An Audience With Adele - how live?

CaseOfAce

Watching this on the telly right now - there's 2 guitarists on stage with a bass player - not an amp in view.
I'm guessing they are going direct with some sort of Fractal or Kempers? 
Adele's vocals are obviously live - but I'm wondering if the rest of the band pre-recorded the tracks previously.
I'm naturally suspicious anytime I see musical acts on primetime tv. 
Yes - they've got mics on the drum kit and leads etc from the equipment but so what?

Oh - she's just done Set Fire To The Rain - and there's the full orchestral part up in the mix - yep -somebody has pressed play
on the playback machine backstage! 

prowla

I saw this thread and decided to take a look. 

I managed half a song. 

davros

I can't stand Adele and her grating screechy voice, but the wife had it on. They had a kind of impromptu Alan Carr fill in bit, suggests the band were live. Probably with a click backing track as they had an invisible gospel choir singing at one point.

sev112

There is a orchestra pit full of stringed instruments down in front of the stage 

ArchtopDave

sev112 said:

There is a orchestra pit full of stringed instruments down in front of the stage 

/\ This.  

I didn't notice the orchestra to begin with, as they down in the pit. Also, if you watched all the songs, she did restart one of them. I largely watched the songs, and fast forwarded most of the audience questions.

thecolourbox

My wife's nan had it on while we were there, I could hear a lot of backing singers (including doubling Adele's voice on one of them?)

Good stuff generally though if you like that kind of thing (I don't particularly)

BloodEagle

Adele is one of those 'Live, Laugh, Love' signs in musical form 

darthed1981

Breaking News... Adele is the Fretboard's new whipping boy...

Retiring whipping boy Rob Chapman said " I didn't give a fuck before and I still don't now..."

A delighted Adele said "It's fine with me, I'm writing a new album all about it and I'll make a hundred million quid off those grumpy old buggers"

In related news, fearing Adele's fate, Ed Sheeran announced he will include a free pack of strings with his next album.

ArchtopDave

Well you know how it is. No one on here can get anywhere near her vocally, but she's no hope caus' she can't mindlessly widdle the minor pentatonic in box 17. 

RobDavies

She a very talented singer but the material is dull as fuck.  In fairness, I’m not sure that I’m the target audience…. Looking at social media last night, there were plenty of mums watching ‘with a cheeky glass of wine’ - I’m sure they’ll be back to Mr Brightside and Sex On Fire before long. 

lustycourtier

RobDavies said:

She a very talented singer but the material is dull as fuck.  In fairness, I’m not sure that I’m the target audience…. Looking at social media last night, there were plenty of mums watching ‘with a cheeky glass of wine’ - I’m sure they’ll be back to Mr Brightside and Sex On Fire before long. 

Yup. Music for people who dont like music. 

DrCornelius

Rolling in the deep and someone like you are classics . I can’t believe anyone who appreciates popular music not thinking that tbh

Rich210

DrCornelius said:

Rolling in the deep and someone like you are classics . I can’t believe anyone who appreciates popular music not thinking that tbh

Agreed. I thought she was awesome. I'm not an Adele fan boy but she deserves to go down in history as one of the greatest female singer songwriters. 

prowla

DrCornelius said:

Rolling in the deep and someone like you are classics . I can’t believe anyone who appreciates popular music not thinking that tbh

Te first time I heard that, it was someone doing it on the X-Factor; I thought "that's a great song".

prowla

thecolourbox said:

My wife's nan had it on while we were there, I could hear a lot of backing singers (including doubling Adele's voice on one of them?)

Good stuff generally though if you like that kind of thing (I don't particularly)

I think it's OK to use sampled sounds (and integrated videos) in a performance, so something has to keep things all lined up.

CaseOfAce

sev112 said:

There is a orchestra pit full of stringed instruments down in front of the stage 

You're quite right - I missed them. They are hidden way down either side of the stage - rewatchng I spotted the telepromter screens.

I honestly didn't start the thread to discuss the merits or thereof of Adele - I was genuinely interested in just how much we were hearing was actually being played in the moment by musicians on stage. 
If they had genuinely mic'ed up violins, percussion, flutes and guitars etc.. I'd be really impressed. To get a sound mix right with that number of personnel in such a small venue as the London Palladium... hats off to 'em.
You could argue well it's West End and they do it every night at multiple venues.. ?
Dunno.. adding a band on stage - does that complicate matters? Then again We Will Rock You musical featured cranked AC30s etc.. courtesy of Phil Hilborne etc...

sev112

It’s great fun playing in an orchestra pit

Philly_Q

On the subject of Adele, I read that she'd got Spotify to remove the shuffle tracks option from albums, but it still seems to be there... was it just on her own albums?

Hootsmon

..

Philly_Q

Colin Murray just played a three-minute compilation of snippets from all the tracks on 30.  Now I never need to listen to it.

Alterlifeson

Not sure where all the Adele bashing comes from to be honest. The songs are normally strong, she has world class musicians playing all over them and they chart very well.

She started her career and a blossoming young female singer/songwriter playing tiny venues with her guitar. I am sure she was a hell of talent back then. It seems as soon as an artist becomes mainstream, people (musicians in particular) form some kind of dislike towards them. There are of course small artists who are more specialised, play more intimate shows or maybe have a much more niche fan base that might be more appealing, but that isn't what Adele is all about.

It's not as if she has changed her musical style or genre from when she was up and coming, the only real difference is she now has a vastly bigger audience. 

I dunno, I liked the album for what it is.