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Project Insomnia

Project Insomnia is many things, but in this context it is simply a "braindump" of whatever I happen to be thinking/reading/watching/doing at the moment. Parental guidance suggested.

Thursday, October 20, 2005

Solo Stefani more flash than substance

MercuryNews.com | 10/20/2005 | Solo Stefani more flash than substance -- Marian Liu, Mercury News
Performance-wise, Stefani made me miss No Doubt. As with many big pop singers in concert, she's become more visually exciting than musically appealing -- full of eye candy, changing costumes, bouncing this way and that. Her music seemed mechanical, and even her timing on the hit ``Hollaback Girl'' was off and her vocals were flat. For much of her set, which lasted a little more than an hour, the audience was listless.

As one of the biggest female pop icons, Stefani needed to give us more. I wanted to see the impromptu quirky star that I fell in love with in 1995's ``Tragic Kingdom,'' the spunky, unpredictable singer who would suddenly do push-ups, then break into some yoga during a concert. I wanted to see that strong female role model I was proud to be a fan of.

Instead, I saw someone who was more flash than substance. Stefani was flanked by her sidekicks, the Harajuku girls, as well as break-dancers and a constantly changing screen of images from ocean waves to scantily clad Japanese girls.

Jen and I had a great time at the show, but I have to agree with much of what the Mercury News columnist writes -- especially regarding the sound mixing. I was also hoping for a couple of No Doubt songs and was a bit disappointed. At the end, though, Gwen & Co. were clearly having a great time up on stage and it showed. Unfortunately, it looks like none of my pics came out; I'll take a look this weekend to see if any of them can be salvaged, but it doesn't seem likely. The linked article does include a couple of photos.

And if you ever wanted to know what "Hollaback Girl" is really about, here you go courtesy of the OC Weekly.
|| Andrew, 11:00 AM || ||

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