ELIO AND LE STORIE TESE at the Concertozzo in Biella: the middle school party to which, finally, we were all invited. – Rockon.it

Article by Alessandro Amendolara

I have long since lost count of the concerts of Elio and the Tense Stories that I have seen over the years. But it was only tonight, in Biella, that I understood how the “Concertozzo” is much more than a musical event: it is the tip of the iceberg of a genuinely imperfect organization, capable of transforming an evening of music into an experience with profound social value.

And then there's the rest. When all this happens in the charming pre-Alpine setting that gave you birth – literally a hundred meters from the bedroom where, as a teenager, your best friend Nicolò made you listen to that band for the first time “who said bad words“, stealing the CD from his older brother's secret collection – it is impossible not to have the feeling that, for one evening, a circle has been closed. And at that point, that value also becomes personal.

The “Concertozzo“is the first event in the world in which the organisation, management and administration of food & beverage are entrusted to associations that work every day with autistic and disabled people. But simply defining it as a festival would be an understatement. For two days it manages to transform a quiet provincial context into a place of meeting, discussion and civil participation, where music becomes the pretext to turn the spotlight on a reality that too often remains on the margins of public debate.

To remember it is Nico Acamporafounder of PizzAut and one of the creators of the initiative: today over 600,000 autistic people live in Italy and, according to the most widespread estimates, one child in 77 receives a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. Numbers that tell of a reality that is anything but marginal and which, according to Acampora, continue to clash with resources and services that are still insufficient to guarantee these people a dignified present and a truly inclusive future.

In this sense, the fifth edition of Biella can be considered a success from every point of view. The over 12,000 people present and the sold-out record of the food stands managed by the associations, demonstrate that inclusion and participation can truly proceed in the same direction. More importantly, they demonstrate that the Concertozzo is a model that can work.

And you can feel it well before the amplifiers are turned on. On June 26th different corners of the city hosted meetings, talks and shows dedicated to the themes of inclusion, culminating in the jam session in Piazza Duomo with some members of the band and the many brave people who decided to take the stage. The following day, despite an afternoon of equatorial temperatures, the “Concertozzino” saw very different artists alternate: from the irreverent rock of KuTso to the electronic experiments of SARAFINEpassing through the singer-songwriter intimacy of VIADELLIRONIAthe groove of Planet Butter, Nikki's project“Drone Kong's Supermoon“ and the now cleared and idolized nonsense of Tony Pitony, which we will later find again on the main stage together with EELST

Then, with Swiss precision (thanks to the drummer?) at 8.50pm Medusa Trio, directly from the microphones of Radio Deejay, officially kicks off the Concertozzo. Doing the honors is the “godfather” Valerio Lundini, who introduces the band by announcing their entry “in alphabetical order by musical instrument“.

So let's start with Phasofollowed by the rhythmic trio composed of the Swiss Christian Meyer and his new “wand carers” Riccardo Marchese And Paolo Rubboli. The mythological one then takes the stage Paola Folli – which, incidentally, made me discover (ouch) Maria – the GOAT of Italian guitar playing Cesareanthe keyboard duo formed by Antonello Aguzzi (aka Jantoman) And Vittorio Cosma (aka Carmelo) and, of course, our beloved singer with the thick eyebrows Helium. The dances open with the satire of the moralism of Ocio Ocio.

The group then greets the packed square with a few jokes about the infernal temperatures and further inflames the atmosphere with a barrage of historical songs: the surreal romanticism of CatetoQueneau's exercises in style Chariotthe empirical hyperboles of My little cousinlove in the times of the youth of TVUMDB and the “theme of motherhood” Of Separate binentrusted to the piano by Valerio Lundini.

Another central theme is that of prejudice, addressed in the song Gimmi I.which then leaves room for one of the most iconic pieces of Elia's production: Serfsdefinitive manifesto of the proto-emancipation of the male sub. Time to remove a bruschetta from my eye and we enter the Collodian revisitation of Puppet Without Figs: we all dance on the dance floor but luckily no one slips. Thus we move on to the hypochondriac epic of Gargaroz, which closes the first block of the Concertozzo, to leave the stage to what Elio himself defines as a “fucking genius“: Charles Hamletwith the TG-parody to the tune of Bomba's sexy movement and the salsa-style nonsense catchphrase of “Trittaralla”.

The second part of the concert instead focuses on the actor's vision Mangoniwho identifies with the bovineness of the four characters of the Balsa footed calfbefore keyboardist Carmelo's heartfelt appeal to the public to choose the anthem for the next Olympics, unanimously identified as “I like cock“. It is therefore time for the second Mangonian interpretation: Super youngone of the most prog songs of the entire Elian repertoire… in fact, the Italian “Pinball Wizard”.

We continue with the optometric epic of Louis the Pugilist and follows Naked among nudists (declared EELST tribute to Elvis), which becomes the pretext to welcome the former Spandau Ballet frontman on stageTony Hadley who actually sings Suspicious Mindcontinue with Bridge over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel and obviously closes with “his” Gold, welcomed by the jubilation of a Biella public who was both amused and incredulous.

Nico Acampora and. then take the stage Dante Belisarison of Elio, just seen among Hadley's choristers. At just 16 years old, Dante brings to the stage a testimony about autism experienced firsthand, proudly claiming his own identity and reminding the audience that autistic people are full of talent and potential, as long as they are given the opportunity to express them.

Elio then affectionately “kicks” him off the stage and the band starts again with the reprise of “Il Vitello dai fatti di balsa”, which acts as a hook to Men with Purses ('excellent performance by Carmelo, who takes on the reggae-Venetian verse originally interpreted by Skardy of the Fresh Painting). It is inevitable, then, to celebrate the Italian-Bulgarian friendship with the dance of Pipperoas well as The Vision up close of the female reproductive organ which – with a view to par-condico woke – brings Tony Pitony on stage to propose the Sicilian version dedicated to the male member. The singer then remains on stage switching from his mask to that of Shpalman® (originally played by the absent Rocco Tanica).

We continue with the visceral epicness of Spleenthe Afro-ecological ideas of Sempione Park and of Cameroon and the anthological erotic-aerial tragedy of El Pubebefore the band's rhythm section takes the stage with a long percussion interlude which, in terms of intensity and duration, recalls the legendary solo of Moby Dick by John Bonham. To close the moment “dance” with Discomusic And Born To Be Abraham which lead to a sabbatical train led by the sexy locomotive Mangoni.

With this piece, Elio pretends to close the concert, thanks to the diktat of the local authorities which prevents it from going beyond midnight. But the twelve thousand who gathered have no intention of returning home and call the band back on stage for the most inevitable encore possible: Rolling shutter.

It is a song that explicitly talks about exclusion, about those parties to which, as teenagers, someone was invited and someone else wasn't. But for almost thirty years it has also been something else. Since Feiez has been gone, that final chorus of “Go Sandwich!” it became a way to keep him on stage, concert after concert. When that chorus starts, inevitably, my head also takes another path. I think about how incredible it is that, after almost fifty years, this band still manages to be so credible. I think of those damned middle school parties to which we outsiders were never invited. I wonder if they still exist. I wonder if there are still groups capable of transforming a concert into a collective gesture like the one I just witnessed. Then I stop asking myself questions and shout too:
Go Sandwich.

So grant me one last personal dedication, after having closed my circle just one hundred meters from the bedroom where it all began:
Come on Nico.

ELIO AND THE TESE STORIES – The lineup of the Concertozzo 2026 in Biella

Ocio Ocio
Cateto
Chariot
My little cousin
TVUMDB
Separate Dumpster for the Fruit of Sin (ft. Valerio Lundini)
Gimmi I.
Serfs
Puppet Without Figs
Gargaroz
Interlude with Charles Hamlet
The Balsa-Footed Calf – Part 1
Interlude by Carmelo
Super young
Louis the Pugilist
Naked among nudists
Interlude by Tony Hadley with: Suspicious Mind (Elvis Presley cover), Bridge over Troubled Water (cover Simon & Garfunkel) and Gold (cover Spandau Ballet)
The Balsa-Footed Calf – Reprise
Men with Purses (Girl making out alone)
Pippero
The Vision
Shpalman® (ft. Tony Pitony)
Spleen
Sempione Park
Cameroon
El Pube
Percussion interlude (Christian Mayer + Paolo Rubboli and Riccardo Marchese)
Discomusic
Born To Be Abraham

Encore:
Rolling shutter