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Adam Lambert – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8

May 19, 2009 by vongsundara 

Adam Lambert performs No Boundaries, American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 11 (May 19) Top 2: Contestant’s Favourite / Simon Fuller’s Choice / Winner’s Single

What a terrible way to end a season full of spectacular performances. Adam Lambert does his best with a below-average song. He falls off key a couple of times, or maybe not . . . who knows, maybe that’s how the song was written. I don’t know who Kara DioGuardi was writing this song for since it doesn’t fit Adam’s vocal quality or Kris’ vocal range.

Adam’s performance was of course great as usual, though a little understated, which was surprising. I love the jacket and the pants. It’s a great image to blaze into our minds until his album comes out.

Review Score: ★★☆☆☆ 

Adam Lambert performs A Change Is Gonna Come (Sam Cooke), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 11 (May 19) Top 2: Contestant’s Favourite / Simon Fuller’s Choice / Winner’s Single

Damn, Adam Lambert does it again. From the a cappella opening to the simple instrumentation throughout, allowing Adam’s sweet vocals to shine through beautifully. I actually like Adam in this style of music much more than when he does hard rock, but I’m sure hard rock will sell him a bit better in today’s market. The emotion that Adam conveys in this performance is absolutely amazing.

I always love seeing Adam stripped down and in a nice suit. Adam didn’t move around much, which was quite appropriate for the song.

Review Score: ★★★★★ 

Adam Lambert performs Mad World (Tears for Fears), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 11 (May 19) Top 2: Contestant’s Favourite / Simon Fuller’s Choice / Winner’s Single

Adam Lambert chose to perform Mad World as his favourite repeat performance of the year. Admittedly, it wasn’t as magical the second time around, but I commend Adam for changing up the vocal arrangement. Unfortunately, I liked the other arrangement better. This arrangement stays in the gentle zone throughout, whereas Adam’s original arrangement built to a crescendo.

Adam Lambert went way over the top with the smoke effects and trenchcoat, but I loved every minute of it. Rock ‘n roll is all about the show, and Adam is quite the performer.

Review Score: ★★★★☆ 

Adam Lambert performs Cryin’ (Aerosmith), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 10 (May 12) Top 3: Judge’s Choice / Contestant’s Choice

Adam Lambert singing Aerosmith: this is what we’ve all been waiting for. Adam of course comes through with flying colours, showing that he can match vocal range with anyone in the history of rock ‘n roll. I could have done without the horrible backing vocals, though. Adam doesn’t really need any vocal backing.

Adam Lambert changed into an all-black outfit, and I really liked how it was a mix of performance wear without being too over-the-top. Adam’s performance was less dramatic for this song, which was nice to see.

Adam Lambert performs One (U2), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 10 (May 12) Top 3: Judge’s Choice / Contestant’s Choice

Another week, another Adam Lambert stunner. I love how Adam came out really gentle throughout the first half of the song and then turned it up to finish. Adam strayed quite a ways from the original melody at times, but I didn’t mind too much.

I’m not too sure about Adam’s jean jacket, but I guess he was trying to channel Bono, whose style isn’t exactly my cup of tea.

Review Score: ★★★★★ 

Adam Lambert performs Whole Lotta Love (Led Zeppelin), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 9 (May 5) Top 4: Rock Music with mentor Slash

Adam Lambert did a great job with a very difficult Led Zepplin classic. Adam’s upper range gets quite the workout in this song. It’s nice to hear Adam singing rock and blowing it out of the water, as we all expected him to. I’m glad he went back to his rock scream. The scream would have been boring if he overused it this season, but it is his signature, and he did a good job of showing the other parts of his voice the last few weeks.

Adam Lambert’s hair and wardrobe are pure classic rock this week. I love the jacket and the extra polished hair. Adam’s performance was great as usual. He looks so damn polished on stage it’s amazing.

Review Score: ★★★★☆ 

Adam Lambert performs Feeling Good, American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 8 (April 28) Top 5: Rat Pack Standards with mentor Jamie Foxx

Adam Lambert is really running away with this competition. Adam’s performance of Feeling Good may just be my favourite of the entire year from him. Generally, Adam has been switching back and forth between hardcore rock songs and soft, heartfelt falsetto songs. Feeling Good gave Adam a chance to mix in a bit of both, and I absolutely loved it!

I’m not too sure about Adam’s white tuxedo, but at this point, it doesn’t seem to matter. Adam Lambert’s entrance from the top of the stairs was definitely theatrical but also very fun. There’s not much else I can say except that this was another week and yet another breathtaking performance from Adam.

Review Score: ★★★★★ 

Adam Lambert performs If I Can’t Have You (Yvonne Elliman), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 7 (April 21) Top 7: Disco

Adam Lambert went back to his soft and gentle ways, which is how I like him best. Don’t get me wrong, I also love Adam revving it up, but he really goes to another level when he strips down his vocals. I never heard of this song before, but Adam has a way of making me love songs on the first listen, which is not a talent many recording artists today have.

Adam Lambert subtly changed his style once again, this week going with a tuxedo on disco night of all nights. Adam looked very nice done up; it was very nice to see.

Review Score: ★★★★☆ 

Adam Lambert performs Born To Be Wild (Steppenwolf) from Easy Rider, American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 6 (April 14) Top 7: Idol At The Movies (Quentin Tarantino, mentor)

Adam Lambert came back this week with a classic rock anthem, Born To Be Wild. I loved Adam’s energy on the song. He definitely turned up the electricity this week, adding a lot of screaming flourishes to the song. At the end, the song definitely got a little crazy, but I don’t mind too much since Adam has shown restraint in his voice in the past.

Overall, it was a fun performance, and Adam Lambert used the stage well. The black outfit was really cute too. Great job!

Review Score: ★★★★☆ 

Adam Lambert performs Mad World (Tears For Fears), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 5 (April 7) Top 8: Year They Were Born

I love the blue lighting effects. The atmosphere was extremely cool, like a true performance from a professional artist. Adam Lambert is doing a great job at switching up his styles from week to week. This week’s performance of Mad World brings back the sensitive Adam with the tender vocals.

Vocally, this was Adam Lambert’s most emotional performance of the season. I connected to it in so many ways. Every week, Adam is turning up the dial, and I don’t think anyone can catch him at this point. Unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable.

Review Score: ★★★★★ 

Adam Lambert performs Play That Funky Music (Wild Cherry), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 4 (March 31) Top 9: Popular iTunes Downloads

I’m not so sure about this performance. I absolutely love Adam Lambert, and I don’t think there’s anything at this point that can stop him from winning the entire season, but Adam’s performance of Play That Funky Music didn’t really impress me too much. It just did not seem current at all, like a weird throwback performance that was way over the top.

Adam Lambert’s vocals were fantastic as usual, but I just did not feel the overall vibe of this performance. Still, though, Adam’s worst performance of the year (which this was) is still probably better than the best performance from most of the finalists.

Review Score: ★★★☆☆ 

Adam Lambert performs The Tracks of My Tears (The Miracles), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 3 (March 25) Top 10: Motown (Smokey Robinson, mentor)

Absolutely the best performance of the season. Adam Lambert has completely stolen the show with his tender vocals. I think this performance was really important for Adam as he’s been belting out the high notes and using his rocker scream to great effect the past few weeks. It’s nice to see that Adam is a true artist and can deliver amazingly tender vocals.

Adam Lambert’s slicked back hair and understated suit worked really well. I’m still in shock over how good this performance was. Brilliant. Awesome.

Review Score: ★★★★★ 

Adam Lambert performs Ring of Fire (Johnny Cash), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 2 (March 17) Top 11: Grand Ole Opry (Randy Travis, mentor)

Wow, what a bold choice. A middle-eastern inspired version of Ring of Fire. The high notes were fantastic as usual. The performance was a little bit over the top.

The performance was most definitely memorable, and I’ll give Adam some extra points for that alone. It didn’t blow me away compared to his previous performances, but he threw me for a loop which can be a good thing sometimes.

I’m going to rate Adam a four out of five, but I don’t think I’ll really be able to rate his performance until a few weeks once I’ve understood what exactly happened.

Review Score: ★★★★☆ 

Adam Lambert performs Black or White (Michael Jackson), American Idol 2009 Season 8, Week 1 (March 10) Top 13: Michael Jackson

Adam Lambert is the only contestant who can match Michael Jackson’s vocal range, so I was looking forward to hear Adam’s take on a Michael Jackson song. Adam Lambert chose “Black and White,” a huge hit for Michael Jackson that I absolutely did not like when it was originally released. Adam adds a great rock edge to the song and takes some amazing liberties with the vocal arrangement. Once again, Adam has the best vocals of the night. This will probably be the case for the rest of the season.

Adam Lambert has a distinctive look. I don’t think there was much that the stylists had to do at all. Adam already looks like a star. Tonight’s blue leather top and jeans look great, though I’m not too sure about the excessive neck pieces.

Review Score: ★★★★☆ 

Adam Lambert performs (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction (The Rolling Stones), American Idol 2009 Season 8, (February 26) Top 36 Group 2: Billboard Top 100 Hits

Adam Lambert adds a unique spin to “Satisfaction.” Adam’s upper register is ridiculously strong, as in stronger than any current male rock vocalist in the industry right now. Adam did show a weakness in his low register, though. Mick Jagger can go really low, and Adam was sharp on almost the entire first verse. Fortunately, though, Adam’s high notes and riffing aside from the opening verse are so ridiculously fantastic that I can almost ignore the low notes. I’ll say it again, Adam Lambert’s high register is better than any current recording artist. Get this guy a contract now.

Adam’s look is an interesting mix of rock, goth and emo. He definitely has a signature look that will carry his far. His stage performance was definitely a little bit cheesy, but he had so much energy that I can forgive that too.

As you can see, I’m forgiving a lot this week for Adam Lambert. I think over the course of this competition, these points will be less forgivable, though, for both me and the voting public. If Adam Lambert wants to win, he’ll have to evolve a little bit into a true lead singer and not a theatrical singer. I say Adam is the safest bet to win it all at this point.

Review Score: ★★★★☆ 

Adam Lambert performs Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen), American Idol 2009 Season 8, San Francisco Auditions

Wow, my favourite audition by far. Adam Lambert has the look and the voice. Bohemian Rhapsody is an incredibly difficult song to sing because it requires a really strong upper register. Adam hits the high notes with almost no effort whatsoever. Adam is the frontrunner for me right now. I’d be shocked if he didn’t win the whole competition.

Review Score: ★★★★★ 

Related Posts

1. Jorge Nunez – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8
2. Jasmine Murray – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8
3. Alexis Grace – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8
4. Michael Sarver – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8
5. Adam Lambert stuns Randy Travis with Ring of Fire Egyptian Remix, American Idol 8 Top 11
6. Adam Lambert vs. MJ’s Black or White, American Idol 8 Top 13, Michael Jackson
7. Matt Giraud – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8
8. Tatiana del Toro – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8
9. Allison Iraheta – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8
10. Lil Rounds – Performance Profile, American Idol 2009 Season 8

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