Today Idol headlines after the jump ¦
Clarkson Proves, Yet Again, She’s Got Pipes
….Now, after concert promoter Live Nation pulled the plug on Clarkson’s planned summer tour, she has to prove this fall that she has the goods in concert. She did so with impressive confidence Sunday at Mohegan Sun, where the 25-year-old singer transcended the manufactured TV hype, music-biz politics and general buffoonery of popular culture to reveal the real reason for her success: The girl can sing…..
Twists, turns make Underwood’s ‘Carnival Ride’ a musical joy
In many ways, Carrie Underwood’s “Carnival Ride” is the quintessential “American Idol” product. It’s a broad, slickly produced, unabashedly populist CD with appeal that cuts a wide swath across a number of key demographic groups, and Underwood — unlike that rabble-rouser Kelly Clarkson — happily abides by all the rules laid out before her.
That’s not to take anything away from Underwood. Rather, she seems to completely understand her place in the pop music world and how she got there, and instead of going all personal on her sizable fan base, she simply delivers them more of what they want. And just in time for the impending holiday sales rush, no less……
Carrie Underwood is atop a ‘Carnival Ride’
….But “Carnival Ride” makes it clear, to paraphrase Underwood’s one co-writer on “Some Hearts, ” she ain’t in Checotah anymore. While the hurriedly made first album had an organic feel and ingà ©nue’s charm, “Carnival Ride” sounds far more studied, even as it also showcases Underwood’s growth as a vocalist. She considers it to be more country than her debut….
Underwood’s Second CD Highly Anticipated
Carrie Underwood’s 2nd Album, `Carnival Ride, ‘ Among The Year’s Most Anticipated Releases
…But Underwood says she won’t make the mistake of measuring success strictly by the numbers, especially since her debut set the bar improbably high.
“Even if it doesn’t sell as many, I feel like we’ve made a better album, which is what you want to do. You want to keep getting better and have better songs and keep sounding better and moving forward. So even if we don’t reach the numbers, I’m definitely still very pleased with it. I don’t think it will be a letdown at all.”
The first single, “So Small, ” is No. 5 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart and rising. Like her breakthrough hit “Jesus, Take the Wheel, ” the lyrics and the music are uplifting, proclaiming “when you figure out love is all that matters after all, it sure makes everything else seem so small.”
The track is one of four that Underwood co-wrote, a step up from her one co-write on the debut. In fact, she had a larger hand in the whole project because there was much more time compared to the tight schedule after her “American Idol” win in 2005.
“I was in the studio whether we were recording or not. If Mark (producer Mark Bright) was doing something I’d come by and listen to the background vocals that were being put down, and if I found something I didn’t like maybe I’d tell the background vocalists that I think it would sound better if we did it like this, ” she says. “Mark was super open because it’s my voice and my album, and in the end I’m the one who should be most pleased with it.”…
Will Rocket Be The Next Great American Band?
Imagine our surprise when we discovered from the LA Times’ Buzz Bands blog last week that our friends Rocket were not only on the new tv show The Next Great American Band but they had made it pretty far already……….
Music Review: Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood, “Carnival Ride” (Arista)
After the six-million-selling “Some Hearts, ” where the “American Idol” champ sparked arguments about whether she was country or pop, her second album goes out of its way to prove she‹s as down home as any of her Nashville peers……
Stargazing: Helio Castroneves splits with real-life partner, Tim Gunn on being gay in the fashion world, Bo Bice release
…Bo knows ¦ good health
Bo Bice …See the Light is available starting today at Wal-Mart, and the former …American Idol contestant is feeling even better about feeling good. Late last year he had emergency intestinal surgery that seems to have helped a health problem he had since childhood.
About Last Night: Weekend Edition
…But the problem NGAB will have compared with Idol is that the band format is inherently less dramatic than seeing a lone singer out on a stage. The quality of musicianship was fair, certainly of a higher level that what Idol features in its auditions, but no one was especially memorable. The producers tried to get around this problem by picking groups that can stand out demographically–“the girl rockers”, ‘the kids”, “the country brothers”–but I don’t think anyone here is going to create a Sanjaya-like buzz. The ratings were pretty terrible, but since it’s on Fridays and Fox, to put it mildly, owes a lot to Idol, I don’t see it disappearing. Prediction: the country band Sixwire to win…
Meet The Skaneatles, And 59 Other Bands That Want You To Love Them
Welcome to our inaugural recap of The Next Great American Band, the American Idol spinoff that will give one lucky act the chance to achieve the same level of stardom as Taylor Hicks. First up: Friday night’s audition episode. Now, given that in the Idol world, those episodes usually draw in the trainwreck-hunting masses by the boatload, a non-Idol-like 2.0 rating makes me wonder if this show will even last long enough to get an official site that isn’t on MySpace. Oh well, at least Zolar X finally got the national TV time they’ve deserved for so long:
Rick Denzien Heads To Hollywood For Awards Show
…New Music Weekly magazine, sponsor of the New Music Awards, has announced 2007 nominees for the prestigious awards, including Fergie, Pink, Maroon Five, Elliott Yamin, Amy Winehouse, Daughtry and Bon Jovi among the pop nominees, while emerging indie artists as Rose Moore is nominated for Best New Artist. Categories also include Country, College, and Top 40. The New Music Awards ceremony takes place on November 10th, 2007 at the Avalon Theater in Hollywood, California.
The public has access to vote in support of their favorite New Music Awards nominees, in which such votes can be placed at www.newmusicawards.com/main.html by clicking on the Vote Now button. Please place your votes in support of independent artists…
Fair attendance breaks records
Good Weather – Great Gates
…CONCERTS: An “unprecedented” five of the nine performances in Dorton Arena sold out, said Brian Long, spokesman for the state agriculture department.
Roanoke Rapids rocker Chris Daughtry’s concert sold out in four days when ticket sales opened online last month. Albemarle native Kellie Pickler’s new country concert was more down to the wire but sold out before she took the stage Tuesday…
CONFIDENT BUT NOT CARRIE-D AWAY
ON her debut album, Carrie Underwood allowed Jesus to take the wheel. For her follow-up, “Carnival Ride, ” which hits stores today, she’s driving. “I got the chance to write a lot more for this album than I did the first, which was great, ” says Underwood. Her first effort, 2005’s “Some Hearts, ” earned the country singer and former “American Idol” winner two Grammys and a host of other accolades while going platinum six times over, becoming the fastest-selling debut country album in Nielsen SoundScan history…….
SEND-OFF SURPRISE
“AMERICAN Idol” alum Fantasia Barrino brought down the house at Tillman’s Bar & Lounge during a send-off party for her “Color Purple” co-star Kimba Shannon. She jumped onstage the other night to toast her pal and gave an impromptu performance of songs from the show, in which she plays Celie, bringing the crowd to tears. Shannon’s new gig will be as a dancer on Celine Dion’s tour.
“Next Great American Band” surpasses “Idol”
Strictly from a mechanical point of view, there is about as much creativity in producing “The Next Great American Band” as there is in making an ice cube. Practically every detail of the series, which premiered Friday, came straight from the “American Idol” playbook, even down to the demeanor of the host and each of the three judges.
But what this show lacks in imagination it makes up for in casting. While “Band” mimics “Idol, ” it also surpasses it in virtually every respect. It has better judges, a better host, sharper storytelling and editing that is at least as smart…..
