By Santiago Rivas @rivas_santiago
Photo by Simona Malaika @simonamalaika
Unlike Saturday, which I arrived at with absolutely no motivation, only to be bored by the homogenization, this was a wonderful day to be at Rock al Parque. For me, it's the most interesting day, even if it's not considered the most "diverse.". It's a reflection of what Rock al Parque should be: a festival full of new and interesting sounds, with bands that don't necessarily cost an arm and a leg to bring. and from which our rock scene, so lacking in new ideas, can draw inspiration.
It was also a day filled with clear political commitments and powerful speeches, from all sides. The Coup, Total Chaos, Zalama Crew, Desorden Público, Chancha Vía, Atari Teenage Riot, even Koyi-K-Utho. You don't have to agree with everyone, but it's worth mentioning because we need our music to have a voice, to see if we can stop being a spineless country, devoured by polarization and the war business. The most notable of all was the presence of Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars. Impossible to ignore. Anyone who thinks that dignity cannot be seen or heard is very wrong.. Moreover, dignity is the source of all elegance, and we all learned that this past Sunday, August 16th..
First and foremost, and delving deeper into the eternal debate, it seems to me that yesterday we had proof that, Even when it's not waving the flag of diversity to the point of absurdity, Rock al Parque is a festival with very different faces and sounds.. Being stuck in Colombia has to be good for something.
I decided, without a second thought, that I wasn't going to see Los Pericos, and I left, without remorse. Because POD was never in my plans (life's too short). I see, thanks to social media, that they had a great closing show, which makes me happy for the organizers and the band. Once again, What I like is irrelevant in this case. Sunday is still my favorite day of the festival.
A couple of separate comments (Dear Diary):
Providential testosteroneIt's worth noting that Ilabash, in addition to their catchy island sounds, brought a real "female Viagra" to the festival: the overwhelming masculinity of their singer (who's surely a first cousin of the popular Khal Drogo from Game of Thrones), to which all the women succumbed and all the men (straight and gay alike) felt like a cross between Farinelli and Mr. Burns. This isn't a complaint, quite the opposite. Someone please make a cologne out of that man's DNA.
Little camera, little cameraThese aren't just any local friends; they're the folks at Canal Capital, who think television is more important than reality and were busy getting in the way of those of us watching the concert. There are a thousand ways to record video for the park screens without being part of the picture. It can't be that one is trying to see the musicians, but instead has to see a cameraman getting in the way on stage. It's not the camera crew's fault; they're just following orders. It's the fault of the stage manager and the broadcast coordinator, who forgot that while ratings might be important, it's more important that the audience sees what's happening on stage at a concert or music festival. Use your judgment, please.
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