Concert Review: Mariah Carey, Christina Aguilera and P!nk.

Hey readers.
I haven't posted anything, obviously, since the Grammy update. I was experimenting with Tumblr (d1esel6.tumblr) and wrote some quick music reviews there. And than I was contemplating closing this blog out, but maybe I just need to revamp how I go about this.

So anyway, I thought maybe I should start by reviewing what I saw this weekend. This past Sunday, the LOGO network had a cool little Pop Diva marathon. They were showing Behind the Music when I woke up (Eve and Jennifer Hudson), and than after that they showed 4 concerts in a row. Concerts that I actually had on my Netflix Q, Mariah Carey's "Adventures of Mimi Tour", Christina Aguilera's "Back to Basics Tour" and P!nk's recent "Funhouse Tour". I'm pretty sure most of the shows were edited down for time and commercial breaks (I know, for instance, that P!nk not doing "Stupid Girls" or Christina not doing "Genie in a Bottle" was more of an editing thing because to not perform those hits seems strange) but they gave a good indication on whether or not the shows were any good.

Mariah's show, well I give her an A for effort.
"The Adventures of Mimi" came after her big comeback with the album "Emancipation of Mimi" and I think she felt like she had to pull out all the stops. So there were big dance numbers and elaborate set pieces, and her scantily clad throughout. Mariah is great with her interaction with the crowd, that's definitely where she excels. She was fun and funny, and at times genuinely heartfelt. Her voice, at times, was still phenomenal although not flawless. There were times when she kind of fell off the melodies, or just hit the wrong notes, but those were few and far between. And her stage presence, well it ain't that great. I feel like her problem is that she's too overly conscious of every move she makes. Though sometimes she busted out some dance moves that looked really natural on her. At the end of the show, I was satisfied with the concert. She ran through pretty much ALL her big hits and it was fun taking a trip down memory lane (I hadn't listened to "Dream Lover" in I don't know how long and I forgot how much I love it), she even brought out Boyz II Men (well three of the four original members) to do her gigantic mid-90's hit "One Sweet Day". Mariah really did give her all, she really tried and you can't really fault her for the mis-steps, just comparatively it wasn't the best show out there. Obviously great for True Mariah fans like myself.

Rating: 7 of 10

Christina Aguilera's "Back to Basics Tour" faltered only because she pretty much sang nothing but "Back to Basics" material, and that's not my favorite Christina album.

I respect the album because she truly did go for the sound that she was into and didn't get persuaded to change it, however that R&B meets Old School Jazz meets Pop sound doesn't lend itself well for a big arena tour. I also should add, I think this was the most edited show of the three I watched. I just kept feeling like "Okay, WHEN is she gonna sing a song I know" and it didn't come until the end. (I also got the feeling she was lipping big chunks of her show... I just never heard her BREATHE which is an indication) Where Christina excelled on this show was her confidence and her stage presence blew me away. She was ripping up the stage, and not that she was doing intricate dance moves or anything like that, she just was all over the stage with sass and attitude that was necessary for the material. Even the overall staging of the show was superb, "Makes Me Wanna Pray" and "Candyman" specifically were really well thought out as far as look and utilizing the stage. Towards the end, Aguilera lost some steam it seemed like. She ended with her classic "Beautiful" (terribly oversung) and "Fighter" which I felt was an ODD closer, but it worked. Overall, the show seemed a little disjointed and out of sync (and I think it's because of the LOGO editing) but she LOOKED great, and her stage presence was on point. Better than I expected, but still not all that impressive.

Rating: 6 of 10 (based on the LOGO broadcast which I still think was heavily edited)

Now I saw P!nk's tour in support of "I'm Not Dead" on DVD a few years ago, and it blew me away. I always knew she was a great singer and great performer but that concert was just EVERYTHING you'd want in a show.

Her most recent "Funhouse Tour" took it up a bunch of notches. The stage presence that Christina had, and the interaction with the crowds that Mariah had, combined with some real Cirque du Soleil stunts, true musicality, and wonderful costume and set design really OWNS both the other concerts. I guess the thing that P!nk has is pure energy and not taking herself too seriously. And I should add, true versatility. She goes from Rock Anthems (the excellent cover of "Bohemian Rhapsody") to slower acoustic sets ("I Don't Believe You") to pure Pop extravaganzas (a great rendition of "Get the Party Started") all while joking with the crowd, making fun of her dancing, and being playful with her band. Of the three shows (there was a 30 minute Lady GaGa show I didn't watch) P!nk really just seemed like she was the one actually having fun up on stage, and of course the audience and the viewer enjoyed it more because of it. Immediately after watching, I added the show to my Amazon playlist because I could definitely imagine myself giving that more than 10 viewings.

Rating: 9.5 of 10

Top 25 All-Time Favourite Artists (5-2)

2. Madonna

As a kid of the 80's, some my earliest Music memories involve Madonna. She practically OWNED MTV and all the other video shows in the 80's, her songs were Always on the radio, and just the phenomenon that was Madonna back in the 80's is something that is really indescribable to someone who didn't live through that era. And she paved the way for alot of (well MOST of... i'd actually say 100% of...) the Female artists and Female celebrities in general of today. In terms of image, sexual empowerment, being an opinionated female Pop entertainer and being unapologetic about the things she did. And let's not even get into how Awesome she was at the whole Publicity stunt. She was really one of the first artists to totally Use the media for her own gain, and as you see so many artists Male and Female follow that trend. Another great thing about Madonna is that she really Is the only big artist from the 80's that still makes quality music and is as relevant over the past two decades.

myTop 3 Favourite Madonna albums: 1. Music (2000), 2. Bedtime Stories (1994), 3. Ray of Light (1997)


3. Marvin Gaye

I have to admit, I never fully got into Marvin Gaye until maybe 6 or 7 years ago. Ofcourse I knew Alot about him beforehand. Most of my close family members are Music lovers just like me so Good Music was always heard when I was a child and I knew alot about the Motown sound when I was really young. I read a Biography about Gaye and they talked alot about the "What's Going On" album, and how revolutionary it was for the time. How at the time Socially conscious R&B was not really heard of. How he produced it all himself and was the first act to use the technology to do His Own backing vocals, and it was the first album to have songs lead into each other. And how he fought so hard to get it out, how he refused to do any work for Motown until the album was released. He put all his heart into it, and you can tell... 37 years later. It's really the best album ever made. Aside from that one album, Gaye truly has one of the best stories. A guy who was overtly talented as a vocalist and for years was a team player doing what Berry Gordy wanted (not without a few fights though) and than totally took control of his career and his image and his name and from "What's Going On" and on did whatever was He wanted to do with His music. Truly an admirable guy. Fuckin crazy ofcourse, but I think most of the people on my list are Nuts.


myTop 3 Favourite Marvin Gaye albums: 1. What's Going On (1971), 2. I Want You (1976), 3. Let's Get It On (1973)

4. Mariah Carey

I've been a huge fan of Mariah's since her 1990 debut. And the reason that she is so high on the list is pretty simple. Her voice, the fact that she's a hard worker, writes her own music, and has provided the world with some of the best songs in the past 19 years. And in the past 5 or 6 years she's really settled into a place with her music that is really fun and really represents who she is, which is drastically different than her earlier albums, and it gives me a whole new respect for this major talent.

myTop 3 Favourite Mariah Carey albums: 1. Daydream (1995), 2. Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel (2009), 3. Butterfly (1997)

5. Daft Punk

I dont really know how to explain my love for Daft Punk, other than they are just right up my alley I guess. I was first introduced to them by their completely Awesome music video for "Around the world", and that one Awesome video started the love affair. They've only released Three actual albums in the past 10 years, but when they do release an album it's always on point, it's Always a completely different sound than the last, and it always gets major play from ME for the years I have to wait for the next album. And they've further impressed me with their Live album they released in 2007, I have never seen these dudes live because I never thought Electronic artists could put on an interesting show. I was hella wrong! The cd is AMAZING!!! The mixes they do, just genius. These guys are just geniuses at what they do.

myTop 3 Favourite Daft Punk albums: 1. Homework (1997), 2. Human After All (2005), 3. Discovery (1999)

Album Review: Quick Update!!

I feel really bad about not updating this blog for so long. Being a good employee and good student has really been taking most of my time. So I'm going to just give you all (LOL!) a quick update on the new stuff I've been listening to since the last update.

1. Mariah Carey,"Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel".
Mariah, or Mrs. Cannon, keeps the winning streak going from 2005's "Emancipation of Mimi" to her current stunner which is actually the best of her current albums. Working with just one production team, Tricky Stewart and The-Dream, and putting together a cohesive story with amazing vocals and great and funny lyrics. Mariah seems so at home on the kiss-off songs "Up Out My Face" and "It's a Wrap", but is also able to switch it to a more vulnerable vocal on "Angels Cry" "Languishing" and her Foreigner cover "I Want to Know What Love Is". In just sticking to one vibe and one story Mariah pulled off probably the best album of her career.

2. Zoot Woman, "Things are what they Used to Be".
I first found out about this Electronica/Dance group when I was doing research on Stuart Price, producer and remixer for acts as diverse as Madonna, Gwen Stefani and The Killers. Price is the mastermind of a few different groups, and Zoot Woman is the closest to a legitimate vocal group. This album is their third and is actually a great sonic experience. This album has a few misses, but the overall vibe and production on this album save it from completely falling apart. Album opener "Friend of Mine" as well as "Lonely by your Side" could easily become global hits. While "Saturation" and the calming stunner "Blue Sea" help seal this album as a winner.

3. Kid Cudi, "Man on the Moon: The End of the Day".
The newest back-packer rapper backed by top Hip Hop names Kanye West and Jay-Z. Seems familiar? (Lupe Fiasco anybody?) Cudi has seemed to follow the same story coming up, but he is actually delivering. Not to keep a comparison going, but Cudi suceeds in his debut because he seems like he's not scared to take risks, unlike Lupe who's debut was relatively safe (with the result coming off as boring). Cudi's debut is a nicely strung together story of the Lonely-Loner, narrated by Common. There's a few times where Cudi tries to go a little too mainstream ("EnterGalactic" "Simple As"), but there are true star moments throughout this whole album. And a true commitment to the concept of the album, and also the rare case of vulnerability in delivery. A Very Promising debut album.

4. Mr Hudson, "Straight No Chaser".
Mr Hudson's single "Supernova" had been burning up my iPod all summer, and than he popped back up on Jay-Z's "Young Forever". His album doesn't drop in the US until December (which I'm guessing is because they are trying to cross-promote with that aforementioned song. I could be wrong) but was released in the UK a few weeks ago. I was really excited for this album, and there are times on this album where that excitement was justified. "There will be Tears" is an amazingly weird Electronic/Pop almost Trip Hop concoction that is actually very heartfelt and emotional. "Stiff Upper Lip" is a surprisingly laid back and soothing break-up song, and "Learn to Live" is a fantastic 80's homage. However, there seems to be alot of desperation in getting a mainstream hit. "White Lies" the albums second single and the albums title track come off as a little phoney in delivery ("I was just playin' girl" and "we don't waste our time on Fake Thugs"... hmmm), but still have great production behind them. Another complaint is that it's sometimes too all over the place and could have used a better sequencing job. Having said that, it's mostly passible and I'm sure it will grow on me the more I listen to it, which I plan on doing.

5. Basement Jaxx, "Scars".
It seems like every time, I get excited for the new Basement Jaxx album and when it comes out I'm slightly disapointed. Their first two albums "Remedy" and "Rooty" were flawless, "Kish Kash" was about half and half and "Crazy Itch Radio" suffered the same problem of being way too much. Luckily the duo have calmed down a bit in their frantic production. In all honesty, it's the times when they get a little too frantic on this album that are the worst of a pretty okay album. The best moments are when they really slow it down, which on those past two albums were the best moments of their careers ("If I Ever Recover"), and they have some amazing moments like that here with "A Possibility" "D.I.S.tractionz". Even on some of their more traditional housers they show restraint with their effects box to make some great cuts like the first single "Raindrops" "Feelings Gone" and "Gimme Gimme Somethin True". All in all this album is a step back into the right direction for the duo and I'll have some justification in being excited for their next album.

Music Video Review: Kanye West "Paranoid" (Starring Rihanna)

SMART MOVE!!!!
This is a really good look for all parties involved honestly. Let me not get ahead of myself though... okay, so last week L.A. Reid premiered the new Kanye West video at some sort of Def Jam/Island conference. He also played Mariah Carey's possible new single "Hate U", and Youtubers caught a bit of it... but the Kanye video is what had the internet buzzing the following day. And somehow, Rihanna became the star. His video for "Paranoid" is similar to his previous videos for "Stronger", "Flashing Lights" and "Goldigger" where the attention is placed on the female eye candy. And the newly hailed Pop Princess Rihanna is definitley where all the attention is placed in this really awesome video. And to be honest, if it wasn't Rihanna this video would be really boring because literally nothing happens. It's just 3 minutes and 48 seconds of Rihanna doing what she does best, oozing loads of sex appeal and... well... just being Sexy as hell. I mean it's shot very well, I love the camera work and the bit at the beginning with her on the bed was a cool technique. But it's really all about Rihanna and this is, like I said before, a really good look for her. She gets her name out there and her face back on MTV without having to do anything (Although I do hear rumors that she added her vocals to a remix of this song, but I haven't heard anything official). And for Kanye, it's a good look because this will get the buzz behind his Excellent "808's & Heartbreak" album starting back up.

And than maybe they'll go on tour together again.

Well that's probably my wishful thinking... anyway, check out the Mad Sexy Rihanna with her Mad Crazy Sex Appeal on this Sexy video. (say "sexy" again...)