Review: Taylor Swift

Photos by Shane Keyser/The Star

The football stadium is where rock megastars go to show off their muscle and might. It’s no place for the small, the slight or the meek. So when Taylor Swift announced that some of the dates in her Speak Now Tour would be at football stadiums, including our own Arrowhead, some of us wondered how her pop anthems, her stage personae and her somewhat infamous voice would translate.

Saturday night, we got our answer: Just fine. For more than two hours, she rained spectacle and hit songs on nearly 50,000 fans, most of them fawning teen and pre-teen girls with mothers in tow. The show was a manic rush of sights and sounds: fashion/wardrobe changes, dancing (including ballet and tap), aerial feats, the usual visual treats (confetti, fireworks, flashpots) and 17 songs performed by Swift and her nine-piece band, all presented before a towering, lavish and garish stage (big red curtain, balcony, ramps, trap doors) that rivaled one or two of U2’s stadium showcases. At times, the circus going on around her threatened to overwhelm Swift and her songs.

The stage was flanked by two large, high-definition video screens that broadcast all the action and energy to those in the upper-deck of Arrowhead. It also projected close-ups of Swift singing and playing several instruments (guitar, banjo, piano, ukulele).  If she was getting any vocal “help,” it wasn’t obvious. In fact, it was obvious many times, especially when the cameras zoomed in on her, that she was singing live – and more than adequately. Those cameras were so close at one point, you could see that the chilly night air was causing her nose to run slightly. 

She would give the folks in back some personal attention about halfway through the show, when she left the main stage, skipped to the other end of the stadium (igniting a happy riot along the way) and performed solo-acoustic on a satellite stage, under another prop: glowing, lighted tree. If anything, all the skits and interludes, which made time for all the wardrobe changes, interrupted the flow of the show. Do the math: 17 songs in two hours and 10 minutes means there were plenty of breaks. 

All the gowns and glitter and dancing and props and drama skits were icing on the cupcakes, which were the songs. The night was one long sing-along, even when she slipped into a few verses of One Republic’s “Apologize.”

She opened with “Sparks Fly” from her “Speak Now” album, which has gone triple-platinum since its release a year ago (her three albums combined have topped 14 million in sales in the United States alone), then two more from that album: “Mine” and “Story of Us.” But it didn’t matter much which album she pulled a song from, her fans sang along with her all night, cheering/screaming/squealing with recognition as they recognized each one, usually by the intro.

The show was one long highlight but a few songs ignited louder responses, like “You Belong to Me,” “Fearless” on the ukulele, “Dear John” and the closer “Love Story.”

Swift turns 22 in December, but she still has some of the mannerisms of a girl in her teens (the skipping, the hair flinging, some facial expressions), which suit some of her material.  She ended with one of her best songs, “Fifteen,” a parable about young love that seems to resonate hard with the young girls and adolescents and with the mothers who brought them.

She can probably do that song until she retires, but it will be interesting to see how she evolves, as a songwriter and stage performer, away from the teen themes that have made her so popular and wealthy (the merchandise lines were ridiculously long all night). I suppose she needn’t worry about that for a bit. Right now, she’s one of the biggest things in popular music, and she has the stadium show to prove it. 

Setlist: Sparks Fly; Mine; Story of Us; Our Song; Mean; Back to December/Apologize; Better Than Revenge; Speak Now; Fearless; Superman; You Belong to Me; Dear John; Enchanted; Haunted; Long Live. Encore: Fifteen; Love Story.

The openers: Stadiums aren't the best showcases for opening acts, but a word should be said about NeedtoBreathe, a brothers act from South Carolina with roots in Christian rock. Though it was clearly antsy waiting for Swift to come on, the crowd gave the third of three openers a warm welcome for its music, which showed a variety of influences, like Kings of Leon, Collective Sou and classic Southern rock.

| Timothy Finn, The Star

Comments

[Bubba]

I was at Sandstone, but around 12 midnight I was at a Quik Trip and a hot-looking mom and her daughter (both decked out in a leather outfit) I passed the time of with had told me that TAYLOR SWIFT did, fact draw in 50,000 fans. Wow! That was definitely more people that U2 brought in on their 'Popmart' tour or the last time the STONES were there, don't remember if MICK JAGGER and crew completely sold out Arrowhead or not.

[Clint]

It looked just as full as the Kenny Chesney show. It was also a better show, her target demographic is the young women but I really had a good time.

I think her singing has greatly improved. Looking forward to seeing her come back again.

[Bubba]

Clint, I knew that TAYLOR would put on an awesome visual show - that is for her fans who dig her music. Where are all the other fans who attended? What, did like every other blogger in Kansas City have their Internet go down earlier today? SURE hope not, that could cause mayhem in the streets.

[Steve J]

It did get 50K? Shocking considering she is still playing the arenas in Omaha and OKC.

[Taylor]

Talk here
http://connect.taylorswift.com/forum/view/635/Kansas_City_MO_September_24

[Geordan]

While Taylor played for 50K at Arrowhead, I saw the talented Amy Lavere at Knuckleheads with about 40 other people Saturday night. I can't really hate on Taylor Swift though, as I like a couple of her songs in the same way I enjoy a few of the ephemeral Pop hits by the likes of Katy Perry and Keisha. Simply disposable, over-produced hits that I won't look back on a month from now, but in the moment, are harmless ear candy. Now if I were an artist at the Grammys or CMA Awards and Taylor Swift was taking all of the major awards, then I might hold a grudge. I can't imagine what most of Nashville thinks of her.

As for Amy Lavere, for the two or three people who like her and missed her show Saturday night, it ended up being a little disappointing. It was supposed to be in the Retro Lounge and for some reason was moved outside at the last minute. A crowd packed the indoor stage for Mary Bridget Davies, but had to wait for Amy's show to end outdoors. It was the last show of Amy's tour of the Western US and the band seemed kind of burnt out. With the exception of Amy, nobody in the band appeared to be enjoying themselves. They are a good band, but Saturday night, Amy and her band played a sloppy set that last just under an hour.

After a few minutes, they came back out for one more song and were done by 9:30. The sound was a problem for much of the short set and as good as guitarist David Cousar was when they played Knuckleheads in March, he was the polar opposite the other night. He may have been drunk or sick, as he seemed unfocused and was checking his amp and it's various cords several times per song and his solos were either erratic or flat. More than once, Amy looked back at him expecting a solo only to see him piddling with his amp with a "what the $#@% are you doing?" look on her face. SO, an uneven show at best, but as I mentioned elsewhere, Amy's new disc, "Stranger Me," is better than anything Taylor Swift has or may ever produce.

[onthemark]

Sounds like it was a very enjoyable concert!

[Penny]

Took my 11 year old granddaughter to see Taylor Swift and she loved it. I was there to see NEEDTOBREATHE who opened for her. Drove to Wichita the night before to see them at the Cotillion and they rocked. Small intimate crowd... wanted to see what they'd be like in a huge stadium setting, too... they still rocked, but did a much shorter set. Watch for them, they will be going places. I'd put them in the same category as a few other young bands who are playing the same style of music, like: Mumford & Sons, the Avett Bros, and Good Old War.

[Mick]

You're a wild woman Penny.
Keep on rockin, you rocknroll babe.

[Mick]

and by the way...
I meant that, it is a positive compliment...
How col that you road tripped to wichita... and then came back and the very next night took/shared the kid to a concert? that is power-cool, no matter who the act is... 50,000 is a helluva show

YOU ROCK!!! really :)

[Penny]

Thanks, Corky. I mean, Mick...

[jhnycat]

did she flip her hair a lot?
she must have bad whiplash.

[Loveweersanna]

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