Gol’ Darn Gone And Done it

Shania Twain @ Madison Square Garden 6/30/2015
Rock This Country! / Honey, I’m Home / You Win My Love / Whose Boots Have Your Boots Been Under? / I Ain’t No Quitter / Love Gets Me Every Time / Don’t Be Stupid (You Know I Love You) / Any Man Of Mine / Ka-Ching! (instrumental) / I’m Gonna Getcha Good! / Come On Over / Party for Two (with Gavin DeGraw) / Up! / Today Is Your Day / No One Needs To Know / You’re Still the One / From This Moment On / That Don’t Impress Me Much / (If You’re Not In It For Love) I’m Outta Here! // Man! I Feel Like A Woman!

Shania Twain “Love Gets Me Every Time”

Shania Twain was way ahead of her time in many ways, particularly in how she and Mutt Lange brought the aesthetics of ‘80s arena rock into country music. Smuggling that type of rock into country was a brilliant move – not just in that it brought a different edge and accessibility to country, but because those aesthetics weren’t really welcome in mainstream rock at the time, and had to go somewhere. The best possible haven for it was a genre mainly loved by working class people who weren’t too cool for big spectacle, sledgehammer hooks, and earnest emoting. It’s an extroverted, populist aesthetic, and when you do it right, it’s always huge.

Shania Twain’s show leans heavily on the rock side of things, and it’s big on crowd-pleasing spectacle like fireworks and pyro. She puts a lot of effort in connecting with her fans, and does whatever she can to get in physical proximity with the audience. (I was particularly fond of her being wheeled around on a trolley around the edge of the arena during “Any Man Of Mine,” which is such a great, inexpensive way to make a LOT of people very happy.) The main thing I got out of seeing this show is just marveling at how well-written all her hits are. She and Lange were remarkably disciplined in their song craft, and while each song is made up of strong, immediate hooks, they never make it feel overwhelming or relentless. I think that’s where the “country” really comes through – it’s very focused music, but she makes it seem relaxed and easy going.

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