The Black Eyed Peas, the first contemporary pop act to headline the Super Bowl halftime since Janet Jackson was over-exposed by Justin Timberlake in 2004, proved to be an oddly appropriate choice for the National Football League's big international party Sunday in Dallas.

The Peas didn't exactly perform so much as cheerlead, their "Boom Boom Pow" just a centimeter or two removed from "sis-boom-bah." With lyrics like Madison Avenue slogans plastered over relentless beats, the quartet's big, proudly superficial music advertised and celebrated itself. It's not meant to be scrutinized, but blasted over big speakers at Cowboys Stadium or in saloons worldwide hosting Super Bowl parties.

It's nearly impossible to do anything nuanced or thoughtful on such a stage in 12 minutes. So the Peas went for the gusto and the spectacle, wearing neon spacesuits and surrounded by flourescent dancers. "Jump off that sofa!" chief Pea will.i.am commanded.

The vocal quartet's' fast-paced set included snippets of such readymade party anthems as "I've Got a Feeling,"  "Boom Boom Pow," the surf-guitar-stoked "Pump It," and "Let's Get it Started," plus wild cards Slash and Usher. With the Peas' Fergie doing her best Axl Rose impression, right down to a snaky hip dance, the guitarist with the curls, shades and stove pipe hat played his signature "Sweet Child O' Mine" riff. Fergie's voice sounded a little rough, but it did suggest that the band was at least attempting to perform their vocals live, not always the case in past Super Bowl halftimes. Usher, in pristine white,  delivered some smooth dance moves on "O.M.G." 

    Usher did a lot of role-playing Friday at the packed-to-the-rafters Allstate Arena, changing costumes about eight times as if trying to figure out exactly who he wanted to be: bungee-jumping ninja, space traveler, leather-clad club marauder, wet T-shirt contest winner.

    But when things got a little slow, as they inevitably did in an unevenly paced two-hour concert, he kept returning to one sure-fire move that was guaranteed to get the predominantly female audience back on point: He lifted his shirt and showed off his gleaming abdomen. It was emblematic of his stud-next-door appeal. Not crassly explicit, but just suggestive enough to elicit screams. Call it six-pack R&B.

    Even at 32, Usher suggests a mannish-boy more than a classic soul man who has been in the business for nearly two-thirds of his life. In comparison to past arena tours, when his dancing exploded into moves more suited for a gymnastics competition, he has toned down the acrobatics. But he still places an emphasis on the physical over the musical; this was about sweat and athleticism more than nuance or songcraft.

Usher: The R&B star shifted to a more mature, ballad-oriented sound a couple years ago, but when that approach was met with indifference, he revved up the libido-charged sound of his youth and returned to the charts with his latest album, “Raymond v. Raymond,” 8 p.m. Friday with Trey Songz at Allstate Arena, 6920 N. Mannheim Rd., Rosemont, Ill., $29.50, $49.50, $65, $85, $125; ticketmaster.com.

Roots: Despite their regular gig as house band on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” the Philadelphia hip-hop juggernaut has put out two studio albums this year -- a solid collection of soul covers with John Legend (“Wake Up!”) and the terrific “How I Got Over,” one of the best releases in their two-decade career, 7 p.m. Saturday at House of Blues, 329 N. Dearborn, $50, $65, $80; livenation.com.

Skatalites: A legendary force in Jamaican music and pioneers of ska – a precursor to reggae -- this ensemble still delivers a first-rate horn-fueled dance party. It should be a great way to conclude the three-day Chicago Bluegrass and Blues Festival, 6 p.m. Sunday with Daphne Willis, Go Long Mule and others at Lincoln Hall, 2424 N. Lincoln Av., $15; lincolnhallchicago.com.

greg@gregkot.com

greg@gregkot.com

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