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Post by nica575 on Nov 8, 2011 12:39:29 GMT -5
Thank you, cassie! I agree with every word!
Freddie did have a "sharper" voice and to me Adam brings a much richer, "rounder" sounding sound, more operatic as you said, and to me it is JUST PERFECT!
I really don't understand the "too much vibrato" comments and i think they are made out of ignorance... but, we all have different hearing and different point of reference.
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Post by musicislife on Nov 8, 2011 13:38:18 GMT -5
*pops out of lurkdom*
Cassie, thanks for your extended comments on Adam's performance with Queen and specifically about his vibrato. I watched the livestream first and if I'm being completely honest, I thought for the first half of TSMGO he might have been fighting nerves or adrenaline. His vibrato sounded too fast and bordering on a wee bit out of control, to me. (dodges tomatoes and arrows) It wasn't like any way I'd heard him sing before. Of course, his tone was flawless but I kind of felt like there were a few very minute, fleeting moments when he was struggling with the song. Admittedly, I've never heard it before but I can tell it has a very high level of difficulty. And he was only fronting Queen in a tribute performance being broadcast to 1.2 BILLION PEOPLE, so it would've been totally normally to have a few butterflies. I would've shit my pants. I though he settled in nicely toward the last half and through the rest of the medley. In fact, the whole thing was A FUCKING AMAZING MINDBOGGLING PIECE OF VOCAL BADASSERY!!
Then, it aired on TV and sounded totally different! I didn't hear the sheepi-ness in the vibrato at all. I got the full, emotional powerful drama that he was trying to infuse into it. Am I totally off the mark, or did anyone -or you- have the same inital experience? What is it about the streamed version that would have distorted the vibrato so much? Also, it's entirely possible that you are sitting here reading this thinking, wtf this idiot smoking?, and that I need to get a brain scan and hearing test stat. But I hear it on the yt vid that was uploaded from the stream that he tweeted and I've seen A LOT of people in the comments sections remarking on his vibrato, and not in a good way.
I swear, it actually pains me to write a critique like this. And the only reason I'm even doing so is to see if what I'm hearing on the livestream is the product of a crap transmission. I'm ultra sensitive to vibrato, it is a make or break factor for me with a singer. I'm really hoping a great HQ audio rip from tv rip surfaces so I can hear it the way I think the audience in the arena got to hear it.
OK, running away now, please don't hurt me lol :-[
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gabby
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Post by gabby on Nov 8, 2011 15:10:34 GMT -5
*pops out of lurkdom* Cassie, thanks for your extended comments on Adam's performance with Queen and specifically about his vibrato. I watched the livestream first and if I'm being completely honest, I thought for the first half of TSMGO he might have been fighting nerves or adrenaline. His vibrato sounded too fast and bordering on a wee bit out of control, to me. (dodges tomatoes and arrows) It wasn't like any way I'd heard him sing before. Of course, his tone was flawless but I kind of felt like there were a few very minute, fleeting moments when he was struggling with the song. Admittedly, I've never heard it before but I can tell it has a very high level of difficulty. And he was only fronting Queen in a tribute performance being broadcast to 1.2 BILLION PEOPLE, so it would've been totally normally to have a few butterflies. I would've shit my pants. I though he settled in nicely toward the last half and through the rest of the medley. In fact, the whole thing was A FUCKING AMAZING MINDBOGGLING PIECE OF VOCAL BADASSERY!! Then, it aired on TV and sounded totally different! I didn't hear the sheepi-ness in the vibrato at all. I got the full, emotional powerful drama that he was trying to infuse into it. Am I totally off the mark, or did anyone -or you- have the same inital experience? What is it about the streamed version that would have distorted the vibrato so much? Also, it's entirely possible that you are sitting here reading this thinking, wtf this idiot smoking?, and that I need to get a brain scan and hearing test stat. But I hear it on the yt vid that was uploaded from the stream that he tweeted and I've seen A LOT of people in the comments sections remarking on his vibrato, and not in a good way. I swear, it actually pains me to write a critique like this. And the only reason I'm even doing so is to see if what I'm hearing on the livestream is the product of a crap transmission. I'm ultra sensitive to vibrato, it is a make or break factor for me with a singer. I'm really hoping a great HQ audio rip from tv rip surfaces so I can hear it the way I think the audience in the arena got to hear it. OK, running away now, please don't hurt me lol :-[ Yes! Yes! musicislife..... I also thought Adam was fighting a little bit of nerves as he started and recovered fantistically (based on live stream). However, when like you, I also replayed all the videos I don't hear them at all. Could just be a distortion of streaming. Whew! How could I even doubt our guy? He mastered that stage and showed no fear whatever. Did you also notice he was directing Brian May (We Are The Champions) before Brian was chasing him in that runway? Before Adam stepped into the runway he motioned Brian "C'mon" and Brian right away followed him because I think Adam knows that they are pressed for time and he wants both of them to reached that circle in 1 minute or so ;D But he did it with such finesse that nobody probably notice it. Adam is the time keeper. :D and so conscious of everything ... what a guy... |
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Post by cassie on Nov 8, 2011 15:44:39 GMT -5
*pops out of lurkdom* Cassie, thanks for your extended comments on Adam's performance with Queen and specifically about his vibrato. I watched the livestream first and if I'm being completely honest, I thought for the first half of TSMGO he might have been fighting nerves or adrenaline. His vibrato sounded too fast and bordering on a wee bit out of control, to me. (dodges tomatoes and arrows) It wasn't like any way I'd heard him sing before. Of course, his tone was flawless but I kind of felt like there were a few very minute, fleeting moments when he was struggling with the song. Admittedly, I've never heard it before but I can tell it has a very high level of difficulty. And he was only fronting Queen in a tribute performance being broadcast to 1.2 BILLION PEOPLE, so it would've been totally normally to have a few butterflies. I would've shit my pants. I though he settled in nicely toward the last half and through the rest of the medley. In fact, the whole thing was A FUCKING AMAZING MINDBOGGLING PIECE OF VOCAL BADASSERY!! Then, it aired on TV and sounded totally different! I didn't hear the sheepi-ness in the vibrato at all. I got the full, emotional powerful drama that he was trying to infuse into it. Am I totally off the mark, or did anyone -or you- have the same inital experience? What is it about the streamed version that would have distorted the vibrato so much? Also, it's entirely possible that you are sitting here reading this thinking, wtf this idiot smoking?, and that I need to get a brain scan and hearing test stat. But I hear it on the yt vid that was uploaded from the stream that he tweeted and I've seen A LOT of people in the comments sections remarking on his vibrato, and not in a good way. I swear, it actually pains me to write a critique like this. And the only reason I'm even doing so is to see if what I'm hearing on the livestream is the product of a crap transmission. I'm ultra sensitive to vibrato, it is a make or break factor for me with a singer. I'm really hoping a great HQ audio rip from tv rip surfaces so I can hear it the way I think the audience in the arena got to hear it. OK, running away now, please don't hurt me lol :-[ What we hear is influenced by what we know, what we have experienced, what we expect, and what we project. As for the livestream, I was sitting in a living room with my parents watching the Green Bay Packer game on TV while surreptitiously trying to monitor the EMA show on a little notepad computer with headphones. Hadn't expected to even be able to do that, so I was very pleased to get anything live. Consequently, I didn't hear anything of nerves at the beginning. I saw this fierce being in shadow and heard a powerful voice ring out (singing a song I was not familiar with, so had no expectations for). I did notice the pronounced vibrato and thought it was a)done in the spirit of the high drama, and b) a slight reference to the quavering, fast vibrato Freddy sometimes had. Not an imitation, but a bow to Freddy. Mostly, I heard incredible power, passion, intensity and control. Despite, or maybe because I love Adam's voice so much, I can be a harsh critic of Adam's performances when they aren't up to the stringent standards he normally sets. This performance exceeded my expectations and wowed me. I respect if you heard something different. |
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gabby
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Post by gabby on Nov 8, 2011 16:14:46 GMT -5
What we hear is influenced by what we know, what we have experienced, what we expect, and what we project. As for the livestream, I was sitting in a living room with my parents watching the Green Bay Packer game on TV while surreptitiously trying to monitor the EMA show on a little notepad computer with headphones. Hadn't expected to even be able to do that, so I was very pleased to get anything live. Consequently, I didn't hear anything of nerves at the beginning. I saw this fierce being in shadow and heard a powerful voice ring out (singing a song I was not familiar with, so had no expectations for). I did notice the pronounced vibrato and thought it was a)done in the spirit of the high drama, and b) a slight reference to the quavering, fast vibrato Freddy sometimes had. Not an imitation, but a bow to Freddy. Mostly, I heard incredible power, passion, intensity and control. Despite, or maybe because I love Adam's voice so much, I can be a harsh critic of Adam's performances when they aren't up to the stringent standards he normally sets. This performance exceeded my expectations and wowed me. I respect if you heard something different. Thanks for the response, Cassie... I know after hearing copies of videos in YT that the "nerves" I heard was distorted streaming (my computer is over 5 years old so my graphics card is a bit slow) and I also was probably projecting my own fears. My heart was beating so fast that I thought my heart will jump out of my chest.  Never heard that "shaky" start that I thought I heard. From all the videos posted, just like you said Adam sang with incredible power, passion, intensity and control in that performance. |
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Post by seoulmate on Nov 8, 2011 19:31:32 GMT -5
Thank you cassie. I constantly vacillate between whose voice I like the most. I think in large part my affection (and often preference) for Freddie is layered with equal parts nostalgia, grief, and the power of having a long and storied history with his voice- his was the soundtrack of my life. It's sometimes hard to leave that behind me and embrace a new voice with the same depth of feeling as the sheer pathos involved in my listening to a Queen track is at times completely overwhelming. Fortunately I do not have to choose- I can adore them both equally. To read objective interpretations of what I am hearing is most useful in helping me understand what qualities I am responding to and why I feel as I do. You are a treasure! Yes, cassie... you are a SERIOUS TREASURE on Adamtopia,  and Buders, your post is soooooo ME!!! Queen was also the soundtrack to my life, as were a lot of the British bands that exploded during the 60s and became the "British Invasion." But here's what's interesting for me: Although I absolutely ADORED Freddie Mercury/Queen, and collected all their music that every came out, I *never* thought Freddie was a particularly good singer. Go figure. It was the music that enthralled me, not F's voice. Likewise, I was a MASSIVE Beatles fan--especially Paul McCartney, but I honestly never ever thought he had a very good voice, either. In fact, as a 13-yr-old, I remember watching Ed Sullivan, and Paul McCartney was singing Yesterday.... and I sort of cringed with embarrassment cause I thought his voice was so bad (well, my family was in the room, and I wanted them to love the Beatles as much as I did, but....) And to this day I have a huge love affair with Mick Jagger and the Stones, but nobody has ever praised Mick for his vocal ability... least of all me... LOL So, with Queen, it's always been about the epic bombastic over-the-top music, and Freddie personified that, which is why I adored him. And I always was kind of --->  when people talked about how stellar his voice was. I was always like, huh??? And it was always the Beatles and Stones music that thrilled me... not the quality of their voices. And now there's Adam.... And I'm not 100% sure I would want to hear Adam doing the entire Queen catalogue of music. I absolutely know he has a way better voice than Freddie ever had, but for me, it doesn't matter... It doesn't diminish my adoration for Freddie/Queen one iota. I didn't fall in love with Queen because of Freddie's voice, that's for sure. But now I'm falling in love with Freddie all over again, because Adam adds layers and new meaning to the old Queen songs. And cassie... everyone's been discussing this vibrato business from Sunday night, and I was all  ... I didn't actually notice any vibrato stuff. What I *did* think immediately was, "Why is Adam's voice so high? Sounds like he was sniffing helium or something..." :  It was pretty much just for the opening bit of The Show Must Go On... and then when he hit the chorus it was gone. But I was VERY CONFUSED at helium-sounding Adam. LOL |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2011 22:17:50 GMT -5
*pops out of lurkdom* Cassie, thanks for your extended comments on Adam's performance with Queen and specifically about his vibrato. I watched the livestream first and if I'm being completely honest, I thought for the first half of TSMGO he might have been fighting nerves or adrenaline. His vibrato sounded too fast and bordering on a wee bit out of control, to me. (dodges tomatoes and arrows) It wasn't like any way I'd heard him sing before. Of course, his tone was flawless but I kind of felt like there were a few very minute, fleeting moments when he was struggling with the song. Admittedly, I've never heard it before but I can tell it has a very high level of difficulty. And he was only fronting Queen in a tribute performance being broadcast to 1.2 BILLION PEOPLE, so it would've been totally normally to have a few butterflies. I would've shit my pants. I though he settled in nicely toward the last half and through the rest of the medley. In fact, the whole thing was A FUCKING AMAZING MINDBOGGLING PIECE OF VOCAL BADASSERY!! Then, it aired on TV and sounded totally different! I didn't hear the sheepi-ness in the vibrato at all. I got the full, emotional powerful drama that he was trying to infuse into it. Am I totally off the mark, or did anyone -or you- have the same inital experience? What is it about the streamed version that would have distorted the vibrato so much? Also, it's entirely possible that you are sitting here reading this thinking, wtf this idiot smoking?, and that I need to get a brain scan and hearing test stat. But I hear it on the yt vid that was uploaded from the stream that he tweeted and I've seen A LOT of people in the comments sections remarking on his vibrato, and not in a good way. I swear, it actually pains me to write a critique like this. And the only reason I'm even doing so is to see if what I'm hearing on the livestream is the product of a crap transmission. I'm ultra sensitive to vibrato, it is a make or break factor for me with a singer. I'm really hoping a great HQ audio rip from tv rip surfaces so I can hear it the way I think the audience in the arena got to hear it. OK, running away now, please don't hurt me lol :-[ hi musicislife...it pains me also to say this, but for my taste there was too much vibrato in this performance and I was really surprised because I've never had that reaction to Adam's vocals before, it seemed really different to me than the way he normally sings. I was actually very relieved to hear Cassie's opinion that the vibrato was intentional because I was worried that it was due to nerves or adrenaline. It's interesting how some people don't even notice the vibrato and for others of us it jumps right out. I know part of the reason is just that people have varied taste in musical styles, but I'm beginning to wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that we are all listening on different sound systems so it may actually sound quite different? |
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Post by nica575 on Nov 9, 2011 0:09:11 GMT -5
*pops out of lurkdom* Cassie, thanks for your extended comments on Adam's performance with Queen and specifically about his vibrato. I watched the livestream first and if I'm being completely honest, I thought for the first half of TSMGO he might have been fighting nerves or adrenaline. His vibrato sounded too fast and bordering on a wee bit out of control, to me. (dodges tomatoes and arrows) It wasn't like any way I'd heard him sing before. Of course, his tone was flawless but I kind of felt like there were a few very minute, fleeting moments when he was struggling with the song. Admittedly, I've never heard it before but I can tell it has a very high level of difficulty. And he was only fronting Queen in a tribute performance being broadcast to 1.2 BILLION PEOPLE, so it would've been totally normally to have a few butterflies. I would've shit my pants. I though he settled in nicely toward the last half and through the rest of the medley. In fact, the whole thing was A FUCKING AMAZING MINDBOGGLING PIECE OF VOCAL BADASSERY!! Then, it aired on TV and sounded totally different! I didn't hear the sheepi-ness in the vibrato at all. I got the full, emotional powerful drama that he was trying to infuse into it. Am I totally off the mark, or did anyone -or you- have the same inital experience? What is it about the streamed version that would have distorted the vibrato so much? Also, it's entirely possible that you are sitting here reading this thinking, wtf this idiot smoking?, and that I need to get a brain scan and hearing test stat. But I hear it on the yt vid that was uploaded from the stream that he tweeted and I've seen A LOT of people in the comments sections remarking on his vibrato, and not in a good way. I swear, it actually pains me to write a critique like this. And the only reason I'm even doing so is to see if what I'm hearing on the livestream is the product of a crap transmission. I'm ultra sensitive to vibrato, it is a make or break factor for me with a singer. I'm really hoping a great HQ audio rip from tv rip surfaces so I can hear it the way I think the audience in the arena got to hear it. OK, running away now, please don't hurt me lol :-[ hi musicislife...it pains me also to say this, but for my taste there was too much vibrato in this performance and I was really surprised because I've never had that reaction to Adam's vocals before, it seemed really different to me than the way he normally sings. I was actually very relieved to hear Cassie's opinion that the vibrato was intentional because I was worried that it was due to nerves or adrenaline. It's interesting how some people don't even notice the vibrato and for others of us it jumps right out. I know part of the reason is just that people have varied taste in musical styles, but I'm beginning to wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that we are all listening on different sound systems so it may actually sound quite different? very interesting...after reading everyone's comments on vibrato - I listened about 10 times concentrating specifically on that aspect and I am totally convinced that it is completely controlled intentional sound that Adam is after. It allows him to "capture more space" in the arena and in a couple of places it completely mimics the guitar sound - or may be Brian's guitar mimics Adam's voice... it gives his voice "roundness" and this deep velvet texture. Why would it indicate nervousness? The voice never breaks or trembles. To my ear it is perfect. (but as you probably know - i come from listening to classical singing only, so my point of reference is quite skewed I suppose). |
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Post by seoulmate on Nov 9, 2011 0:33:13 GMT -5
hi musicislife...it pains me also to say this, but for my taste there was too much vibrato in this performance and I was really surprised because I've never had that reaction to Adam's vocals before, it seemed really different to me than the way he normally sings. I was actually very relieved to hear Cassie's opinion that the vibrato was intentional because I was worried that it was due to nerves or adrenaline. It's interesting how some people don't even notice the vibrato and for others of us it jumps right out. I know part of the reason is just that people have varied taste in musical styles, but I'm beginning to wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that we are all listening on different sound systems so it may actually sound quite different? prism... this is so fascinating! Maybe our various sound systems are affecting our ears! For all you peeps who are hearing way too much vibrato, can you be a little more specific about *where* you're hearing it most strongly in the opening lines? Are you guys hearing it mostly on the last words of each line = for, score, on, for, crime, mime, etc. ------------------------------------ Empty spaces - what are we living for? Abandoned places - I guess we know the score.. On and on! Does anybody know what we are looking for? Another hero - another mindless crime. Behind the curtain, in the pantomime. Hold the line! Does anybody want to take it anymore? ------------------------------------------ Or are you hearing it everywhere, in every word/phrase? And where/when do you think the vibrato stops? I'm still trying to figure all this out. I'm wondering if the vibrato you're hearing is my "helium effect".  : |
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Post by seoulmate on Nov 9, 2011 1:18:42 GMT -5
nica... I was thinking peeps were only hearing the "too much vibrato" in the opening lines? But maybe not... Prism and musicislife have to come back and explain more fully! You said, "... in a couple of places it (Adam's voice) completely mimics the guitar sound," and I thought YES! I mentioned this a couple of days ago in one of my posts... I thought that was totally brilliant, and I wasn't hearing any vibrato at all during those powerhouse wails.
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