Text by Marcelo Gomes
The festival, which has become a tradition in the city of São Paulo, celebrated its 10th anniversary with a special 3-day edition in Ibirapuera Park, featuring big names in rock and blues. The first day of Best of Blues and Rock included performances by Tom Morello, Extreme, Malvada, and Nanda Moura.
True to its name, the festival's first act was Nanda Moura , who took to the stage dressed in an elegant suit and hat. Accompanied by César Lago (bass), Otávio Rocha (guitar), and Gil Eduardo (drums), renowned musicians from Blues Etílicos , Nanda captured the audience's attention and captivated those unfamiliar with her work by performing blues classics with great skill.
Malvada girls came on next, with the sunset approaching, the band led by vocalist Angel Sberse focused their performance on their debut work, Noite Vai Ferver (2021), in addition to some surprises such as a well-deserved tribute to Rita Lee with "Esse Tal De Rock Enrow," a classic by the band Tutti Frutti. Their original songs "Mais Um Gole" and the band's latest single, "Perfeito Imperfeito," were also part of the setlist.
Another highlight was their cover of Janis Joplin which received a powerful interpretation from Angel. The girls knew how to choose the setlist well, mixing original songs with some covers, and to close, they couldn't leave out a song by the God of guitar, Jimi Hendrix , and they chose the fantastic "Purple Haze," with an incredible performance by Bruna. Despite being a new band, Bruna Tsuruda (guitar ), Marina Langer (bass) , and Juliana Salgado (drums), along with vocalist Angel, showed themselves to be very experienced, using the entire stage and even the two catwalks that were very close to the audience, making a great performance.
One of the most anticipated acts of the day, and about to release their newest album, Six (2023), Extreme started their performance 15 minutes late. Formed by Gary Cherone (vocals), Nuno Bettencourt (guitar), Pat Badger (bass), and Kevin Figueiredo (drums), they made any dissatisfaction with the delay disappear in seconds. With the stage lights dimmed and in a suspenseful atmosphere, Nuno began to solo, demonstrating why he is one of the leading guitarists of today. The performance began with "Decadence Dance," followed by "#Rebel" from the upcoming album, Six , a heavy track that recalls the elements that made the band famous. The American hard rock continued with "It's a Monster," at which point even the cold didn't seem to bother them anymore. The song's incredible solo, executed perfectly by Bettencourt, drove the fans wild.
The guys weren't wasting any time, they played "Rest In Peace". A short improvisation by the guitarist preceded the track "Am I Ever Gonna Change". The first interaction with the audience came from the guitarist to announce more new music, "Banshee," which begins with a powerful riff. The reception of the new songs was excellent; after so long without releasing new material, the new singles they had presented so far pleased the fans. Then, drummer Kevin Figueiredo played a drum groove that was immediately accompanied by the audience's applause. Gary took the opportunity to sing a snippet of Queen's "We Will Rock You" before getting everyone dancing to "Play With Me". Once again, Nuno left the fans stunned with his virtuosity, even being praised by his colleague Cherone.
The guitarist shows he also masters the acoustic guitar and delivers a beautiful solo. This moment preceded one of the most anticipated moments of the show, the mega-hit "More Than Words," performed by the duo Gary and Nuno, which had absolutely everyone singing along. It's no wonder, the song catapulted the band's career, making them known both within and outside of rock. But hard rock isn't just about ballads; the funk groove of "Cupid's Dead" gets everyone moving, as does the new song, "Rise," with another great guitar riff and a stupendous solo that once again surprised with its creativity and complexity.
The show was drawing to a close, but there was still time for the hit “Hole Hearted,” the instrumental “Flight Of The Wounded Bumblebee,” in which Bettencourt showed that his technique was still sharp, and the grand finale was “Get The Funk Out” with a special guest appearance by Brazilian guitarist Mateus Asato in a breathtaking duet with Nuno. The performance that Extreme delivered was impressive; after 8 years without performing in Brazil and with Nuno having a knee injury, the band managed to surprise and showed that they still have a lot of fuel left in the tank.
To close the first night of the Best Of Blues and Rock festival, guitarist Tom Morello presented several facets unknown to most of the audience. Famous mainly for being a member of Rage Against The Machine and Audioslave , the musician showcased his singing side in original songs and a more traditional approach to the instrument.
He opened the show singing “One Man Revolution” from his solo album The Nightwatchman (2007), something that a large part of the audience was unfamiliar with. The sequence with “Let’s The Party Started” from the album The Atlas Underground and “Hold The Line” followed more in the Rage Against The Machine style. Tom said this show was about love, peace, equality, rock n’ roll and against fascism. To the delight of the fans, the guitarist played a medley of Rage Against The Machine songs, including “Bombtrack”, “Bulls On Parade”, “Guerrilla Radio”, among others that helped warm up the cold night with biting winds that plagued Friday. And it didn't stop there; emotion took over when Morello dedicated Audioslave's “Like A Stone” to the late vocalist Chris Cornell.
Hendrix was once again honored with an instrumental version of "Voodoo Child." The collaboration with Maneskin on the track "Gossip" was also present in the setlist, with vocals by guitarist Carl Restivo . A song that positively surprised was "Cato Stedman & Neptune Frost," a bluesy track full of feeling that showcases the guitarist's various facets while still presenting his characteristic sound, simulating scratches at some point in the solo. Of course, Tom received affection from the fans during the show, even those completely unfamiliar with his solo songs, but what the fans really wanted was to hear the classics from Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave.
Morello prepared another medley of songs from his former band, including "Testify," "Freedom," and "Guetto Blaster," which really got the crowd excited, eager for this kind of material. But the biggest surprise of the show was yet to come. The guitarist invited Gary Cherone and Nuno Bettencourt to participate in the song "Cochise," a classic by Audioslave. Gary delivered a powerful vocal performance while Nuno played and contributed backing vocals. It was one of the most memorable and emotional moments of the night. They received a standing ovation, and rightfully so; it was an unusual encounter that left its mark on the festival.
Another great moment was when Morello asked everyone to sing the next song, which was none other than the anthem “Killing In The Name” by Rage Against The Machine. He turned the microphone to the audience, who did their homework with flying colors. Vocalist Zack De La Rocha be proud seeing that. It was an apotheotic ending. If it had ended there, it would have been good enough, but they still had an ace up their sleeve. They played John Lennon with the guys from Extreme and guitarist Steve Vai on stage singing, and thus, they ended the first night of the Best Of Blues and Rock festival with a flourish.
Our contributor Leca Suzuki was present at the event and captured the performances of Extreme and Tom Morello. Check out the photo gallery at the end of this article.
