Manu Chao: Baïonarena Tombolatour

More than a concert... it’s a marathon, a three hour spectacle. From Paris to Tijuana and Detroit to Barcelona, in a big venue or an intimate dive, the equation is sure to be the same: Manu Chao + Radio Bemba = an explosive cocktail. An explosion of joy. Sweating, shouting, jumping… songs coming one after another at the speed of light a short pause then a loud surge of rock and roll. For a newcomer, seeing Manu Chao and Radio Bemba in concert for the first time is always a big surprise. On stage, Manu’s music takes an entirely new dimension from the recorded studio tracks. For the regular concert-going fans, satisfaction is always on the menu. Adrenalin is always there and the amount of energy is staggering. And there’s always more. When Manu announces a last one for the road, he doesn’t mean a last song but that there’s one last hour left in the show. When the musicians leave the stage with Madjid’s heady guitar riffs, they’ll soon return with a blast. Let’s keep the machine rolling! Se fuerza la maquina! A second to catch their breath and they are back. Manu has been following this path for over twenty years, from one country to the other, from town to town, from stage to stage. Today with Radio Bemba, yesterday with Mano Negra. So many memories... The Pigalle Tour, with shows that often ended on the Boulevard de Clichy in Paris. The Cargo 92 Tour, in which the band climbed aboard a ship with street theatre coup Royal Deluxe to tour Latin American port cities: Venezuela during a military coup, Cuba and their political police, Rio de Janiero with Jello Biafra. The endless stories of epic touring adventures go on and on Radio Bemba, Gambeat, Garbancito, David, Julio, Angelo and Madjid are a relentless powerhouse! Few bands manage to convey such energy. There is an inherent element of truth in amps and in their stage shows. It lies in Madjid’s magical fingers, in David’s arms as they beat the rhythm; in Gambeat’s beat box, in Julio’s keyboards and Angelo’s trumpet. Last but not least is Manu with his incessant jumping, his aura on stage magnified by the members of Radio Bemba and, como no, Chuco behind the mixing table, with only one possible setting: full blast! The experience of seeing Manu and Radio Bemba on stage is difficult to put into words. One thing is for certain: a lot of energy is required to experience one of these shows. For French audiences, it was well worth the wait as the band launched their first tour of the country in seven years. The huge La Radiolina tour ended in a truly magical place, the Bayonne Arena.