This '80s hoodlum Adam is from the roots of his hair-to-toe in black, wearing a vest, a leather gilet, fingerless leather gloves, loose combats and wedge boots. With a big fluffy tail that adds emphasis to every arse wiggle. Which happens quite a lot. I did wonder at the beginning whether he went all Zodiac on us and decided to put on a corset, leaving the top bare. Either way, a considerable amount of skin on show in Adam terms. This look reminds me of The Warriors, given the Thriller shoulderpad treatment and is definitely a big step away from glam.
The set commences with FYE and there seems to be a bit of a false start where Adam misses his cue, joining in a little late. It's not the most precise in terms of pitch but he puts on a great show, hips on fire. It's followed by DTRH which I find a little odd without the trippy aspect and elaborate costumes. I notice that Monte looks like he might be trying for a ZZ Top in the facial hair stakes.
Strut is given a short introduction "No matter what those fuckers say about you, you just gotta keep struttin'!". A little nervous after the last time it was performed, I'm relieved that this one is lively, sassy and full of attitude. TCB makes an entrance in the set and sounds like a fast one with plenty of hilarious dancing throughout. He playfully sits on the edge of the stage at one point, yanking his legs up and down to the music.
"And then I dusted it up with my tail. (Giggle)" Don't you just love Adam for never taking himself too seriously? In a classic arse-wiggling moment, he mocks himself and his fashion choices as he jokes about his tail and how all the blogs will be writing that he wore a duster, which isn't in fashion. This leads up to Aftermath, the arrangement of which is very similar to the one performed on AI with a plucky staccato intro from Monte. It has a lovely crescendo and a sweet, lingering final note. Sleepwalker is next up and is quite a visual spectacle with the lighting and background stars. I guess it's a little reminiscent of the old Broken Open background visuals but not as soft. Cam is noticeably missing on keys but nonetheless, this is the best Sleepwalker for vocals so far. THE BEST. After Monte's solo, get ready for goosebumps galore. That voice, those runs, INFUCKINGCREDIBLE.
The absence of keys is also quite noticeable during IIHY, which sees Adam doing more freestyling on the mic than ever before. He gets what appears to be a jock strap thrown onto the stage as he prepares for Music Again. There's a minor lyric fail and I think he cheats a little in the beginning by getting the audience sing the falsetto parts. We get some ad lib about about a moth/fairy/twink thing before the band intro. When we get to "Tommy Ratcliffe", he talks about fan fic, "Shame on you! That's dirty! That fan fiction is highly inappropriate! I'm offended!" while making sure we know it's mock outrage. I realise we haven't heard MW in ages and I like that this version is a mellower, slower version.
DRUM ROLL...
NEW SONG!!! As soon as Adam tells us he's got a little treat from the next album, everyone loses their collective shit. Everyone in the crowd heard via the stream, everyone on twitter following the feeds, everyone in the videos, every single fucking person. Adam finds it difficult even to get a word in through the Screamflailberting that he knows is happening all around the world. Through the stream, I thought he said he didn't want to see it on YouTube in that same fanfic-reprimanding manner, but it turns out he said he knows he's going to see it there. He goes to explain that the song is about acceptance with the intriguing description about running from the law.
A gentle guitar introduction leads us to the the opening note that reminds me so much of CLYG. With rapt attention we try to listen to and process as much of it as possible. Some handle it by screaming their lungs out to the vexation of others trying to shush them. When we hear him sing, everything else falls away. This is what he means by bringing the focus back to the voice and I adore it. It's the closest to an a cappella I've heard him do and his breathy, soothing, mellifluous voice is painfully, achingly, agonisingly beautiful. The pretty melody is fairly simple, the range not too challenging, no vocal acrobatics, it's all about the emotions evoked by that voice in a song written for that voice. Even without understanding the lyrics, we can feel it's a haunting lament about an enduring sadness, energy and hope slowly draining away. It's so heartbreaking to listen to, we have no choice but to comfort-gorge on the sweetness imparted by that voice. It's like honey, strawberries, gateau, praline, ice cream, chocolate, profiteroles... so addictive I'd end up a champion gurner with no teeth. It's sung so smoothly with breathtaking trills effortlessly eased into that floating voice, topped off by a heart-stopping crescendo with grit providing the necessary light and shade. Stunning. Now breathe.
Here are the lyrics as far as I can make out:
The lyrics are uncomplicated and sincere with a strong clear message, making it seem increasingly likely Adam's starting to settle into a more political role for LGBT rights. We are all human, feel the same range of emotions but some of us are demonised simply because we lie outside society's rules over how we ought to love. I'm quite excited by the video possibilities for this song, which already feels quite cinematic. Ronnie and Clyde outlaws on a road trip. With strange costumes.
Oh, nowhere left to go
Are we getting closer, closer?
"No," all they know is "No!"
Nights are getting colder, colder
Hey, tears all fall the same
We all feel the rain
We can't change
Everywhere we go we're looking for the sun
Nowhere to grow old we're always on the run
They say we'll rot in hell, well I don't think we will
They've branded us enough, outlaws of love
Scars make us who we are
Hearts and homes are broken open
Far, we could go so far
With our minds wide open, open
Hey, tears all fall the same
We all feel the rain
We can't change
Everywhere we go we're looking for the sun
Nowhere to grow old we're always on the run
They say we'll rot in hell, well I don't think we will
They've branded us enough, outlaws of love
Aaah...
Everywhere we go we're looking for the sun
Nowhere to grow old we're always on the run
They say we'll rot in hell, well I don't think we will
They've branded us enough, outlaws of love
Outlaws of love
Outlaws of love
Outlaws of love
Outlaws of love
OK, let's get to the rest of the concert. It all went a bit blurry after the excitement over the new song so the interlude is well-timed to allow us a bit of recovery time. It's funkier than I remember from before, especially towards the end. I hope it's an indication of things to come on the next album. The following song is SFW and just to make sure everyone's still alive and with us, Adam gets the crowd to sing back to him, each bar getting increasingly higher. He must be taking the piss if he thinks we can reach all those notes. Fever is a mischievous one where Adam starts talking to Tommy's arm tattoo. It's filled with lots of riffing, dancing and suggestive mic action.
Monte teases us with the opening riffs from Deep Purple's Smoke on the Water, leading us to believe it's going to be a new cover. It actually leads us to WLL when the skies open in the Adam Storm. This version is much like the one from Moscow with an eerie, trippy instrumental break. To the thrill of the fans and perhaps to distract them from the downpour, Adam's top comes off, leaving him in just a vest, showing even more skin as Monte ends up shredding on his back on the floor. In a brilliant voice, Adam sings that the rain gods are telling us the show's over but we won't go. The band appears a little slow to kick in after the "Baby" moment, maybe a little stunned. A rock WWFM follows with Adam singing "Need a second to DRY". I think his voice runs away from him a little at times. The encore is Purple Haze, again with customised weather lyrics finding their way in.
WOW. What a concert. He said he was going to give us a little treat. He lied. He gave us a fucking storm with the forecast telling us this is just the start. Well I think we all enjoyed getting completely drenched after such a long drought.
