1.17.15 & 1.18.15 Q+AL The O2 LONDON!

ADAM LAMBERT AND QUEEN ROCK LONDON’S O2 WITH THEIR OWN KIND OF MAGIC
Becky Fuller | January 20, 2015 | Music, Reviews

Sunday night, Queen and Adam Lambert took to the stage for their second performance at London’s O2 Arena as part of their world tour. What unfolded was nothing short of spectacular.

I very clearly remember Freddie Mercury passing away when I was a child. Like anyone who has parents with any semblance of musical taste, I grew up with their music and always knew a Queen song when I heard it. My husband (several years ahead of me) spent his late teens entirely devoted to their music and was desperate to see them again.

Get tickets for the tour We attended the concert for different reasons; he to see the great masters Brian May and Roger Taylor and me… well, I just wanted to see Adam Lambert in a pair of leather trousers and to hear him sing.
We both left with the same thought; the combination of Queen and Adam Lambert together on a stage is outstanding and Adam Lambert is the perfect front man for this band and their awesome talent.

There is no support act, but then there doesn’t need to be when they can easily fill a two hour show and still not perform some of their biggest hits. “A Kind of Magic,” “Innuendo” and “The Show Must Go On” are all missing, though one wonders if the latter is left out because of the poignancy of the lyrics. This is not a mournful show, far from it. It is an outrageously camp, bright and cheerful celebration of all that Queen was and is now.

Freddie Mercury is not forgotten; from many a mention by the band, to a duet on “Bohemian Rhapsody” with Lambert, to a beautiful rendition of “These Are The Days of Our Lives” by Roger Taylor with a wonderfully nostalgic video montage in the background.

Sure, some of the show might be a tad self indulgent, but hey, this is Queen and they are rock gods. If anyone is entitled to pander to their own whims then it should be May and Taylor, who keep us entertained with guitar solos and drum battles (with Roger Taylor’s son, Rufus).

Before last night I would have classified Brian May as a very talented guitarist. I am not sure there are actually enough words to describe his awesomeness after having witnessed him play live. He brings new meaning to the phrase “making the guitar sing.” I am still amazed at the talent he possesses, the incredible music he can produce, and all while looking like he’s just standing in a supermarket, pondering which cheese to buy. How can he look so calm?!

Each and every member of Queen strikes me as incredibly humble. There is no mistaking that they are genuinely grateful to us, the audience, for being there. On top of that, May and Taylor are grateful to Lambert for lending his incredible vocal talent, and he in turn is grateful for the amazing opportunity.

Adam Lambert is a showman of the highest order. He possesses a pitch perfect voice, which sounds like a logical thing for a singer to have, but you’d be surprised how many don’t. His range is astounding. “Killer Queen,” performed on a chaise longue in the most camp and theatrical style possible, really brought home his singing capabilities for me as he jumped smoothly up and down the musical scale. There was not a single bum note in his performance, and I have been to many concerts in my time but I have never been able to say that before. May and Taylor also bring great harmonies, again perfectly sung as well as having strong solo voices themselves.

Adam has the true essence of Freddie Mercury while still managing to be entirely himself throughout. He is unashamedly camp, flirty and fun, and the whole audience sits in the palm of his hand. He also comes across as genuinely likeable. His rapport with the rest of Queen is fun and easy and you get the feeling that they will all really miss each other when this tour ends.

I love to dance and sing, in fact it would suit me if my entire life was a musical. Adam Lambert brings that out both in me, and, it seems, the rest of the crowd. By the time he performed “Don’t Stop Me Now,” one of my all time favourite songs, I was on my feet, dancing wildly along with the rest of the people in my block, the vast majority of whom were aged between forty and sixty. You can’t help but throw caution to the wind and dance the night away, not caring who’s watching, because your attentions are focused on these rock gods.

“Radio GaGa” felt almost like a religious experience; an entire arena clapping along in sync and singing their hearts out, led by a man who looks stupidly good in a pair of tight red tartan trousers. From there we moved to “Bohemian Rhapsody”, complete with Brian May in some kind of gold lame curtain which oddly suited him and Freddie Mercury on our screens. It was perfect. I can’t describe it as anything else. The show closed with “We Will Rock You,” which is exactly what they had spent two hours doing, and “We Are The Champions.” Adam Lambert wears a crown. Adam Lambert deserves that crown because he really is both king and queen of everything right now, and deservedly so.
I’m sure I’m not alone in wishing this partnership will continue in some capacity. For now, we know that Lambert has signed a solo deal and will be releasing a single in April. I am hopeful he will be able to capitalise on the success of this tour and that his solo work brings him great critical acclaim, but I would also love the opportunity to see him on stage with Queen again at some point in the future.

For me, on Sunday night, Adam Lambert and Queen captured my soul with their beautiful music. I danced, I laughed, I sang along and I cried with joy. We emerged into the freezing cold night with an uplifted crown who sang “Don’t Stop Me Now” and “Bohemian Rhapsody” as we all queued for the train home. Over the years, Adam Lambert, Queen and their music have touched many people’s hearts and I am so thankful that I had the chance to experience watching them live. They really do have their own kind of magic.