Mentioning her name creates a louder buzz, but Norah Jones isn’t the only young vocal phenomenon making musical waves. Like Jones, Josh Groban cracked the crossover-pop market two years ago and struck a resonant nerve. With one foot in pop and the other in classical, Groban’s brand of smooth crooning has given rise to the term “popera” — theatrical pop infused with operatic qualities, including lyrics sung in English, Spanish, French and Italian.
Groban isn’t the first artist to bridge these styles. His relationship with adult-contemporary hitmaker/producer David Foster recalls Charlotte Church, a Foster protege with whom Groban has recorded.
Yet none of Groban’s predecessors experienced his sensational commercial success. Rather than playing to trends, Groban found an audience and the top of Billboard charts via TV appearances, showcasing his high baritone and acting like a mannerly gentleman who’d help an elderly lady cross the street. It doesn’t hurt that his physical features are the kind many women find irresistible.
Not surprisingly, a predominantly female audience greeted Groban enthusiastically on Thursday night at the sold-out Rosemont Theatre for what was his first Chicago-area concert.
Supported by a 16-piece orchestra and five-piece band, Groban’s voice lacked the dynamic range and depth of a true opera singer, but was rich and technically sharp. Courtesy of subtle soundboard trickery, his vocals occasionally benefited from echo and doubling techniques, while prerecorded backing choruses assisted on a few other songs.
Perhaps nervous about his first headlining trek, Groban’s stage presence was rigid, with the singer often standing still or in prearranged positions as he performed. But this awkward motionlessness wasn’t the tour rookie’s fundamental problem.
If Groban plans to make music of lasting substance, he needs a better vehicle than saccharine operettas, fluffy ballads and rescue-me lyrics that seem copped from supermarket-aisle romance novels. Groban tugged on the crowd’s heartstrings, but not much else. During the course of two hours, the musical effect and tempo grew predictable and monotonous, with emotionally manipulative material such as “Remember When It Rained” and “Let Me Fall” accompanied by gimmicky visual illusions. At best, the compositional mix of sweetened strings, bombastic crescendos and flamenco-lite resembled a hybrid of contemporary Sting and Michael Crawford.
An avowed fan of Radiohead and Coldplay, Groban would be well-served by exploring more adventurous themes and textures. His rendition of Linkin Park’s “My December” hinted at edgier, livelier possibilities. It also exposed the artist’s dilemma: whether to sing pop or overdramatic classical, or merge both.
Presently, Groban would be a fine choice for the lead in “Phantom of the Opera.” But if, in time, the 22-year-old matures into the vocalist many admirers think he already is, he’ll sell his soaring pipes short if he decides to stick with formulaic fare (the vocalist’s age as published has been corrected here and in a subsequent reference in this text).
