Black Eyed Peas kick off ‘The E.N.D.’ world tour: What’s the verdict?

Black Eyed Peas

Credit: AP Photo

Black Eyed Peas “got it started” last night on their 2010 “The E.N.D.” world tour, and the reviews are in.

Taking over the Phillips Arena in Atlanta last night, the quartet and its band were in the smoke, climbing down from the ceiling, enduring multiple costume changes and utilizing the space for light lazers, video screens and wacky, techy contraptions of vast imagination. From the sound of the reviews below, the group sticks to the hits, and mixes up the two-hours set with freestyles, Fergie’s solo material and… text messages?

Rolling Stone
"There were smoke machines, lasers, oddly clad dancers, a flying motorcycle, confetti canons and many, many costume changes. Overall, the vibe was, to quote their recent hit, “Boom Boom Pow,” “so 3008″ — kind of Buck Rogers meets Vivienne Westwood — with the Peas running through more than 20 songs in a tightly choreographed, fast-paced two-hour set."

Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"Thursday’s Black Eyed Peas concert, with Ludacris opening, was a celebration of energetic music, theatrical costumes, creative technology… The show, which featured the group’s members performing together and separately (Taboo flew through the air on a motorcycle suspended from the ceiling during his bit), made innovative use of technology and at times felt like a social media conference. Fergie, her many different costumes and her, uh, assets took center stage often, with strategic camera close-ups capturing those lovely lady lumps to great effect."

Spin
"The showmanship was one part theatrical (members flying through the air) and one part predictable (banter seemingly already rehearsed and already stale). While it was certainly sensory overload at times -- sight, sound, and even social media fused into an overwhelming and extreme production -- the Black Eyed Peas know their place among mainstream pop culture. They push the boundaries of what it means to be one of the top-selling acts in music today."
 

Katie Hasty
Managing Editor

• Follow

After five years as a columnist and editor at Billboard, Katie Hasty joined HitFix in 2009 for music and film reporting out of New York. The Midwest native has worked as a writer, music promoter and in A&R since 1999 and performs with her band Numbers And Letters.