by Tanica, the disguise complete with hood and daisies in hand by Mangoni, the timeless "Supergiovane" bouncing and running (and causing a little too much embarrassment among the audience who doesn't know it), and another totally unexpected piece, namely the intro of "Farmacista", with Faso and Bisio in lab coats, Cesareo dressed as a woman complete with a wig, and Elio-addict with a tourniquet and "che cazzo volete".
An unforgettable evening, it's a real shame that the CD on sale at the venue only includes the first part of the concert (well recorded, true, but we would have wanted the complete version!). I won't dwell on the perfect performance and technical delivery, only noting some moments of muddled guitar work likely not due to lack of skill but to the structure of the place.
And now, let's just hope that another 7 years don't pass...
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