Thursday, March 5, 2015

Still the One: Live From Vegas | Shania Twain


★★★★☆

Three consecutive diamond-status albums. Five Grammy Awards. 75 million albums sold worldwide. 

From the mid-1990s to 2004, country-pop star Shania Twain was unstoppable. Then, at the height of her career, she halted promotion and left the spotlight. Eleven years have passed since her departure from the industry, and those years were filled with turmoil: a divorce from her primary co-writer and producer, concerns over the health of her vocal chords, and a complete destruction of her self-confidence. Finally, in 2012, she began a two-year residency deal with Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas to regain her ability to sing in front of an audience. Spawning from her time at the Colosseum, Still the One: Live From Vegas marks Twain's first release since 2004's Greatest Hits

This new live album proves that the goal of her residency has been achieved; she flaunts more confidence than ever on stage as she tears through her biggest hits, from the sassy "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under" to her timeless wedding song "From This Moment On." Most of the physically-intensive routines are provided courtesy of her cast of back-up dancers, but Twain still garners the most attention with an inviting smile and shimmering outfits. Time and the effects of dysphonia have added a nasally tinge to her voice, but it doesn't necessarily hinder her vocal quality.

Still the One is everything a Las Vegas residency should be: a remembrance of the artist's prime. She packs the show with hits and pays homage to her most iconic music videos; she partakes in the motorcycle race of "I'm Gonna Getcha Good" and struts the leopard-print fashion statements of "That Don't Impress Me Much." As she reflects on her career, viewers are slapped with nostalgia from every angle. By the end of the show, Twain clearly prevails against all of the odds that life has thrown her way. As she kneels on stage at the close of "Man! I Feel Like a Woman," confetti rains down on Twain and the audience grants her a standing ovation; she proves that she is Still the One.

Still the One is available now under Mercury Records. In the United States, it is stocked exclusively at Walmart.

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