As one of the most memorable and praised pop vocalists of her time, there's no denying that Mariah Carey's vocal prowess is second to none, with her ability to go beyond the seventh octave and her signature whistle register. When at the top of her game, Carey's sense of pitch and acrobatic whispery vocals are revered, and have given pop music a new sense of entitlement.
Then there's Carey's public persona, which over her long career has been a target for smirks and ridicule due to her eccentricity, personal tastes and wardrobe choices — and that's not to mention that should-be-forever-forgotten flick Glitter.
The songstress' showcase in Bangkok on Thursday showed Carey as her tour name best describes it: the elusive (slightly off-the-wall) chanteuse.
For almost two hours, we were treated to high musicality through the Grammy-winner's singing and amazing band. The experience was, however, marred by a lack of direction and finesse, which possibly stemmed from Carey's desire to have everything done her way and on her schedule. Carey's vocal prowess might not be as perfect as it once was, but when someone with such rare, God-given ability slips down a notch, it's hardly a problem. Cracks and unfortunate shakes were present, but it was pretty much near perfect — and a lot more than you could ever ask for from today's so-called divas.
The most perplexing moments were Carey's long wardrobe change breaks — the longest I've ever witnessed in my years as an ardent live show attendee.
It might seem rather trivial of me to nitpick on such a matter, but a good show should be executed with a balance proportion in terms of timing and show rhythms to arrive at a perfectly crafted showcase.
Carey took the stage in a supposedly sexy, skin-tight Santa outfit and vinyl knee-length boots (which she wore for the entire night) to accompany her opening number, All I Want For Christmas Is You. The unforgiving costume confusingly stuck around for four more songs, which included Touch My Body and Emotions, featuring that famous whistle register. My All pleased the old-school crowd no end. A lengthy medley section, which Carey dubbed "fan favourites", incorporated Heartbreaker, Beautiful, Breakdown, I Know What You Want, It's Like That, Crybaby, The Roof, Obsessed and Don't Forget About Us.
This was where it got quite confusing, because the accompanying visuals were essentially cut-and-pasted music videos for each song. It became distracting for me — I sat rather far from the stage — to focus on the real Carey onstage or moving images of Carey on-screen.
This continued through out the night, and proved to be rather unnecessary. Timeless hits such as Hero, Always Be My Baby, We Belong Together and Honey saw Carey delving deep into the soulful side for which she is renowned.
There was a definite buzz over Carey's change of appearance, and the constant showing of past music videos was a harsh reminder, almost like a cruel joke. Then again, people age, gain weight and sometimes go a bit crazy with Botox and plastic surgery. To me, her physical alterations were not big issues. At 45, Carey still looks beautiful. The problems lay with her unflattering wardrobe choices and those darn vinyl boots that didn't go with anything.
I can only guess that when you're Mariah Carey, you pretty much wear whatever you want, without considering your body type.
The stage looked rather like a municipal New Year party with golden drapes everywhere. The half-hearted props and scattered lighting did not help elevate Carey's show to a world-class level.
If it hadn't been for Carey's natural and unique talents, the showcase would have been a total bust. Most of the elements didn't work as they were supposed to, but thanks to her musicality and fabulous band, the music saved the night.
