Jul 3, 2013
Amazing Reviews for Bruno Mars' Tour
By Ben York
Posted: July 3, 2013
Bruno Mars' legendary status continues to grow.
The scary part is he's only 27-years-old.
Originally from Honolulu, Mars started out doing impersonations of Elvis as a child. But once he truly started to find his groove, he became one of today's most sought-after artists.
It should be no surprise then, that Mars' Moonshine Jungle Tour is blowing away both audiences and critics alike.
Here's a collection of reviews from his tour so far. See him live at US Airways Center with Ellie Goulding on July 31.
It was less like the concert of a superstar than one of the great funk and soul bands of the 1970s: not as ostentatious as, say, the Love Unlimited Orchestra, or as sinuous as Slave, but more in the tradition of Earth, Wind & Fire, or perhaps Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, especially when Mr. Mars’s band slipped into the slow funk reverie of “Treasure,” all heartbeat bass and horn stabs.
When the elegant black curtain with the gold palms dropped, he hit the stage in a black suit and leopard top and immediately took his place in a front line with four of his singers/musicians -- clearly more interested in blending in than standing out.
The humble gesture is charming. For the next 90 minutes, though, he did it all. James Brown dance moves, Chuck Berry guitar riffs, Sam Cooke vocal chops, MJ vocal chops, even a drum solo!
Mars is genre non-specific, so he and his band, with three-piece horn section by his side, glided from the disco of "Moonshine" and "Treasure" to the reggae-pop of "Billionaire" to the old-school soul of "Candy Rain" and funk of "Runaway Baby." For starters.
Bruno Mars' Moonshine Jungle Tour, which stopped at Newark's Prudential Center on Monday night, is a vigorous return to the late '70s and early '80s, as seen through the gauze of memory and the static on an old CRT television set. Dancing days are back, and the nation is in the grip of yet another bout of nostalgia. This makes Mars -- pop's most resolute mimic -- the man of the moment.
Dressed in matching red suits, Mars and his eight-piece backing band executed loose-limbed dance routines on a stage that shone like polished marble. The star wore the close-cropped afro of Michael Jackson -- the real Michael Jackson -- and struck some of the King of Pop's characteristic poses. Mars, a skilled imitative songwriter and a student of pop history, led his band through 90 minutes of high-energy music, much of which was arranged to resemble the Jacksons, "Celebrate"-era Kool and the Gang, and Earth, Wind and Fire.
He is an efficient, impeccable star that has thrown a bunch of timeless influences into a blender and jammed his finger down on the 'high' button. His sophomore album, "Unorthodox Jukebox," confirmed that he is an enduring pop personality, while the Moonshine Jungle tour, his first headlining arena trek, may turn him into an international superstar in a way that hasn't happened since Lady Gaga through a Monster Ball a few years ago.
Being at the 10,000-seat Mohegan Sun Arena on Thursday night was a bit like going to a Boston Red Sox game during a championship season. People outside the arena were hungrily looking for tickets. One man was holding a sign that read “I need one ticket” – a common site at other venues, but atypical for the more reserved Mohegan Sun lobby. Others stood in a long line outside the box office hoping more seats would be released for sale.
Then, when Mars took to the stage – decorated with moving squares of light and four columns of pulsating lights at the back of the stage which at times were obscured as a video screen rolled down – there was a deafening roar from the audience.
Jul 31 , 2013
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