2019-08-10 Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN, USA

#201

Crazy what a blockbuster movie can do for concert ticket sales.

Of course, Queen has been doing big business with “American Idol” vet Adam Lambert on vocals since 2012. But Saturday’s Queen + Adam Lambert concert stop at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center crackled with newfound energy and joy, and topped their impressive show in the same venue two years ago. More people showed up, too, with a crowd of about 16,000 filling every seat in the hockey arena, including several VIP skyboxes built into the stage. (While I’m sure it was a cool way to experience the show, those fans were essentially paying a whole lot extra for obstructed view seats.)

The breathtaking success of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” which grossed a record-breaking $903 million worldwide, clearly attracted some new, younger fans to Saturday’s concert, including a surprising number of under-10 kids clearly happy to be there (as opposed to begrudgingly dragged there by overeager parents). And, really, that youth appeal isn’t too surprising, given that Queen tended to write and record songs with massive, obvious hooks that transcended language and earned fans around the world. A few songs even jumped over into sports and graduated to jock jam status.

To be clear, Lambert is no Freddie Mercury and he’s the first to tell you. “I’m a huge fan, too,” he said early in the show. “I’m up here tonight only to celebrate the irreplaceable, one and only Freddie Mercury.” But Lambert is terrific at offering up his own version of the electric, unforgettable energy the late Mercury brought to the stage. And his soaring vocals don’t fully imitate Mercury’s, but rather suggest them, in the best possible way.

Nearly all of the up-for-it crowd was seated by 8 p.m. and cheered each ambient guitar noise and fog machine blast that came from the enormous stage, which was ringed by a massive lighted crown inspired by Queen’s logo. Fifteen minutes later, that crown ascended to the rafters as the band tore into “Now I’m Here,” “Seven Seas of Rhye” and “Keep Yourself Alive.”

Lambert took every opportunity he could to strike a campy rock pose and indulged in several costume changes, each a tornado of ruffles and leather and spikes. He’s also established a clear chemistry with guitarist Brian May, who has always come across as a guy eager to play for any crowd. (So much so that his pre-Lambert vocalist was the utterly ill-advised Paul Rodgers.) Drummer Roger Taylor delivered as well, even if he forced us to endure “I’m in Love with My Car.”

From there, the trio — augmented by three additional touring musicians — nailed all the big, bombastic smashes, from “Killer Queen” to “Somebody to Love” to “Another One Bites the Dust” to “Fat Bottomed Girls.” But they also brought some intimacy to the arena when May sat at the edge of the runway that extended into the crowd and gently crooned “Love of My Life” backed only by his acoustic guitar and thousands of impromptu backup singers. Both “’39” and “Doing All Right” got the stripped-down treatment with the core trio all in place for a rollicking “Crazy Little Thing Called Love.”

The main set’s closer “Bohemian Rhapsody” and the encore of “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions” left Queen fans, both old and new, beaming.

#202

tgxw32a

Queen & Adam Lambert - Under Pressure
Xcel Energy Center - St. Paul 08/10/19

https://youtu.be/ciKifquZCE8

Queen & Adam Lambert - I Want To Break Free
Xcel Energy Center - St. Paul 08/10/19

https://youtu.be/BVsfQ9dvXVU

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Snippets off:
WATC - BR - FBG - LOML

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IWIA

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Adam and Brian's guitar wailing..

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