Shakira – Oral Fixation Tour (Blu-ray/CD Set)
Picture: B+ Sound: B+ (B for CD)
Extras: C+ Concert: C+
When
Madonna first arrived, I could see her being entertaining, but it took a while
before I was really impressed with what she did. Her exploits were more shocking to the young
and stuffy than those of us who grew up on female vocalists who could really
sing or had a unique style that set them apart.
She eventually won my respect with later risks and hits, but I cannot
say the same of the many “pop tarts” or imitators that have followed. That brings us to the new Blu-ray version of Shakira – Oral Fixation Tour.
Whether
intending to or not, Shakira cannot escape Madonna’s shadow, with the twist
that she sings more often in Spanish than most of the others in her field. The voice is not bad, but the material is not
very memorable, as the following tracks can attest to:
1. Intro/Estoy Aqui*
2. Te Dejo Madrid
3. Don't Bother*
4. Antologia
5. Hey You
6. Inevitable*
7. Si Te Vas
8. La Tortura (featuring Alejandro Sanz)
9. No
10. Whenever, Wherever
11. La Pared*
12. Underneath Your Clothes
13. Pies Descalzos
14. Ciega, Sordomuda
15. Ojos Asi
16. Hips Don't Lie (featuring Wyclef Jean)*
Honestly,
it is not a language barrier problem here and though she can dance with enough
energy, what does that have to do with these cuts? By default, the Jena duet is the most
memorable track here and we can see that Sony/BMG believes she will continue to
be one of Epic Records biggest acts. The
question then is, what is she doing that no previous female vocalist has done
before?
Hmmm.
With that
said, this is strictly for fans only, though I have to say that the full 1080p/24
1.78 X 1 digital High Definition Picture is pretty good for such a shoot, but I
was not happy with the way it was shot or edited. Sloppy and static are words that come to
mind. The sound options include PCM 2.0 Stereo,
a PCM 5.1 mix that is best and a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound (640 kbps)
that is the weakest of the options as expected.
In this case, the clearer, the more regrettable.
Extras
include the 20-minutes-long Barefoot
featurette about the singer’s charity activities, 5-minutes Around The World in 397 Days and three
bonus music videos in Obtener Un Si, La Pared and Las De La Intuicion, the first two of which are live. The tracks on the bonus CD are a sample of
that from the Blu-ray and are marked with an * above for your reference.
Overall,
for diehard fans of the singer or maybe the Blu-ray format only.
- Nicholas Sheffo
