Jamiroquai
Bologna Palamalaguti - 01/10/05

LA RECENSIONE

I really wanted to see them. Let's see, I told myself, if this English sprite, incredibly rich and spoiled, can make music or just lives off stardom.
Well: busted, and I'm happy about it.

Leaving behind the first acid jazz period, and especially (unfortunately) now without the loyal Tobey Smith and Stuart Zender, the new Jason Kay returns with eclectic sounds, disco splashes, and little rock cracks à la Sly and Family Stone.
The Palamalaguti quickly fills up: the atmosphere is very warm. The band is introduced by some very groovy music, the little guy arrives stealthily, wearing a black tracksuit that screams 892-892, and the usual feathered headdress. During the first few songs, I feel like going straight to the mixer and giving the sound tech a piece of my mind: you can tell Jason wants to sing, but his microphone is often overshadowed by the rest of the band.
"Canned Heat", "Little L", "Seven Days"... all famous, smashing tracks, in which Matt Johnson's excellent work on the keyboards stands out. But the real discovery is McKenzie's drumming: he's no drummer. He's a machine, an octopus relentlessly grinding grooves. And slowly, Jason takes control of the situation: little to no stardom, barely any, few suggestive moves, and a strong desire for soul.
A fantastic intro leads into "Alright", practically accompanied by an entire arena jumping with hands in the air.
Beautiful lights, excellent music, played cohesively and with little sycophancy (as I initially feared...). The leader surprised me with his apparent humility and his desire to appear as just a simple vocalist, without sycophancy and various stardoms.
In the end, I leave satisfied from a great concert that pleasantly surprised me.