On Holiday From Queen, Adam Lambert
Adam Lambert is outstanding. He keeps showing us his enormous talent by performing Queen. Ten years have passed since Adam Lambert received that one-of-a-kind cheer from Simon Cowell.
By Dimitris (Bari) Polyzois
At El Rey Theatre, Lambert got what amounted to a long, standing ovation. He packed the 700-capacity venue to bursting point, in one of four shows he played this month to promote his new EP "Velvet: Side A".
Lambert hasn't toured as a solo artist since 2016 and might not do so again anytime soon. His duties with the marvellous Queen + Adam Lambert Rhapsody tour pick back up next month. There's no doubt the screams were just as loud. These days, the odds of hearing him ask "Whataya Want From Me" instead of "Who Wants to Live Forever" are now enormous.
Lambert hasn't toured as a solo artist since 2016 and might not do so again anytime soon
The size of the venue apparently makes no difference to Adam Lambert. The artist delivered an outstanding show to a crowd of under 1000 the same way he would to an audience as the frontman of Queen. The El Rey curtain opened to reveal a blinding, shimmering waterfall backdrop and a dazzling band featuring six ladies. Among them was Lambert's rival-turned-friend, Allison Iraheta.
He first appeared with his back to the crowd. He wore a shimmering green suit, a matching vest (no shirt, of course), a silver corsage and plenty of blingy jewellery visible even from the back of the room. He looked like a lavishly decorated Christmas tree. And he sounded like a dream. It's no surprise to the faithful who keep wondering why he still isn't one of pop's biggest superstars.
It's no surprise to the faithful who keep wondering, and rightly so, why he still isn't one of pop's biggest superstars.
His massive voice and sensual body moves are basic hallmarks of superstars. What followed was an avalanche of screams from the crowd. That came from his new EP "Velvet: Side A", as did his latest single, "Overglow". Overall, a soft-rock mix that blanketed the audience like a comforter. And on "Closer to You", Adam turned himself inside out, leaving it all on the stage.
Next, Adam Lambert delivered a surreal performance of the Queen track, "Another One Bites the Dust". He later carried that same fire into the co-written song that was the centerpiece of his debut album, the chart-topping hit "Whataya Want From Me".
The other two songs Lambert played from his first album were "For Your Entertainment" (which sounds much closer to Stevie Wonder's "Living for the City") and "If I Had You". Both were reworked into versions far funkier and more reggae-based than their original pop forms.
Lambert's setlist, which balanced the high-energy numbers. Ended on a less upbeat note, but still impressive with his rendition of Charles Brown's "Brown Come Home for Christmas".
The end of the concert left no one feeling let down as they walked out of El Rey. People posed in front of the venue's posters for keepsake selfies. Having just watched their hero absolutely slay it up close, the Glamberts may have felt like they'd already gone home for the holidays.
