The Pretty and Nine Others: My Review of the Dallas AI Concert (08.13.2005)

Never in my life did I dream I'd go to an American Idols concert and I'm still rather embarrassed to admit that I actually went to one. I'm an anti-pop-music-pop-culture kind of person, and country music isn't on my list of favourites, either. But, after weighing my options, I decided to sacrifice my philosophy to see the Pretty. Constantine Maroulis himself. It was worth every hard-earned penny.

Jessica opened the concert, which I found odd for some reason, as I expected there to be a group number at the beginning. She did just fine, and her interaction with Guitar Boy was pretty cute. I found myself watching Guitar Boy when Consty wasn't on stage.

Anwar was next, and the sound was pretty bad. I don't know if it was him (let's give him the benefit of the doubt and say it wasn't) or the sound system, but something was off, and I couldn't understand a word he said. When he introduced Con, the crowd went completely wild... it was all dark and Con just burst out, singing Hard to Handle. Are we having fun yet? The concert had officially begun.

[aside1: I'm seriously having a difficult time remembering Con's performances; I was in such state of shock and awe that I was actually there, listening to him sing live, that I don't remember that many specific notes, movements, etc. The entire experience was surreal to the extreme, and I remember more what I myself was thinking and feeling and how I was responding to his performance as opposed to the actual performance.]

[aside 2: I only have one major regret when it comes to the concert (other than not trying Ouzo! How'd we forget that??): I had to sit down during the Pretty's performances. Yup, that's right. My butt was glued to my seat during Bohemian Rhapsody, and let me tell you: damn, it hurt.* I was in the nose-bleed section during the first part of the show, surrounded by unenthusiastic older couples who loved Carrie. Sure, they were nice people, but can you get any more boring than that?? When Con exploded onto the stage during HTH, several people (myself being one of them, of course) stood up in their seats out of excitement. But then they freaking sat down. I stood for as long as I could, ignoring the screams from people behind me to sit down. I finally gave in and sat, though, but on the very edge of my seat. Did people not understand that it was the Pretty?? The Pretty was singing!! *shakes her head in frustration*]

The energy he exuded in HTH was incredible. Something good must have happened in LA, because he was definitely on, and the crowd was feeling the mojo. I've never seen him interact with the crowd on the level that he did that night. He'd throw in extra words, and even left out a few song phrases (though I can't remember which ones) and would let the audience scream them. It was an upbeat, energetic performance. And Zeus knows we all needed to be woken up after Anwar's performance. Yes, we did get a knee-slide during HTH... it wasn't a slide towards the audience it was across the stage but it was a knee-slide nonetheless.

Next was My Funny Valentine, which was absolutely perfect. Funny. Sweet. Comic. Smart. He made me smile in my heart. It was amazing to be there, listening to him sing in front of a live audience. In all seriousness, it was so much better than I'd anticipated, and so much more powerful. In a few parts, he changed the notes up a little, singing it differently than what I'd ever heard before. I don't remember which part but I remember being pleasantly surprised. The "Stay..." on MFV was incredible as well. There's nothing like hearing it live; there really isn't. He interacted with the audience more in this song than I'd ever seen as well. He even stepped down from the stage during one point, and walked by the fans in the front, singing to them, touching them, and just having a good time. I could even feel the electricity from the nose-bleed section, with my butt still glued to my seat. So you know the mojo was in the air.

Next came the *ahem* part where he slows down and quatsches with the audience for a while. After nearly every sentence, the audience went absolutely wild; the crowd loved him, and he really seemed to love us as well. Maybe it's cause none of us got enough love in our childhoods. I dunno. But whatever the reason, I was feeling the love. In the middle of him talking, someone threw a towel onto the stage. He was dangerously sweaty after the first two songs, and proceeded to wipe the sweat from his forehead. Sure, it began innocently enough, but when he realized the effect he was having on the audience he really started to play with us. He moved from his forehead to his face, to his neck, to his chest... yeah. We've all seen the clip; I'll leave it at that.

Then it was time for his final song... time... what a concept... is this the real life, or is it just fantasy? On the one hand, time seemed to stand still as I soaked in each note, each movement, it moment. But on the other hand, it seemed to fly into warp-speed. I was caught in a landslide of music, of the Pretty's voice... no escape from reality. My writing and description cannot do him justice. Each note was so deliberate, so perfect. Each movement on stage was so natural, so fluid. Sends shivers down my spine. This was the highlight of the show. He killed the song; he nailed it. Oh, Pretty, won't you come back again this time tomorrow? I could listen to you every day. I could say he did the song justice, which he did, but he's done so much more than that with the song... he's made it his own. If I didn't know better, I'd think he'd written it himself; there was passion and personality in each note, each phrase, each nuance, each movement.

But it was too late... his time had come... he thanked everyone and disappeared. Just as quickly as he'd entered. Now all I had was a little figmented silhouetto of a man and his performance in my imagination. It all happened so fast. But carry on, the show must.

Nikko was next, but Con didn't even introduce him. It was a choppy transition from Bo Rhap to a hip-hoppy pop song. It just didn't feel right. I still couldn't stop thinking about the Pretty. That's it?? Not only did the songs fly by, but I could barely even remember what happened! I got a fever, and the only prescription is more Pretty!! Please don't leave us so soon!! Stay, little Valentine, stay! Where the heck did the Pretty go?? Although Nikko was surprisingly good (especially when he danced), I do feel sorry for him because he had to follow Constantine. Now that's pressure. Sixth place my arse.

As I watched Nikko, I was trying to figure out how The Powers That Be decided in which order the contestants should perform. Constantine's performance was magnifico. Why wouldn't he close the set? Why did Nikko perform after him? I don't know the answer to the first question, but I do think I know why Nikko followed him. Nikko is the anti-Con. The two are incomparably different. Of course Bo and Carrie couldn't follow Constantine. TPTB don't want Constantine anywhere near their Chosen Ones. He'd make them look boring. Though the Chosen One manages to be boring anyway. Nadia and Con are both so edgy they have to keep these two apart to keep things interesting. Scott, Jessica, Anthony or Anwar could have followed Con, I guess, but they're all pretty amateur when it comes to being on stage, and I think this would have taken away from their performances. So, Nikko, the anti-Con was the obvious choice.

Scott was next. My first thought when he came on stage was that I am embarrassed to live in Texas. There was way too much screaming for him. Cheering? Fine. But screaming? Does he really have that much of a following in Texas? I guess there are quite a few women-hating chauvinists around these parts who can relate to him. His performance was good, though. Especially his duet with Jessica. That was surprisingly good. Though I kept wishing that the Pretty could sing a duet with someone, darn it. Where's the Pretty?? What's he doing backstage?? Talk about wasted talent.

Nadia closed the set, and was fabulous. I wish I were Nadia. I think I love her. She strutted out in some fab-shmab heels, carrying an electric guitar, which she managed to air-play quite well. The Pretty needs to play a guitar. Maybe when he goes solo. One thing I've always liked about Nadia and her performances is her intensity. She's very intense when she sings, even to the point of being a little (thunder bolts and lightening) frightening. She has an excellent voice, and I especially loved when she sang Try a Little Tenderness. Her stage presence was incredible; she's second to Consty in edginess and eccentricity. And holy schnikes, does she ever know how to work the mic stand. I think she's been hanging out with Con, just like Anthony has. At one point, she threw the stand onto the ground, and then later flipped it up with her heel and caught it without missing a beat. Now that's what I call coordination. Nadia was freaking awesome.

Anthony was next, and he was good as well. I don't remember much from his performance, other than thinking that he's cute, has a good voice, and a possible future. He looks like he could be in a boy band. And he even said "Lets do it", like Consty said on Nickelodian.

Bo came limping out next, with his cane, and really did an excellent job given the situation. Desperado sounded great, although it was a little awkward. He started out playing the piano, but then stopped half-way through it, and just sat on the bench. I don't think he knew what to do with his arms. He actually stood up and ran around the stage in his other songs, which were hard for me to really enjoy because I was so worried that he'd hurt himself. He was definitely the crowd-favourite, which made me happy. We were in Texas, after all.

Then came Carrie. The way she walks around stage cracks me up. She's still trying to figure out who she is on stage and how to handle herself. It's as if TPTB told her to loosen up and shake her hips a little, and even explore the stage space. She'll walk from one side to the other, almost as if shes following a pre-determined course. Heh. The one non-country song she sang was actually pretty good. She does have a good voice. Yay for the Chosen One.

Now to the part I'd been waiting for: the Encore! The Return of the Pretty! The Revenge of the Sixth! Luckily, I had managed to sneak to the ground-level where there were some empty seats by Sandy and Creative. This time, I was able to stand up and jump up and down for the Pretty, as well as scream to my heart's content. He was absolutely fabulous. I didn't (couldn't?) take my eyes off of him the entire time. Even when he was singing back-up, I could pick his voice out from the crowd of them; he has such a unique and distinctive voice. It was absolutely beautiful. He had on a blue t-shirt with cut-off sleeves and then a leather jacket, which he kept dropping below his shoulder. Heh. There was much head-banging and running around stage, and he even slapped Nadias derriere at one point. He really seemed to be enjoying himself and enjoying performing with his friends. What a great group of people; I was very impressed overall; I really was.

Constantine was even more electrical on stage and in person than I'd ever imagined he could be. There's something magical, something intangible about him. I will be both shocked and horrified if he doesn't continue performing. He seems to love it too much; he seems so ecstatic to be on stage, always interacting with the fans and the other contestants, and just having the time of his life. During the few fleeting moments he was on stage, he made everyone in that venue love him, with a love there is no cure for. This is still only the beginning for our dear Constantine James Maroulis.


*edited for those who might question my use of a particular curse word. This is (a) not normal for me and (b) an inside joke. In an interview, Constantine rock-star-kicked the camera and fell on his rear end on national televison. What did he say? "Damn, I hurt my butt." It's crude, but it's become sort of a catch phrase and constant joke.