Anyone expecting a raunch ‘n’ roll concert from “American Idol” star Adam Lambert at the Nokia Theatre last night was sorely disappointed.
The gay guy-doll who shocked America with his boy-on-boy kiss and simulated oral sex at the American Music Awards last November played it safe with an entertaining, tame-by-comparison debut as a headliner in New York.
OK, he did lick his bassist’s face, but this is New York.
In leather, sparkle makeup and his signature half-shaved-head hairdo, the singer wowed with his multi-octave pipes, confident stage presence — more slither than swagger — and old-fashioned, campy showmanship.
The production attempted to visually create a cartoon version of Storyville, the red-light district in New Orleans. Decadence, voodoo and all that jazz were built into Lambert’s production in the dance routines, lighting and songs like “Fever.”
The start of the show was good and fairly tight, but it was during “Fever” that it took off. Lambert wailed through the piece, waggling his index finger to accentuate the lyrics.
Stylistically, Lambert was eclectic.
Early in the concert, he performed a weird, yet interesting rendition of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire,” set to a Middle Eastern arrangement.
Better were the many glam-pop tunes that earned him his “‘Glambert” nickname. The best were the straight-up rockers in the encore, which included a fast-tempo cover of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World” and a molasses-slow version of Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love.”
The big complaint about this show was its mere, 65-minute running time. It called into question Lambert’s ability to stay in good voice for a full set; he should have put those doubts to rest by adding five or six tunes.