Breaking Out of the Shell

First of all, I'd like to apologize for the lack activity on this site in the past 2 weeks. It is because I have been on vacation on the little island of Ibiza, just off the coast of Spain for the last 10 days. Thanks to the wonders of the iPod touch and a free WiFi connection in the hotel, I have been able to keep reasonably up to date with all the youtube videos of Davids tour performances, all from the comfort of a sunbed by the swimming pool. And what a pleasure it has been to witness these performances. The objective for this blog was to commentate on David's progress from a 17 year old runner-up on American Idol to singing star and I am startled at how quickly this progress is being made. David seems to have improved, for various reasons, a very large amount since American Idol's conclusion to the tours beginning. His four songs - Angels, Stand By Me, Apoligize and When You Say You Love Me appear to be a perfect balance and a great repertoire for showing what David is really capable of as an artist and a technical singer. To put it bluntly, David is sounding better than ever.

The first thing I noticed upon watching the first shaky camera phone, scream infested version of Angels was confidence. Beaming and uncontrolled self-belief that seemed infectious to the thousands of screaming fans as he belted out notes beyond anything Ive heard from him before, especially at the end of Angels (Los Angeles performance WOW). Angels this time around was without the tentative start and thanks to some technical elements such as in-ear monitors and a horde of screaming, loving fans welcoming him to the stage, David delivered something surpassing anything he did on American Idol. I think David has finally put a bit of that self deprecating part of his humbles nature aside and went out and silently believed 'I am that dang good'. The realization that so many people love him dearly is finally beginning to sink in. And what a difference it is making to him as a person and a performer. All of his tour performances possess this added conviction and presence on stage, something that all great stage performers possess in abundance. It always amazed at how Michael Jackson could merely stand on stage without moving a muscle and the fans would keep on screaming and screaming. Davids little dance moves an dramatic arm raising have caused earthquakes around the crowds. There are reports that David received a 4 minute standing ovation at one of the concerts. That's pretty remarkable.

Davids other performances such as a re-worked 'Stand By Me' adding a touch of Shaun Kingston's version in at the end were once again delivered with more confidence and conviction even throwing in a little dance. The way David attacks the high notes seems more self assured and even more effortless for him. The same can be said for his version of Apologize. Apologize reveals to us the kind of song that will sell David his albums and silences the critics that claim he is not relevant in todays music. David puts a different feel on this song vocally, a unique interpretation that seems to have impressed many people, often non-Archie fans. I simply cannot listen to the OneRepublic version anymore, it pales in comparison. However, the best performance goes to Josh Grobans 'When You Say You Love Me'. A song I was not familiar with before the tour, I wouldn't say I was skeptical about David performing it, but I felt he could have picked something better. Despite that, I think David delivered this song way beyond Josh Groban's version and really revealed what a beautiful song it is. David's vocal performances from all the nights is quite astounding (and consistently good too), producing an epic glory note at the climax song proving what a great technical singer he is as well as an emotional singer. If David had performed this on American Idol, a standing ovation would have been in order. This is David doing a Clay Aiken style performance and I think he does it better.

I am quite astounded at the rapid improvement David has already made since Idol's conclusion. He is beginning to really believe deep down that he has what it takes to become something special. He is breaking out of his modest shell, whilst still remaining humble, and blossoming into a fully fledged performer of the world stage. I have my views and opinions of why and how David did not win this years American Idol, despite being almost indisputably the most talented, but it really does not matter anymore. American Idol was a mere stepping stone of the path to Davids ultimate goal and he is well on the way to achieving it. The tour performances have set a new benchmark for Davids performance standard as he breaks out his shell and develops into an adult and world class performer. Davids future seems ever more exciting upon watching these videos and I am more than excited to finally get to witness this in person. Once that shell is fully broken, David will be quite something. He is special. He proves it everytime he opens his mouth