finally the full review - QUEEN (with ADAM LAMBERT) 18 Jan 2015 - London O2 (A bit of self-indulgence during Exploring England)

akhirnya aku abiskan pasal blog post ni... cerita pasal rock tak basi la kan? rock maintain.

**** The Long ********* somewhere in the middle of this post in Yellow is where it continues from last time.

I dont think I ever talk cock about how I feel and what I think about Queen,
so a bit of my opinion in the Malay language, and then I do my review and opinion of this show in English.
But first a photo of the Queen (with Adam Lambert) merchandise at London O2 in January.

I bought this..

ok lets talk cock first in Malay....

Bicara hati sikit pasal Queen rasanya aku tak pernah borak pasal ni band.

- album pertama aku dengar secara menyeluruh dari kumpulan Queen masa aku budak2 dulu ialah kaset “The Works”. Aku kagum ngan semua lagu. I dont want my freeeeeeeeeeedommmmmm...Theres no reaasssonn for liiiivinnggggg... with a broken heart.
Freddie Mercury nyanyi intro lagu ni macam lagu Opera. Sangat terpengaruh la kan dengar kaset ni semua lagu. 

- Antara filem movie yang aku paling suka dalam hidup aku ialah filem “Highlander”. Yang pertama tu. Lagu2 dari filem ni semua Queen punya lagu yang kebanyakkan dari album “A Kind Of Magic”. Korang tahu adegan yang hero dah kena warning ngan Sean Connery kan? “Jangan jatuh cinta pasal nanti kau akan merana pasal kau Immortal!!”, 
Tapi.. Hero bongok, tetap gatal merenyam gi jatuh cinta ngan awek ni beratus2 tahun dahulu tu kat satu PASAR TANI kat Scotland, then hero tak boleh mati sampai bila2 dia muda, then bini dia makin tua, then ada part tunjuk bini dia pergi ambik air kat sungei muda, then balik then jadi tua krepot, Then hero maintain je. 
Giler touching part tu, Everytime aku tengok Highlander masa zaman budak2 dulu tu, part ni aku mesti sedih sangat masa bini dia dah tua sangat then bini dia mati, abis tu si hero awet muda, especially background muzik lagu "Who Wants To Live Forever". Aku rasa sekarang aku kalau tengok adegan tu, aku mesti sedih cam dulu jugak. 
Ada satu part filem ni, kat satu club, then hero borak ngan awek baru dia kat zaman modern,(ye la, Hero kan IMMORTAL, kalau nak bunuh hero, kena pancung kepala dia) then background lagu “One Year Of Love”. Wooo gerek giler lagu tu then aku terus suka la ni dua love songs Queen. "One Year Of Love", betul sangat lagu ni, aku setuju sangat lirik lagu ni.. 

pasal hidup kita ni laju, besok lusa, dah mati. So hargai la hidup ini dan semua sekeliling kita. Bila dah takde...dah terlambat.. dan kalau kita ada benih pokok kat tangan kita ni, dan nak kiamat kejap lagi, tetap kita tanam...
Apa lagi saja suka2 nak tumpahkan darah sesiapa.

Apa pun, Queen nye lagu2 slow, lagu2 cinta, semua sedap2...

Crowd starting to pack up the o2...

- Album paling kesukaan feberet aku dalam katalog Queen ialah “Innuendo”. Best giler babi la pada aku ni album. Very the pop rock yang diselang-selingi kan banyak surprises muzik nye.

- Feberet LIVE album Queen atau sapa2 anggota persorangan Queen untuk aku ialah Brian May punye band "Live At Brixton". 
Untuk posisi Drummer, si Brian May pakai mendiang Cozy Powell, dan Brian May bawak lagu Rainbow satu "Since You've Been Gone". Dia la Graham Bonnet dan dia la Ritchie Blackmore huhuhu...

Dan aku lagi suka Brian May nyanyi lagu Too Much Love Will Kill You secara live dari album ni dari versi studio Freddie Mercury. Macam lemau sikit la version Freddie kat album Queen Made In Heaven tu. Paham2 je la kot tu jam...
"I used to bring you sunshine...now all I ever do is bring you down..." sob sob sob... 
Antara lagu cinta paling sedap dalam sejarah...Sangat sangat mencengkam jiwa aku versi Brian May nye nyanyi. 
Mungkin lagu Too Much Love Will Kill You ialah lagu ANTI - MAKSIAT paling terbaik dalam sejarah, tapi kena read between the lines kot hahaha.

- Kreografi tepukan tangan dilakukan peminat ramai2 ikut rentak lagu pada aku yang aku paling suka ialah of course lagu Bon Jovi “Raised Your Hands” dan of course “Radio GA GA”. Best giler audience masa Radio Ga Ga. Sebab tu aku kejong dapat seat duduk. Aku dari kecik berangan nak gi tengok Queen main dan aku mesti enjoy lagu ni ngan style tepok tangan gitu. Tapi ni duduk terus jam la, tengok je la orang lain buat haha. Takpe, yang Bon Jovi nye aku dapat buat, tengok dorang main live berdiri, dan dorang bawak lagu Raise Your Hands. LOL!! Aku apa lagi tangan gerak2 la hahah, ...Happening.



Jadi aku bukan peminat yang meraikan pasal Queen kerana muzik yang dibawa mereka pada zaman 70an dorang pasal based on semua contoh dan pandangan di atas, aku mula2 minat dorang dan discover muzik yang zaman mid mula nak pertengahan 80an/90an (zaman pop-rock dorang) sampai album terakhir sebelum aku explore earlier music style dorang.
Lepas tu semua, baru aku experiment dengar muzik 70an dorang dengan lebih menyeluruh. Memang best 70an dorang, tapi aku poseur, aku minat Queen 80an/90an dulu baru aku discover what the fuck is muzik Queen 70an is all about.

The crowd at full strength.... and Queen plays two nights here in o2.


- Dan Queen PENIPU BESAR. Masa zaman album Miracle. Brian May cakap kat radio Singapore, Queen nanti barharap nak main kat Singapore tu jam dia tengah borak pasal pelancaran album Miracle. 

Padahal... Dia mesti dah tahu apa Freddie Mercury tengah hidap HIV/Aids. Dan tak mungkin terjadi. KNN betul.

- Last sekali aku nak cakap pasal John Deacon, aku pun dari dulu macam rasa apa sey jadi, tapi aku rasa aku boleh confirm la yang segala apa benda Brian May dan Roger Taylor nak buat, dorang mesti nak kena mintak izin dan dapat kata sepakat dari John Deacon. Dan John Deacon dah bersara sepenuhnya dan dia dah hilang dari radar muzik industry. Tapi tentu apa yang Queen dan Adam Lambert nye keuntungan tentu John Deacon dan keluarga Freddie Mercury dapat bahagian dorang la kan. Apa pun, lagu2 tulisan John Deacon semua masih dalam setlist, walau tentu aku lagi seronok kalau Another Bites The Dust tu John Deacon main, dan setiap kali gambar atau video John Deacon keluar kat big screen, tepukan gemuruh dan sorakan kuat diberikan audience full house ni.
Apa perasaan hiba sedih yang mereka sebagai kumpulan Queen lalui melalui saat2 dari Freddie mula2 sakit sampai rakaman video2 klip album Innuendo, dan seterusnya rakaman suara Freddie menyanyi yang muncul Made In Heaven nye lagu2 dan sampai kematiannya memang aku rasa sangat penuh dugaan. Dan paling last sekali dia dirakam video, ialah words "I still love you" lagu These Are The Days Of Our Lives" tu..

NOW THE REVIEW OF THE SHOW...

So the thing with Queen is that, no matter what people talk about Queen, the last time Queen plays live with Freddie Mercury with a full show and an all Queen set is in 1986. So all the discussions in the internet about the good and bad of Adam Lambert fronting Queen is difficult to digest and understand.
I got the opportunity to catch Queen in London o2. I knew then its going to be a two nights affair, and I was shocked when I realised a month before the shows that all the standing tickets are sold-out and there are limited seats available. And we are talking about London o2 which is so amazingly huge dome.
So the setlist...
Now, its a spectacular mind blowing greatest hits setlist, and they can even drop Hammer To Fall & Show Must Go On, two songs that I thought would definitely be played. Anyway the current setlist in Europe seems A Kind Of Magic is now played, and seems for every night Show Must Go On is played, These Are The Days are not. I think Show Must Go On near the end of the set every night is a very very difficult song for Adam Lambert live. But the best can do it and I think he is very good.

1. ONE VISION
2. STONE COLD CRAZY - Metallica!!!! LOL!!!!
3. ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST - boogie!
4. FAT BOTTOMED GIRLS - or as Adam Lambert instigates the crowd -
Come On You BIG ASSED BITCHES!!!
5. IN THE LAPS OF THE GODS... REVISITED
6. SEVEN SEAS OF RHYES
7. KILLER QUEEN - Adam Lambert frolicking on a sofa. LOL!! Did I got the pink colour right? LOL!!
.
.
.
*********************************
.
CONTINUATION...

I guess with Adam Lambert they can do this Killer Queen song.

8. I WANT TO BREAK FREE - Adam Lambert took a swig of champagne and mouth-sprays it to the fans near the barriers and says "excuse me Sir, did I get you wet? Its Rock N Roll, thats my job." Then he continues on about Freddie Mercury and on and on...  then I got it on video during this part and also the start of the beautiful Dont Stop Me Now....



9. DON'T STOP ME NOW - Love the intro so much.....
10. SOMEBODY TO LOVE -
For the intro , Adam Lambert stage banter with the crowd is hilarious -
"Alright London I got a question for you.
Whose in Love?"
"Not bad, thats only like FIVE of you".
"Whose in Love with themselves?"
"Thats good, it starts there right? right?"
"Whose horny?"
"Me too. Can somebody find me somebody to love?"
11. LOVE OF MY LIFE - Now the moment when Brian May takes over lead vocals. His speech before the song is poignant. Sorry I keep trying to zoom in with my handphone but it got so blurry LOL!! and I am trying to bootleg the audio at the same time. I got to get the necklace dual microphones like how some tapers do it.
This sad sad song is always amazing. Always especially on live versions when everyone joins in and basically Brian May stops singing.
I got this part on video, the video of Brian May introducing Love Of My Life, the audience sings it, then Brian May introduce the next song '39 about Space...Exploration.. and he introduced the musicians who are setting up and then joining him on the small stage.



12 - '39 - Like the video above, he talked about Albert Einstein. A superb live version this song.
13 - THESE ARE THE DAYS OF OUR LIVES - Roger Taylor sings this song live. I was lucky, becuase between a setlist of TATDOUL and Show Must Go On on the other shows, I would pick this song. I really love this song. Everything about this song...
Got the video of the moment starting Brian May's solo part onwards...
Oh.. Roger Taylor was roaming around for this beautiful song, and his son plays the drums for this one...



14. BASS SOLO by NEIL FAIRCLOUGH - wonderful solos. 
Anyway their keyboards was played by Spike Edney. I think he supports Queen for a long time.
15. DRUM BATTLE - This are the drum solos between Roger Taylor on a temporary drum set in the ego-ramp in the audience and his son Rufus, who is using Roger Taylor's main drum kit on main stage.

NOT SIDE BY SIDE, NOT ON SAME STAGE.. BUT ONE WAY UPFRONT AND NOT FACING ONE ANOTHER

16. UNDER PRESSURE - Adam Lambert joins back on stage and he nails the song perfectly.
17. SAVE ME - By this song, I am so impressed with this American Idol - Adam Lambert performance in doing the singing for Queen, doing his best to make Queen songs work. He is not here trying to be Freddie. Its really a celebration.
If Queen had stopped their show here I would have been very happy because its been amazing, but theres a lot more.
18. WHO WANTS TO LIVE FOREVER - Like I say one of my favourite songs. I remember hearing SEAL sang it. I don't think many singers can really sing this song. Again I enjoyed Adam Lambert on this song.
Got a bit of it on video here..


19. LAST HORIZON - Brian May Instrumental
20. BRIAN MAY SOLOS.
Brian May took centrestage again for his solos and his instrumental "Last Horizon" from his solo album which he slows down and did alone.
21. TIE YOUR MOTHER DOWN - Lots of older favourites played tonight..
22. I WANT IT ALL - The Freedom Song.
I got the Brian May's Solo part on video here...


23. RADIO GA GA. Everything is perfection with this song. The Radio part and the GA GA part LOL!!. Long Live The Radio.
Like I said, me being in the seats, makes me unfortunately cannot do the hand-synchronised clapping parts during the chorus LOL!. But I got the video a bit, I posted it somewhere above in this blog post.

24. CRAZY LITTLE THING CALLED LOVE - Saw Extreme at La Bataclan Paris, and they played this song. An amazing experience watching the French love their Extrme, and meanwhile Extreme love their Queen songs..
25. BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY - Adam Lambert is so alright in my opinion fronting Queen. Anyway as usual the middle choral parts is as usual using the "original studio version".
As far as I know, in all history of Queen since the 70s, that is how this song is always played live, with the choral parts using the studio version and the band leaves the stage a while.
Sheer Heart Enjoyment..

Encore -
26. WE WILL ROCK YOU - of course....
27. WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS - indeed.......
28. GOD SAVE THE QUEEN - At last I got to experience this part, and its in England, where its really the anthem. So the fans were singing along. I REALLY LOVE IT.
Here's the video of the God Save The Queen, my handphone battery was running low, but I make sure I have enough to record this part LOL!!!

So thats it...

I got the whole show on audio bootleg, but its not that good LOL but as usual it sound delicious to my ears...!!. Been listening back to it while doing this blog and I kind of think this is one really bloody good show. It has been amazing experience and I wonder how it must be like when the Four Queens played together...

Myself, I discovered Queen albums by listening to The Works first..
so using The Works as a benchmark...
the songs distribution for the night is roughly something like this.

Pre The Works - 16 songs
The Works & after - 6 songs.

plus a Brian May solo song, and all the solos by the musicians...



p.s - Aku setuju ngan Portdy.
Queen ngan Paul Rodgers aku ada kureng sikit dan sememangnye dengan Paul Rodgers pun dorang campur lagu2 Free ngan Bad Company.
Adam Lambert memang mula2 aku pun suspens jugak tapi nampak dia memang alrite la kena ngan Queen.