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CONCERT REVIEW: Queen + Adam Lambert, New Orleans, August 20, 2019 (UPDATED)

Filed Under () by broddybounce on Saturday, August 24, 2019

Posted at : Saturday, August 24, 2019

Here is a "review"(?) of the Queen + Adam Lambert concert at the Smoothie King Dome in New Orleans, Tuesday, August 21, 2019 from the New Orleans Advocate Times-Picayune (NOLA.com) that is quite bittersweet and, we must say, quite picayune and we don't like the bitter, nor the picayune, but, as usual, are posting it for posterity (and, ok, we'll relish the one clear positive observation this utterly cynical (and ig'nant?) reviewer managed to include!).

Actually, the second link below, which is a separate photo spread of the show by talented NOLA.com staff photographer Chris Granger, completely 'one-ups' the review in that the shots are quite beautiful, quite spectacular, and very well chosen.  This is one of those situations where the expression "a picture is worth a thousand words" couldn't be said better.

UPDATE (8/24/19): Much better review in Loyola University's newspaper The Maroon has been added.

credit: Chris Granger
New Orleans Times-Picayune:
Review: Queen + Adam Lambert sometimes
felt like a Broadway musical, sometimes
like a concert

credit: Chris Granger
"Lambert caressed 'Who Wants to Live Forever,' showing off the sumptuousness of his voice."


credit: Chris Granger



credit: Chris Granger

credit: Chris Granger

credit: Chris Granger

~𝄞𝄞𝄞𝄞𝄞~


The Maroon (Loyola University):
Review: Queen+Adam Lambert are the champions

credit: Heidi Dulom
"...when the instrumental intro to “Innuendo” that started the concert began to play, a feeling of euphoria washed over me. By the end of the concert, my throat was ripped apart from singing and yelling, and my ears were ringing from the wall of sound that filled the stadium."
"Throughout the concert, (Lambert) hit remarkable high notes that pierced through the thunderous cheers.  Adam Lambert’s rendition of 'Who Wants to Live Forever' and 'The Show Must Go On' were particularly notable for the emotional energy that he funneled into the songs."
"Altogether, their performance was amazing. There was not a moment when Adam Lambert’s voice failed him. His mannerisms were great, and he owned the stage when he danced."

THE MAROON N.O. REVIEW


12 comments:

LAMBERT Outlaw said...

Well ... I finally got to rebut a review ... rotten review & I tried to hold back but I had to have my say!! It's all there in B&W .. they printed it & a few others that were a little bit harsher!! I feel better now & my pace maker has finally calmed my heart down again!! Can't type anymore .. too shaky .. TYSM for these GORGEOUS pictures of the concert!! QAL RULES!!!

tess4ADAM(LAMBERT Outlaw)

broddybounce said...

You GO Tess! Glad you commented -- here and on the review.

The Dark Side said...

Another Freddie fan wannabe who never saw him live! I can only assume the many thousands of QAL Concert goers who sang, clapped, cried, stomped for more didn’t get this Ahole’s memo!

Dee R Gee said...

This reviewer completely fails to understand that Freddie himself played onstage "characters" all the time. Take a look at him in all his various outlandish stage costumes. He makes Adam look awfully toned down. LOL Freddie once said that Queen's live concerts were NOT just a rundown of their albums. They were each a theatrical experience. And that is what Freddie did, show after show. To say that Adam seemed to be just "playing a role" is ironic and unfair. Queen's whole schtick has been for Freddie to create characters of all kinds onstage.

As for the voice, Freddie had a great rock voice. It wasn't as strong or rich as Adam's. But it didn't need to be. He brought a full-on 100% rock show to the fans. Did he hit all the notes perfectly? NO. But it didn't matter. Lots of big singers don't hit all the notes. They are still good singers in their own way.

Adam's voice is technically perfect. As Brian and Roger say, he never misses a note. I think some reviewers just have a problem with that fact. They may feel that Adam's voice is too operatic, too clean, too sanitized. Not enough rock edge.

That may be true, but thousands of fans are loving Adam's perfect, never-miss-a-note voice. He embodies Queen's theatricality in his own way, just as Freddie did. That was then, this is now. Brian and Roger have found the perfect front man in Adam, a singer who delivers everything Freddie did, but in a 21st century way. This reviewer acknowledged Adam's great voice. But he seemed to have trouble with anyone else but Freddie being up on stage. I wonder who he would choose instead of Adam? Certainly not a MM type of Freddie impersonator. Ugh. I can't think of anyone else out there but Adam who can make Queen be the total stage and sound experience that they are now. This reviewer came to the show not wanting to like it very much. He begrudgingly gave some praise. But he just couldn't bring himself to enjoy the show on its own merits. Too bad for him.

broddybounce said...

Dee, I couldn't agree with you more. All very excellent points!

A few responses to some of your points:

Although Adam doesn't have that "rock edge" for every song, he does for plenty -- and especially now on this third international tour go-round, and if there are any doubts, all we need tell 'em is to listen to Adam in "Show Must Go On," a good example of which is this from Night #1 in LA:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMSczS-d5FE

That last note is amazing! He is just KILLING IT with this song. And funny that this is one of the very first songs he sang with Queen after Idol -- at the EMAs in 2011! He did great there but has come a long way.

And regarding MM: the fellow is indeed talented. He has a very good voice and he does a great job in Queen Extravaganza and in his own Ultimate Queen Celebration show he's doing now. And we appreciate his contributing vocals to BoRhap movie. Yes, there are some similarities between his voice and Freddie's and that's great. But he simply does not have the massive range that Adam does and absolutely is not really an 'entertainer' or showman like Adam is. He just couldn't hold arena-sized crowds in rapture anywhere near like Adam does.

I mean, I'm sorry, but I found this video of him doing "Hammer To Fall" from back in April and it speaks for itself:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQ3d3t2wCHU

And, by coincidence, a tweet someone just posted yesterday:

--------

Vir Ensano
@ensano_vir
·
I feel so much shame for saying "MM" is a better frontman than Adam Lambert for Queen. I take back what I said haha

-----------

I put his name in the above tweet into initials and quotes (the person who tweeted didn't) and I won't put any of this into a main post, as I don't want the blog to take an official position on this -- this here is just in comments, it's just MY point of view. But to your point, Dee, and to anyone who STILL feels inclined to put into comments under YouTube videos and under articles and on various forums that Roger & Brian made a mistake and why didn't they hire MM for the big tours instead (and I've seen that very recently) ... WELL, the proof (as in the above video) is in the pudding!! Brian & Roger were BRILLIANT to choose Adam and to see his potential collaboration potentially over many, many years AND they were there with Freddie, it's THEIR music, if anyone is an expert on rock music and on Queen, it's them, so those disbelievers are not seeing the forest from the trees if they are excoriating them for the decision. And, as Roger put it (paraphrasing): "If you don't like it, don't come!"

Dee R Gee said...

Exactly right, broddy. Brian and Roger had great foresight when choosing Adam. They saw immense potential and it all turned to gold.

And just a quick thought about those singers with the rock rasp and grit in their voices. I love a lot of them. Many are great song stylists with great songs. I am quite sure that their rock voices, raspy, gritty and all, are very carefully crafted, planned and rehearsed. Those voices are part of the act. Of course, those voices have a natural tendency toward that sound. But those great, loud, rough, "notes be damned" voices are no accident. They are crafted for the show. They are part of the characters that those singers have created.

And it all makes for great rock and roll.

Sunflower said...

A Freddie Fanatic! Adam will be damned if he performs like Freddie or he'll be damned if he does'nt! Adam is perfect AS IS! He even criticized Roger that he struggled during Under Pressure, let's see if you Keith can sing and play drums at the same time? You're younger than him I assume, but Roger would beat you at it, Jerk! Freddie also wore costumes and such even at times almost naked! How dare him to say that when they performed Fat Bottom Girls everyone got up, that's not true people are standing since the opening of the show. Yes there may be here or there someone sitting but the majority are standing. 2 more shows left, let's see if those reviews will be more favorable!

Lynn said...

HI everybody... I just got back from the New Orleans concert. I am floating on air. HAHA The show was everything you could ask for, except for it passing by so quickly. I wanted it to be 2 hours more, couldn't get enough. I went with a friend who did not know much about Adam or Queen. She LOVED the show.. Said she amazed by Adam's voice, his outfits, the sets, the whole thing was just perfect. She met some of her friends attending the concert,( because they like going to concerts.) Their reaction. It was wonderful. They did mention it was almost like going to a Broadway show and rock concert all rolled into one and this is what had them so excited. Said the best concert they have seen in a long time. We went back to their hotel when it was over and it was packed with people talking about the concert. And guess what, they all LOVED IT. I wish I had the means to follow them from city to city. I loved every minute of it. The only thing I missed out on was buying t-shirts. I promised my 13 year old grand-daughter I would get her one, but the lines were so long I just couldn't do it. I will just have to go on line because I want one to. Someone gave this concert a bad, mostly bad, unflattering review. I just read it. Can't they see it's up to Brian and Roger who sings their songs. Freddie can't, RIP. Do they really think it isn't right for someone else to sing them. They want Adam be Adam, they don't want him to be Freddie. He brings in new ways to sing great old music. It is so frustrating and I am disappointed this review happened in my city. (and yes Sunflower he is a (Jerk) Anyway as Adam says, I love it, I love it, I love it. The End

Sue Smith said...

Thanks Lynn for the review. So many reviews out there are great, some wonderful. There are always gonna be a few. Actually this time around very few that were not quite complementary. The fact that every body loved and enjoyed it and Adam's remarkable vocals is the real review.
This particular review is as some commenter stated tbe worse example
of journalism they have ever seen. Someone asked were you even there. The reviewer is getting plenty comments way in the favor of QAL. I've noticed more and more and maybe its just me there is some real jealousy out there of the remarkable sucess of QAL. These
remarkably successful concerts are QAL Queen plus Adam Lambert. The reason these shows are not just another rock concert has every single thing to with the fantastic talent on that stage.
Adam's remarkable vocals B and R and the entire band or at the top of their game right now. The theatricality of this show that Adam brings to the concert is one very big reason it is an exceptional concert experience not just another rock show.
Not saying saying there are not very good rock shows out there. However the performance Adam gives in all its glory and exceptional vocals and the going on 50 years of experiance and talent of B and R has culminated in a pretty much one of a kind fantastic concert.
I did not get to see this one in person but just even going by the videos you can see how special it is. Being there and experiencing it all is of course so special.

Lynn said...

Something I forgot to put in my post. A family brought a young boy probably around 10 years old dressed like Freddie in the Live Aid concert. He was adorable and when someone asked if they could take a picture, he posed with his arm in the air and legs planted. He even had a fake mustache on. It was too cute. Freddie's memory will always be there in mind, but what he will be remembering most as he gets older will be that he saw ADAM Lambert and Queen.

Sunflower said...

Lynn thank you for sharing your QAL experience. 2 hours at a QAL concert sure does fly quickly! I wish I could of gone to more than one show but oh well. Glad that your family,friends loved the show and that little boy you mentioned really sounded adorable!

Lynn said...

This is for the reviewer...Thank you so much for this review. I was at the concert (I'm from New Orleans). It was previously by reviewed by another newspaper in New Orleans and it was awful. I doubt he even went to the concert. In a city that is known for its fun, music, parades, over the top performances, it is ridiculous to make the comments he did. Everyone sitting by me was having a ball. Adam is pulling in a young generation to enjoy this music and he is doing it right, LIVE, no auto tune, and having fun doing it . They were dancing and singing in the aisle where I was. Freddie isn't with us, but the music is, so just enjoy it. If you are a true fan of Freddie, I would think you would be glad to hear his music live.
Adam is the perfect choice. I have been to two of his solo concerts and all I can say is that boy can sing.