Usher: OMG Tour, Live From London Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Usher: OMG Tour, Live From London Blu-ray Movie Review

Filmed at London's state-of-the-art O2 Arena in April of this year, Usher: OMG Tour captures the R&B superstar promoting his seventh album, Raymond V. Raymond, which became platinum in the United States and earned him Grammy Awards for Best Contemporary R&B Album and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance.

Usher performs a total of nineteen songs, amongst them some of his most beloved hits, including "U Remind Me", "Nice & Slow", and "You Make Me Wanna" (surprisingly, "My Way" is ignored). Current popular songs from the new album such as "OMG", "Lil Freak", "Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home"), and "There Goes My Baby" are also heard.

Raymond V. Raymond, something of an experimental album for Usher, has proven to be quite controversial amongst longtime fans of the singer, and it is easy to understand why. While the energy of the new songs matches that of many of Usher's early hits, stylistically the album represents a leap in an entirely new direction. The music has prominent pop beats, some edgy guitar solos, and an overall surprisingly strong electronica flavor that definitely requires some time to get used to.

The show is colorful, very sexy, and at times quite provocative. Clearly, it was staged and choreographed in a way that would make it appeal to longtime Usher fans and at the same time promote the new stylistic direction mentioned earlier. During the final third, after "Bad Girl" the new pop and electonica vibes get a serious push.

Technically, the show is very impressive. The massive pyrotechnics, visual effects, and stage movement are all top-notch, truly transforming the show into a visual feast. Usher's band and especially his dancers are also terrific.

The show was choreographed by the talented Edwin Moore (Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson) and produced by John Rubey (The Black Eyed Peas: The E.N.D. World Tour). It was executive produced for Eagle Rock Entertainment by Terry Shand and Geoff Kempin.

Note: Usher's supporting band are Juan Najera (MD/keyboards/guitar), Rudolfo Valdez Brantley (MD/keyboards), Aaron Spears (drums), Arthur Strong (keyboards), and Issiah Avila (DJ/percussion).

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Usher: OMG Tour, Live From London Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080i "live" transfer, Usher: OMG Tour, Live From London arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eagle Rock Entertainment.

Filmed live at London's O2 Arena in April of this year, the show looks great in high-definition. A number of strategically positioned cameras follow Usher, his dancers and the band on the giant stage. There are multiple, excellent panoramic shots that capture the enthusiastic audience as well (see screencaptures #16 and 19). Despite the often heavy pyrotechnics and elaborate visual effects, clarity is excellent, especially during close-ups. There are no shadow effects. Motion-judder is also not a serious issue of concern. Colors are consistently lush and vivid and never break down. I also did not see any of that unique light background noise that occasionally pops up on some of these live shows that get released on Blu-ray. Lastly, there are no compression artifacts or purely transfer-related issues to report in this review. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Usher: OMG Tour, Live From London Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are three audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, LPCM 2.0. and Dolby Digital 5.1. For the record, I opted for the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track and later on did a few random comparisons with the other two tracks for the purpose of this review.

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track does not disappoint. The audio has plenty of depth and good fluidity, while the vocals and the music are generally quite well balanced. There are a couple of songs, however, where the sound becomes a bit thin (this is the only way I could explain what I heard). It appears that during these songs the large venue absorbs an extremely small portion of the sound (listen to "Love In This Club" and "Burn"). This is hardly as distracting as it may sound, though. The overall audio quality is indeed very good.

The LPCM 2.0 track has a decent dynamic amplitude but it lacks the depth of the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. The audience noise is also quite a bit stronger on it. Unsurprisingly, the Dolby Digital 5.1 track lacks the crispness, fluidity, and nuanced dynamics the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track has.

Usher: OMG Tour, Live From London Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• On the Shoulders of Giants - in this behind-the-scene featurette, Usher explains what he tries to accomplish with his elaborate shows, as well as what it takes to put them together. Also included are comments from production manager Omar Abderrahman, choreographer Edwin Moore, lighting director Eric Wade, production coordinator Jon Bumgarner, lighting designer Peter Morse, wardrobe manager Hadassah Boyd, etc. In English, with optional English, Spanish, and French subtitles. (20 min, 1080i).

• New Look Spot - a short video piece about Usher's New Look Foundation, which was established in 1999. In English, with optional English, Spanish, and French subtitles. (3 min, 1080i).

Usher: OMG Tour, Live From London Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I can't say I am a fan of Usher and his music, but I was quite impressed with his O2 Arena show. The pyrotechnics, visual effects, and especially the choreography are first-class. But this isn't surprising because the show was put together under the guidance of choreographer Ed Moore, one of the very best in the business. If you are a fan of Usher, get this Blu-ray. I guarantee you will love it. If you are not a fan yet, then perhaps you want to experiment with it. RECOMMENDED.