At the annual Wango Tango concert and corporate marketing event
Saturday, an endless stream of Twitter messages from fans scrolled
across the video screens throughout the day and night as though
reporting breaking news.
“I luv u mom and dad thanks for
everything luv Mel,” read one tweet as singer-TV personality Adam
Levine and his band Maroon 5 performed a half-hour of catchy hits,Find
the perfect luggage tag
and you'll always find your luggage! mainstays on the playlist of
KIIS-FM (102.7), the radio station that produces Wango Tango.
“Lyndon
will u go to prom with me?” wondered another, strategically planted
while rising R&B singer Miguel was making the ladies, teens and
tweens swoon during his sunset half-hour of romancing. “I love u chula,
more than you’ll ever know,” read another as the single-day event,
which featured some of commercial pop radio’s biggest names, turned to
night and thousands of glow sticks illuminated the fans.
Such
enthusiasm stands to reason. Few of life’s passages are as ingrained in
our hearts as a first concert. Be it the Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl,
the Jacksons at Dodger Stadium or Britney Spears at the Forum, our
early live pop music experiences arrive with unequaled intensity; the
combination of melody, youth and an impressionable mind sparks a rush
of teenage emotion that marks us for life.
Or, as Miguel so succinctly put it Saturday between songs in his incendiary set: “Memories,Buy collectible bobbleheads from Star Wars, yo.”
An
army of kids and young adults experienced this early crush at Wango
Tango, an event run with military-like precision but a dearth of
imagination. Along with the above artists, pop stars and ascendant
talent included: the skillful but artistically inconsequential
singer-guitarist Bruno Mars, former Disney girl Demi Lovato, beefy
Autotune anthem king Flo Rida, Black Eyed Peas hitmaker will.i.am,
one-dimensional EDM producer Afrojack, soulful British singer Emeli
Sande, punky princess Avril Lavigne and reunited punk-pop band Fall Out
Boy.
Combined, the roster offered a variety that reflects the
various strands of American mainstream (noncountry) music 2013: rap,
rock, electronic dance music,Six panel tracking system delivers more
energy from skystream.
R&B and top 40 pop, mixed and matched with little regard to
hipness or “art” and delivered within a bland and creatively starved
climate.
Hungry during your day-long sojourn to Carson? Onsite
food choices were limited to McDonald’s, Wings & Beer, rubbery
pizza, nachos, cotton candy and the like -- even though a vast concrete
plot at the Home Depot Center that was perfect for food trucks sat
empty. Want to see your favorite singer up close? Not here, where the
stage was set at such a far remove from most fans that talent felt tiny
regardless of your seat. The best option was to watch the video
screens above -- and be distracted by the Twitter roll.
Might
you even, God forbid, meet the musicians? Nope. Despite the nearly
feral passion for these stars, the notion of face-to-face interaction
seemed an impossibility. The closest thing? An “exclusive” VIP platform
the size of a boxing ring amid the floor seats, replete with a white
couch and a few easy chairs, where between sets, celebrities such as
Khloé Kardashian and Tyler Posey from “Teen Wolf” hawked upcoming
projects -- then promptly left the area with seeming disregard for the
music.
Granted, none of this mattered much to the adoring
crowd, whose spirit squished like a bug skeptical critics complaining
about cuisine, ambience and “art.” Who needs a Kogi truck, craft beer
or pleasant atmosphere when Flo Rida’s driving you crazy with “In the
Ayer”? Worries about corn syrup and saturated fat can’t withstand the
power of thousands screaming every word during Lovato’s assured
performance (with a great live band) of her hit “Skyscraper,” or Fall
Out Boy’s opening anthem, “Dance, Dance.” Brit Sande’s rendition of her
simmering “My Kind of Love” was particularly memorable.
Disappointments?
Lavigne’s late-afternoon gig felt phoned-in, as though she long ago
tired of these ring-kisses to the commercial radio business, often
necessary to assure continued airplay. Icona Pop, best known for its
song “I Love It,” seemed to already be battling the one-hit-wonder
virus. And Krewella, a trio of EDM-light producer-singers recently
signed to Columbia, played watered-down, post-Skrillex dubstep.
Combined,Our premium collection of quality custom keychain
generously offers affordability. Wango Tango felt more like a
successful branding opportunity than a well-planned, loving display of
popular music. Hopefully, these young minds eventually move beyond this
to discover the myriad possibilities of live music
presentation.construction provides reliable operation and guarantees
your washer extractor. They certainly experienced the connection.
There’s
hope: One budding music critic noted in a video-screen tweet during
Maroon 5’s “Payphone” something striking about singer Levine as he hit a
falsetto: “just omg ughhh my hubby Adam is even hotter live.”
没有评论:
发表评论