Deconstructing The Grrrl Next Door

Newt Briggs of Las Vegas Mercury previewed Avril Lavigne’s concert at the Thomas and Mack Center on Tuesday, giving a stinging indictment of the Canadian singer and the huge following she’s gained since selling 10 million copies of her 2002 debut, ‘Let Go’. “Perhaps the whole thing wouldn’t be so unsettling if it weren’t for the sheer volume of product that Lavigne has somehow foisted on our unsuspecting youngsters,” Briggs writes. “Ten million puts Let Go in league with Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’, No Doubt’s ‘Tragic Kingdom’, TLC’s ‘CrazySexyCool’ and Kid Rock’s ‘Devil Without’ a Cause–all superior, if somewhat dated, musical efforts. The problem with ‘Let Go’–and even more so with the follow-up, ‘Under My Skin’–is that it’s about as exciting as, well, Canada.” Read more.