Monday, September 29, 1997
L.A. in Concert
MUSIC: Music of all kinds resonated through the greater Los
Angeles area late this summer. Here are some highlights.
After the massively hyped concert tours, traveling festivals and
35-foot lemons passed by in mid-August, the more down-to-Earth
performers came out of the woodwork to stage their own late-summer
tours. Acts like composer John Williams and the red-hot Mighty
Mighty Bosstones scored big at the box office and gave us that last
gasp of entertainment before the summer left us. Here’s a
late-summer concert compendium of the most anticipated and the most
noteworthy shows to hit Los Angeles.
The boy has arrived. Possibly the wold’s most popular Mexican
singer, 27-year-old Luis Miguel opened his five-night stand at the
Universal Amphitheater with a thoroughly satisfying, 2 1/2-hour
sold-out performance. Although he began his career as a preteen
heartthrob with a series of catchy ear-candy hits produced by his
father, Miguel has become a self-produced and incredibly
well-respected singer and performer extraordinaire.
The show’s first two selections ("Si te vas" and "Que tu te
vas") had the audience dancing and listening in awe. From there he
moved into an amazing 25-minute medley of the songs that he had
recorded during his late teens and early 20s. He performed about
two minutes of each song, the crowd sang along in unison, ending
with one of his most beautiful ballads, "La incondicional."
At that point in the show, his 10-member orchestra took the
stage for the next hour of the show which featured bolero-style
songs, some taken from his most recent release, "Romances." This
portion of the concert contained his current number one single,
"Por debajo de la mesa," which was another of the evening’s
highlights.
The final third of the concert introduced a band of mariachis,
with whom he performed four songs, including "La media vuelta."
After the mariachis, Miguel performed a few more songs from his
recent albums. As the overture from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame,"
faded out, the gentle strings of "Suena" (the Spanish version of
"Someday," from the "Hunchback" soundtrack) filled the theater.
Miguel did not hesitate to stretch his vocal abilities, and he
sounded even better live than he does on the immaculately produced
record.
Miguel genuinely enjoyed his time on stage, and the audience
equally shared his enjoyment during the amazing performance. Jeff
Hilger
They say that alternative rock died when Kurt Cobain did. They
say rock ‘n’ roll is just not exciting anymore. Well, they should
have their freakin’ heads examined, because they obviously did not
attend the explosive, near two-hour Live concert at the Greek
Theater.
Led by the energetic singer and songwriter Ed Kowalczyk, Live
lived up to its name in a sonic hurricane of crunching guitars,
haunting ballads and driving beats, yet done melodically enough to
avoid the boring alt-rock cliches of 1997. And the crowd ate it up
emphatically.
Live opened up the show with material from its new album,
"Secret Samadhi," from the pleasantly hard-rockin’ "Lakini’s Juice"
to the highly emotional "Ghost." It would seem surprising for a
crowd to scream as loudly for the new songs as they would for the
old favorites, but Live’s flawless performances proved otherwise. A
superb lighting presentation only highlighted the intensity in the
air.
Live also played much of the material from their multi-platinum
album, "Throwing Copper." Particular standouts included the album
cut, "Iris," and the slam-bang encore of "I Alone" and "White,
Discussion."
Opening the show and delighting the crowd were the entertaining
Liverpool funk outfit, Manbreak, and the lively and dynamic
Luscious Jackson. Mike Prevatt
One must wonder when one of the world’s most popular artists,
capable of selling out arenas worldwide, chooses the more intimate
surroundings of the Universal Amphitheater rather than making
splashy appearances at the Forum or the Pond. But David Bowie,
ueber-nonconformist and musical genius extraordinaire, is not your
typical musician.
Bowie first proves this point at the opening of his highly
exciting and unforgettable two-hour set. As the lights go down and
the crowd roars, Bowie casually walks out and just starts strumming
an acoustic guitar, warming up the crowd with his older hits,
"Quicksand" and "Waiting for the Man." During the third song, "Jean
Genie," the crowd began dancing happily and waving to Bowie, as he
waved, high-fived and smiled back.
In fact, Bowie connected with the crowd so well that they never
lost interest even when it came to the recent, low-selling
"Earthling" material. And even those songs, which included
standouts like "Little Wonder," "I’m Afraid of Americans" and an
especially fantastic version of "Dead Man Walking," blended in well
with his more familiar material. With a talented back-up band
behind him, Bowie gave rousing and modernized renditions of
classics as "Fashion," "Fame" and "Scary Monsters," though he shied
away from his most popular hits (save the anathematic "Under
Pressure"). Bowie ended the spectacular show with a smiles-only
version of "All the Young Dudes."
High-tech lights and odd props like inflatable eyeballs (which
were thrown into the crowd via Bowie) made the show a visual
spectacle. But nothing could top the dynamic and the fan-friendly
charisma of one of the all time greatest musicians. Mike
Prevatt
Energy was the key to the Bosstones’ show, and there was plenty
of it. The rowdy hoard of fans amassed on the floor of the LMU gym
floor, broke into a mosh-fest as soon as the mighty ska band took
the stage and rocked the house.
Opening with "1-2-8," the Bosstones played several tracks from
their latest and most successful album, "Let’s Face It," along with
various songs from their earlier records. The big favorite at the
show was "The Impression That I Get," the band’s current radio hit,
and the entire crowd jumped to its feet (even those in the
bleachers) and enjoyed the music the way it was meant to be enjoyed
– pushing, shoving, crowd surfing, stage diving and all.
The crowd continued to roar when the band played "The Rascal
King" and "Someday I Suppose." Though some of the performances came
off weak, they didn’t detract from the overall excitement of the
show and never did the energy level take a dip. Adam Yamaguchi
Some concert tours get tons of media attention because of
multi-million dollar productions, spectacular light-shows and
excellent marketing. Others thrive on quality music.
So what happened when Sheryl Crow dropped by Los Angeles?
Nothing fancy, not much flash, just excellent music. And that’s all
she needed to put together a great show.
The enthusiastic crowd roared when Crow appeared on stage (after
a seemingly endless opening set by Wilco), and didn’t let down one
bit as she rocked through the first two songs, "Can’t Cry Anymore"
and "A Change Would Do You Good." She went on to give excellent
performances of various hits from her debut, "Tuesday Night Music
Club,"and her self-titled, latest release.
Crow’s talent as a musician and songwriter shined throughout the
entire concert. Particularly strong were the upbeat and lively "All
I Wanna Do," "Everyday Is a Winding Road" and "The Na-Na Song." She
then went on to show some edge as she sang "If It Makes You
Happy."
After the first set, the crowd screamed for more. Crow returned
to stage, showing a much softer side, with a beautiful performance
of "Strong Enough." Crow invited singer Emmylou Harris on stage and
performed a couple songs together to close out a feel-good show.
Adam Yamaguchi
When most lycra-clad, glitter-sprayed rave junkies pride
themselves on finding the party location in the back alley of a
warehouse district for $10 or less, it seems difficult to imagine
what breed of fan would bother attending a corporately-funded
techno show at $20 a pop. The resulting audience at the Orange Show
Pavillion in San Bernadino proved unenthusiastic for the most part,
and small in numbers to say the least.
Despite headliner The Crystal Method, the L.A. spinning duo
which has amassed a large following even before the release of
their latest MTV-friendly album, "Vegas," crowd energy seemed low.
Yet, anytime the mass culture embraces an alternative scene in the
hopes of cashing in, some intrinsic element of the root medium
undoubtedly feels lost.
After 5 1/2 hours, which included DJs spinning records, floor
space became the tightest of the evening as The Crystal Method took
to the stage and ravers prepared to let loose. Somehow, the mellow
trance-like offerings the duo started off with never quite managed
to grip the fashion-obsessed crowds of lethargic teens. The Crystal
Method’s dull, lack-luster mixes caused only the most minimal of
twitches from the occasional speed freak. It became clear by the
end of their stale presentation that either too few drugs had been
circulating on the floor or too many.
Many felt betrayed by after-hours DJs who failed to keep
whipping out snappy, building infusions of bass and unique
electronic sounds. The Electric Highway Tour managed to further
reiterate that in some cases, cheaper events are the better deal.
Vanessa VanderZanden
John Williams is unarguably the most popular film composer of
the last 20 years. His influence spans down to even the youngest
generations, as evidenced at the Hollywood Bowl. Hundreds of young
children, most in their "Star Wars" gear, roamed around the
amphitheater in excitement for the evening’s performance of the
"Star Wars" trilogy scores.
The capacity crowd screamed in approval to the opening numbers,
with Williams at the helm of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. Scores
from "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Close Encounters of the Third
Kind" began the sci-fi theme that would follow most of the show. At
the end of the first act, a screen was lowered and film clips from
such movies as "Superman," "Jaws" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark"
played alongside their respective film’s music.
After the first intermission, the sights and sounds of "Star
Wars" filled Hollywood Hills. Williams played nine selections from
the trilogy, including fan favorites like "Yoda’s Theme" and "The
Cantina Band." The set ended with a crowd-screaming medley of "Star
Wars" songs, followed by encores that included dazzling fireworks
and the emergence of "Star Wars" characters (Darth Vader, Chewbacca
and stormtroopers). Ships from the movies towered above the crowd
and fired lasers into the air for the ultimate Hollywood
experience. Mike Prevatt
With a line-up spanning from the radio-hyped Brit-techno Sneaker
Pimps, to the underground turntable sensation, Aphex Twin,
Organic’s all night event at the National Orange Showgrounds in San
Bernadino Sept. 20 met crowd’s heightened expectations. Even
smaller acts such as the bass and drum wonder DJ, Plug, gave calm
audiences a hint as to the steady vibe soon to permeate the two
stage musical production. Though the buzz from ravers of all ages
anticipated Aphex Twin to be the highlight of the evening, many
found themselves pleasantly surprised by the mellow, ambient sound
of the refreshingly uncorporate Sneaker Pimps.
Yet, their act may have gone over better in the wee hours of the
evening, with the hard-to-dance-to, jungle-beated, complexly
rhythmed Aphex Twin surging through speakers earlier on. The
Crystal Method, who played their second large show in the course of
a week, actually fit in better with Organic’s more tranquil aura
than their previous headlining date at the Electronic Highway
festival. Vanessa VanderZanden
This Scottish band has been making solid, catchy pop singles for
the past 10 years now, but has yet to find massive success. Their
El Rey appearance before the not-quite-full yet enthusiastic crowd
presented two hours of their best material, opening with "Not Where
It’s At," the lead-off track from their new album, "Some Other
Sucker’s Parade." The concert’s highlights included, "Always the
Last to Know," "Here and Now" and one of the songs from the encore,
"When I Want You." While Del Amitiri continues to release excellent
singles, they have yet to create a thoroughly satisfying complete
album, either artistically or commercially. This was somewhat
apparent in the evening’s performance, as great songs were followed
by mediocre ones, from the opening moments until the encore.
Regardless, the audience undoubtedly enjoyed the evening, and
the band will surely continue to win new fans with each new catchy
single they release. Perhaps someday, songwriter and band leader
Justin Currie will help his band reach its full potential. Jeff
Hilger
TBS Inc.
Sheryl Crow played Sept. 6.
Los Angeles was graced with top-notch performances this summer.
Live (left) sings at the Greek Theater Sept. 7.
GENEVIEVE LIANG/Daily Bruin
David Bowie performs at the Universal Amphitheater.