http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20100301/ENT03/303010013/McBride++Adkins+wow++local+fans

Martina McBride, Trace Adkins make differences work at Bank of Kentucky Center
CONCERT REVIEW

It’s hard to identify the common ground shared by tour mates Martina McBride and Trace Adkins, other than the fact that they both jockey for position on the country music charts.

During her portion of the Sunday-night concert at Bank of Kentucky Center in Highland Heights, McBride told the crowd that interviewers often ask her why she and Adkins make a good double bill.

“He sings about the badonkadonks (urban slang for shapely female buttocks),” she said of Adkins. “I had a badonkadonk. Not a very big one.”

Though that might be true, it’s just more proof that these two are opposites. McBride cultivates a squeaky-clean image as she over-sings songs about female empowerment and other suitable-for-suburbia anthems, while Adkins puts his understated baritone to a somewhat salacious use, mumbling about the virtues of the aforementioned badonkadonk and such.

Maybe the differences make the match work. The arena appeared to be filled to near-capacity, though Bank of Kentucky Center representatives did not provide an attendance figure. And there seemed to be little separation between Adkins fans and McBride fans. The crowd was digging “When God Fearin’ Women Get the Blues” as much as “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk.”

There was no lack of effort from McBride during her 90-minute headlining set. She darted around the stage in stiletto heels and never missed a note as she sang through her smile.

Backed by a seven-piece band that included her brother Marty Schiff on acoustic guitar and backing vocals, McBride pulled material from as far back as her 1993 breakout single – and still her best song yet – “My Baby Loves Me.” She busted out a random collection of covers that provided counterpoint to her trademark melodramatic ballads like “A Broken Wing” and “I’m Trying.”

McBride talked about her love of classic country music as she went into a version of Kris Kristofferson’s “Help Me Make It Though the Night,” but her bombastic vocals were out-of-touch with what makes classic country truly classic. She was born to sing ‘80s rock, which is just about the same as ‘00s country, and she proved as much in her encore one-two punch of Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer” and Bryan Adams’ “Summer of ’69.” Maybe ‘70s soul is her thing, too. Earlier in the set she delivered a pretty good take on Bill Withers’ “Lean on Me.”

In the most memorable moment of her performance, McBride appeared from behind a curtain, seated in a blue crescent moon that was about eight feet in diameter. McBride and the moon then took off, floating over the floor seats, suspended by wire, as McBride routinely sang another one of her ballads, “Concrete Angels,” as if it were normal to travel by plastic-moon flight. She and the moon eventually touched down on a small stage at the other end of the floor – one giant step for contemporary country music.

That would be another thing that separates Adkins from McBride: the big guy is likely unwilling to take a ride in the blue plastic moon. Adkins’ enjoyable hour-long set showcased his typical stage act where he sings braggadocious tunes like “Hillbilly Rich,” “I Got My Game On” and “Hot Mama” while maintaining a stoic look and measured tone. As it turned out, the one time he cut loose vocally ranked as his best performance of the night – a retooled yet still-funky version of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground.”