2009 Winners and Nominees
Next To Normal
Won: Best Score
Nominated: Best Musical, Best Score
Review: http://theater2.nytimes.com/2009/04/16/theater/reviews/16norm.html?pagewanted=1
Thoughts: Soaring melodies, complicated harmonies, and catchy tunes and rhythyms. The music matches the show’s story really well, it is at times harmonious and smooth, and at times shattered and disjointed. The lyrics are great, and the haunting tone and timbre of everything is wonderful. Such a great album. Impactive… just listening to many of the songs gives me goosebumps. Pretty much Perfect: I am in love with this album.
Song Sample: A Light In The Dark
Video Sample:
Billy Elliot
Won: Best Musical
Nominated: Best Musical, Best Score
Review: http://theater2.nytimes.com/2008/11/14/theater/reviews/14bill.html
Thoughts: The music fits the show… and it’s definetly Broadway – it’s all glam… it’s nice to hear rising choruses of voices, and a wonderful job is done of capturing the feeling of unity and rebellion. It stays in your head pretty successfully – I’ve found myself saying to myself “solidarity solidarity…” and I’ve DEFINETLY had electricity stuck in my head many times. The songs achieve their purpose, even if I am bitter towards it for being a jukebox musical. Overall it’s honest fun, I just wish there was a little MORE to it. But I like it. Not all of the songs, some stand out, but when I listen to it more than a few times it grows on me a bit each time. Any song involving a dance lesson or the teacher is as obnoxious as hell, but for the most part I don’t hate it, even if I want to.
Song Sample: Electricity
Video Sample:
9 to 5
Won: None
Nominated: Best Score
Review: http://theater2.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/theater/reviews/01nine.html
Thoughts: Enjoyable, but not exciting. I liked it more than I thought I would, to be honest I went into it thinking I would not love it, and well, I didn’t love it, but I did enjoy it. It had southern sass, and some fun songs, but nothing that kept me listening. Nothing stayed in my head afterwards. But the music seems fitting to the story, and was easy to listen to. I just didn’t feel any pull to keep listening. I was hoping I would be surprised and feel a draw to it akin to the love I have discovered for The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. It did not come though. Not a total loss, though: I won’t skip songs when they come up on shuffle, some soaring vocals. If you ask me in a few months I may have decided I like it.
Song Sample: Change It
Video Sample:
Shrek The Musical
Won: None
Nominated: Best Musical, Best Score
Review: http://theater2.nytimes.com/2008/12/15/theater/reviews/15shrek.html
Thoughts: This is a musical based on Shrek. The movie is great. But I can’t like it. No matter how good it might be [and believe me, it's not]. Would you like to know why? Because it is a musical, based on Shrek. Seriously? To quote [title of show]: “You mean movies make good musicals!?” “Well, they make musicals.” There are some catchy tunes here, even some that are enjoyable, but mostly it’s glossy and annoying. I’m pretty over it. I’m sure it’s quite the spectacle, and some of the songs are better than I’d care to admit. The ballads, and songs where they aren’t trying SO hard to be kitschy and stupid are decent… but often I find myself wanting it to just STOP. Save yourself.
Song Sample: I know it’s Today
Video Sample:
Rock of Ages
Won: None
Nominated: Best Musical
Review: http://theater2.nytimes.com/2009/04/08/theater/reviews/08rock.html
Thoughts: Okay. I love Journey and other 80′s bands as much as the next guy, but you don’t HONESTLY expect me to take this seriously, do you? The arrangements are very good. They translated surprisingly well to a musical style. And it’s fun in the way that listening to 80′s hair rock is fun. The lead sounds waay too much like Jack Black [Not a good thing]. It’s nothing new. There are a few decent vocalists, and I can see where it would be popular with folks looking for some kind of nostalgic head rush… but honestly it’s kind’ve obnoxious and boring.
Song Sample: Here I Go Again
Video Sample:
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[...] not posted about this in a while. I had been doing it by year, and already did a post for all the 2009 and 2008 nominees I listened to. I have listened to many since then, and I am going to do a brief [...]
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