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Out of the nest: Adam Lambert, Kris Allen soar in American Idol top ten tour, Portland
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Top Ten American Idols, Season 8
AP Photo/Fox, Ray Mickshaw
Sunday night at the American Idol summer tour kickoff at the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, OR, Adam Lambert broke the show. And while the crowd was still in pieces, his friend Kris Allen came out and put it all back together again.
According to live tweets, live bloggers, and almost every fan or media outlet who could be called upon to comment, Sunday's show was "better than the show," a chance for the Idols to liberate themselves from many of the constraints imposed upon them by American Idol's reality-show-slash-singing-contest format and prove themselves as artists.
Act One
Early standouts of the night included Anoop Desai, whose reprise of Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative" knocked it out of the park for hard-core fans, and Matt Giraud, who kicked up the energy with The Black Crowes' "Hard to Handle." Lil Rounds, Scott MacIntyre, Megan Joy and Michael Sarver stayed close to their signature sounds from the Idol stage, delivering solid performances that made many fans wish they'd power-texted a little bit faster.
Kicking off the second half after a brief intermission, Allison Iraheta killed a set that included Pink's "So What", and Janis Joplin's "Cry Baby" before bringing the house down with the Heart standard her fans had been begging for, "Barracuda." Danny Gokey's "P.Y.T." by Michael Jackson was a slightly somber note given recent events, but was well-received by the crowd, along with Santana's "Maria Maria" and Rascal Flatts' "What Hurts the Most" and "My Wish."
Top Two
But the biggest stars of the night came out for the last two sets. Tweets from the live show tell us "the place went insane" when Adam Lambert took the stage for a live performance of Led Zepplin's "Whole Lotta Love" that one fan called "borderline apocalyptic." The intro exploded with light and sound, and then Lambert's commanding voice and innate showmanship took control of the crowd.
"He's like performance art," one fan said on a Dreamwidth.org message board. "And the subjects of his art are love and loneliness and how totally freaking hot he is." An otherworldly cover of "Starlight", by Muse and another brilliant reprise of Gary Jules/Tears for Fears "Mad World" were only barely enough to chill out the crowd before he revved them up again with "Slow Ride" by Foghat, along with Allison Iraheta. A David Bowie medley comprised of "Life on Mars", "Fame" and "Let's Dance" finished off the set amid a riot of screams, proving once and for all that Lambert has slipped the chains of the Idol apparatus to become a star in his own right.
Kris Allen, winner of the American Idol title for eighth season, had the formidable task of reclaiming the show after Adam Lambert stole it. But few were surprised that his low-key entrance and smooth slide into a slightly lower register were just what the crowd needed to unwind.
His rebuild of Kanye West's "Heartless", which many believe won him the crown, kept the audience entranced. Even "No Boundaries", almost universally panned by fans and critics, worked out in context with Allen's undeniable connection to its hooks and to the crowd itself. He followed it up with his haunting signature take on Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine" and then brought the arena back to its feet with Matchbox 20's "Bright Lights," a performance strong enough to make Rob Thomas look over his shoulder. With the Beatles' "Hey Jude," a hug of a song on its own, Allen pulled it all together for the crowd, especially when he brought out the rest of the Idols to join in on the "na-na-na" finish.
Finale
An all-Idol group number to Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" sealed the deal: Kris Allen and Adam Lambert returned to the stage to wrap things up for the final chorus, greeted by a wall of screams from the audience. Lambert's last note soared over the rest before the final "Don't Stop!" ...and the crowd went wild.
Tonight, the Idols will do it all again in Tacoma, WA at the Tacoma Dome before heading up to General Motors Place in Vancouver, BC on Wednesday. Boston fans will have to wait until August 18th, when the tour hits TD Banknorth Garden.
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