By Josh Bell
Mandalay Bay 7:30 p.m. Jan. 28, $45-$85 plus tax and fee. 800.745.3000 Ticketmaster702.632.7607
Brad Paisley recently described his current Camobunga! tour to USA Today as “very high-tech redneck. We’ve got some cool technology. I like to take technology to where people walk out not sure how we did certain things.” He may be a country artist, but Paisley isn’t afraid to go big, with an outsize arena rock-style production for his live shows. It goes along with his easygoing approach to music, which embraces humor and self-parody, to such an extent that people might not always notice Paisley’s amazing musicianship. He put out a whole album, 2008’s Play, devoted almost entirely to guitar instrumentals, but goofy songs like “Ticks” and “I’m Still a Guy” tend to get more notice (and more radio airplay).
Part of Paisley’s friendly attitude also involves promoting up-and-coming country acts, and over the years he’s had such future superstars as Sugarland, Miranda Lambert, Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood opening for him on tour. This time around he has 18-year-old American Idol winner Scotty McCreery and The Band Perry, who’ve just started making waves on country radio with singles like “If I Die Young” and “You Lie.” The trio isn’t as goofy as Paisley, but they share his pop instincts and positive attitude. It should be quite the energetic bill to go along with the high-tech redneck setup.
