Concert Review Site

Now that Rihanna is putting out albums and heading into the recording studio some more. It’s a great time for someone like her to be out. When you have people like Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift on tour, sometimes you need to add a little bit of variety in a singer like Rihanna. She is the diva that you don’t want to mess with, according to the article I read about her, and it’s always a lot of fun to see what she’s working on. Her current album, called “Rated R” has been amazing to listen to, because of its attitude and strength. She remains one of the most interesting singers right now with that style. But in the album, she has put some special “introspection” in, which gives the songs an extra special flavor.

Adam Lambert, the recent American Idol runner-up, performed at the AMA Awards this weekend and drew a lot of complaints. He had mentioned that he wanted to push the envelope and he’s the kind of performer that can do so. But onstage, there was a lot of more provocative actions than one normally expects from a male singer. The biggest moment was when he kissed a keyboard player on the lips, for a long time and intensely, during the song. This is the part that people have been talking about for the last two days although there are arguably more edgy parts of the performance. There were comments to ABC from all sides of the issue, from anger to support and everywhere in between. Lambert isn’t one to hold back, so he’s not bothered by the critics at all.

When you see Miley Cyrus in concert these days, it’s going to be different than you might expect. Remember, she used to be the innocent Hannah Montana character, who wanted badly to become a music star and worked hard to do it. Now she’s transitioned from Hannah into full Miley. She has less of the innocent quality, and a little more of the new character, which is a modern pop singer of the highest magnitude. She is talented, and she knows how to put on a cool show. For example, her show starts out with her appearing in a big block of ice. Don’t ask me how she does this, though it might be some kind of Houdini-thing. Either way, she dances in the ice for a few minutes and then breaks out of it, in full metaphorical fashion. But her fans love it. And don’t even ask about the text messaging during the intermission. The fans are supposed to txt something to her and then sometimes she even responds. This keeps people excited through the intermission too. Fun show, but maybe only if you’re younger.

Oasis is done. It has been announced (and I might have missed it way at the beginning) by some of the group’s members as they move on to starting new projects with other bands or as solo members. The latest is Liam Gallagher who said that he was teaming up with several members of the band to start something new. It’s only his brother Noel that wont be part of it, as they apparently had some kind of major falling-out earlier this fall. So the band will seem much like Oasis, probably, but will just have one member missing. Hopefully, it will be good music too, but who knows what it will actually turn out to be. Anyway, the important point is that Oasis has stopped existing as an entity and they are moving on.

The R&B artist R Kelly seems to have some reviewers confused as to what he’s trying to do with his concerts. He has always been able to do two different kinds of characters in his persona. One of these people produces a very ballad-filled repertoire. But the other one has a loud raucous side that is a good emotional outlet for some, but a challenge for others. He has always been a performer of the highest caliber and his shows are interesting for that reason. But it’s hard to know which version of him you are to expect when you walk into the performance space. Some people really enjoy this, but others could find it a little bit confusing. Either way, you might want to see his new performances and find out what this long-time top R&B musician has been up to all this time.

Carlos Santana is well known for his charitable work. He has been active with several organizations. So it didn’t come as a surprise this week when he came out to tell us that his concerts this month would also go to help the World Hunger Year charity. People who come to the show can bring non-perishable goods with them which will then be donated to the organization. Don’t worry, these aren’t going to go help fend off the munchies for the group after the show. Instead they will be sent to people who really need food. In addition, his concerts are expected to be very fun with a lot of interesting new songs and such. If you haven’t seen him in concert, you should make sure you do so this month. And bring your nonperishables with you.

We may be moving into the colder months, but there is no slackening of the concert schedule. The shows may not be at outdoor arenas anymore, but indoor concert halls and stadiums exist all across the land. Taylor Swift is one of the biggest artists of the year and she has an intense concert schedule throughout the year. Her shows are being given some of the best reviews of any performance this season. She is continuing to sing her great songs, many of them written by herself. They tell of heartbreak and happiness, youth and becoming an adult. And fans are flocking to the shows. This is only one of the big concerts that people are looking forward to this year and you can find concert tickets easily to see Swift or any other favorite performer this fall and winter.

Bruce Springsteen’s show in Kansas City was cancelled for this week because of a death in the family. It turns out that his cousin, an assistant road manager, was found dead overnight in a hotel room. But there is, at this point, no sense that there was foul play. The authorities are investigating, because anytime something unforeseen like this happen, they check up on it. This makes his concert tour a little bit less fun for many people. The show will go on, but the show in Kansas City is cancelled and the tickets will be refunded. No one has to worry about that. Hopefully Springsteen himself will feel better soon and continue to make the rest of us happier by listening to him.

Jim Gaffigan will be heading to his hometown of Chicago in January and it’s expected to be a fun show. The comedian is from the Windy City and many people say that he’ll be even funnier in his home, where he knows the audience and everything else. He knows local references that make people laugh. Have you ever seen an artist play in his or her hometown? If you thought that musicians were the only ones that have the “home court advantage”, you’re wrong. If the musician or comedian knows the audience in some way, then they tend to play even better. So the “Hot Pockets” jokes will be even funnier. Perhaps he’ll add some Chicago-Style pizza jokes in there. In addition, he mentioned that his hotel in Chicago will determine from where he gets his deep dish pizza, because he’s a pizza lover, “but also lazy.”

Bob Dylan is clearly one of the most respected members of the music community. That cannot be denied. That being said, however, he will have a lot of problems trying to get people to buy his new Christmas album, especially if all the reviewers are as upset as Jim DeRogatis of the Chicago Sun-Times. He says that Dylan has fallen into schmaltzy style in this one, but that his own delivery doesn’t measure up to that. If it were consistent, that would be one thing, but the charge is that his own singing doesn’t let it become beautiful anymore. One big example is that his “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” sounds more like a threat than a promise to a loved one. And his Latin isn’t that good either. But Dylan is sounding good onstage, so we can’t expect everything from a man at this point in his career.