Adam Lambert is "Trespassing" into my ears.

Adam Lambert released his sophomore album titled "Trespassing" on May 15th, 2012. I am a very big fan of Adam Lambert. Not just his music but him as a whole. I think he is a fantastic singer and performer. I have been a fan of him since he started his career many years ago.

For those who don't remember, Adam Lambert was the runner up in the 8th season of American Idol, losing to Kris Allen. Ironically enough Adam Lambert seems to be much more successful than Kris Allen.

As I write this review I have "Trespassing" playing in the background. When I first started listening to it, the title song "Trespassing" immediately had me tapping my foot to the beat as Lambert sings with charm yet extreme sex appeal in a rather fast paced song. The background beats and lyrics compliment Lambert's voice perfectly. He has such a unique voice that pulls you into every song he sings whether it's a fast paced dance beat or a slow ballad. For those who enjoy Lambert's high range, never fear there is plenty of that! He flawlessly flips his voice into his higher range as if it was second nature to him.

What I found extremely unique about the album is Lambert's cross between pop dance beats, similar to his debut album "For Your Entertainment", and disco. Yes. Disco. Some of the songs such as "Kickin It" have slight resemblance of disco in the background to it however still with a glam spin that only Lambert can do.

Overall I really enjoyed the album. His ballads are lovely and dance songs are extremely fun as I can't wait to actually dance to them with other people. The only complaint I have is that I wish the album was longer as well as the ratio to dance songs compared to the slower ones is a little higher on the side of slow songs that I like personally. Although his voice is very melodic I prefer to be up on my feet while listening to his music. Other than that, I loved it and I hope he comes to Minneapolis for this tour!

It’s Family First and Family Last: A Night with the Addams.

Imagine a typical 1950s family living in a perfect house in a perfect neighborhood. In this house lives a perfect mother who leaves a fresh baked apple pie on the window sill to cool off while a little boy feeds the dog before going out to play. Now imagine a large mansion in the middle of Central Park with a mother who rips off the heads of roses and asks her butler to put the stems in a vase while her son is busy feeding the monster that lives under his bed. This is where I spent my Tuesday night on May 8th, 2012. Welcome to a night with The Addams Family.

Photo by Jeremy Daniel, courtesy Ordway center for the Performing Arts

The premise of the show revolves around Wednesday Addams (Cortney Wolfson) growing up and falling in love with Lucas Beineke (Brian Justin Crum). She invites him and his family dinner with her family. As the lights went low and last minute audience members found their seats I began to smile as the orchestra started the “The Addams Family” theme song. Even the audience participated with nostalgic snapping until the theme song brilliantly transitioned into the overture. I began laughing again as the disembodied hand “The Thing” appeared to pull the curtain back to reveal a very tall gate with all of the Addams behind it while smoke trailed at their feet. It was amazing and eerie all at the same time. They looked fantastic and still held the same Addams Family look with Morticia’s (Sara Gettelfinger) low cut neckline (in which her cleavage upstaged multiple moments), Grandma’s (Pippa Pearthree) crazy personality and Gomez’s (Douglas Stills) infamous thin mustache.

It wasn’t until Wednesday sang her first song “Pulled” that I realized how extremely impressive the vocals sounded. She was on perfect pitch every time she opened her mouth. With every scene she was in I seemed to find myself entirely focused on her. The dry humor, killer belts and impressive dance moves had me...that is until Alice Beineke (Crista Moore) arrived on the scene. Her obsessive rhyming and bright yellow dress made her the top scene stealer of the show. During a hilarious dinner scene, she breaks out into “Waiting” a powerhouse solo song. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Her impressive belt had me on the edge of my seat the whole rest of the show, praying she’d do it again.

Overall “The Addams Family: The Musical” was quite delightful. The costumes were wonderful, the set was spectacular and the actors were phenomenal. My expectations were far exceeded with the entire cast. The score and book do a radiant job in keeping the same ghoulish atmosphere while still maintaining a musical type feel. All families, whether you’re “living, dead or undecided” should rush to see this show no matter how far away it is!