A Few Reviews for "High Drama"Riff Magazine
Mike DeWald
February 23, 2023, 8:00 pm
riffmagazine.com/album-reviews/adam-lambert-high-drama/ALBUM REVIEW: Adam Lambert takes his dynamic range for a drive on ‘High Drama’
High Drama
Adam Lambert
BMG, Feb. 24
7/10
Get the album on Amazon Music.
Conceptually, High Drama by Adam Lambert is relatively simple: The powerhouse vocalist takes a some of his favorite songs, turns them on their head and adds a dramatic flair. There’s no particular era, artist or songbook du jour here—it’s an eclectic array. The real stars of the show here are his unmistakable pipes. Few have the power and range of Lambert’s vocals, as evidenced by his recruitment to front Queen, a role he’s tackled with poise.
Lambert avoids flipping these songs into classic rock anthems. On his cover of Bonnie Tyler’s “
Holding Out For A Hero,” the take is nearly unrecognizable from the original; it’s more in the proggy direction of Muse’s “Uprising.” Compare that with Lambert’s twist on SIA’s “
Chandelier,” which is a little closer to the original but takes things in a more alternative post-grunge direction. At times, the chorus almost moves into the territory of Fall Out Boy or Panic! at the Disco. It’s fascinating to hear Lambert’s voice transition from track to track.
In the case of Duran Duran’s “
Ordinary World,” things shift entirely in the opposite direction, transforming the song into a piano ballad. It’s actually quite stunning, mixing in strings and orchestral elements that only add to the “drama.” Billie Eilish’s “
Getting Older” opens with a Queen-esque harmonized vocal before shifting to a rock ballad. But that shouldn’t undersell the song, as the vocal performance is tremendous.
Adam Lambert – High Drama
A theatrical covers project...
ClashMusic
www.clashmusic.com/reviews/adam-lambert-high-drama/ Reviews
24 · 02 · 2023
Adam Lambert doesn’t do subtle, he is theatrical through and through – and we are here for it. The gravitas towards all things dramatic is ever present throughout his latest offering ‘High Drama’ – an album of bold reimagined tracks personally curated by the singer himself.
This genre-spanning collection of reimagined covers takes some of Adam’s favorite songs by artists like Billie Eilish, Lana Del Rey, Bonnie Tyler, Sia, Duran Duran and Kings Of Leon to a different dimension thanks to the classic ‘Adam Lambert’ treatment. Case in point – ‘
Holding Out For A Hero’ which has been transformed into a glam rock extravaganza!
Adam’s exemplary interpretation of Culture Club’s ‘
Do You Really Want To Hurt Me’ is multi-faceted and intriguing, serving lines like ‘Choose my color, find a star’ in a fresh, sophisticated and laidback way.
Lambert’s musical theatre background is evident in Billie Eilish’s ‘
Getting Older’ which has him reflecting on the universal fear of aging and gives a far-reaching emotional performance.
He channels his inner Prince for his take on ‘
Sex On Fire’ which is transformed from a raucous rock track to a dance-fuelled floor filler that is multi-textured and effervescent. Another standout is Duran Duran’s ‘
Ordinary World ‘is spine-tinglingly good and Adam’s capability to effortlessly combine his endearing vulnerability with powerhouse vocals which his trademark falsetto.
Album closer ‘
Mad About the Boy’ is a triumph, it feels like it could be a theme song from the next James Bond film and Lambert’s spectacular storytelling skills are masterful and dynamic in equal measure.
A showman with stellar performance skills, there are few performers with a vocal range like Adam Lambert and it’s clear he knows his instrument well and has expertly mastered the tracks on ‘High Drama’ to really make them his own and has once again showcased his astonishing vocal prowess with this energetic, vivid and mesmerising collection of songs.
7/10
Words: Emma Harrison
Retropop
retropopmagazine.com/adam-lambert-high-drama/Home > Reviews
Adam Lambert – High Drama
February 24, 2023
Released: February 24
4/5 Stars
Proving himself one of the finest voices of his generation, Adam Lambert masterfully reimagines a selection of his favourite recordings from across the decades on his first covers collection.
Clocking in at 11 tracks, ‘High Drama’ launches with a storming rendition of Bonnie Tyler’s Jim Steinman penned-and-produced classic
Holding Out For A Hero, with the glam rock makeover indicative of the sound that runs across the long-player.
“It’s a fun challenge to figure out a way of doing a 180 with a song,” he explains of the concept. “I’m bringing them into my world. Over the past decade I’ve explored a few different areas and sounds and energies, and I feel like part of this new chapter in my career is me being really clear on who I am, and what I am, and what I’m not. I think that’s all coming out in these tracks.”
On first glance, the song selection piques interest, segueing between straightforward pop (Sia’s
Chandelier) and rock (Kings of Leon’s
Sex on Fire), to psychedelic (Lana Del Rey’s
West Coast) and reggae (Culture Club’s
Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?) inspired tunes, it’s a far from safe offering that would challenge many. But whether it’s a stunning piano ballad adaptation of Duran Duran’s
Ordinary World or the groovy bassline that underpins his take on Ann Peebles’
I Can’t Stand the Rain, his stamp on every track is undeniable.
Also commendable is his fearlessness not only in tackling lesser-known recordings, such as P!nk’s 2019 album track My Attic, but his resistance to changing the gender within the lyrics, adding a queer sensibility to songs sung by both men and women, straight and gay.
Notably,
Mad About the Boy – the theme song to the forthcoming Noël Coward documentary of the same name – is transformed into an out and proud gay love song, while his rendition of
I’m a Man by Jobriath – the first openly gay rock musician signed to a major label – continues to probe the idea of ‘masculinity’.
Recorded in London and Los Angeles with production from the likes of Tommy English, Andrew Wells, George Moore, Mark Crew, and Adam himself, ‘
High Drama’ cuts to the essence of the musician as a vocalist and performer and, ironically, is in many ways as his most authentic body of work to date.
Not only a full-circle moment from his cover-heavy ‘American Idol’ origins, it’s also a testament to how far he’s come over the course of the past decade. “I would never turn down success but that can’t be the driving force as a creative,” insists Adam. “I make it because I like it and I want other people to like it. Simple as that.”