The Word On Lambert
Reviews give insight into Idol star’s Tempe show

Adam Lambert is attracting a mix of gays and housewives to his Glam Nation Tour, which features songs that made him famous on American Idol.

That’s according to the reviews of the tour that kicked off in June. The Season 8 Idol runner-up brings the show to the Marquee Theatre in Tempe on Aug. 1.

The 70-date tour has Lambert criss-crossing the country for shows in clubs, casinos, fairs and concert halls. Orianthi and Idol alum Allison Iraheta have performed as opening acts.

What critics are saying about Lambert’s shows earlier on the tour may give fans some idea of what to expect at the local concert.

Chris Richards, The Washington Post, on the June 28 show at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C.:

You can guess what it looked like. Rainbow lasers slicing through the air. Lots of leather, feathers, glitter and bling. A sequined microphone. Sequined everything, really.

But when Adam Lambert’s Glam Nation tour erupted … it wasn’t so much a feast for the eyeballs as a test on the eardrums. The singer proved that his voice may actually be too powerful for its own good. Unchecked by Simon, Paula, Kara, Randy or human dignity, Lambert would often venture into timbres somewhere between nails-on-chalkboard and sneaker-on-basketball-court.

As Lambert began skyrocketing into higher vocal frequencies, the audience did its best to return the gesture with shrieks of adulation. And what a loving audience it was. Young men in raccoon eye-shadow stood shoulder to shoulder with retired moms in Crocs — all parties wailing with joy.

Rick Massimo, The Providence, R.I., Journal, on the June 24 show at the MGM Grand Foxwood in Mashantucket, Conn.:

Working from a relatively barebones stage with a few video projections, Lambert had the mostly screaming MGM crowd won over from the beginning, prowling the stage while singing in his luminous tenor as his four-piece band bashed away at his trademark 21st-century glam.

The set was peppered with some of the covers that Lambert had done on Idol, such as a reptilian version of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” and the two encores, acoustic versions of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World” and Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love,” which allowed Lambert some vocal histrionics along with his percussionist’s dumbek breakdown.

At barely an hour, including band introductions and a sequence for the backup dancers to shine, Lambert would do well to put some new songs into the set as quickly as possible.

Michael Slezak, of EW.com on the June 22 show in New York City:

It’s a puzzling phenomenon: Openly gay male rocker drawing droves of adoring 30- to 50-something ladies who lazy marketing execs might expect to spend their Tuesday evenings sipping white-wine spritzers and listening to their local Lite-FM stations. But for those lucky enough to experience Lambert’s raucous 14-song set, the phenomenon makes perfect sense: If there’s any truth to the stereotype that gay men throw the best parties, Adam’s Glam Nation soirée is Exhibit A. And as a misfit toy himself — an artist whose Euro-Goth brand of vocal adrenaline and openness about his sexual orientation make his radio aspirations a protracted uphill battle — Adam’s fills his concert with a winking, conspiratorial giddiness that makes his fans feel like he’s singing directly to them.

VITAL STATISTICS
Adam Lambert
7 p.m. Aug. 1
Marquee Theatre
730 N. Mill Ave., Tempe
Tickets: $40
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