By Mike McKenney, Rock At Night New England Correspondent
Venue: Mohegan Sun, Uncaseville, Connecticut, July 23, 2017
The cover rose from the guitar shaped stage to the pounding intro tease of “We Will Rock You”, revealing Queen guitar virtuoso Brian May, drummer Roger Taylor, and American Idol runner up, Adam Lambert. As the sold out crowd screamed, Adam rips right into “Hammer to Fall” followed immediately by “Stone Cold Crazy, and “Another one Bites the Dust”. Lambert knows his vocal wheelhouse and stays within it, wisely never trying to compete with Freddie Mercury.
With his slightly bluesy sound, Adam doesn’t just hold his own he actually adds a slightly different take on epic hits “Fat Bottom Girls” (along with Brian May), “Killer Queen” and fan favorite “Radio Ga Ga”. After explaining to the audience that while a comparison to Freddie is inevitable, Adam states there will only ever be one Freddie Mercury. He honors him throughout the show with video clips during some of his epic songs including “Love Of My Life” with Brian May. Adam showed his own song writing ability with his original “Two Fux” .
Original member Roger Taylor’s, booming drums led the way all night. Taylor even lent his vocals on “I’m In Love With My Car,” and later, with Lambert on “Under Pressure.” Brian May killed every note on guitar, confirming his “ Rock God” status is still in good standing. He amazed with scorching solos on “ at Bottom Girls” and “ We Will Rock You”. The multi talented May, who is widely recognized as one of the most inventive guitarists of this era , has also been awarded “ Most Excellent Order of the British Empire” award and holds a PHD in Astrophysics from Imperial College of London.
Queen was a hugely popular band, with incredible stadium filling songs, led by a one of kind Front man Freddie Mercury, so it can be hard to accept anyone else in that role but Adam Lambert with the help of Brian and Roger, have nothing to apologize for and more than do Queen justice.
Powerful vocals and searing guitars kept in line by the pounding beat of booming drums are the hallmark of this new version of Queen that Freddie would be proud of. The Queen + Adam Lambert tour continues throughout the summer. This extravaganza filled with fantastic laser show, robot screens, and a ton of confetti for the crowd, is not to be missed!
Set List
- Hammer To Fall
- Stone Col Crazy
- Another One Bites The Dust
- Fat Bottom Girls
- Killer Queen
- Two Fux
- Don’t Stop Me Now
- Bicycle Palace
- I’m In Love With My Car
- Get Down, Make Love
- I Want It All
- Love Of My Life
- Somebody To Love
- Crazy Little Thing
- Drum Battle
- Under Pressure
- I Want To Break Free
- Who Wants To Live Forever
- Radio Gaga
- Bohemian Rhapsody
- We Will Rock You
- We Are The Champions
Photo Gallery
Videos
Queen at Mohegan Sun-July 23, 2017
Mike McKenney is an award winning professional photographer and current New England Correspondent for Rock At Night magazine.
With his years of experience and passion for Concert Photography, Mike has photographed many of the famous acts in the world today.
Rock Icons such as Sting, Peter Gabriel, Dave Matthews, and Fleetwood Mac along with Country artist Blake Shelton, Kenny Chesney,and Jason Aldean have all appeared before Mike’s camera.
"My goal is always to present the experience truthfully so fans can feel the energy and emotions the Artists convey. It’s a tremendous honor and responsibility to be allowed to create art while blending my two passions, music and photography”
- Micky Dolenz performs timeless classics to sold-out crowd at Greenwich Odeum - March 27, 2024
- Disturbed’s ‘Take Back Your Life’ Tour Electrifies the Mohegan Sun Arena - February 12, 2024
- Brit Floyd “Shines On” Brilliantly at The Vets! - April 20, 2023
Adam can do many things with his voice that Freddie simply do