Justin Timberlake @ MSG: A Review

Last night, while the world was watching Lost. I was at Madison Square Garden watching Justin "JT" Timberlake at his FutureSex/LoveSounds tour. I am going to break down the 3 and a half hour four part show. It was amazing. And, seeing such a huge act (sold out the Garden) do so many avant garde things, I have a little hope for the future of music.

OPENING ACT: P!NK
As Pink has made better music, her popularity has placed her on the margins. Her last 2 albums tanked in comparison to her breakout "Missundastood" with the hits "Get this Party Started" and "Family Portrait". But, as the opening act, playing to between 50-80% of the crowd at any given time, she got the crowd pumped and showed her talent as a musician. Her singing voice was strong and she utilized the full open circle stage. Her 40 minute set featured her biggest hits, a few songs that were not known but filled with energy and style. By the end of her set, which finished with "Get this Party Started" and had the crowd eating out of the palm of her hand.

Small Break before opening act...

PART I
Timberlake came out to his "FutreSex/LoveSounds" open. Large see-through scrims covered the stage. All of them projected visuals and then superimposed the stage action on top of them. The effect, which worked great, was used during the whole show. Part one focused on many dance songs, with a few small breaks for ballads. He sat down with his guitar and played several slow songs. He ended the first act with an assist by Timbaland. By this part, he had the crowd loving every move.
The show was different for many reasons. Timberlake, for many times during the show, was under the scrim and let his band and dancers take up the full stage. He also played guitar, drums, and piano during this time and the use of a live band added depth to many of the songs. Timberlake grew up during Michael Jackson and Prince. His stage style, songs, and performance are an intriguing mix of both.

INTERMISSION
Timberlake went off the towel off, change clothes, etc. Timbaland went to the middle of the stage. He surrounded himself in scrims. He began beat mixing, noodling on the 808, and sharing samples. All of the beats were choreographed to the movie scenes being displayed on the scrims. This whole segment was the DJ equivalent of Deadhead guitar noodling. Oddly fascinating. Also, it shows the trust Timberlake has in his audience that they would sit for this. The crowd did more than sit, they were riveted.

PART II
More of the same with Part One. Timberlake again mixed up the middle with a light ballad set. But, the highlight was the last 10 minutes. Timberlake fused "Cry me a River" and "SexyBack" into one epic moment. The staging, dancing, and scrim work was amazing. Timberlake had every person out of their seats, dancing, screaming, and just losing themselves. During "SexyBack" both Timberlake and Timbaland had to dodge panties. That just about sums up the night.

ENCORE
"Dick in a Box" with Andy Samberg and in full character. Enough said.