Dinosaur Jr + Verdena

Un Giorno Del Tutto Differente

This was the name given to the day entirely dedicated to homegrown emerging alternative rock at Ferrara Sotto Le Stelle, one of the events that is rightfully earning itself a place of great prominence on the Italian music scene. The organisers, mindful of the huge success of last year's "Tempesta Sotto Le Stelle" (Tre Allegri Ragazzi Morti, Teatro Degli Orrori, Sick Tamburo, Luci Della Centrale Elettrica among others) entrusted the day's artistic direction to Verdena, fresh off the huge success of their latest work, "Wow", on the verge of going gold. Spread across two stages, some of the most interesting new names in Italian rock gathered together, under the curatorship of Alberto Ferrari & Co., always keen to promote new music not just from their native Bergamo scene, but well beyond it.

The small handful of kids who, hours before the gates open (scheduled for 6pm), are already right at the front of the stage get a close-up view of the soundcheck by Jennifer Gentle, who, exceptionally for tonight, will be playing with brothers Alberto and Luca Ferrari. In particular, the latter chats at length with fans, poses for photos and signs autographs, while his brother goes up and down from the stage several times, drawing the attention of both fans and crew, and bassist Roberta hops about here and there filming and taking pictures - so much for anyone who still thinks Verdena are aloof and reclusive. For the lucky few, the utterly different day has already begun. Well past 6pm, the stage area is cleared and the "chosen ones" quickly swell the huge crowd already waiting behind the gates in front of Piazza Castello. The soundcheck kicks into gear: Luca strikes up "Communication Breakdown" by Led Zeppelin, immediately joined by his brother and by Marco Fasolo, Jennifer Gentle's guitarist, while the crowd looks on rubbing their hands together. Once the gates open, the race for the best spots begins; a friend, clinging tightly to the front row, gestures wildly at me - something I only understand later: the lovely Roberta is down on the ground filming our mad dash, helped by Alberto's partner, Nora.

Once the shock wears off, the day gets straight into gear: with Luca already back behind the drums, Jennifer Gentle take the stage, along with Alberto, on bass for the occasion. The psychedelic band play at their best: the Barrett-esque sounds, embellished with a few modern experimental touches, are engaging and, for long stretches, powerful; the Ferrari brothers' contribution is excellent, including a surprising turn from Alberto on bass, all grins rarely returned by the Padua band's frontman. Overall, it's an experiment that manages to win appreciation but, perhaps due to the short time allotted, fails to truly excite a crowd that doesn't quite realise how lucky they are to see, even if only for twenty minutes, four of the finest artists the Italian scene has to offer playing together.

New talent in the inner courtyard

The crowd then moves into the wonderful setting of the inner courtyard of the Castello Estense, apart from a group of die-hards who stay behind to defend their spot at the front of the Piazza, getting up only to ask Roberta - who's hanging around near the stage - for a photo and an autograph. It's 7:10pm, and on the small indoor stage the Spread set begins: a powerful, aggressive band from Bergamo (Spread) with a curious sound suspended between psychedelia, stoner-rock and grunge, all tied together by a violin; a genuinely original and fascinating mix, especially considering the irony of the lyrics - you have to hear it to believe it.

But the small stage still has its biggest surprise in store: his name is Jacopo Incani, known on stage as Iosonouncane, a joy for anyone with an ear for singer-songwriter craft and genuine novelty. Despite having little time on stage, the young Sardinian from Buggerru delivers a mix never seen before, blending techno sonorities (which made the rockers in attendance turn up their noses), touching acoustic pieces, and remixes of voices, sounds and lyrics of protest and urban feeling; impossible to dislike, and definitely one to follow.

At around 8:10pm it's the turn of Sakee Sed, another band from Bergamo, purveyors of a distinctly out-of-the-ordinary indie-rock with dark undertones, fascinating arrangements of guitars, drums and keyboards, and a stage presence that's genuinely rare.

The vibrations of Aucan, the experience of Dinosaur Jr., the magic of Verdena

Shortly before 9pm, the crowd at the indoor stage starts to disperse (including Alberto, who had just been chatting with some audience members) and flows back into filling up the Piazza. It's time for Aucan, for me personally the most beautiful surprise of the evening. The band from Brescia, led by Giovanni Ferliga, mix together electronic rock, post-rock, dubstep and experimental music, delivering a live show that's exceptional in both impact and power.

The three of them, lined up with the drums in the middle, even make use of two synthesizers, guitar and bass, and move around the stage swaying as if utterly overtaken by their own music. The crowd gives back just as much enjoyment: the extremely loud bass reverberates off the barriers, making them shake, and rises right into your chest; everything vibrates, the rhythms make it impossible to stand still, and looks of surprise and involvement spread contagiously through the crowd. The rest is pure adrenaline, from the first song to the last without a single break. A source of Italian pride that's earning thoroughly deserved praise across electronic Europe.

Still shaken by the last show, those who haven't already done so head for the well-stocked food and drink stalls. Meanwhile on stage the technicians set up the wall of enormous Marshalls just a short distance from the crowd: an unmistakable sign that the evening's headliners are about to perform - Dinosaur Jr., forever one of the loudest bands in rock history. Voices in the crowd claim to have seen the three of them having a hearty dinner at the restaurant across from the square, but out of nowhere, half an hour before the show is due to start, Murph appears to test the drums, flashing a few smiles at the cheering crowd and snapping some photos from his spot - a decidedly privileged vantage point from which to take in the now packed-to-capacity square.

At around 10pm, guitarist Mascis's long, shock-white hair peeks out from behind the stage and is greeted with a roar from the thousands of fans. The evening's setlist is a flattering one: the masterpiece "Bug" performed in full; with little fuss, a quick greeting, and the opening track, "Freak Scene", already gets a pit going in the middle of the crowd. The show runs smooth as silk, the songs are simple, Mascis's solos are powerful stabs to the ears full of distortion, flourishes and boundless class and experience; the volume is so high it's almost impossible to make out the vocals, and at times even the drums are overwhelmed by it. In particular, the performance of "Let It Ride" was, in my opinion, the best of the whole show: grunge in both structure and sound, this fifth track from "Bug" felt, more than any other, like a genuine leap back into the '90s for everyone present - a decade that feels so distant yet remains fundamental for so much of modern music.

A few short pauses, and everything proceeds without a hitch until Lou Barlow's shouts of "Perché non vi piaccio?" - mercifully switched back to English as "Why don't you like me?" - herald the album's final track, "Don't". In a typically noise-rock, almost catatonic finale full of solos and distorted improvisation, the band leaves the stage, only to return shortly after. Next up is "The Wagon", their biggest hit, also performed masterfully. Even though Barlow urges the crowd to cheer for "Verdana" (watching it all from close by), the fired-up crowd refuses to let the band go, and they respond with two more songs, "In A Jar" and a cover of The Cure's "Just Like Heaven".

Even though none of the songs played belong to the last two decades of music, "Bug" still sounds incredibly modern thanks to its simple yet powerful, direct sound and its enormous appeal when played live. All in all, eighty thoroughly over-the-top minutes from a historic band, revolutionary in its time and technically superb, hugely appreciated by those who'd come mainly for the other shows of the day, and genuinely moving for the fans who had been waiting years for their return to Italy.

A half-hour stage changeover, used mainly to dismantle and haul away tons of amplifiers, gives ears still numbed by Mascis and co.'s sublime power a chance to recover. In a kind of passing of the torch between rock's fathers and sons, after Dinosaur Jr. the slender figure of Alberto Ferrari reappears, this time seated at the piano. "Good evening, we are Verdena." It's 11:30pm when the first notes of "Sorriso In Spiaggia", a two-part track from "Wow", ring out across Piazza Castello.

The sound quality delivered by the band from Bergamo is disarming: Alberto switches between piano, guitar and bass with great energy and ease, smiling and trading quips with the crowd; Roberta, flawless on bass, bounces around the stage like a teenager and thanks the crowd after every song, who cheer her on with chants; Luca's drumming, whether a powerful rhythmic backbone or a gentle accompaniment as needed, proves even more essential to the more relaxed sound of the latest album.

Backed by the multi-instrumentalist Omid, equally skilled on piano and guitar, the classic songs are adapted to the band's new style without losing any power, and even gain a stronger hold than before, while the introduction of keyboards places the new tracks in a refined, engaging and captivating atmosphere; a sort of double soul, split between tenderness and destruction, coming together into something compelling and brilliant - a truly magical trap of different styles, sounds and lights that it's a pleasure to be caught in.

Within just a handful of songs, then, the set moves from the acoustic space-rock of "Razzi Arpia Inferno" and "Fiamme" to the hallucinated stoner distortions of Don Calisto, from the Beatles homage of "Rossella Roll Over" to the romantic notes of "Canzone Ostinata". The thoroughly compelling setlist can be seen as a mix of old classics like "Elefante" and "Logorrea", both from 2004, the hit "Muori Delay" from "Requiem", and even the band's very first song, "Valvonauta", all reworked to fit the band's new direction and woven in alongside the "new classics" from "Wow", among which the magnificent "Miglioramento" and "Nuova Luce" deserve special mention for how they landed with the crowd. Worth remembering in particular, during the performance of the latter, was one amusing episode: part of Luca's drum kit collapsed, drawing a few wicked laughs from his brother.

"Guys, it's insane playing after Dinosaur Jr.", Alberto says halfway through the set. And perhaps that humility is exactly the secret of these guys, who, after selling out venues across Italy on a scale never seen before and earning well-deserved visibility, haven't let it go to their heads, continuing instead to focus solely on perfecting their music with a seriousness and dedication that's truly out of the ordinary. And so the same guys who, shortly before, had been standing among the crowd talking about rock, warmly and generously handing out autographs and photos to their (often disbelieving) fans, now climb on stage like three perfectly ordinary guys, setting in motion what many consider to be the revolution of Italian rock.

And the concert's final songs, "È Solo Lunedì" (a poignant tribute to Lucio Battisti) and "Lei Disse" (added to the setlist only at the last minute), both performed on piano and slightly reworked from their studio versions, show a newfound ease on stage as well as the band's growing technical and collective maturity.

"Un Giorno Del Tutto Differente" is now over, but it will remain a delightful memory for everyone who witnessed it, and for industry insiders a sign that something is stirring in the Italian alternative rock scene, with plenty of new talent being led by the excellent Verdena. Time, and record labels hopefully more open to new things, will determine whether this promising music scene really has "the strength to pull off the revolution in one go", as proudly proclaimed in the lyrics of "Miglioramento". After all, that's what every music lover hopes for.

Ride the wave of great music

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