Incredible Machine 10-1-2010 10-2-2010

Jennifer Nettles, stood at her mic stand with the spotlight on her and said, “everyday people come up and say Jennifer and Kristian do you know how lucky you are to go out on the road and make music, and I look out at all your smiling faces and you know what I say to them, YOU DAMN RIGHT.” Sugarland rocked Charlotte and Raleigh, NC this past weekend. Opening the Incredible Machine on both nights was Randy Montana; he has an awesome voice, needs a little more stage presence and movement. After his 6 song set, Little Big Town came out and really got the machine turning, they played the same set list on both nights, as did Sugarland, and Randy Montana. Little Big Town is a force to be wrecking with. They have awesome harmonies, stage presence, and they interact with the fans like no other. A moment that really stood out to me was at the Raleigh show, when a handicap child walked up to a the stage and Kimberly, also known as the blonde with puffy hair, bent down and smiled for a picture with the little girl while singing and that really stood out to me and I gained even more respect for her and the entire band. They finished their set, which included new songs and old songs, with boondocks. Sugarland came out after a very brief and discreet set change. They opened both shows with Wide Open which is one of their new songs from their high anticipated forthcoming studio effort, “The Incredible Machine.” Which the title track (Incredible Machine), Stand Up, Find the Beat and the duo’s current single, Stuck Like Glue was also performed, which will all be on the new album. They also busted out hit after hit like Settlin’, It Happens, Baby Girl in a very campfirey style, and Something More. During their song, Everyday America included a remix of songs that included Party in theU.S.A, Single Ladies, and I Want You Back. On Saturday night Sugarland added beastie boys in the mix. I may have seen this show multiple times but Sugarland never seems to fail me. They have so much energy and they show thru their live shows how much they appreciate their fans. So, When people ask me every time I go to see Sugarland, Was it really any different and did u have fun? I look them in the eyes and I smile and say “You Damn Right!”

And as always Please enjoy the show.

Sweetness: Friday 10-1-2010 4.5 sugarcubes out 5
Saturday 10-2-2010 5 sugarcubes out 5

Favorite moments from both nights:
+Sugarland collaboration with Little Big Town (Sigh No More)
+Sugarland’s opening number Wide Open
+Seeing that Sugarland had a record breaking showin Raleigh, NC.

Who Is That? (8-22-2010 thru 8-28-2010)

WHO IS THAT?!?! is going to be a weekly blog that I am going to do about artist that you may not know.

The very first artist is miss Katie Bryce. Reigning from Georgia, singing with a similar soulful sound that may ring a bell in your head, Jennifer Nettles. Why yes, she is Jenn's sis. She's not taking the same footsteps as Jenn, she is going into a more known genre, Pop/R&B. With her songs currently on youtube (link is below) TRUST ME YOU WONT REGRET Clicking it. My favorite song of hers is called "Everything to Me" it has a great beat to it, and the typical story of love and how the one your in love means absolutly everything to you.

Gaga and Britney watch out, you got some competition coming towards!

And As Always Please Enjoy the Show


follow her on twitter: @ilovekatiebryce

website: www.katiebryce.com

Here is the Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/ilovekatiebryce

Kris Allen and Maroon 5

What an evening, Kris Allen and Maroon 5 rocked Raleigh last night. With the crazy string of events that happened we ended moving from the lawn to 15th row, trust me it’s a blog in itself. Kris Allen came out right at 8:00 and played a good 40 minute set that included Red Guitar, Man in the Mirror, Written All Over My Face, The Truth, Live Like Were Dying and a few more from his debut CD. He knew how to work the stage and really kept the audience entertained as much as he could; this crowd was one of the dullest crowds I have ever seen at a concert. Kris really showed why he was an American Idol winner, he can sing and he knows how to perform. Maroon 5 came on after a 30 minute set change, with their current single misery and their 15 song set included 2 encore songs. They played some of their biggest hits like This Love, Sunday Morning, If I Never See Your Face Again, She Will Be Loved, Wake Up Call, Makes Me Wonder, and a new song which was my favorite of the evening called stutter. They also covered Alicia Key’s If I Ain’t Got You and Tina Turner’s Secret and What’s Love Got to Do with It. Now, Maroon 5 really played the stage and worked this boring crowd up and really put on a heck of a show. Now to something that really doesn’t have to do with the show. The venue is AWESOME, and that’s an understatement. It is set right in the middle of downtown behind a wall of water it was beautiful and the sound was great, and the venue just made the night even better. And As Always Please Enjoy the Show.

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 stars

Highlights of the Evening: The Truth by Kris Allen, Maroon 5 cover songs, and the glistening wall.

The Incredible Machine 8-12-2010

“Ain’t no party like a Sugarland party” rang thru the arena, and Jennifer knows what she is talking about. Sugarland knows how to party and put on one heck of a show. This is my 5 th Sugarland show, the best ever and they have taken the spot of best show I have ever seen. It was a non-stop SUGARRUSH! The show started with Michael Jackson’s Black and White and then the curtain fell and there it was the amazing stage, The Incredible Machine, then all of a sudden you hear the sound of Jenn’s voice singing “Wide Open” and the show begins. They work the stage like no other, flawlessly flowing from song to song. It Happens and Settlin’ were next up and the crowd was so pumped that once they stood up they stayed up. After Settlin’ Jenn talked about beautiful people and dedicated All I Wanna Do to all the beautiful people in the arena. Then she tells us about a girl that fell in love in the summertime and one of my personal favorites came on, Want To? Incredible Machine, Stuck Like Glue, Find the Beat, and Stand Up was the songs from The Incredible Machine that they gave us a “Sneaky Peaky” in Jenn’s words. Baby Girl was an intimate, “campfire” song according to Sugarland, along with Genevieve. One of the highlights of the nights came next, Everyday America with a remix of Beyonce, Jackson 5, and Miley Cyrus. The lights went out and the screen turned black and white, it was time for Stay, I think the crowd over sang them on this song. At the end of the show Jenn said that everyone tells her she is lucky and she always replies “Your Damn Right,” Something More hits. They came back for an encore, of the new song Stand Up (very touching performance), Very Last Country Song with opening act Vonda Shepard, and Staying Alive with the giant afro wig. I sat in my chair and said “is it really over, do I have to leave now?” This show was AMAZING.

Sweetness: 5 sugarcubes of 5 sugarcubes

Highlights: Stayin’ Alive, Want To, Stuck Like Glue, and Stand Up. And As Always Please Enjoy the Show.

American Idols Live 2010

And this is American Idol! After being nominated as the worst season in Idol history, the Idols proved them wrong last night in Charlotte. All 10 put on one heck of a show, they all sounded better live than on the show, which that’s what counts. Didi, Andrew, Katie, Tim, Siobhan, Aaron, Big Mike, Casey, Crystal and Lee impressed everyone last night; they all seemed to be like seasoned vets. They all sang at least one song from the past season. The ones that impressed me the most was Katie, Tim, and Aaron. Katie has one hell of a voice, Tim was 100% better than what he was on the show and Aaron had a complete country set and he sang one of my favorite songs, “Walking in Memphis.” Big Mike and Casey also did their duet from the show, it was good. (Never was a fan of either on the show) Crystal and Lee were great, they really just need to become a couple and become a duo. Their voices just blend together perfectly; they both had the bigger sets of the night with 5 songs each. They both did their “debut singles” and it was one of the highlights of the night. Now, all of you are probably wondering why I haven’t mentioned Siobhan’s set, well here it comes. There is one word to describe that young lady, “weird.” She can sing but she needs to leave the scream on the bus, she also had a fan that DRESSED UP as Michael Myers, awkward anyone? She is a very special artist, and that’s all I got! Now, once the first 6 did their sets, they all came back out and covered Miley’s “The Climb” one word= AWESOME. All 6 (Didi, Andrew, Katie, Tim, Siobhan and Aaron) did great and made it their own and I loved every second of it. At the end of Lee’s set all the guys came out singing “It’s my Life” with Casey playing his guitar then all the ladies came out and started the last song for the evening, “My Life Would Suck Without You.” By the end of the song everyone had said thank you and I love you, Lee and Crystal walked to the center of the stage and walked off the stage together arm in arm. Fantastic show, no room for complaints, and they really proved the critics wrong they aren’t the worst season of American Idol. And as always please enjoy the show.

Rating of show: 4 stars out of the 5
Highlights of the Night: “The Climb” duet, “My Life Would Suck Without You” Duet, Crystal’s “Up to the Mountain”, Lee’s “Beautiful Day”, and Aaron Kelly’s “Walking in Memphis”

Glamnation Tour 07/02/2010

After being stuck in the holiday, Friday 5 o’clock, Charlotte traffic for an hour and a half, we arrived at The Filmore. A lot of things were going in the parking lot and the entrance lines, protesting, cops and all kinds of good stuff. We finally get into the venue with the other 2,000 fans, (reminder The Filmore capacity of tickets/fans it will hold is 2,000) but much to my surprise we weren’t packed in there like a can of sardines, I ain’t saying that it wasn’t tight because it was. Right at 8pm Allison Iraheta took the stage, I didn’t even recognize her. She has lost a bunch of weight but hasn’t lost the distinctive voice of hers that we all fell in love with on Idol. She had a very short set; the time that she was on the stage Allison owned it. I honestly think she stole the show right out from under Adam. Halfway thru her set she sang her newest single, “Don’t Waste the Pretty” and brought Orianthi out to play guitar on the single and it was awesome! Allison ended her set with her debut single “Friday I’ll Be Over You.” Set change took place; they really took their time doing the change. Then we began to hear the evil laugh from Michael Jackson’s thriller, Orianthi took the stage by storm. All I can say about her is AMAZING, and she sure can play the guitar. When she sang “According to You” the audience went into a craze and really rocked with her. She finished her set with her newest single “Shut Up and Kiss Me.” After an hour set change, Adam’s “For Your Entertainment” played thru out the venue and the crowd went ballistic. He stepped up on the stage and belted song after song. What was the coolest thing about his set is that he would talk and explain the songs and it showed his appreciation to music and how it is written. He played a 4 song acoustic set including his hit single “Whataya Want from Me?” I enjoyed the acoustic set because it proved that it was really him singing and it wasn’t a recording. Adam had a 12 song set, including “Ring of Fire”, “Voodoo”, “Fever”, “Music Again” and “Strut.” He ended his set with the current release from his debut album, “If I Had You” it was the best song he did all night. This was a great show, but I was kind of disappointed that the opening acts really stole the show from Adam; the girls really rocked it out. And as always Please Enjoy the Show.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Favorite Moments: Allison and Orianthi collaboration on “Don’t Waste the Pretty”
Orianti singing her song “Suffocated” (personal favorite)
Adam’s cut down acoustic version of “Whataya Want from Me”
“If I Had You” show ending

Battlefield Tour 06/20/2010

“Tell me how I'm supposed to breathe with no air?” That’s what we all said last night when Jordin said, “Thank You Charlotte”, and walked off the Fillmore stage. She took our breath away, so much energy and spunk. I had an amazing time at this show, I have seen her 4 times and this has been by far the best yet. I also got to meet her, she is down to earth and she is one artist that hasn’t let the fame get to her. When I arrived at the venue I noticed it was in an old warehouse and I was like this better be good! Walk inside the doors and its one pretty place and the sound system was AMAZING! Days difference, a boy band that was a good opening act, personally never heard of them, and they really got the crowd pumped. They sang 4 songs of their own, great harmonies and energy. Every one of them needed to loosen up and have fun; they all were a little stiff and kinda acted like they were afraid of us. When their set ended, THEY, yes Days Difference, cleaned their own stuff up off the stage, that’s when they earned my respect. Kate Voegele, once again someone I have never heard of, hit the stage with an upbeat song and let it rip from the first note to the last. She had a lot of interaction with the crowd, she praised on how great of a state NC was because she works in Wilmington with the cast of One Tree Hill. She then covered one song that is covered by everyone, hallelujah, one of the best covers I have ever heard. She is an excellent artist, really knows what she is doing, and has excellent stage presence. At the end of her 7 song set, she sang the song “99 times” and she had the crowd really singing along with it. After a 10 minute set change, Miss Jordin Sparks took the stage by storm. She came out with the obvious choice of an opening song, “Battlefield”, it was a different mix then what it is on the radio, a better mix. She smoothly moved into song after song, new songs from the “Battlefield” album dominated her 14 song set list but she of course sang the classics, “One Step Time” “Tattoo” and “No Air”. Jordin also thanked all of us for voting for her, the typical idol saying but they all sincerely mean it (at least it seems like they do). She honestly sang her heart out and seemed to show the gratitude to her fans. All I can say Jordin Sparks is one of the few performers and I have a lot of respect for her.
And As Always Please Enjoy the Show.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Greatness: Hallelujah cover by Kate Voegele, Jordin’s closing scene when all the background singers showed there vocal abilities off, and when Jordin sang “No Parade”