LOS ANGELES TIMES
October 30, 2009
ENTERTAINMENT – POP MUSIC
Orianthi plays through the pain
The Australian guitarist was
supposed to have strutted onstage
with Michael Jackson this fall. Now
she’s releasing a solo album and
trying to move forward.
ECHOES: Orianthi’s “Believe” CD
was to be released during a break in
the tour, but now coincides with the
opening of the Jackson film “This Is
It.” (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles
Times / October 20, 2009)
The woman with the electric guitar
has played this song before. It’s a
Michael Jackson ballad, and the
young guitarist is named Orianthi,
who leans back now to unfurl a solo
of smoldering melody before
stepping up to the microphone to
sing some torrid lyrics: “Love is a
feeling / give it when I want it /
’cause I’m on fire / quench my
desire. . . .”
Orianthi’s eyes are closed beneath
her blond bangs as she wails “Give
In to Me” in a North Hollywood
rehearsal studio, her four-piece rock
band swaying behind her. The 1991
song (co-authored by Bill Bottrell)
appeared on Jackson’s 1991 album
“Dangerous” and was one of at least
20 that the guitarist spent two
months rehearsing with Jackson as
a member of his band for a series of
planned “This Is It” concerts in
London.
She had been drafted to re-create
signature guitar parts originated by
the likes of Slash and Eddie Van
Halen, to stand beside Jackson
onstage at the O2 Arena and deliver
real playing ability through 50 sold-
out nights. Then, on June 25, just
weeks before opening night,
Jackson was dead of heart failure.
Soon, footage of the striking 24-
year-old guitarist and Jackson
dramatically playing off each other
in a windblown rehearsal at Staples
Center was seen across the hungry
media-sphere.
“It was a huge shock for all of us.
Our hearts just sank,” Orianthi said
of getting the news at Staples,
where the band already had
gathered for another full day of
rehearsals. “It felt like he hadn’t
actually gone. It was too much of a
shock. He was with us the night
before and he seemed so full of
energy.”
The guitarist (full name: Orianthi
Panagaris) expected to be well into
the “This Is It” concerts by now,
while preparing to release her debut
solo album, “Believe,” which hit
retailers this week.
She began writing and recording the
album for Geffen Records after
arriving in Los Angeles from
Adelaide, Australia, three years ago.
Its release was supposed to happen
during a break in the O2 schedule,
but now coincides with the theatrical
opening of the posthumous
“Michael Jackson’s This Is It”
documentary, drawn from 120
hours of rehearsal footage.
“He was a big kid who wanted to
have fun, but he was so serious
about his music,” Orianthi said. “He
was a perfectionist and wanted to
make sure it came across really well
for his fans. He wanted to put on
the ultimate show for them.”
She auditioned for Jackson in late
April on a Burbank soundstage. “I
was so nervous and he was staring
right at me,” she said, still excited by
the memory. “Afterwards, he was
really happy and he grabbed my
arm. We started walking up and
down the stage area, and he asked
me if I could play the solo while
walking with a real fast pace with
him.”
Orianthi got the job — as guitarist
and sometime vocalist — and joined
a band of veteran R&B and pop
players, picking up funky
instrumental bits she hadn’t known
before. Jackson and director Kenny
Ortega also had her stretch beyond
the recorded songs, she says.
“They actually wanted me to add
my own flavor to it,” Orianthi said.
“So I added some extra stuff . . . I
use my tremolo bar a lot, so I
incorporated that. It’s hard to solo
when you’re walking around,
especially when you’re in Michael
Jackson’s presence. There are easier
things in life to do.”
Some of what she brought to the
mix also can be heard on “Believe,”
an album of bright pop tunes with
flashes of virtuoso rock guitar. It
opens with the tough commercial
pop of “According to You,” the
album’s first single and a song of
youthful self-worth brought to her
by producer Howard Benson.
She wrote or co-wrote most of the
tracks, mingling fiery riffs with
breathless pop hooks to land
somewhere near Avril Lavigne and
Paramore (minus any shades of
punk).
“I aim to inspire a bunch of female
guitar players, to get out there and
take it seriously and never give up,”
Orianthi said. “I’ve seen some
female players, and they get up
there and play an A chord and
leave . . . and it’s not a good
representation. You can take it
seriously and love it as much as a
guy loves it, not just to get up there
and pose.”
Growing up in South Australia, she
first picked up her father’s acoustic
guitar when she was 6. She studied
classical guitar initially, then became
obsessed with the electric at 11 after
seeing Carlos Santana perform, and
memorized as many of his solos as
she could from VHS tapes. Her first
professional gig came when she
was a 15-year-old rock prodigy,
playing to a backing tape as the
opening act for guitarist Steve Vai.
In 2003, Santana brought her
onstage for 40 minutes in front of
her hometown crowd. Both veteran
guitarists have remained
supporters, and the new album
includes the instrumental “Highly
Strung,” as Orianthi trades riffs and
leads with Vai in a quick, archetypal
duel to satisfy the most obsessive
guitar-head.
In recent years, she’s jammed with
Prince at his house and soloed on
“Last Name” with Carrie Underwood
on the Grammy Awards in
February, when Orianthi was first
spotted by Jackson’s team. She was
found through her MySpace page.
The final song recorded for “Believe”
was a last-minute addition, inspired
by the deaths of Jackson and her
friend and collaborator, drummer
Dianne Grainger, 24. On “God Only
Knows,” she sings over layers of
guitar: “I can’t seem to find my way
out of this low / It just don’t seem
right / didn’t have a chance to say
goodbye.”
“My outlook on life is to keep looking
up,” Orianthi said. “If you’re looking
down, you don’t see the light. For
me, it’s all about embracing that and
thinking positively.”
calendar@latimes.com
Copyright © 2009, The Los Angeles
Times
She’s Gonna Be a Famous Artist!

Ini dia single kemenangan American Idol 8 yang diciptakan oleh juri terbaru American Idol, Kara DioGuardi bareng dengan Cathy Dennis dan Mitch Allan. Singel ini direlease tepat sehari setelah kemenangan Kris Allen yaitu tanggal 20 mei lalu. Single ini juga Premiere pertama kali tepat jam 1 siang kemaren hanya di 5 radio seperti Prambors, DJ FM, Swaragama, Visi, dan 99ers.
Tetapi sepertinya single ini cukup menuai kritik yang cukup panjang, selain dicap sebagai Single Winning Song yang paling jelek... beberapa komentar lainnya datang dari Nigel Lythgoe, mantan produser American Idol yang mengatakan bahwa single ini satu2nya downside dari final Idol kemaren.
Sementara Gil Kaufman dari MTV mengatakan "a titanic mound of turgid clichés", dan yang terakhir dari Misha Berson dari The Seattle Times bilang "perhaps the most tuneless, hackneyed earful of 'inspirational' junk that any American Idol has been saddled with in their last chance at victory". Hmmm...tapi biasanya semakin banyak kritikan, makin bikin orang2 penasaran gimana sih lagunya? Bisa jadi itu merupakan salah satu strategi untuk meningkatkan penjualan single ini!
Well, anyway... enjoy the Latest Single from American Idol Winner, Kris Allen.

Selamat buat Green Day! Seperti yang diprediksi sebelumnya.. album terbarunya "21st Century Breakdown" yang release hari jumat lalu, tanggal 15 (biasanya jadwal release adalah hari selasa) berhasil terjual 214.800 keping dalam 3 hari saja! Dan ini ngebuat mereka jadi #1 di Billboard Hot 200 Album Chart. Sementara itu posisi runner up, "Hannah Montana: The Movie Soundtrack" tertinggal cukup jauh, hanya laku 68ribu keping, Rapper Cam'ron diposisi 3 dengan album barunya "Crime Pays" yang terjual 43ribu keping. No.4, Lady Gaga "The Fame" terjual 41ribu keping...disusul Rascal Flatt "Unstopable" terjual 32.500 keping. Jawara minggu lalu, Chrisette Michelle dengan album sophomorenya "Epiphany" turun diposisi 8 dengan terjual 29ribu keping. Sementara posisi 10 besar ditutup oleh Ciara dengan "Fantasy Ride" yang terjual 26ribu keping. Debutan lainnya dari Paul Wall "Fast Life" di posisi 15 terjual terjual 22ribu keping, Band Rock baru.. Parachute dengan album debutnya "Losing Sleep" terjual 11ribu unit di iTunes saja! Sementara album fisiknya baru release 19 mei kemarin.

Setelah sukses dengan album Luminescence-nya, Anggun, penyanyi internasional dari Indonesia yang mengharumkan nama tanah air ini meluncurkan album terbarunya yang bertajuk Elevation tanggal 20 oktober 2008 lalu. Album ini mengusung jenis musik yang tidak dipersembahkan Anggun sebelumnya. Sentuhan RnB, Techno, dan HipHop mewarnai album yang dirilis dalam versi bahasa Inggris dan Prancis ini.
Sepertinya ini memang moment yang membahagiakan bagi Anggun, Wikipedia menyebutnya sebagai Elevation era. Setelah sebelumnya melahirkan anaknya yang bernama Kirana 8 november 2007 lalu, suasana melow yang sedih tidak lagi mewarnai album ini seperti album album sebelumnya. Bahkan pada album Elevation versi Prancis, Anggun menyertakan track interlude "Selamat Tidur" yang didedikasikan untuk anaknya Kirana.
Sebelumnya Anggun sempat pula merilis album Bestof-nya untuk pasar Indonesia dan Italia. Dia juga merilis single berjudul "To Night" berkolaborasi dengan band Jerman, Reamonn. Selain itu dirilis pula "Pour Que Tu Sois Libre" yang merupakan proyek amal beberapa musisi wanita Prancis.
Sedangkan album baru Anggun ini telah lama menjadi buah bibir dan didiskusikan pada forum internasional penggemar Anggun,Anggunworld.com. Judul pastinya sendiri baru diumumkan beberapa waktu sebelum peluncuran resminya. Single "Si Tu l'avoues/Crazy" diluncurkan 2 bulan sebelum Elevation diedarkan.
Secara keseluruhan, album ini adalah album manis dan terlihat dewasa. Nuansa melankolis yang lebih dikurangi sebenarnya malah menghilangkan ciri khas Anggun yang terkenal dengan Pop romantic-nya.
Sejujurnya album ini lebih terasa komersil dan ada sedikit Rihanna dan Britney Spears-Fascia didalamna.
Mungkin di album berikutnya, Anggun bisa lebih mempertahankan ciri khasnya.

Elevation (French Edition) track list :
1 J'ignorais tout (ft Sinik)
2 Si tu l'avoues
3 Hymne à la vie
4 Rien à écrire
5 Le bluffeur
6 Si je t'emmène
7 Plus forte
8 Cette nuit
9 Tentation
10 Le temps perda
11 Est ce un hasard
12 Selamat tidur
13 Eden in her eyes
14 Un jour sur terre (OST un jour sur Terre documentary).

Elevation (English edition) track list :
1 A Change
2 Crazy
3 Seize Themoment
4 No Song
5 My Man
6 Stronger
7 Give It to Love
8 Hide and Run
9 Divine
10 Is It A Sign?
11 World(OST World Documentary)
12 Si Tu L'avoues..

Posted by: Uly