“I wanted to stay here with you for another five hours, six hours, until tomorrow morning,” Ivete Sangalo admitted towards the end of the concert, completing another inevitable return to the City of Rock. The feeling must have been mutual, given the excitement the Brazilian continued to inspire in a very loyal Portuguese public.

Throughout its nine editions, Rock in Rio Lisboa has always called out former Banda singer Eva (in 2016 it even called out to her more than once when the singer replaced Ariana Grande), to the point where the festival and the Bahian artist have become inseparable.

In 2022, the collaboration shows no signs of fatigue. Yvete Sangalo brought the energy, determination and success expected of her (“Abalou”, “Sorte Grande”, “Eva” or “Arerê”), filming them along with the orchestra, choir and dancers, which increased the feeling of constant adrenaline. .

The party was complemented by a virtual duet with Gloria Grove or colorful geometric shapes on the stage and animation on the screen in the background, but the biggest special effect of the singer’s show is herself: a find that hardly anyone disagrees with, defining more or less with the music , which does not end in axé (and for many, the artist is the queen of the genre) or the MPB declension. Funk was the engine behind some more tumultuous moments, sometimes complemented by winks to more danceable electronics, in another certificate of professionalism that helped make a return to Rock City all but guaranteed. Then comes the tenth issue…

There are lights that never go out

Another singer who performed on her own behalf at the Mundo Stage, Ellie Goulding, did not make the same impression, although she managed to leave a significant part of the audience with their hands up and the light of a mobile phone illuminating the stage. the venue – in a place that once belonged to lighters – in “Love Me Like You Do” (a song that took on other flights as part of the Fifty Shades of Gray soundtrack).

Saved for the end of the concert, it along with “Lights” was one of the highlights at a time that, for many, would have been the most suitable for dinner – after the performances of David Carreira and Yvete Sangalo. and before the Black Eyed Peas headlining stage.

“Maybe you know this, sing with me,” the Brit urged before “Burn,” another example of her electronic pop that helped make the final cut the most coveted segment for an audience with many teenagers (above all females) in front rows.

Ending the evening at the Mundo Stage, the Black Eyed Peas took the exuberance of illuminated mobile phones to a new level upon their return to City of Rock (which they haven’t visited since 2004). New single Don’t You Worry, collaboration with Shakira and David Guetta (both highly acclaimed by will.i.am), return to old themes, wink to the Corona classic (“The Rhythm of the Night”, integrated into “Ritmo (Bad Boys For Life)” ), Madonna (“La Isla Bonita”, remembered in “Mamacita”) or the White Stripes (“Seven Nation Army”) and did not avoid new mixtures in the Latin mode, taking advantage of the emergence of reggaeton.

This time without Fergie, who left the band in 2017 to devote herself to motherhood, the Americans introduced the Portuguese public to a new singer, J. Rey Soul, unconditionally welcomed in a crowded hall to the sounds of “Boom Boom Pow”. will.i.am, especially outgoing, thanked the band for their support in both formations, praised Britney Spears’ period of “pure freedom and happiness” (with whom he collaborated on “Scream & Shout” and “Work Bitch”), and never dropped his cell phone. which he filmed the show for live streaming on his Instagram account.

“Pump It” (the theme, which includes Dick Dale’s exuberant “Misirlou” immortalized on the Pulp Fiction soundtrack), accompanied by pyrotechnics, was one of the most acclaimed first moments, later followed by “Where’s the love?” ?” or “I Got a Feeling” (oddly repetitive), like other membership peaks.

If the effect of these singles was already expected, it was a surprise that will.i.am suggested that they return to “Don’t You Worry”, this time for a video review. “Let’s sit down like we’re family,” he urged. So he did with apl.de.ap, Taboo and J. Rey Soul, singing the song while looking at the screen behind the stage. A moment of relative calm, coupled with a no-nonsense marketing maneuver that has so far not compromised one of the festival’s biggest exposures so far.

When to Arrive Early

And now for something completely different… From Miami to Rock City, Magdalena Bay has presented her distinct take on electronic pop music, which has been praised with several singles, three EPs and an album (“Mercurial World”, released last year) ). ).

Vocalist Mika Tenenbaum and producer Matthew Levine, who also played keyboards, guitar and bass live, appeared on the Rock Your Street stage accompanied by a drummer and offered songs as colorful as the clothes they wore.

A collection of house, electro or disco-flavoured sweets, the line-up served up singles like “You Lose” or “Dreamcatch” in an alternation of themes, sometimes whispery and suggestive, sometimes saturated and begging for a mirror ball. . “Three, four, down to the floor / Lose control, a little more,” Tenenbaum urged the inviting “Chairy.”

But unlike the crowded room, as in the twilight the day before (at concerts by Sarah Correia or Bombino), the group was greeted by several dozen spectators at the wrong time, starting at 3:30 pm. But at least one of them, a serious contender for the main fan trophy, danced on stage throughout the performance. The band receives an award for the festival’s best kept secret, proving that it’s not just the result of studio illusions, and knows how to transpose their songs on stage. Turning on the stage for an event that has rock in its title: Levin grabbed an electric guitar on “Good Intentions” for an apotheotic finale, nothing short of a thrill for many headliners.

The much more popular Bruno Pernadas show confirmed the diversity of Rock Your Street programming. And this eclecticism is also one of the characteristics of the sonic boiler that marks the discography of the Lisbon composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist. “Private Reasons”, the most recent album released last year, continues this trend and was released in the late afternoon, in the big band format that was usual for their live songs.

Bruno Pernadas” data-title=”Bruno Pernadas – Rock in Rio Lisboa: Hurricane Yvete Sangalo, Black Eyed Peas XL video and the most eclectic street in the city – SAPO Mag”>

Taking charge of the guitar, Pernadas was accompanied by six musicians, which included brass (trumpet, saxophone, sometimes flute), bass, keyboards and drums, while instrumentalists Margarida Campelo and Afonso Cruz also played vocals. From jazz to tribal echoes, from exotic spices to flirting with space disco towards the end (with the right to vocoder), the performance showed a close-knit group whose performance on stage is obvious, and who were not without requests from inside and outside the doors.

With guitar and trumpet bits creating some of the highest boiling points, as opposed to more languid and slippery themes (and mostly instrumental or often using the voice as instrument), a journey where an expressive and interested person would end up with “Galaxy” . “. And despite the eclecticism still recurring, there are other galaxies to explore in this discography, noted the musician in an interview with SAPO Mag.

Rock in Rio Lisboa 2022 returns on June 25th and 26th at Parque da Bela Vista. Duran Duran, Anitta, Post Malone, A-ha and Bush are some of the names that will perform on the second weekend of the ninth festival.