Wednesday 18 January 2012

Leno - Better Than I Know Myself


After what felt like years, the performance to mark the start of Adam's new Trespassing era was finally upon us; the debut performance of Better Than I Know Myself leading the new album with new band. This would be his first televised performance as a solo artist since March last year. The pressure was on to give this second era the best possible first impression to do justice to all the hard work.

I'm sure the memory of the AMAs and its associated pressures were at the back of many minds, hence a few anxious twitchings as we counted down the clock. Welcomed back were those once-familiar questions of what Adam would wear, how he'd be styled, how the staging would work, what vocal nuances would be added to the live performance, how the live instrumentals would differ from the single.



Judging by what we know of the album so far and having seen the single cover, it comes as no surprise that Adam is fresh-faced with minimal make-up, and high hair (thankfully without the Kim Jong-Un shaved sides) that has a roughed-up texture in line with a lower maintenance look. It's one that's austere, his outfit monochrome without a single speck of glitter, rhinestone or feather in sight. His shirt collar looks a dog collar, giving the impression of being a bit restrained. There's no tie, which I would have been tempted by to add a splash of colour, and even the suit, the cut of which is rather straight, has no sheen so it's left to the few pieces of jewellery to remind us of his Glambert roots. He looks beautiful, understated and chic.

He's joined by band members Ashley Dzerigian on bass (who had to crouch for much of the time due to a failed strap), Isaac Carpenter on drums, Kevin Hastings on keys and Tommy Joe Ratiff on guitar.

The introduction still reminds me a bit of a church organ and once we get a close-up of Adam, his translucent ears reveal the absence of ear monitors. When I heard this on the stream, I thought his voice at the start was more tentative than usual in the weaker part of his range, whispery rather than allowing the space to be melodic. As well as nerves, I think a small part of it's down to his voice getting a bit lost in the mix, especially in the chorus so I've amped it up here just a smidgen. It's sung in a lower key than the single and Adam retains the some of the grainy timbre which is my absolute favourite. He sounds more confident as the song goes on and at the bridge, we get to hear Kevin's backing vocals, the harmonies of which are spot-on.

It's when we get nearer the end of the song that things get really exciting for me. Like I've been watching and waiting for Adam to let rip, and I can see it in his body that he's been itching for it too so when it does happen, it's like a release. Wow. I feel like those cockatoo crest feathers when they rise. We see the tongue lick out and hear the accompanying notes, splendid and powerful. I'm sure his unintended stint at method acting over the winter prepared him well for performing BTIKM, enabling him to emote the song to a different level. I get the feeling he still holds back a touch though, as he resists elaborating those runs and reaching even higher. This is an accomplished performance, leaving the impression of being quietly self-assured. After the excesses of the first era, this "less is more" theme is going to take a bit of getting used to because I just can't wait for more.

6 comments:

  1. Yes agree with every word I was sat on the edge of my seat waiting for him to explode. So excited to hear the new material, more than ever now!(Denise)

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    1. Denise, me too! Especially after reading all the universally excited positive previews of the album so far. It sounds like it's going to be something quite special.

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  2. OMG - I could have never, ever written the above piece and I was there at Leno, LOL :-) He was incredible. Whisper-thin, did not look at the SCREAMING public at all. At the end, he did smile at us and waved and blew a kiss, but I guess that part never made it into the program. He even joked with Leno and did a small dance for him while Leno was patting him on the shoulder, like an old friend.Oh, and the hugged. And Adam shook hands with Sam and bent down to hug Sherri, who was all over him...
    You have no idea what it felt like when the "wall curtain" lifted off and there he was, tall, serene,and yet so far-away, almost God-like, in his own world, in his head. The shrieks that were unleashed were enough to damage one's hearing. And then the "worst" part is that HE TOPPED THAT performance with the one on Ellen. Now I am jealous :-)
    Lil, aka @_Lilzy (used to be LNF001)

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    1. Lil, congrats on getting to see the live premiere of BTIKM! Thanks for describing to us what else went on that wasn't aired. Did you get the feeling he was really nervous? It comes as no surprise that Sherri was all over him and it was nice that he acknowledged his fans in the audience. Did you recognise many familiar faces? Would've loved for him to have gotten more screen time he's so fascinating to watch.
      Yes, those screams were loud! You made sure you let him know how much he's appreciated! It'd been so long since we'd had a performance we'd forgotten how much he changes things up and keeps improving with each one. The next one will be even better, can't wait!

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  3. In his twitter party today, he comments on how he sings BTIKM:

    BTIKM is def not falsetto. It's fuckin high! Def tricky. :) but it feels so great to wail that out. Cathartic.

    So, yes, he does love to "wail that out" and we love it!!

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    1. Yep, I love that wail of his! Prefer it to his falsetto as he seems to have such great control of his pitch.

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