Elton John Sting

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It's one of the more peculiar aspects of live performance these days that video takes such a prominent role. These two fields, you might think, should be the antithesis of each other. Of course, the most interesting things are the ranges of different visuals that bands, and the people who design their stage presence, choose to use.

The current John Mayer tour, for example, has screens built into the drum and keyboard risers that display, what can only be described as, "video wallpaper." Pretty to look at, I guess, but nothing to write about in an article on PopMatters! In all seriousness, video on the current leg of his U.S. tour does its job in terms of making the physical elevation of the band members a bit more interesting, but other than that, it's nothing special. Seemingly random assortments of pretty landscapes or abstract patterns and shapes don't add much to the show other than making the show photos look interesting.

In contrast, Sting's "Sacred Love" tour is a visual overload. I mean that in a good way. Three enormous displays dominate the stage and provide a backdrop of epic proportions to Sting and his band. Each video piece has obviously been created specifically for each song; however, their playing back is handled in such a way as to include the subtleties of live performance normally reserved for lighting. It's interesting that the man responsible for directing Sting's recent music videos and live DVDs, Jim Gable, is the same man responsible for the visuals of this tour. His role, in this case, of taking a live performance and transferring it to video, is inverted.

This is also the case with Linkin Park, who have just finished their Meterora Tour. The man responsible in this case was Kimo Proudfoot, who directed their Live in Texas DVD. Proudfoot's use of material that would normally find its way onto a Linkin Park video and also using imagery reminiscent of the cover art for Meterora provides for an interesting viewing from the back of the hall. But it is all playback. Other than the subject matter, there is very little connection to what is happening onstage. If you are going to go the playback route, however, it takes an old-timer to show us how it should really be done.

Elton John's Las Vegas showpiece, "The Red Piano" is an exercise in excess. Inflatable set pieces such as a giant pair of female legs, the biggest pair of naked breasts you will ever see and more oversized phallic fruit than you can shake a stick at, all make appearances during the short-but-sweet 90 minute show. But it is the huge parabolic video screen that provides a backdrop to Elton and his five piece band that the audience will remember. Actually, that is not right. It is not the screen they will remember, it is the images that appear on the screen that will resonate long after the credit card bill for each $250 ticket has been paid.

David LaChappelle, photographer and filmmaker by trade, has taken the whole production under his wing. He has produced one of the most exciting and innovative shows out there. Not because of the technology he is using, but rather because of the ideas and the level of production that he has brought to the theatre that normally houses Celine Dion. As a companion to almost every song, we get to see a wide array of visual candy. Marilyn Monroe, or at least a look-a-like, frolics during a photo shoot, emulating the look and feel of Bert Stern's book The Complete Last Sitting, thereby restoring "Candle in the Wind" to Norma Jean. Justin Timberlake plays a young Elton John dealing with the pre-show trials of a young rock star; groupies, hangers-on, photographer, fans and managers for "Rocketman." Pamela Anderson shows her stuff, rather more than I would have liked to be honest, as a pole dancer for "The Bitch is Back". I could go on, but what is important here is the quality for the production and the ideas, which apparently you can only see by taking in the Vegas show.

As interesting as great visuals are, how long will it be before watching a blurry figure in front of yet another music video won't cut it any longer? Elton's Las Vegas show also brings up the notion that as the line between live and prerecorded blurs, what are we paying for and hoping to see? To make things even more interesting Clear Channel are currently testing a system in Boston that allows concert goers to buy a CD of the show they have just attended as they walk out the door! How long before we are looking at doing this with DVD? One can only hope that the next time LaChappelle turns his hand to live work, he will remember that it is live and incorporate that into his visual design.