Arco arena is known for having the loudest fans in the NBA. It is also know for having a horrible sound system for concerts. It was especial laud, harsh and shrilly for the American Idol concert on Wednesday, July 9th. The overbearing base drum amplifier drowned out the rest of the band. We know there was a band because we saw them but we rarely heard what they were playing. You not only heard the base but felt it, even in the far reaches of the stadium. If you have ever pulled up to a stop light with a car next you that had the windows down with extremely heavy base amplifiers and speakers that pounded through the pavement up into your car and actually made your car pulsate, that is what the sound was in Arco. The poor sound quality was not limited to the band. Some of performers also sounded shrilly.

The show was a top ten Idols countdown, each coming out and singing three songs. Chikezie Eze started things off followed by Ramiele Malubay, both with three none descript and forgettable songs. Michael Johns, however, set the stadium on fire and made us realize that he was eliminated way too early and should have been among the top three finalists. Kristy Lee Cook made the most of what she has and sang, what was considered to be one of the best individual song choices of the season, “God Bless the USA”.

Carly Smithson either had microphone problems or she is simply not as good as the Idol judges kept heralding during the TV show. Brooke White on the other hand sounded clear and pure rising up from beneath the stage playing a baby grand piano. Perhaps her performance was helped by the fact that she accompanied herself and the band did not play.

Jason Castro, the free spirited song stylist with dread locks and a baby face, started off the second half sounding better then during the competition. Syesha Mercado followed with a stepped up provocative look (very provocative) screaming her way through three unmemorable songs.

Now, we were down to what we were waiting for, the top two. Unfortunately, David Archuleta and/or his dad are into picking songs most of us never heard before and songs that are too old for him. Nevertheless, from what we could hear over the screaming thirteen year old girls, he has an incredible instrument.

For me, one of the great mysteries of the universe since the Beatles first played in the United States has been why people go to a concert and then scream so they can’t hear the performance?

As great as David Archuleta’s voice is the performance that followed re-solidified why David Cook won American Idol this year. He is a complete performer with a dynamic voice as he proved during the competition. Cook can deliver an Andrew Loyd Weber song from “Phantom of the Opera” or a gritty rock song, both with conviction. When we first heard him on American Idol going out on a limb doing a slow version of Michael Jackson’s “Billy jean” my wife and I looked at each other and commented that we would go out and buy that album tomorrow, if it was available. After seeing him live our opinion has not change.

After every time we have gone to see a concert at Arco Arena we vowed never to go back again due to the poor sound quality. This time we mean it.