On Friday evening, the Chateau de Wiltz in the north of the Grand Duchy hosted the Queen tribute band, for the first of two successive evening concerts being performed in the shadow of the chateau under the large covered awning.
In contrast to last week-end when the Chicago production was performed in the middle of a thunderstorm which created such terrible flooding in the east of the country, this concert was performed on a balmy summer evening. With a crowd of around 75% capacity, the five performers came on stage shortly before 21:00 and launched into a stirring rendition of One Vision, the somg that queen themselves started each concert with on their The Magic Tour.
Tie your Mother Down and Under Pressure (originally sung with David Bowie), Queen Killer and Don't Stop Me Now were then performed. While the band tried very, very hard from the outset, and also really seemed to be enjoying themselves, the simple fact is that the original Queen group was unique and irreplaceable and, with all the lead singer's performance antics, there is only one Freddie Mercury who passed away 25 years ago.
By now the audience was startign to get in the mood, with the bass player passing the test with flying colours when performing guitar riffs on Another One Bites the Dust. With a cheeky smile from ear to ear, together with the exhuberance of the guitar player, they lifted the audience and got them to clap along in true Queen fashion to hit after hit. I Want to Break Free, Radio Gaga and I want to Live Forever completed the first act as the 5-man band went off at the interval so the audience could buy some more crémant...
After the interval, the first half seemed to have been only a warm-up as the band's performance levels went up a few notches. The lead singer was hitting all the right notes, event the very high ones, but it was mid-way through when they performed Bohemian Rhapsody that it all came together and their true rock opera quality was confirmed - this performance alone was a true legacy to Queen and to Freddie Mercury's brilliance.
The stage was set up just as had been done when Queen were touring, with the raised drums section centre-stage and the banks of lights synchronised in time with the beat of the music.
Another costume change - although no flowing capes or crowns - this time to colour-coordinated red t-shirts.
Save Me, Love of My Life, Hammer to Fall, Someone to Love ("Freddie" hit all the high notes here too, with apparent ease), Those were the Days - slowing and raising the tempo in equal measure - Crazy Little Thing Called Love, I Want it All.
Other hits were belted out, one after another, including We Will Rock You (with appropriate audience participation) and We are the Champions, with an encore of The Show Must Go On, until the curtain came down and the audience left the arena.
Mercury is also performing this evening, Saturday 30 July at 20:45 at the Chateau de Wiltz. Tickets €62, €52, €32 via the festival box office, tel: 958145, or by email: festival.wiltz@internet.lu. See www.festivalwiltz.lu for further details.
Photos by Geoff Thompson
