MÅNESKIN – Hammerstein Ballroom 12/3/23

Review by Emily McCormack

If you haven’t heard of Måneskin… where have you been?!

Måneskin is a four piece Italian rock band who won Eurovision 2021 with their hit single “ZITTI E BUOINI.” I first heard pieces of the song on social media and finally listened to it on my own… while I must admit I don’t know Italian whatsoever, I fell in love with this band. You might know them from their 2017 cover of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’ “Beggin’” which took the world by storm. Regardless of how you heard of them (or if this article is your introduction to them), it’s time we appreciate this gorgeous band and their live performance in New York City in December 2022. 

I’ve listened to this band since some friends practically forced me to do so over a year ago, and I thank them profusely (so much so, that I brought one of them with me!) I’ve neem playing Måneskin’s recent singles “SUPERMODEL” and “THE LONLIEST” on my show Nine of the Times all semester in preparation to see one of the most beautiful bands on this planet.

 I went to this concert with my mom and my best friend Madeline – After some parking trouble, we didn’t anticipate walking around two corners of the block to find the back of the line. I was surprised the Hammerstein Ballroom could even fit the amount of people waiting outside! 

One good thing about this line was I had the chance to appreciate everyone’s outfits… The Måneskin crowd is among the best dressed audiences I’ve seen!

After an hour, we finally made it inside the venue! Somehow, despite all the people outside, the venue didn’t feel overpacked! We planted ourselves in the middle of the floor and anxiously waited for the show to begin. 

Fun fact: There were no openers for this tour. The only other times I’ve seen this was for anniversary tours, and ones where the openers cancelled last minute. This didn’t take from the experience at all though!

Måneskin opened with their unreleased song “KOOL KIDS.” I appreciate when bands perform unreleased songs like this, because once it debuts you can say that you’ve heard it before the studio version! 

From the first song on, I could only ever really get a good look at Ethan Torchio because the drums were elevated. At some points I noticed myself watching parts of the show through others’ phones. I did catch a glimpse of everyone else every now and then though!

They performed some songs I’ve been listening to on repeat, including “CORALINE” and “MAMMAMIA.” I was also introduced to some songs, such as “Close to the Top,” “TOUCH ME,” and “IN NOME DEL PADRE.”

They played some epic covers including The Stooges’ “I Wanna Be Your Dog” and The Who’s “My Generation,” and of course their rendition of “Beggin’.”

My favorite song of the night turns out to be guitarist Thomas Raggi’s favorite song to perform live: “FOR YOUR LOVE.” I’ve always been drawn to both the instrumentals and vocals of this song since I heard it over a year ago- needless to say, this one brought a huge smile to my face!

To close out the night, Måneskin performed their iconic song “I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE” for a second time! The best part of this was when the band asked everyone to crouch down for a little bit and I was finally able to see the stage without standing on my tippy toes. The band also invited the first couple rows of fans to join them on stage! You can really tell that Måneskin loves to have fun on stage and appreciate their fans!

Måneskin’s album “RUSH” will debut on January 20, 2023. I’m looking forward to listening, and I will definitely keep an eye out for their next North American tour!