Måneskin rocks the Garden
The Italian rockers sell out the world's most famous arena in a show filled with surprises
I saw Måneskin for the second time this past Thursday at their sold-out Madison Square Garden show in New York, the third stop on their Rush! World Tour. It was a show filled with different renditions of songs, covers, hits from their recent album Rush! and a bunch of surprises overall which made for an incredible night and historic show.
I first saw the band perform last November at The Fillmore in Philadelphia, just a 2,500-capacity venue. From that performance to seeing them play one of the most famous arenas in the world that holds 20,000 people, it was a surreal experience. Most of the fans I could see from my seat stood the entire show, dancing, singing and playing air guitar along with every song. Even just 13 days out from an ACL reconstruction surgery, I had this show on my calendar for months and wasn’t going to let anything prevent me from going. I applied for accessible seats and was able to take elevators throughout the night, preserving my energy for the show, and ended up standing and dancing in all the ways I was capable of!
I have been following Måneskin for the past two years after seeing them blow up on TikTok for their Eurovision win. From there, I scoured YouTube to see their various performances, from busking on the streets of Rome to playing huge international venues and festivals.
Many people in this generation have thought of rock bands as something of the past, as it is very difficult to make it, let alone in the genre of rock, which has seen some of the biggest bands and songwriters of all time. Some have even said the age of true rock and roll is over. Yet Måneskin has become an anomaly and defied criticisms and stereotypes, garnering fans from all over the world and of all different ages. I introduced my dad to them when I first started listening and he has become a fan of Damiano’s voice, Ethan’s steady hand on the drums, Thomas’s incredible range on the guitar and Victoria’s ability to mesmerize any crowd on bass.
I also appreciate Måneskin for their ability to stand out and be different. They are known for their distinct style and staying true to themselves, and this fully shines during their concerts in their outfits, addressing the crowd and embracing their fans. Each show, the band brings up a select dozen or so fans for one song to dance with them. Also, many times during the show, both Victoria and Thomas go down into the pit and crowd-surf. Måneskin is one of the best artists I’ve seen at working to bridge that gap between artist and fan, and it is evident how important that is to them. This also came just one week after the band gave away free merch and held a free show in Times Square for fans, inevitably helping them to sell out the MSG show.
During the show, Måneskin performed all of their most well-known hits including “For Your Love”, “Gossip” and “Mamma Mia” and their cover of “Beggin”, which catapulted them to stardom after trending on TikTok, and some of their biggest songs off the new Rush! album including “Don’t Wanna Sleep” and “Gasoline.” In addition to these, the group also performed some incredible covers. One of my favorite parts of the whole night was with Thomas on acoustic guitar and Damiano singing “Back to Black” by Amy Winehouse. The group doesn’t need autotune or huge flashy lights and choreography as their talent lies solely in their ability to capture audiences with their instruments, including the sheer power of Damiano’s voice and their lyrics. There were also breaks in the performance that were solely filled with a drum break and bass set from Ethan and Victoria and Thomas’s guitar solos and each one of them continued to capture the audience’s attention.
The band also showed their range in the fact that they aren’t solely a mainstream rock band. Damiano addressed the crowd at one point saying, “We cannot be the last rock band… but maybe we can be the first rap band,” before diving into a rock driven version of Kendrick Lamar’s “Humble”. In the two Måneskin shows I’ve been to, I haven’t known what to expect in the set list and the ad-libbed breaks from Damiano, which makes every show unique and interesting.
And as always, the group ended the show by performing “I Wanna Be Your Slave” a second time, getting the crowd to get down on their knees during the guitar and bass riff before counting down from four and having the entire crowd erupt and dance. The entire night capsulated the power of Måneskin and highlighted their talent as an international rock group to make their way into the American mainstream. I hope and expect to see them again in the future as they release new music and continue to expand their dedicated fanbase.