7.11.22 QAL Bologna #2, Italy, Unipol Arena

Translated from Croatian

Queen Adam Lambert - The Rhapsody Tour - spectacular rhapsody in Bologna

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QUEEN + ADAM LAMBERT – THE RHAPSODY TOUR - A SPECTACULAR RHAPSODY IN BOLOGNA




The original Queen and Adam Lambert "The Rhapsody" tour was started in 2019. Tickets were sold at the speed of light, fans were looking forward to the concert of a lifetime, and everything was going according to plan until the pandemic took its toll. Cancellations, uncertainty and epidemiological measures stopped rock events, but time seemed to fly and brought us to the year 2022, now also known as the year of return. Many fans couldn't wait to get the purchased tickets out of the drawers and rush to new victories. In Bologna even twice.

The first concert took place in the packed Unipol arena on Sunday, July 10, with over 11,000 fans eager for well-known, old rock beats.

More than 30 years have passed since the death of the never regretted Freddie Mercury and 25 years since the retirement of John Deacon, which fierce critics and/or die-hard fans like to use as an argument that this is not a real Queen performance, but just a slightly stronger version of the tribute band. However, the original team Brian May and Roger Taylor accompanied by Adam Lambert's strong vocals prove exactly the opposite, because this performance is not only a heartfelt ode to Freddie's musical legacy, but also a true display of Lambert's incredible performance talent, worthy of an authentic Queen spectacle.



The show started with thunderous beats of Now I'm here, followed by Hammer to fall. The audience greeted Killer queen and Don't stop me now with enthusiasm and rocked the arena after Lambert's greeting in Italian, accompanied by a performance of Nessun dorma, showing the wide range and power of his vocals. With the incredible sounds of well-known rock anthems that followed, such as Fat bottomed girls, Another one bites the dust and I want it all, Queen's team behind the stage showed what top production means. Visual effects and light accompaniment raised the level of the concert to a spectacle for the audience. Bicycle race was sung by Lambert on a motorcycle, while A kind of magic created not only magic and theater, but also fire and sparks from Brian May's guitar. In one of the later versions,

A particularly emotional moment after the first part of the concert was the silence on the almost darkened stage for the acoustic guitar solo of the song Love of my life by Brian May in memory of those we lost, including the unrepentant frontman Freddie Mercury. The last lines were sung by Freddie himself, appearing on the digital screen behind May in one of his old performances. May and Mercury bowed to each other in a scene that evokes nostalgia and joy. And while May continued with the performance of 39, his song for which, as he says, he took the audience to the future, Roger Taylor after him, in his solo performance Days of our lives, takes the audience back to the past.



May continued the concert with a heartfelt thank you to the audience, the best rock team in the world - the Queen team, all those who are in the background and are in charge of preparations, sound, production and the like. In addition to all of them, he introduced the other talented members of the band – Spike Edney on keyboards, Neil Faircolugh on bass guitar and Tyler Warren on drums.

The second part of the concert proved that Queen's energy is not waning, and for a full hour focused on sensational and powerful performances of old classics such as I want to break free, Who wants to live forever, The show must go on, Radio Ga Ga and of course, Bohemian Rhapsody, with which Freddie also appeared on the screens, ended the concert. Returning to the encore, he shook the entire arena with the performance of We will rock you and led to an epic finale with We are the champions.

This was a show that reminds us that it is not necessary to compare Lambert with Mercury, but it is enough that we are grateful that we still have the opportunity to experience live the vocal and musical splendor of eighties rock anthems after the departure of the greats. Adam Lambert's persona is undoubtedly reminiscent of the charisma of the late Mercury, who would certainly be proud of this performance, full of emotion and true, primal commitment to rock in all its Queen-specific drama.

Still reveling in this spectacular moment in Adam's career. I wonder whose idea it was to do it? Probably Adam's. Italy is the beating heart of opera, so it was a logical choice. Talk about shaking things up! And the continued cheering of the crowd throughout the song was so lovely. Adam can do the whole gamut, from Nessun Dorma right next to Fat Bottom Girls. Talk about range! LOL