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WTF was with James in Pittsburgh?

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zappafrank2112:
Was he drunk or sick or something?  He was acting really weird all night, and as much as I loved the show, I have to say he half-assed it about 75 to 80% of the night, trailing off his lines, not even trying to hit higher notes and instead inserting weird melodic substitutions.

He did hit most of the higher notes where it counted (like the "whoah-oh-oh" part in Learning to Live), but man, both my friend and I were really taken aback b/c the last few times we've seen them (Along for the Ride tour and The Astonishing), he was spot on all night.  Last night, though... man, he showed all the signs of the "guy who used to sing high but just can't do it anymore."  Which could be the case, but considering he was spot on just last year?  Makes no sense, unless it's all just the constant touring from the last few years just catching up with him.

That said, I still had an amazing time and James's off-performance didn't detract from the overall experience - I'm a DT lifer since Pull Me Under 1st debuted on Headbangers Ball, plus I finally got to see A Change of Seasons after 12 shows/17 years of actually seeing them live.  So it's definitely a show I'll look back on with fondness.

But man, I've never seen James so out of it before.

Mladen:
This tour marked the first time James drastically altered some vocal melodies in order to be able to perform the songs live. Many of the high notes were extremely difficult for him over the first few months of the tour. I think the problem with higher notes dates from last year's The Astonishing tour, though. You might have caught him on a night where he was on, but some of the vocal lines from the album were tough to perform in concert.

I for one appreciate the effort he took to adjust the melodies, since it does require a lot of work. And I think for many people it's more pleasant to hear changed version that were sang well than a singer struggling to nail some inhuman sections.

zappafrank2112:
I think it's more that what he put in place of the usual notes ended up sounding very shaky and uncertain, like he wasn't sure where he was going with things.  I totally get singers having to adapt to age (Rush being my favorite band, obvs I'm used to it, lol), but the combination of not getting the notes you're used to with a very "do I or don't I want to do it this way" approach (at least to me) really threw me for a loop.

Like I said, he brought it when he needed to in terms of a particular line making or breaking a song.  It all just stood in contrast to my experience over the last few tours that "whoa, James sounds better than ever!"

El Barto:

--- Quote from: Mladen on November 09, 2017, 10:36:36 AM ---This tour marked the first time James drastically altered some vocal melodies in order to be able to perform the songs live. Many of the high notes were extremely difficult for him over the first few months of the tour. I think the problem with higher notes dates from last year's The Astonishing tour, though. You might have caught him on a night where he was on, but some of the vocal lines from the album were tough to perform in concert.

I for one appreciate the effort he took to adjust the melodies, since it does require a lot of work. And I think for many people it's more pleasant to hear changed version that were sang well than a singer struggling to nail some inhuman sections.

--- End quote ---
Man, that ain't no shit. Especially in his case. Though I'm not sure how it requires a lot of work. Given his background and familiarity with the material he could scat his way through it effortlessly if he wanted to. When Dio was having to alter his vocals he sang something different every night.

SeRoX:
Well, title is completely misleading.

There is nothing wrong about him, not a drunk or sick. The problem is, even his age he is forced to perform 3hours in one day in a heavy tour program. Still giving his best, being positive to the fans. And yet this thread is what he gets.

I used "force", yeah the band themselves decided this, JLB know the diffuculites, but still..

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