Mr. L

Review published on nytimes.com on 8/10/09, written by Joe Caramanica.
Adam-fragments below:

Mr. Lambert, perhaps the most currently visible openly gay American musician, received a thunderous reception from the audience, far louder than that for anyone else. His mother, seated in the audience, barely had a moment to herself between camera-wielding fans. He had the sharpest merchandise, including a David Bowie-esque black T-shirt with neon accents. And his fans were the most, um, creative, from personalized intimates to an L.C.D.-display belt buckle that scrolled “ADAM” ad nauseam to a sign, ringed with Christmas lights, that read “Adam electrifies my life!”

He didn’t even have to use his superhuman voice, largely keeping it in check during his set, which inspired flying jockstraps and, yes, bras too. Wearing a distressed-leather ensemble, he instead concentrated on poses, every moment camera-ready: sinuous on Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love,” pensive during “Mad World” (the Gary Jules version). During a medley of David Bowie songs he showed some skin, wearing a vest over a bare chest, and turned glam king, purring the lyrics, lost in a dance reverie.

Mr. Lambert has traveled almost the whole distance from overrehearsed and hammy to effortless and charming. And he’s learned that vocally, less can be more: where his singing often felt gratuitously indulgent on the show, here he employed restraint, and effectively so.
So relaxed was Mr. Lambert that he practically ceded the night’s musical high points to others.

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