Mexico’s pop star Cristian offers strong concert at Amphitheater

Mexico’s pop star Cristian offers strong concert at
Amphitheater

Pre-show delays overlooked by devoted crowd

By Jeff Hilger

Cristian Castro, Mexico’s newest pop superstar, overcame a
number of pre-show difficulties in his Friday night concert at the
Universal Amphitheater. Despite having his audience wait outside
the theater for over two hours, and then getting hit with a stuffed
teddy bear in the head by overexcited fans, he pulled through with
an engaging performance of Latin-flavored pop-rock and
straightforward ballad.

Cristian opened with "Es mejor asi," an upbeat track from his
second album, Un Segundo en el Tiempo. His enthusiastic audience,
familiar with most of the material, sang in loud unison along with
many of his songs.

At one point, he accidentally dropped his microphone into the
crowd, and the fan who picked it up filled in for him very well.
Audience participation continued when he invited a 5-year-old girl
up onto the stage.

Several other uninvited guests made their way onto the stage,
including the stuffed teddy bear which popped him in the head as he
was singing. He shrugged it off and appeared to diminish the
evening’s funniest moment.

Cristian seemed overjoyed to play to the sold-out Amphitheater
crowd, remarking at one point that, "This is one of the most
special nights that I’ve ever had, being able to be here in Los
Angeles with you." Unlike many pop stars, he actually seemed
sincere in this statement. He spent time in between each song
talking to the audience, at times about his native Mexico.

Cristian reached mass popularity with the release of his second
album, with the beautiful ballad, "Nunca Voy a Olivdarte." That
song touched a chord with many in the audience on Friday night. It
seemed as if literally every voice in the audience sang every word,
at such a level that Cristian’s amplified voice was almost drowned
out.

Riding on the success of that release, Cristian recently
followed up with his third disc, El camino del alma, his first to
contain several self-penned tunes. His new material doesn’t try to
break any new ground. Although, he pays tribute to one of Mexico’s
greatest songwriters, Juan Gabriel, the near-equivalent Bob Dylan
in the Spanish songwriting world, with "Mañana," the first
single from his new release.

During the show, he also included Sting’s "The Shape of Your
Heart," his sole English selection. Thus far, his well-calculated
career has not focused on crossing over to the English-listening
world, in the manner that Jon Secada has focused on bilingual
recording. For now, Cristian seems more than content to enjoy his
international success in Central and South America.

His greatest strength is surely his powerful voice, expressing
the various emotions touched upon in his songs. Combined with
sweeping melodies and vividly produced tracks, he creates a very
radio-friendly sound.

During the concert, most in the audience had completely forgiven
if not forgotten about the disorganization that plagued its
beginning. At its conclusion, they departed satisfied at having
seen an entertaining performance by a talented young singer.