It’s not New Year’s yet, but last night we heard the year’s loudest countdown.

It started at 8:45 p.m., 20 minutes behind schedule, when a giant digital clock began a five-minute countdown until Winnipeg’s first taste of Carrie Underwood. As the closing seconds wore down, 10,000 mostly young fans screamed them in unison.

Three...

Two...

One.

And there she was, the Final One from the 2005 season of American Idol, prowling through Flat On The Floor in black stilettos and a sexy violet shift. Now 25, Underwood dominated her season of Idol thanks to a stellar voice and a wholesome persona. But last night’s intro made it clear that the Carnival Ride tour is evolving a sassier, less apple-pie image of the singer.

But only to a point: Underwood is still a family-friendly star. Early in the set, she paused Carnival Ride’s second hit single, All-American Girl, to ask for an “all-Canadian girl” to finish the song. This fell to a button-cute seven-year-old named Jada, whom Underwood kneeled to greet. “Do you know all the words’ I only know a few... I just make up the rest.”

During a costume change, we saw a video of Underwood highlights, from her Idol win to talking heads praising her beauty. The effect was awkwardly self-serving; could not a behind-the-scenes doc of Underwood’s post-Idol life have been made instead’

At least the costume change was worth it. Underwood re-emerged in a voluminous blue-grey ball gown and a quieter mood. Her supple voice soared through the ballad I Know You Won’t, but it was her Grammy-winning (and Canadian-written) hit Jesus Take The Wheel that prompted a reverent singalong from the crowd.

The ball gown didn’t slow her down for long. As the drums kicked in on I Ain’t In Checotah Anymore, Underwood’s frisky tribute to her Oklahoma hometown, the bottom of her dress fell away, revealing a slinky cocktail number.

This is when she got really sassy. Underwood showed off some good ol’ Southern grit, poking fun at her infamously unsizzling love life.

“There is sadly one area of my life where I seem to be lacking, and that’s in the man department. Does anybody feel my pain’” she smirked.

As the cheers died down, she pounced.

“Here’s a little advice. If you are like me... do what I did, and go get a dog. Sorry, fellas.”

Earlier in the night, Nashville vocal quartet Little Big Town didn’t play their usual Fleetwood Mac quintessential Go Your Own Way. Turns out they were saving it to sing with Carrie. The triumphant five-voice rendition in the show’s home-stretch, with Underwood rocking on guitar and the Townies running down the catwalk, was magnificent.

Remember what we said about sharpening her edge’ At press time, Underwood was snarling through an encore cover of Guns ’n’ Roses’ Paradise City. To be fair, she sounds a lot better than Axl Rose does these days. Her voice is big enough to handle rock ’n’ roll.

A note on Little Big Town. They’re fast becoming one of Winnipeg’s faves. They earned raves earlier this year when they opened up for Martina McBride; many readers wrote in to say they thought the quartet was the highlight of the show.

Well, this Town seems to have grown in the intervening months: last night they delivered a huge performance.

At this rate, is a headlining Little Big Town gig at the MTS Centre so far off’

---