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On July 23, Adam Lambert kicked off the first of two nights at The Warfield in San Francisco. The fans, who started lining up early in the morning, were more than ready.
After the doors opened for the show, the venue filled up just in time for the first of two openers, Allison Iraheta, to take the stage. Iraheta was a contestant alongside Lambert on season eight of American Idol.
Iraheta’s voice sounded fantastic as she worked the stage during her five-song set, which included a mash-up of her singles, “Scars” and “Don’t Waste The Pretty” (complete with second act Orianthi on guitar), and a cover of “Heartbreaker.”
Iraheta’s stage presence has come full circle since the Idol tour last summer. She interacts with the crowd, seemingly feeding off their energy as she performs.
Orianthi took the stage next. The musician who is known more for playing guitar for Michael Jackson left much to be desired. Her guitar playing skills somewhat made up for her lack of vocal prowess. That being said, her set, which was lasted around 35-40 minutes, was way too long.
She played her radio hit, “According To You,” a couple songs into her set, which was the only time the crowd got into her being on stage, other than her appearance during Iraheta’s set. You could almost sense the relief in the room when her set finally ended.
Around 10 p.m., a remixed version of Lambert’s first single, “For Your Entertainment” began playing, and the singer took to the stage a handful of minutes later.
Lambert appeared at the top of the stage, decked out in a long, fringed jacket and top hat, kicking off the show with a medley of “Voodoo,” “Down The Rabbit Hole,” and a fan favorite from his days on Idol, “Ring Of Fire.”
From there Lambert shed his coat and hat to perform the Lady Gaga-penned track “Fever” complete with tongue-touching with bassist Tommy Joe Ratliff.
Lambert and his dancers seemingly had gotten the party started in the room as everyone was on their feet dancing, when the tone of the show suddenly shifted to high energy to rather mellow.
Lambert was at the platform at the top of the stage in a ‘Neo from The Matrix‘ type jacket to perform “Sleepwalker.” With blue glowsticks being waved in the air, Lambert performed an acoustic version of his popular hit, “Whataya Want From Me.” Lambert beamed as the crowd sang along with him.
A standout performance during the stripped down part of the set was “Soaked.” His vocal sounded clear and pure. It was absolute ear candy. His voice just absolutely shines on that song.
After a quick wardrobe change, Lambert let the crowd know that it was time to dance before kicking off the upbeat “Strut.” Lambert, his dancers, and fans danced all the way through the rest of his set, which just seemed to fly by.
After introducing his band and dancers, Lambert had something to tell the audience before launching into his latest single, “If I Had You.”
“This next song is what this whole show is about to me,” Lambert told the crowd. “What I’m trying to say is that no matter how much money, fame, success, fortune or sex that you have in your life, it actually really doesn’t mean shit, unless you’re connected with love.”
The energy in the room was electric. Lambert had turned his concert into one giant dance party.
For his encore, Lambert pulled a couple more songs out of his Idol handbook, “Mad World” and a very bluesy version of “Whole Lotta Love,” before making his final exit of the night.
The Glam Nation tour is a great show. The only tweak that should be made is that Allison Iraheta deserves more stage time. A five-song set is just not enough. Iraheta has the vocals, the amazing music, and the fanbase that makes her the better lead-in to Lambert’s set than Orianthi. Other than that, Lambert puts on one heck of a show. It is definitely a treat for all his fans who attend.
For more information on Adam Lambert and Glam Nation tour dates, check out his website.
Check out Lambert’s performance of “Whole Lotta Love” below.
