It was clear from the start what kind of concert Miranda Lambert was about to put on for the crowd at John Paul Jones Arena last Thursday night. As the first song, "Only Prettier," began to play and Lambert strolled onto the stage dressed in all black with her hot pink guitar draped on her shoulder, anyone could see that this was not going to be a show full of dazzling effects or dramatic reveals. And the night was more enjoyable because of it.
Rather than worry about wowing the audience with an impressive display of pyrotechnics, Lambert approached her audience as you might approach an old friend whom you have not seen in a while. Throughout the setlist, Lambert talked casually with her audience about her life and displayed an impressive sense of dry humor. At one point, Lambert stopped in the middle of "Famous in a Small Town" to tell the crowd that she had just shot her first deer of the season the day before, an announcement that garnered a gracious amount of cheers from her audience. Whether it was scripted didn't really matter; the fact was Lambert gave her all in trying to connect with the crowd, and it was definitely appreciated.
During her 90-minute set, Lambert played both new and old material, with a heavy emphasis on her new album, Revolution. Her first single, "Kerosene," was greeted with massive applause early on, and there were big sing-a-longs to more recent hits like "Gunpowder & Lead" and "The House That Built Me." Perhaps most welcome were Lambert's surprisingly strong vocal chops - rarely did a missed note go by, and she tackled big songs like "Dead Flowers" and "Love Song" with as much ease as smaller melodies like "Me and Your Cigarettes." When it was time for the encore, the band exited the stage leaving Lambert alone to play a stripped-back ballad followed by an appearance from openers Eric Church and Josh Kelley to sing a cover of "The Weight" together.
By the time the lights came on in JPJ, Lambert had played all her great songs in addition to highlighting her down-to-earth personality. If the crowd was sometimes stiff, Lambert worked even harder to get people invested in the show - let it never be said she is an effortless performer because that would gloss over the care she puts into making sure her fans are having a good time.
It was a refreshingly honest concert. Lambert does not hold any illusions of grandeur about herself, which makes her immediately likable and creates a fun environment for her music. Compared to most performers today who try to outdo one another by putting on shows that employ more tricks than Cirque de Soleil, Lambert takes a staunch what-you-see-is-what-you-get approach, and her show was all the better for it.
Read More
The best albums of 2014
By Noah Zeidman | December 4, 2014Across genres, it has been a pretty great year in music.
Top 10 movies of 2014
December 4, 2014This has been an excellent year for film, offering everything from gripping blockbusters to innovative personal films.
Iggy Azalea is “Reclassified”
December 4, 2014It has become common practice among music artists to repackage their albums in an effort to simultaneously boost single sales and dish out new content by slightly renaming the album or slapping “Deluxe” onto the title.
