Caps courtesy veroniqueorcel TW
Queen without Freddie Mercury is
obviously not Queen. Brian May and Roger Taylor know that, and that’s
why, when they’ve decided to bring back to life the band on stage, they
made an addition : Queen + Paul Rodgers first, Queen + Adam Lambert now.
One thing is certain, whatever you think about Adam Lambert, winner of
American Idol en 2009, and his exuberance, he fits indisputably a lot
more to the Queen spirit, vocally and theatrically, than Paul Rodgers.
The “Zénith” is full tonight for the first gig of this Queen 3.0. The stage is big, with a catwalk that goes into the audience. From the start with “One Vision”, where the curtain with the big logo that hid the stage falls, we feel the band happy to be there, and Brian May over the moon to have find a collaborator who is able to make Freddie’s spirit alive again. With his George Michael look, short well trimmed beard and sparking RayBan, Adam Lambert reveals himself to be a “showman” without complexes. The harmony with the original members is absolute, on and off stage, and that’s why this tour is happening. Roger Taylor seems to struggle a little behind his drums. He is thankfully supported by his son Rufus Tiger Taylor, his drum kits next to his father’s, who emphasize opportunely his father’s strikes. Without idle time, the band digs into his huge repertoire and plays hits on hits, until “In the Lap of the Gods”, only song that is not as known as the others tonight. Brian May is in great shape, and the lightshow is nice. On “Killer Queen”, Adam Lambert, stretched out on a purple and gold couch, plays with excess on his homosexuality to give the song its whole theatrical potential. That’s it, the young man has definitely won over the audience, and it’s confirmed with the ovation he got when he talked about his love for Freddie Mercury and for the tribute he gave him.
The band tries to change the setlist a little every night, and we had the chance to hear “Who Wants to Live Forever” full of feelings (and not the dynamic “Don’t Stop Me Know” played on other dates). Brian May speaks French between the songs, giving us with a cover of “Plaisir d'Amour” then he starts to sing “Love of my Life” and Freddie appears on the screen. A thrill of delight ! And the whole audience to realize how the singer was one of a kind. After a few songs without Lambert (an acoustic “39” sang on the B-stage and a “A Kind of Magic” sang by a vocally tired Roger Taylor), intersperse with dispensable solos (bass, drums), the low part of this show is over with Adam’s return for an “Under Pressure” with Roger Taylor where Adam sings David Bowie’s parts, before a beautiful version of “Save Me”. Brian May gives himself a solo break, with a song from his own repertoire (“Last Horizon”) and a long solo supported by lasers, that flies him to the stars (that he loves dearly, being a doctor in astrophysics). The end of the setlist goes wild from a huge and powerful “I Want It All”, and they show some images of Metropolis during “Radio Gaga”. “The Show Must Go On” nearly brings tears to our eyes, before the legendary “Bohemiam Rhapsody”, sang in virtual duo with Freddie Mercury. Long standing ovation. Encore, with “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions” end beautifully a wonderful evening that lasted more than two hours.
The audience is won over and we can say two things : Queen without Freddie is not Queen, but Queen + Adam Lambert is what is the closest that we can get, far from the Paul Rodgers collaboration, real artistic antithesis and Brian and Roger must have realized it by now. The Queen is dead, long live the Queen.
The “Zénith” is full tonight for the first gig of this Queen 3.0. The stage is big, with a catwalk that goes into the audience. From the start with “One Vision”, where the curtain with the big logo that hid the stage falls, we feel the band happy to be there, and Brian May over the moon to have find a collaborator who is able to make Freddie’s spirit alive again. With his George Michael look, short well trimmed beard and sparking RayBan, Adam Lambert reveals himself to be a “showman” without complexes. The harmony with the original members is absolute, on and off stage, and that’s why this tour is happening. Roger Taylor seems to struggle a little behind his drums. He is thankfully supported by his son Rufus Tiger Taylor, his drum kits next to his father’s, who emphasize opportunely his father’s strikes. Without idle time, the band digs into his huge repertoire and plays hits on hits, until “In the Lap of the Gods”, only song that is not as known as the others tonight. Brian May is in great shape, and the lightshow is nice. On “Killer Queen”, Adam Lambert, stretched out on a purple and gold couch, plays with excess on his homosexuality to give the song its whole theatrical potential. That’s it, the young man has definitely won over the audience, and it’s confirmed with the ovation he got when he talked about his love for Freddie Mercury and for the tribute he gave him.
The band tries to change the setlist a little every night, and we had the chance to hear “Who Wants to Live Forever” full of feelings (and not the dynamic “Don’t Stop Me Know” played on other dates). Brian May speaks French between the songs, giving us with a cover of “Plaisir d'Amour” then he starts to sing “Love of my Life” and Freddie appears on the screen. A thrill of delight ! And the whole audience to realize how the singer was one of a kind. After a few songs without Lambert (an acoustic “39” sang on the B-stage and a “A Kind of Magic” sang by a vocally tired Roger Taylor), intersperse with dispensable solos (bass, drums), the low part of this show is over with Adam’s return for an “Under Pressure” with Roger Taylor where Adam sings David Bowie’s parts, before a beautiful version of “Save Me”. Brian May gives himself a solo break, with a song from his own repertoire (“Last Horizon”) and a long solo supported by lasers, that flies him to the stars (that he loves dearly, being a doctor in astrophysics). The end of the setlist goes wild from a huge and powerful “I Want It All”, and they show some images of Metropolis during “Radio Gaga”. “The Show Must Go On” nearly brings tears to our eyes, before the legendary “Bohemiam Rhapsody”, sang in virtual duo with Freddie Mercury. Long standing ovation. Encore, with “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions” end beautifully a wonderful evening that lasted more than two hours.
The audience is won over and we can say two things : Queen without Freddie is not Queen, but Queen + Adam Lambert is what is the closest that we can get, far from the Paul Rodgers collaboration, real artistic antithesis and Brian and Roger must have realized it by now. The Queen is dead, long live the Queen.
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