7.11.17 QAL Kansas City Reviews
Jul 10, 2017 23:54:49 GMT -5
Post by Q3 on Jul 10, 2017 23:54:49 GMT -5
Montage in banner from mairo @atom2mairo
(video here in article)
Two of the founding members of Queen, guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, fronted by lead vocalist Adam Lambert, led a crowd of about 13,000 through a set list that spanned two dozen songs. Kelsey Ryan The Kansas City Star
Back to Rockville
Timothy Finn blogs about Kansas City's music scene
July 10, 2017 6:33 AM
Queen plus Adam Lambert faithfully revive the sounds of an eminent, unique band in KC
By Timothy Finn tfinn@kcstar.com
Freddie Mercury is irreplaceable. That point was made expressively Sunday night at the Sprint Center. But the songs and music of the band Queen are timeless and indelible and worthy of revival under the right circumstances, a point made emphatically Sunday night.
For about two hours, two of the founding members of the legendary British rock band, guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, fronted by lead vocalist Adam Lambert, led a crowd of about 13,000 through a set list that spanned two dozen songs, some of them more than 40 years old. And it made for a night that was as sentimentally satisfying as it was relentlessly entertaining.
Lambert, an “American Idol” runner-up in Season 8 (he lost to Kris Allen), is the ideal surrogate Freddie Mercury: He’s fearlessly campy and uninhibited, and he has the vocal might that can punch holes through arena walls.
The trio, backed by three other musicians, opened with a teaser: about 15 seconds of “We Will Rock You,” a classic stadium-sized anthem that would make a later appearance.
They officially opened with “Hammer to Fall,” and then “Stone Cold Crazy,” two relatively obscure tracks, neither of which charted in the U.S. but both of which drew plenty of recognition from the crowd.
From there they barged full-steam-ahead into solid-gold terrain, starting with the funk-rock classic “Another One Bites the Dust,” which led to the whimsical and libidinous arena anthem “Fat Bottomed Girls,” then into the lustrously irresistible groove-fest “Killer Queen,” all of which Lambert handled with equal parts deference and panache.
Throughout the show, Lambert paid respects to Mercury and his larger-than-life reputation. He also deferred to May and Taylor, calling them “rock Gods” and “legends.” But he did not back down from commanding the stage, vocally, physically and otherwise, and imparting upon the show his own personality and flavor.
He changed costume/wardrobe several times, though each time he emerged wearing seemingly a different variation on the same theme: a leather jacket (sleeveless, usually), leather pants and boots, with studs and spangles adorning most of it.
The best of the bunch was the blazing blood-orange ensemble that matched the color of his hair. I think he was wearing that when he pedaled around the guitar-shaped stage on a tricycle during the delightful version of “Bicycle Race,” ringing a handlebar-bell throughout.
He also infused the show with appropriate amounts of sexual innuendos and gyrations and gestures that usually involved the microphone stand. During a rabble-rousing version of “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” he flashed some impressive Elvis dance moves
Mercury was remembered throughout the show, but with tasteful restraint. One of the many highlights of the show was May’s solo-acoustic version of “Love of My Life,” a lovely ballad from the “Night at the Opera Album.”
May played it simple and straight. Toward the end he was joined, on the video screen, by footage of Mercury singing the final verse or two. It was a touching remembrance.
They ended the first set with — what else? — “Bohemian Rhapsody,” turning over the chorus parts to footage from the original video, displayed on the large video screen. For such a complex and ornate song, it aroused a memorable, verbatim and rafter-rattling sing-along, equal in volume to the ovation for May’s guitar solo toward the end of it. As he did all night, Lambert sang everything just right: with much drama and aplomb but without overdoing it.
The show ended with the teaser that started it: a version of “We Will Rock You” that almost split the arena open at its seams. Then came “We Are the Champions,” a rock-opera hymn with the fervor of a fight song.
It brought the close of an evening that from the start was about rewarding winners and legends and bringing back to life and back on to the playing field the music of one of the most creative and unique bands in the sport of rock music.
Timothy Finn: 816-234-4781, @phinnagain
Read more here: www.kansascity.com/entertainment/ent-columns-blogs/back-to-rockville/article160463654.html#storylink=cpy
CONCERT REVIEW: Queen + Adam Lambert a royal tribute to Freddie
By Rob Collins Enid News & Eagle
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The last time Queen toured America with Freddie Mercury, I was 11 years old.
I was was too young to attend, but my older cousin saw the band perform that gig in 1982 at the Myriad in Oklahoma City.
That tour was in support of “Hot Space,” a revolutionary album that pushed the dance-pop envelope but was a commercial disappointment.
I grew up digging Queen and discovering each album by album. I’d mow lawns in the summer in Enid and spend the cash collecting the rock royalty’s back catalog, including mail-ordered rarities and outtakes.
In the comprehensive process, I basically heard every recorded live concert. Queen’s pinnacle performance was in 1985 at Live Aid.
The bigger Queen got, the more the band performed. As Mercury’s voice became more seasoned, he’d sing the mid-range with drummer Roger Taylor taking over high end.
When Queen released “Highlander” soundtrack hodgepodge “A Kind of Magic” album a year later, I landed a recording of the 1986 Knebworth concert, which proved to be Mercury’s final show.
After Freddie’s death in 1991, bassist John Deacon retired.
While George Michael’s cover of “Somebody to Love” gave me hope of a revamped Queen, that never happened. A later collaboration with ex-Bad Company vocalist Paul Rodgers was an odd fit stylistically.
That brings us to Adam Lambert of “American Idol” fame. During the Queen + Adam Lambert performance Sunday in Kansas City, he addressed the elephant in the room with equal parts respect and flamboyance: He’s not Freddie Mercury, and he doesn’t pretend to be.
When it came to Mercury, his showmanship was incomparable.
Freddie was the greatest rock vocalist in history. The 35-year-old Lambert thankfully doesn’t mimic Mercury note for note — nor does he deliver with Mercury’s same powerful vocal command — but he add creative flourishes and sometimes, surprisingly, even shows off more range.
I was thrilled to see the remaining Queen members in concert for the first time. Virtuoso Brian May, who holds a doctorate in astrophysics, is one of my top five all-time guitarists, playing on his homemade “Red Special” guitar with a six*&@^# coin for a pick.
Taylor once saw Frank Kelly Freas’ cover of “Astounding Science Fiction,” and this image of a robot holding the dead body of a man inspired artwork for Queen’s 1977 “News of the World” album cover.
That iconic robot was resurrected in Queen’s new live shows with Lambert.
With Lambert, Taylor performs the duet singing the late, great David Bowie’s vocals on “Under Pressure” in another homage to a fallen rock star.
But the ultimate tribute is to Freddie. His spirit is memorialized in video spotlights, most notably in the ballad “Love of My Life,” in which May invites the audience in a heartwarming singalong with an acoustic guitar. It brought tears to my eyes.
As Queen fans know, the bombastic, operatic interlude of “Bohemian Rhapsody” is always played in concert via recording. This time the video accompaniment was embellished with an extensive laser light show to great effect. With longtime live keyboardist Spike Edney playing Freddie’s piano parts, the band sounded great.
Since I missed seeing the original Queen lineup as a child, we taught our children a proper school of rock lesson for our family’s first arena rock concert. God save the Queen.
Collins is executive editor of the Enid News & Eagle.
Link: www.enidnews.com/news/entertainment/concert-review-queen-adam-lambert-a-royal-tribute-to-freddie/article_916e383e-8f81-5bd6-a41b-3b6b5448ca21.html
QAL 2017 Tour Schedule
North American Tour
June 24th Las Vegas, NV - T-Mobile Arena
June 26th Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl
June 27th Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl
June 29th San Jose, CA - SAP Center
July 1st Seattle, WA - Key Arena
July 2nd Vancouver, BC - Pepsi Live at Rogers Arena
July 4th Edmonton, AB - Rogers Place
July 9th Kansas City, MO - Sprint Centre
July 13th Chicago, IL - United Center
July 14th St. Paul, MN - Xcel Energy Center
July 17th Montreal, QC - Bell Centre
July 18th Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
July 20th Detroit, MI - The Palace of Auburn Hills
July 21st Cleveland, OH - Quicken Loans Arena
July 23rd Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
July 25th Boston, MA - TD Garden
July 26th Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
July 28th New York, NY - Barclays Center
July 30th Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center
July 31st Washington D.C. - Verizon Center
August 2nd Nashville, TN - Bridgestone Arena
August 4th Dallas, TX - American Airlines Center
August 5th Houston, TX - Toyota Center
European and UK Tour
November 1st - Prague, Czech Republic, O2 Arena
November 2nd - Munich, Germany, Olympiahalle
November 4th - Budapest, Hungary, Sportarena
November 6th - Lodz, Poland, Atlas Arena
November 8th - Vienna, Austria, Stadhalle
November 10th - Bologna, Italy, Unipol Arena
November 12th - Luxembourg, Amneville Galaxie
November 13th - Amsterdam, Netherlands, Ziggo Dome
November 17th - Kaunas, Lithuania, Zalgiris Arena
November 19th - Hartwell Arena, Helsinki, Finland
November 21st - Friends Arena, Stockholm, Sweden
November 22nd - Royal Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark
November 25th - Dublin, 3 Arena
November 26th - Belfast, SSE Arena- BUY TICKETS
November 28th - Liverpool, Echo Arena
November 30th - Birmingham, Barclaycard Arena
December 1st - Newcastle, Metro Radio Arena
December 3rd - Glasgow, The SSE Hydro
December 5th - Nottingham Motorpoint Arena
December 6th - Leeds, First Direct Arena
December 8th - Sheffield Arena
December 9th - Manchester, Arena
December 12th - London, 02 Arena
December 13th - London, 02 Arena
December 15th - London, The SSE Arena, Wembley
December 16th - Birmingham, Barclaycard Arena