Carrie comes to town

Jeff734 · 10-06-2008, 08:46 PM

Carrie comes to town - Entertainment

sounds like this writer wanted to propose to Carrie? get in line!

i thought the comment that Carrie's show isn't as action packed as LBT's is a bit weird. i mean, i can understand if the writer preferred LBT since musical taste is so subjective... but to say Carrie is less action packed?

Quote:

For the Kansas Expocentre, a nearly packed house is almost unheard of.

On Tuesday, when Little Big Town and Carrie Underwood came to Topeka, the trend of underachieving crowd support was snapped like a twig.

The stage was set at the north end of Landon Arena, with a catwalk jutting into the audience on the floor. Peering around the arena, it looked as though most of the seats in the stands had been filled, except for the upper corners. However, taking into account the masses who sat floor level where the Koyotes and RoadRunners usually play, there were undoubtedly enough people in attendance to fill the rest of the seats.

Little Big Town started off the night, bolstering in my opinion a much louder reception than they received at Country Stampede in June. The crowd sang along with many of their more well-known tunes, and even some of the ones that didn't receive any radio airtime. Keeping in mind that the majority of the crowd was likely made up of junior high school girls and their mothers, it makes sense that the lyrics of the half-female foursome were so well-known around the crowd.

That's not to say that the band was getting more credit than they deserved. I've long believed that Little Big Town is the next big thing to come in country music, and that they are nowhere near their potential. The band had a very solid performance and kept the crowd energized. As Karen Fairchild said while riling up the audience "We're here to warm you up for Carrie Underwood!"

Guitarist/vocalist Phillip Sweet also had his moments in the limelight, getting a few vocal solos and getting up close to the audience, stage right. However, it was Jimi Westbrook's drawn out introduction to "Boondocks" at the end of their performance that really fired up the crowd. When he roared "I FEEL NO SHAME…" the entire crowd was up on their feet, anticipating the continuation of the band's first big hit.

After a brief moment of inactivity while the stage was being set up, a clock appeared on the screen behind stage, a five minute countdown until Carrie Underwood appeared on stage. As the minutes dropped one by one, the crowd got anxious and started chanting for Carrie. During the downtime, a Carrie Underwood look-alike tried to get on stage with Carrie, but failed. Great, I thought to myself, if she can't get on stage then how am I going to get up there to propose to Carrie?

When she finally made her Topeka debut, she came in from a hole in the back of the stage and came down a flight of stairs toward the front of the stage. The All-American girl connected with the audience, even pulling another All-American girl up on stage to sing with her, though the youngster was a little shy on stage. To ease the child's mind about remembering the lyrics, Underwood joked "I just make stuff up when I'm up here."

The show wasn't quite as action-packed as Little Big Town, but Underwood did fire up the crowd with several costume changes, including one on stage where she ripped off a flowing gown to reveal a much shorter dress. Sexy.

She also used the catwalk several times to give high-fives to the fans on the floor, and made her way to both end of the stage pretty frequently. At one point, I was about 10 feet from her, though I didn't think it would be polite to propose in the middle of "Just A Dream." I thought waiting for "Last Name" might be a little more appropriate.

She ended the show in perhaps the most overused way, leaving the stage for roughly a minute and then reappearing to sing a little while longer. Perhaps it's just the fact that nearly every artist at Country Stampede does the same thing, but it's starting to run into the ground.

Otherwise, the show was solid. She didn't throw out all the stops like Rascal Flatts or Big & Rich, and quite frankly she didn't need to. She's Carrie Underwood; simplicity works.

showheryoucare · 10-06-2008, 08:55 PM

We'll have to watch the entire LBT set next time around to see what we missed

thaifood · 10-06-2008, 08:58 PM

Now this is weird:

She ended the show in perhaps the most overused way, leaving the stage for roughly a minute and then reappearing to sing a little while longer. Perhaps it's just the fact that nearly every artist at Country Stampede does the same thing, but it's starting to run into the ground.

It is called an encore you moron. Everybody does it, not just Country artists.

teesharky · 10-06-2008, 09:00 PM

That is a good solid review--- thanx jeff! There is no other way to do an encore then leave and come back though- so not sure what the dude is expecting. lol

davilas · 10-06-2008, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thaifood

Now this is weird:

She ended the show in perhaps the most overused way, leaving the stage for roughly a minute and then reappearing to sing a little while longer. Perhaps it's just the fact that nearly every artist at Country Stampede does the same thing, but it's starting to run into the ground.

It is called an encore you moron. Everybody does it, not just Country artists.

I'm not sure maybe he was trying to say that encores should be spontaneous instead of planned parts of the set? Maybe not though it's hard to tell.

Carrie sings JAD after she sings LN doesn't she? Why would he hear JAD and think he has to wait until LN to "propose" or is he was joking about that part?

It's awesome hearing that Carrie's show got such a great crowd when concerts at the Expocentre usually don't and I'm glad he enjoyed the show.

JB172 · 10-06-2008, 09:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thaifood

Now this is weird:

She ended the show in perhaps the most overused way, leaving the stage for roughly a minute and then reappearing to sing a little while longer. Perhaps it's just the fact that nearly every artist at Country Stampede does the same thing, but it's starting to run into the ground.

It is called an encore you moron. Everybody does it, not just Country artists.

Ron, I was thinking the exact same thing.

kewlie78189 · 10-07-2008, 12:03 AM

woah...

The Raz Man · 10-07-2008, 08:52 AM

Wierd review!

Jeff734 · 10-07-2008, 11:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by showheryoucare

We'll have to watch the entire LBT set next time around to see what we missed

3 syllables... bing-ham-ton...

Cathie Wynkoop · 10-07-2008, 11:31 AM

That was kind of a weird review!! I was there and I sure don't remember anybody trying to get onstage with Carrie, but then again I wasn't in my seat for most of the intermission. Hmmmmmmmmm...

I do like this part though:

"On Tuesday, when Little Big Town and Carrie Underwood came to Topeka, the trend of underachieving crowd support was snapped like a twig."

YAY Topeka!!

Mirasa45A · 10-07-2008, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davilas

I'm not sure maybe he was trying to say that encores should be spontaneous instead of planned parts of the set? Maybe not though it's hard to tell.

Carrie sings JAD after she sings LN doesn't she? Why would he hear JAD and think he has to wait until LN to "propose" or is he was joking about that part?

It's awesome hearing that Carrie's show got such a great crowd when concerts at the Expocentre usually don't and I'm glad he enjoyed the show.

In every concert that I've been to, the encore portion is always planned--from Frank Sinatra, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, ABBA, Celine Dion in Las Vegas, Neil Diamond, Andrea Bocelli in Paris (under the Eiffel Tower), Julio Iglesias, and so on.

.

carries1gurl · 10-07-2008, 03:51 PM

idk, weird/decent review i guess