by SCOTT C

Today I woke up, walked into the bathroom and took a long, hard look in the mirror. I’ve been trying to come to terms with something that’s been weighing heavily on my brain, robbing me of sleep and, quite frankly, playing tricks with my mind. Despite every bit of confidence I have in my own musical tastes, there’s some deeper, unspoken reason that’s making it hard to shell out for Justin Timberlake’s FutureSex/Love Sounds tour, hitting Montreal’s Bell Center Jan. 31, 2007. Maybe it’s the $50–$80 ticket price, or the fact that Pink is opening, that’s making it difficult for me, but it’s definitely not the music. Say what you will about young Justin, but the Timberlake/Timbaland combination has yielded one of the best pop records I’ve heard in years—so much so that I’m going to make a point of being there when the shit goes down live.

Apparently, he’s touring with a 14-piece band and more back-up dancers than you can shake a stick at, not to mention that the whole damn thing is in “the round.” For those of you not familiar with big stadium concert talk, that means you should be able to see from wherever you are, because all the action is in the centre of the room. Am I crazy? Or is this just some sort of involuntary reaction to the music? I should mention that “Sexyback” came on the radio while I was riding the 80 bus a few weeks back, and I honestly thought for a minute that the whole bus was going to get up and start dancing like in some shitty ’80s video. The driver turned up the volume, people were smiling and dancing on the spot, singing along and missing their stops, and it was hilarious, all because of Justin. My friend was in Moog Audio last week and overheard big bossman Kano disappointedly announcing that there were no comps for the Justin Timberlake show, and that people would have to find their own ways in. That’s gonna be a funny show. All the people that you never expected to see at a Justin Timberlake show will have front row seats for the night, singing along the whole time.

All this to say that if you’re thinking about going and can’t tell your friends that you actually want to go, you’re not alone. If, like me, you’ve been shitting on boy bands since Menudo, and have to swallow your pride to “show ’em what you’re t’workin’ with,” don’t feel bad. I’ll be there too. Perhaps in a clever disguise, but I’ll be there. n

Seven reasons music should make you smile:
1. E-40 & Keak da Sneak “Tell Me When to Go” Trackademicks remix (Warner)
2. Thunderheist “Bubblegum Music” (independent)
3. Thunderheist “I Wanna be Ghostface” (independent)
4. Morgan ft. Steve Spacek “iiii” (Brownswood)
5. C-Drik ft. Dee “Bla Bla Bla” (Outside)
6. Zion I & Grouch “Lift Me Up” (Om)
7. The Vince Guaraldi Trio “Christmas Time is Here” (Concord)

GO ’HEAD BE GONE WITH IT… fathead@videotron.ca

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