Friday, March 12, 2010

Adam Lambert Performs On VH1's Unplugged



Broken Open



Music Again



Down The Rabbit Hole



Whataya Want From Me



Mad World

Adam Lambert's set for VH1's Unplugged has made its premiere online. I've included all of Adam's performances above, but I recommend watching the special in its entirety HERE so as to hear all the tidbits in between songs or catching it on VH1 Friday, April 9th @ 11/10c. I was looking forward to this for some time, & no shade to Adam--especially because he hit it outta the park vocally, but it was kind of a disappointment. The biggest thing for me is that I just don't think his songs work very well acoustically. It's either that or the particular arrangements they used, well, sucked because that daggum drum was getting on my nerves! For example, I think the gorgeous "Broken Open" (How can you touch that gorgeous electronic studio version?!) would've worked just fine with piano accompaniment only. Also, "Mad World" + Bongo = Does Not Compute. I've just gotta mention too how convenient the "Alice In Wonderland"-inspired bonus track "Down The Rabbit Hole," which is pretty out there, was. Regardless, I still love Adam & his debut album For Your Entertainment, which is available now.

[Source]

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Just gotta leave a comment. I'm not a Lambert fan but I love acoustic performances and this was one of the best. I don't often comment on any blog because it's a waste of time but I completely disagree. The VH1 performances and the clarity of Lambert's vocals were amazing!

Also, I take it you haven't seen the Aussie acoustic version of Mad World on Youtube performed at the Marble Bar in Sydney. Mad World + Bongo DOES compute in the most amazing way. Enough said.

Anonymous said...

I am not an acoustic fan (AT ALL) and yet I do like these versions. I prefer the original vesrions of DTRH and MA, but IMO -- and of course, music reviews are always personal opinion -- they work well acoustically as well. I will disagree with your view of Broken Open quite a bit though. That is one song on the cd I actually do NOT like due to the electronic qualities of the music backing his voice. I skip playing it every time. IMO, the cd treatment was a mistake -- that style does not suit the lyrics or his vocals. I find the electronic qualities of the music distracting and frankly, annoying. I think the acoustic version is a vast improvement.

vmars08 said...

Thanks for the comments, guys! I also appreciate the way you approached your respective arguments.

To the first commenter, don't feel like commenting is a waste of time! It's interesting to me to hear other people's opinions. Also, I hope Adam has converted you! :)

To the second commenter, thank you for pointing out that music reviews are personal opinion because I completely agree! I'm glad you like the acoustic version of "Broken Open," but as I am a fan of some electronic music, "Broken Open" happens to be one of my favorite tracks on the album. To me, it has that gorgeous vibe that he also had with "Mad World."

Again, thanks for offering your opinions, but you don't have to be Anonymous... I mean, I won't get mad at you! Of course, it's fine if you want to be.