Green: ‘Idol’ concert brings America’s finest to town

If you want to experience American pop culture — shrieking pre-teen girls in puffy-painted… If you want to experience American pop culture — shrieking pre-teen girls in puffy-painted T-shirts, their middle-aged mothers waving around glittered and bedazzled posters like some crazed mariachi band shaking maracas, at least a few cowboy hats and the fundamental belief that one can go from a shoe salesman living in Conway, Ark., to a mega pop-star in a matter of months — than you must attend an “American Idol” concert.

It’s truly a unique experience to witness not just 10 talented musicians perform, but 10 musicians of the people, by the people and for the people — rather than some hyper-produced, over-commercialized product of the music industry machine (at least not yet).

And while this was the first concert touring experience for nearly all the eighth season’s finalists — with the exception of Adam Lambert, who has toured with numerous Broadway-caliber productions — all the performers put on an exceptional show Saturday Aug. 22 at Pittsburgh’s Mellon Arena, though some were markedly better than others.

Personally — and many, including my mother and sisters, would argue with me — I think the best performance of the night goes to the American Idol himself, Kris Allen.

Though he was never one to belt out Freddie Mercury-esque power-vocals like Adam Lambert, Allen has always delivered soft, rhythmically beautiful croons that give the listener the impression of an intimate late-night serenade despite the expansive stadium seating. Moreover, it was clear that Allen has learned much from his current tour, as his voice was a great deal more powerful and confident than it ever came across on show.

He began his set with the beautiful acoustic cover of Kanye West’s “Heartless” — the one that marked his turn from dark horse to potential frontrunner on the show — and continued with solid, though less riveting, covers of The Killers’ “All These Things That I’ve Done” and Matchbox Twenty’s “Bright Lights.” Allen closed out his set with a gorgeous rendition of “Hey Jude,” a song that had my mother on her feet dancing and clapping — probably reliving the old glory days.

My preference for Allen, however, has more to do with personal music taste than quality of performance, because runner-up Lambert — or “Glambert,” as his more devoted fans call him — put on a hell of a show and then some. Dressed in an old-fashioned purple blazer and leather — lots of leather — while surrounded by enough fog to fill a haunted house, Lambert opened his set with his pitch-perfect rendition of “Whole Lotta Love.” Lambert’s vocals were immaculate, but it was his performance that got the crowd cheering, more so than for any other finalist, as he strutted about the stage and made some overtly sexual gestures with a microphone stand.

Lambert’s cover of Muse’s “Starlight,” however, was more fail than win with me — his voice sounded more theatrical than usual and almost feminine, giving the song a creepy and, honestly, downright weird feel. Lambert fared better with his final two songs — the hauntingly beautiful “Mad World” and an ingenious mash-up of some of David Bowie’s greatest hits.

As for the rest of the concert, here is a quick run-off of highlights:

— Matt Giraud is the perfect man. Stylish (gotta love that fedora), soulful, talented at the piano and damn, can he sing a great rendition of Ray Charles’ “Georgia on My Mind.”

— Lil Rounds: Why did you try to cover Beyonce’s “Single Ladies”? No one can pull that off. Sorry.

— To the two women wearing the fedoras who sat in front of me: How can you be fans of both Danny Gokey and Adam Lambert? I didn’t know such people existed. And, if those hats were a tribute to Matt Giraud, as I suspect they were, just know he is mine. Ladies, it’s on.

— Alison Iraheta is a ball of energy. And her version of “Cry Baby” makes me cry, every time.

— Scott MacIntyre was kind of a snore, but I liked his little stand-up comedy routine at the beginning of his act.

— Danny Gokey — oh what to say? His vocals were good, I’ll admit. But I had the impression before the show that he was a bit full of himself, and I left feeling pretty much the same.

— Anoop Desai: Warning, the girls in the row behind me were stalking you throughout the entire show. They thought they located your parents in the crowd, and as you sang, they kept making comments to one another like, “He’s singing to you” and “He’s gotta dance!”

All in all, the show was a satisfying end to my favorite season of “American Idol,” and I look forward to next year — despite the loss of Paula — with anticipation.