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Rating: How things change in a year; you can see it in Arezzo, for example. For those arriving in the first week of July, the welcoming banner that reads "Arezzo Wave" is no longer there, or rather, the banner is still there and so is the live music, only the name has changed, becoming "Play Art Arezzo Festival."
The program is truly of high quality, mixing music with art, literature, and theater; in short, at first glance, one might say that the structure is that of Arezzo Wave, only with dimensions limited to the city center. The wave of Italian music on Saturday, July 7, constituted the penultimate stage of a festival that opened with Peter Gabriel on the 5th, continued with the comedic interlude of Paolo Rossi on the 6th, and was destined to close with the evening of Sunday the 8th, in which Lou Reed would reprise his "Berlin." The lineup for this Italian evening includes, in order of appearance: New Story, Gleba, Verdena, Roy Paci and Aretuska, and, closing, the homecoming of those who found success starting right from the land of the Saracen: Negrita.
Arriving in Arezzo, hunger begins to set in, so at 19:30, I find myself choosing between dinner and the show of New Story; the choice falls on the former, but once my stomach is full, I make it into Piazza Grande just in time to see Gleba's performance wrap up: this group, with only one album to their credit, still manages to capture the attention of those present, and the few songs I hear give me hope. The show continues with Verdena who take us into the evening, mainly offering pieces from "Requiem," their latest work; above all stands out "Angie" played on the keyboard: beautiful and moving, a goosebump moment. Unfortunately, Alberto can't hear his voice; his continuous grimaces directed at the technicians don't seem to resolve much; so, after describing the situation bluntly by saying, "I can't hear a damn thing!", reaching the last piece and after almost an hour of performance, the singer-guitarist starts kicking the microphone stand. Luca, the drummer, for his part, throws one of the drums to the ground, then gets up and brings another one towards the technicians' position on stage. Thus ends Verdena's performance.
Night has already fallen on the evocative setting of Piazza Grande when Roy Paci and the Aretuska take the stage: they immediately open with an instrumental piece in which Roy nails a great trumpet solo, too bad the microphone is the same as Alberto's from Verdena and, therefore, almost nothing can be heard; finally, the technicians understand and after a while everything is sorted out. Meanwhile, it seems a lot more people have arrived, the square goes wild to the rhythm of the Sicilian band's songs, and even I, initially reluctant, caught between recovering from Verdena and waiting for Negrita, let myself get swept away in this dancing whirlpool.
Finally, the moment arrives: Franky, Pau, Mac, and Drigo make their entrance and immediately start with "Mamamaé." The rest is the group's history: "Transalcolico," "Negativo," "Greta," "Bambole," "Cambio," "Sex," "Rotolando verso sud" (the latter in duet with Roy Paci who performs the trumpet parts) accompany us towards "A modo mio" (closing piece), making the absence of ballads like "Ho imparato a sognare" and "Hemingway" felt in the lineup. In addition, the group also offers some new pieces that will appear in the next album. There's all the live energy of Negrita on this hot July evening: it's them urging the crowd to go wild. The audience certainly doesn't need to be asked twice and is rewarded with a little gift at the end of the show: a version of "Mamamaé" with rougher guitars and a drumbeat that marks the rhythm quickly and relentlessly.
The night DJ set through the city streets has already started as I move away from the square and comment on the concert I've just seen with friends: great evening, a positive note also goes to the ticket price (10 euros)... too bad for those issues during Verdena's set.
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