| Meat Loaf: The Musical | |
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Posted by: |
Bright_Eyes 02:27 am UTC 09/04/07 |
| Recently I gave the bootlegs of the OTT/TDE shows a fresh listen, and tried to form an opinion about the lead male singer on them. Bear in mind, I was not at any of the Joe's Pub or Mohegan shows so this impression is from bootlegs only. I found myself imagining that there was a new Broadway musical called "Meat Loaf: The Musical", and the singer on the bootlegs was one of the guys who came in to audition to be the Broadway version of Meat Loaf. That's not to say the singer really sounds a lot like Meat Loaf. It's more that he's performing material I'd associate with Meat's younger voice, but with a Broadway voice and a Broadway style. That's neither praise nor criticism. Some really like the singing style of Broadway singers, and some would much prefer somebody who sounds more like Meat Loaf. I do like listening to the singing of M.L.T.M., as I call him. But both the sound of his voice and his style of singing are very Broadway, much more so than most of the songs themselves seem to be. I don't think he really has a "rock voice" and a "theater voice", it's more like "theater voice #1" and "theater voice #2". This obviously would create a division as to who would or would not like his singing, as it seems to have done even among Jim Steinman fans. But that isn't really saying anything, because any voice will have some who like it and some who don't. I've yet to find a singing voice that pretty much everyone says they like. During the time I've read this board, I noticed that M.L.T.M. got hyped up big time around the time that a general dissatisfaction with Meat Loaf grew. I believe the hyping up of M.L.T.M. was like a side effect of growing dislike, for various reasons, of Meat Loaf. I believe that happened because Meat Loaf is so strongly associated with Jim's music, and many fans instinctively look for an alternative when they grow disenchanted with Meat. Meanwhile, the extent to which M.L.T.M. should be seen as Meat Loaf's competition is unclear. Opinions on this board about M.L.T.M. have varied a lot. Among his biggest fans, I think the man has been greatly over-hyped. I don't think his singing is anywhere near as powerful as that of the younger Meat Loaf. I doubt there's really a chance for M.L.T.M. to become a non-theater star, or a superstar like Meat Loaf. Broadway musicals are what he does best, and I believe he ultimately belongs on Broadway. I think he's much better than most Broadway singers, and I can see why he has a fan club built around his Broadway work. I don't agree with the comment I've seen that he doesn't stand out among Broadway singers, I think his singing is somewhat unique among them. His is not the ideal voice for the Steinman songs he performs. I don't think anybody really is the "ideal" singer for them but the closest thing would probably be the younger Meat Loaf. I think M.L.T.M. is probably the best male vocalist, at least technically, who has performed Steinman's work live in the past few years, but I still would not consider myself a fan of his. I consider him good, not phenomenal, but certainly not bad either. I saw on the board recently that some people here are paying around $75 USD to hear a Meat Loaf concert. Some of the people paying that amount are not all that thrilled with the show itself. If M.L.T.M. can be heard at Joe's Pub for $25 USD I consider that a bargain. I wonder if he would be a good candidate for a role in the BAT musical, if that is completed and staged. | |
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