Wednesday, February 10, 2010

REVIEW: MARIAH CAREY - ANGELS ADVOCATE TOUR (TORONTO) & EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS


It's been almost four years since Mariah Carey has toured and although her Angels Advocate Tour hasn't brought in the numbers that 2006's The Adventures of Mimi Tour had, her fans (lovingly known as Lambs), are still devout.  Case in point, her Mimi Tour sold out on two separate nights here in Toronto.  Promoters this time around struggled to fill Air Canada Centre, resulting in Carey's stage being brought in closer to the audience for a more intimate feel.  Just last week alone, 300 section tickets were being sold as part of a two for one deal.  Needless to say, those seats filled quickly.  I myself was originally to be seated in the 20th row on the floor,  but got promoted ahead three rows due to lower than anticipated ticket sales.  No complaints here.

After making her fans wait over 90 minutes, Carey finally arrived on stage shortly after 9:00 PM EST,  but not after the prolonged wait drew mixed boos and cheers.  Descending upon the audience on a swing seat, she performed an intro combo Butterfly/Fantasy Interlude. She looked every bit a goddess in a ruffled gold number which complemented her very present cleavage.   She then delivered a musical triple-axle of Shake it Off, Touch My Body and Fly Like a Bird.  Her voice was quite nasal this evening due to a cold she caught from one of her male dancers last week and she asked the audience for mercy.  Was this in response to an accusation of her stalling work ethic made by blogger Perez Hilton today?

Oddly,  Carey let her band and backing dancers do most of the work on the inspirational Make it Happen, while she changed into a form-fitting silver number, then suddenly reappearing on stage to deliver some ad libs and a final chorus.  She mimed the vocals to two tracks from her latest effort Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel - Angels Cry and The Impossible.  She revealed that the latter was written for her husband Nick Cannon before the audience - mostly gay men and girls in their twenties - feasted their eyes on a fit male dancer writhing about on stage.

One quality that defines Carey as an entertainer is the genuine love she has for her fans.  Unlike a Madonna or a Britney Spears concert, you get interaction at Carey's shows.  She recognized one male fan named Alexander who has attended all three of her Canadian dates.  Tonight she had the spotlights directed at him and shared a glass (yes, literally the same glass) of champagne with him,  also taking an opportunity to introduce a Rosé Champagne she will be introducing to the market soon.

It was a great surprise to see Carey perform her mash-up of Diana Ross' Love Hangover with number one hit Heartbreaker.  Some of us may remember her performing this on a VH1 Divas Live Diana Ross Tribute back in 2000.  Undeniably, the highlights of the show were her renditions of My All which had her being carried off stage by a dancer, and also Always Be My Baby.  The latter had the audience waking from the dead, showing its first sign of forgiveness for her tardiness.  They sang along and waved their hands in unison.  By the end of the show, Carey had just enough left in the tank to belt out We Belong Together, recently crowned number one song of the 2000s by Billboard Magazine.  And it was fabulous - all the way through its demanding final chorus. 

Toronto fans had the privilege of being chosen as part of her new video for 100%, originally intended for the film Precious for which she recently won acting honours.  In her typically self-aware manner, she received touch-ups from a team of three stylists on stage, before giving us simple instructions to show her our Number Ones. This is a gesture which simply requires the raising of the index finger in the air, as cameras recorded the enthused audience in motion.  The track which is now being used for the 2010 Olympics, will be appearing on her forthcoming release Angels Advocate, Carey's thirteenth studio album and second remix album. 

The show was capped off shortly before 11:00 PM EST with an encore of her signature ballad Hero, which her fans never grow tired of hearing.  In all honesty, this was my only opportunity tonight to snap a photo or two.   Security this evening had fully enforced a no photograph policy.  I myself witnessed a good number or fans getting their cameras confiscated or even escorted off premises.  Call her a diva - she definitely knows it.


In all, the Angels Advocate Tour falls short of the spectacle she gave her fans on her previous tour.  But even in its scaled down form and without her usual level of energy, the audience still got what it came for - Carey's wondrous instrument of a voice and quality time with her.  Grade: B

8 comments:

  1. Great review Will - although she was one of my fave singers of the 90s, I've never seen her live. I *quite* like most of the new album, I'll probably pair it with the remix effort and come up with an album that's quite solid between the two!!

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  2. I love the crazy bitch! There are rumours she's bringing the show to Sydney and I'll be there - 90 minute wait and all.

    However, I really hate this no camera policy. With ticket prices skyrocketing, it seems completely ridiculous to deny fans the chance to take their own little momento from the show.

    Oh and I'm super jealous of the fan who drank Bubbly with Mimi!

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  3. Mike - I so agree about the photo policy. I swear all artists/their "people" think all fans take pictures to sell them. We take pictures to seal memories, because when you're at the concert, it goes by so fast, it's nice to have a momento that isn't a $90 tank top.

    With that said -- Will, glad you had a great time. I'm sure she's faboosh live, sore throat or not, because girlfriend certainly has an undeniable catalogue. She and Janet rank among my top WANTS to see live sometime in my lifetime...

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  4. I sat about twenty rows from the floor, centre stage. I'm not a huge fan but I really love the Butterfly cd and her latest cd. Although I rarely bring a camera to concerts I did last night to capture her fab outfits and some memories (the tickets were a bday gift). I have lots of photos- not as good as Will's of course bec I had to use hte zoom. I agree with you about the photo policy- fans want to remember the evening not sell the pics.
    Enjoyed the show- especially when Mariah hit those high notes.
    P.S. When we were in Bahamas we went to the Dolphin Encounter and they had celeb photos on the wall incl Mariah and Halle Berry. I asked the ladies who worked there what MC and HB were like. They told us Mariah is really nice, down to earth and HB was a total diva and that no one liked HB.

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  5. I know for a fact that Mariah is very cool with having her photos taken and if you were to run into her on the street, she would be first to do an autograph for you if you asked nicely.

    I'm not sure if it was management's decision to be this stern last night or not, but perhaps they need to get with the times re: the photo policy and update it to allow non-flash photography. In this age of digital cameras, it's expected people will want to take photos. I don't see any issue with it. We even bring cameras in unintentionally by having a cell phone alone!

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  6. Sigh. I kinda wished I had gone to see her in the more initmate setting. Less flashy spectacle, more singing would be good for her. Hmmm, how about Roy Thompson Hall?

    Wouldn't it be great? "An Intimate Evening with Mariah"

    Next time, MC! :-)

    -edwin-

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  7. Mariah is a a huge fan of Diana Ross. I can see why she included "Love Hangover" in her set list. I love a lot of her songs.

    Since I brought up Diana Ross, please check out Dick's Diana Ross Website at:
    http://raketler.angelfire.com

    Thanks!

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  8. Believe it or not- im the super fan- ALEXANDER- who got to share the champange with mariah.

    I am looking desperatly for a photo of that moment-

    if you have one- PLEASE email me

    alexander_christopher@hotmail.com


    that night was THE BEST NIGHT OF MY LIFE

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