Music review: Lackluster 'Idol' concert - 美國偶像

Music review: Lackluster 'Idol' concert

Aidin Vaziri, Chronicle Pop Music Critic （我欣賞這位記者）
Thursday, July 10, 2008

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/09/DDPG11M9V0.DTL

The last season of "American Idol" was kind of a train wreck. The ratings
dropped, Paula Abdul's incoherent jibber-jabber started to grate, and, in the
grand showdown between tongue-tied teen David Archuleta and trying-too-hard
grunge stalwart David Cook, most viewers voted with an enormous shrug.

上一季美國偶像真是亂七八糟。收視率跌了，寶拉的胡言亂語逐漸讓人不耐（真的是
逐漸嗎？），然後啊，盛大的閉幕典禮是兩個大衛，一個口吃另一個硬裝硬搖。大部
份觀眾都默默的聳聳肩投投票。

None of that kept thousands of preadolescents and their parents from filling
out Tuesday's "American Idols Live!" concert at the HP Pavilion, which
featured the 10 finalists from Season 7 reprising their well-worn karaoke
routines. For most of those onstage, whose names and faces were already
becoming hazy memories even before the 53-date tour started in Arizona last
week, it was one last chance to belt it out in front of a sizable crowd
before moving onto the corporate party circuit or busing tables. For the
final two, it was an opportunity to show that they were capable of repeating
the crossover success of Kelly Clarkson rather than the humiliating fall of
Justin what's-his-face and that other one, with the gray hair and the bad Joe
Cocker imitation.

不過這些都擋不住上千萬的青青少年與父母親湧進HP Pavilion（某場地），一同共
襄盛舉這場盛大的卡啦ｏｋ演唱會。大部分的參賽者早已成為模糊的回憶了，這次巡
迴，是他們最後一次面對大規模的觀眾露臉的機會了。而這兩位大衛，則是要證明自己
可以重現Kelly之光，而不是像Justin一樣跌個狗吃屎。

The three-hour concert was predictably mercenary: The bottom six, appearing
in order of elimination, got to perform three songs each, along with a
head-scratching ensemble cover of U2's "Pride (In the Name of Love)" before
being cleared off for a half-hour intermission in the name of selling
everything from breakfast bars to life insurance. Out of that bunch,
Australian-born Michael Johns and Irish singer-songwriter Carly Smithson were
the only ones who didn't look entirely out of place in the spotlight, thanks
in part to gut-busting covers of classic rock staples by the likes of Queen,
Aerosmith and Heart, but more likely because both held major-label contracts
before appearing on the show.

果然這三小時如預期般是來搶錢的：底六(10-4)，自淘汰順序起，一個人唱三首歌，
並且加上一個令人搔頭難耐（亂來XD）的合唱：U2的Pride(in the Name of Love)，
最後再加上半小時上廁所的工商時間影帶。整體觀之，只有澳男MJ與愛爾蘭歌手詞曲
家卡莉（這誰啊）仍然存活在小的可憐的舞台上（好啦，其實是燈光下），這都歸功
於他們重唱了超high的經典搖滾樂，例如Queen一干人等，不過這也沒啥啦，啊他們兩
個參賽前都拿過大公司的合約啊。

Spacey as ever, dreadlocked Jason Castro helped usher the audience back to
its seats for the second part of the concert with a brisk acoustic set that
somehow made "Over the Rainbow," Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" and the Lovin'
Spoonful's "Daydream" sound like one long drone. Syesha Mercado, meanwhile,
delivered passable versions of Rihanna's "Umbrella" and Alicia Keys' "If I
Ain't Got You" but failed to raise any goose bumps with songs that were
designed to do just that.

一樣放空到不行的捲頭，稱職地把觀眾們自搖滾的美夢中搖醒，安分地將大家逼回位子
上坐好。唱了例如SOTR等一干節目中唱過的歌。沙下唱了還可以的小雨傘以及If I
ain't Got You，但是並未有任何激情演出。

The shrieks filled the room well before the first spike of Archuleta's hair
rose from beneath the stage, with the singer sitting behind a fog-shrouded
piano for a low-key cover of Robbie Williams' "Angels." The 17-year-old crowd
favorite seemed genuinely terrified by his surroundings and struggled to get
his fragile voice heard above the din, even as he boldly mashed up Ben E.
King's "Stand by Me" with Sean Kingston's "Beautiful Girls."

當小弟的第一根頭髮從地上伸出來的時候，尖叫聲滿溢整場，小弟唱的是低音版Angels。
17歲的小弟似乎被四周給嚇壞了，他的聲音在喧鬧的場內掙扎的求表現，就算他唱了混合
版的Stand by Me。

Season 7 winner Cook seemed just as overwhelmed but worked hard to compensate
with exaggerated rock bluster and effusive gratitude.

冠軍大廚如以往般看起來被吃掉了，並且相當努力想要用誇張的搖滾氣息與過激的
感恩表現來調和掉。

"I've waited 25 years to stand right here," he said, bowing his head as
audience members held up signs that read "Marry Me" and "Cougars for Cook."

「我等了二十五年才能站在這」大廚說，並且對著觀眾敬禮，正好對著觀眾舉著牌子如
下：「嫁給我吧（誤）」、「我要我的大廚」。

He's certainly a capable rock singer, not all that different from Chris
Daughtry, but Cook's decision to throw all those chugging riffs and sweaty
metal vocals behind limp songs by Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson and Diane
Warren seemed like the kind of thing that would have got him a round
battering on the actual "American Idol." Where is Simon Cowell when you need
him?

他當然能夠被稱作搖滾歌手，不過其實跟Chris Daughtry沒啥差別。不過大廚決定在演
唱會重唱LR/MJ/DW，並且以獨特疑似便秘的喉音詮釋之，這都是在節目上會被狗血淋頭
的梗。塞門，你在哪？幫幫大廚吧。



E-mail Aidin Vaziri at [email protected].
（請寫信罵他不要罵我）XD

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