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Of all of the top tier live streams that have sprung up instead of actual gigs in recent months, Dua Lipa is, by far, the most star-studded. His special guest list spans everyone from Elton John to FKA Twigs to Kylie Minogue – proof, when needed, of the dominance the 25-year-old singer currently occupies in pop.
By mutual agreement, 2020 was her year, thanks to her sophomore album, Future Nostalgia, which earned her six Grammy nominations and spawned a succession of worldwide hit singles: the kind of hit that even Madonna wants to see. ‘involve, make an appearance on a remix of the single Levitation.
It deals with spectacularly well-transformed production line pop to music reminiscent of disco, 80s boogie and Daft Punk-ish house: a simple idea that turned out to be a masterstroke, giving the l ‘album a cohesion and sense of purpose that traditional pop albums usually don’t have – desperate as they are to spread their bets by hanging on to each hip sound in turn, from the r’n’ b to retro soul to ’80s pop – and inadvertently providing the escape soundtrack people were looking for in exceptionally trying times.
But turning its content into a pay-per-view online event that is, in the singer’s own words, “as close to a performance as it gets right now” turns out to be a trickier proposition. From its headline down, Studio 2054 suggests that it is rooted in club culture, but it is preceded by an ad for Morrisons, who – with the best will in the world – doesn’t really feel in tune with the Decadent 70s Manhattan extravagances. disco on which the name of the show is based.
When the live performances begin with the title song of the album, what the live stream looks like most obviously is Top Of The Pops: an ensemble with neon lights and square metal structures, dry ice, dancers running. like an enthusiastic audience, shouting and clapping during the song. The action moves to what appears to be the most sparsely populated but most prominent nightclub in the world.
DJ The Blessed Madonna – one of a succession of brilliantly curated remixers called to work on a more dancefloor version of Future Nostalgia, Club Future Nostalgia – is in the booth. She jumps to the beat of the music: either she’s feeling emotional to dance to Physical’s tense ’80s groove, or she’s worried that if she stands still for too long, someone will stick her a Johnnie Walker whiskey logo as well.
Guest appearances are a bit damp, though it has less to do with the guests themselves than the issues of bringing people together under current restrictions. Kylie Minogue and FKA Twigs appear, the former stealing the spotlight by the simple expedient of looking less like her, every move is choreographed than anyone else in the room, but Miley Cyrus’ cameo turns out to be involved in showing off her duet’s video. with Dua Lipa, prisoner. Elton John performs a verse from Rocket Man on a screen above the stage, before it suddenly disappears.
And yet, for all its shortcomings, Studio 2054 is oddly fun. You can’t fault the music, which is as good as pop in 2020, loaded with hooks and crisp, nagging references to the past: Break My Heart is on equal parts I Feel Love by Donna Summer and Need You Tonight by INXS. .
While not exactly a source of bottomless charisma, Dua Lipa looks fantastic in a series of whimsical outfits, hits her marks, and sounds pretty good. As far as we can tell, the vocals are live, and she never misses a note or sounds breathless: no small feat considering the amount of choreography involved. If it all happened on an arena stage and you watched it in the middle of a huge crowd of screaming fans, that would be fantastic. But it isn’t: the quest for something that can replicate a live experience continues.
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