Sunday, May 18, 2008

ON THIS DAY WE BECOME LEGENDARY

Quick aside: Clearly, I haven't been updating this thing as much as I envisioned. I no longer work at The Review, as it was time to hand it over to the young guns. I graduate in 13 days and head to Europe for three and a half weeks shortly after that. What I'm trying to say is don't expect many more updates (if any) after this one. I'm sure I'll be back at this blogging thing sooner than I should be, it just might not be here.



If there's a note to go out on, it's Kanye West's "Glow in the Dark" tour. I'm not going to overanalyze (what too many of us tend to do) the thing because it might lead to nitpicking (no "Drive Slow"?) or unnecessary realizations (including "Gold Digger" because Kanye "needs pussy"?). There is no need for either when discussing West's intergalactic, 20-song adventure. Excuse the hyperbole but after last night's show, I would be hard pressed to name a more important, and impressive, performer than West right now. The chipmunk-soul-beat geek has transformed into the most engaging and hard-working showman in rap history. But now, after "Glow in the Dark," Kanye has transcended genre barriers and has his eyes set on being the biggest name is music. Big Brother Hov should take notice - just because your catalog is deeper than most record collections doesn't mean concert creativity should not be explored. Love him or hate him, there is no denying that at last night's performance at the Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden, N.J., Kanye West made a serious argument as being "the brightest star in the universe."

Random thoughts:

- Chris Brown, who came out to dance during N.E.R.D.'s new track "Spaz," is really tall, especially next to Pharrell.
- Breezy did not come out to sing the "Umbrella" remix with rumored girlfriend Rihanna, whose set was OK. The girls standing around me were really into it.
- Sean Fennessey talked about this on his Vibe blog but songs from West's Graduation sounded the best, in particular "Flashing Lights" and my favorite, "I Wonder."
- Lupe Fiasco's flow is no joke.
- There is nothing like seeing thousands of people moving their hands up and down during the "La, la, la, la..." part of "Can't Tell Me Nothing."
- Yes, Kanye was wearing his Air Yeezys, and yes, they were dope.
- There was a teenage couple sitting in front of me who were more concerned with taking kissing photos than watching the artists rip it.
- The acts seemed confused in addressing the crowd as Philly or New Jersey. Pharrell handled it with the most honesty. "We're confused because our hotels are in Philly but the show is in Camden. Pause. So what's up Philly and New Jersey?!"
- Hearing "Spaceship," from The College Dropout, was a nice reminder of how angry Kanye used to be.
- I left the arena feeling fantastic.