Daughtry rocked the House of Blues on Sunday, Aug 2 in Orlando! Chris Daughtry commanded the stage like a Marine invading a house of insurgents. He's all man, and stands out among performers I've seen as one who meticulously cares about his vocals!! His intense performances left one ready to spread one's legs fo'sho! (Ladies and gay guys--you know what I'm saying!) And if you were lucky enough to receive one of his gazes or adorable smiles---oh boy! (they just didn't LAST long enough!)!
The House of Blues provided an intimate setting for the band, whch was like seeing them at your local bar. It was great to be on the floor close enough to catch the eye of Chris and his bandmates. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, and the band members' instrumentals were tight. The drummer and bass player stood out as performers, each rocking out with every song. I enjoyed the drummer's strange selection of head gear, which he sneakily changed up just to see if anyone would notice. I just didn't expect to be inspired to do the "Chicken Dance" at a rock concert! (No, they didn't actually play it!!) It's fun to see band members with personality.
Back to Chris. It was hard to tear your eyes off him to even notice the other musicians. Daughtry's physicality dominates the stage. And as I said, Chris Daughtry stood out among performers I've seen as one who obviously cared how his vocals sounded. He kept messing with his earplugs, usually ripping them out and going on fine without them. He controlled his energy and focused it on delivering smooth, melodic notes that were right on key. Chris has an interesting voice which is equally comfortable in the lower registers, where it is smooth and intoxicating, and in the upper registers, where he delivers energetic, driving choruses. The only criticism I have of his vocals was when he would go for a sustained belting note. It seemed as if he didn't quite have enough breath or support to sustain the note to the end. He definitely tried to keep it there though. ( Perhaps if he just cut those a little shorter, it wouldn't sound like he was straining. ) That aside, my over-all impression of Chris Daughtry is of an artist with a comanding stage presence, a beautifully melodic voice, and an extremely intelligent, professional musician. I didn't even mention his guitar work, which he mixed in and out of the show using different guitars for different songs. They all sounded great to me!
Daughtry performed songs from both their debut album and the recently released "Leave this Town". The show included favorites and hits from both discs, with a mellow interlude of ballads leading up to the final encore, when the band left us finally satisfied with a tight, energetic deliverance of "Home". If you like Daughtry even just a little bit, you should go see the show. Buy your tickets early, because apparently, it sold out quickly. Employees of the H.O.B. as well as people at the concert were asking me how I got my tickets....(Ticketmaster, Baby.)