Live Earth: The Afterglow . . sorta.
The Concept
Live Earth was an ironic experiment. Turning on your TV to save the environment -- isn't that a paradox? Then, when they went off on environmental spiels between acts, the crowd went off to get drinks. The message was lost because the message was the commercial break. :P People watch concerts for the music, not to learn earth-saving tips. The two just don't mix, no matter how much Vitamin Al you add.
Still, they raised a ton of money and hopefully enlightened a few viewers out there, so I guess it balances out. I just think that An Inconvenient Truth already made a big impact on the ignorant and skeptical, and those who still remain naysayers will never jump onto the bandwagon, with or without Madonna and Justin Timberlake at the wheel.
Tokyo
. . . 's production values were crap. Whereas the other Live Earth concerts I saw were held in bright daylight, Tokyo's concert was late at night in the pitch black outdoors. Everyone looked so sleepy. And while other concerts gave everyone their own personal space to move, Tokyo looked like a scene from a post-apocalyptic movie with everyone standing and squished together to make enjoyment as uncomfortable as possible. Maybe there's something green about saving chairs and space that I'm missing . .
Then there was the awkward pacing where they'd have 30 minutes of silence and darkness in between acts. MuchMusic would keep their camera on the empty stage, perhaps wondering what to do with the nothingness. They were in desparate need of an MC and a few more acts. I'm surprised that Japan, which probably has more singers per capita than any other country, couldn't find more for this show. Where were all the big names? Didn't SMAP sing a song a few years ago about protecting the environment?
Still, there was something to cheer about. Not RIZE, who was a bit too loud for my tastes. Not Ayaka, whose Engrish still annoys me (Feelin' Peace, Feelin' Smile -- Feelin' WTF??). But . .
My favorite singer
It was great to see Otsuka Ai on Canadian TV. It was even greater when they replayed her on CTV, the top national network, during the Sydney intermission. And It was greatest that she introduced the entire world to the awesomeness of CHU-LIP . . though sadly, she decided not to introduce the equally awesome CHU-LIP dance, though I guess it might've been too shocking for anyone outside Japan. India would probably start burning effigies. ;)
What wasn't so great was that Canadian TV billed her as "OTUKA AI," while one news reporter called her, "OTSUKA AL." >_<
What wasn't so great either was when she did a shameless plug for her new single. Not to mention that her new single sounded so bad, even NewS would be covering their ears. >___<
What was the worst, though, was how apathetic the crowd was through her whole performance. It looked like most of the crowd downright hated her. And later on, I found out the reason why:
Linkin Park??
I missed the rest of the show because I was sleepy and shallow and stopped watching after Otsuka Ai was over. But according to this article (USA Today), Linkin Park showed up afterwards and caused such a fan frenzy that they broke the barriers and delayed the performance! So my brilliant deductive thinking concludes that most of the audience was there to see Linkin Park. I've never heard their music before, but I'm guessing it's probably much different from the bubblegum pop of Otsuka Ai. ;)
BTW, I keep reading that Linkin Park is super-popular in Japan now. Anyone have any idea why? (Yeah, I'll probably be adding that to the questions I'll ask Japanese people and never get an answer to, alongside my "Daniel Powter?" one. ^_^)
Live Earth was an ironic experiment. Turning on your TV to save the environment -- isn't that a paradox? Then, when they went off on environmental spiels between acts, the crowd went off to get drinks. The message was lost because the message was the commercial break. :P People watch concerts for the music, not to learn earth-saving tips. The two just don't mix, no matter how much Vitamin Al you add.
Still, they raised a ton of money and hopefully enlightened a few viewers out there, so I guess it balances out. I just think that An Inconvenient Truth already made a big impact on the ignorant and skeptical, and those who still remain naysayers will never jump onto the bandwagon, with or without Madonna and Justin Timberlake at the wheel.
Tokyo
. . . 's production values were crap. Whereas the other Live Earth concerts I saw were held in bright daylight, Tokyo's concert was late at night in the pitch black outdoors. Everyone looked so sleepy. And while other concerts gave everyone their own personal space to move, Tokyo looked like a scene from a post-apocalyptic movie with everyone standing and squished together to make enjoyment as uncomfortable as possible. Maybe there's something green about saving chairs and space that I'm missing . .
Then there was the awkward pacing where they'd have 30 minutes of silence and darkness in between acts. MuchMusic would keep their camera on the empty stage, perhaps wondering what to do with the nothingness. They were in desparate need of an MC and a few more acts. I'm surprised that Japan, which probably has more singers per capita than any other country, couldn't find more for this show. Where were all the big names? Didn't SMAP sing a song a few years ago about protecting the environment?
Still, there was something to cheer about. Not RIZE, who was a bit too loud for my tastes. Not Ayaka, whose Engrish still annoys me (Feelin' Peace, Feelin' Smile -- Feelin' WTF??). But . .
My favorite singer
It was great to see Otsuka Ai on Canadian TV. It was even greater when they replayed her on CTV, the top national network, during the Sydney intermission. And It was greatest that she introduced the entire world to the awesomeness of CHU-LIP . . though sadly, she decided not to introduce the equally awesome CHU-LIP dance, though I guess it might've been too shocking for anyone outside Japan. India would probably start burning effigies. ;)
What wasn't so great was that Canadian TV billed her as "OTUKA AI," while one news reporter called her, "OTSUKA AL." >_<
What wasn't so great either was when she did a shameless plug for her new single. Not to mention that her new single sounded so bad, even NewS would be covering their ears. >___<
What was the worst, though, was how apathetic the crowd was through her whole performance. It looked like most of the crowd downright hated her. And later on, I found out the reason why:
Linkin Park??
I missed the rest of the show because I was sleepy and shallow and stopped watching after Otsuka Ai was over. But according to this article (USA Today), Linkin Park showed up afterwards and caused such a fan frenzy that they broke the barriers and delayed the performance! So my brilliant deductive thinking concludes that most of the audience was there to see Linkin Park. I've never heard their music before, but I'm guessing it's probably much different from the bubblegum pop of Otsuka Ai. ;)
BTW, I keep reading that Linkin Park is super-popular in Japan now. Anyone have any idea why? (Yeah, I'll probably be adding that to the questions I'll ask Japanese people and never get an answer to, alongside my "Daniel Powter?" one. ^_^)