NORTH AMERICAN TOUR REVIEWS (UPDATED!)
Billy Idol’s North American ‘Kings & Queens of the Underground’ Tour is well underway and Billy, Steve Stevens and the band been playing to highly energized sell-out crowds! Here are some of the recent rave reviews of the tour this far:
PHILADELPHIA, PA
01.24.2015 / Tower Theater / Show Review
“…Idol kicked off his tour at Upper Darby’s Tower Theatre Saturday night and took to the stage with reckless abandon, further cementing his status as one of rock music’s most charismatic and engaging showmen…”–98.1 WOGL-FM
PHILADELPHIA, PA
01.24.2015 / Tower Theater / Show review
“Idol and his band tore the roof off the sold-out Tower Theater with the hits… Idol owned the crowd from the moment he stepped onto the stage…”–Chris Sikich City Paper
WASHINGTON, DC
01.25.2015 / Lincoln Theater / Show review
“Clad in black bondage pants and, quite often, no shirt, Idol doesn’t look that different from his Rebel Yell years, and his voice still perfectly snarls. “My name’s Billy fucking Idol,” he said at the end of the show. And all these years later, you still walk away wowed.”–Erica Bruce Washington City Paper
BOSTON, MA
01.31.2015 / Orpheum Theater / Show review
“The lip still sneers, the fist still pumps, the platinum blond dye job is still sculpted into tiny spikes, and the songs sounded great. Not smirky, guilty pleasure “Oh, weren’t we silly in the ’80s!” great or (only) nostalgically great, but just plain great…Idol and Stevens remain a dynamic duo, playfully spurring each other on…”–Sarah Rodman Boston Globe
MONTREAL, QC
02.03.2015 / Metropolis / Show review
“From the first prizefighter’s fist raised in the opening Postcards From the Past, it was clear Idol relished his return. He was in full bleached Elvis mode by the second number, Cradle of Love, whose swagger and levity set the tone for the night.”–Jordan Zivitz Montreal Gazette
DETROIT, MI
02.06.2015 / The Fillmore / Show review
“Detroit worships Billy Idol, and the feeling was mutual on Friday night, Feb. 6, at the Fillmore. From the first symphonic note to the last power chord, Billy Idol rocked Detroit Rock City “till the midnight hour.” The platinum-haired punk rock veteran opened the show with “Postcards from the Past” from his 2014 album “Kings & Queens of the Underground,” his lip curled and fist pumping for a crowd that was happy to welcome fresh songs from its seasoned Idol. “Save Me Now,” “Can’t Break Me Down,” and “Whiskey and Pills” also went down well, all but indistinguishable from Idol’s old favorites in energy and style.”–Molly Winer Oakland Press
CHICAGO, IL
02.07.2015 / Riviera Theater / Show review
“Saturday night in Uptown, the fist pump was in full effect as Billy Idol led a tight, five piece backing band through nearly two hours live on stage at the Riviera Theatre…there’s simply no denying how well Billy Idol works an audience.”–Jim Ryan Chicago Now
DENVER, CO
02.09.2015 / Paramount / Show review
“While bombastic, Idol had an air of class and that is some of his appeal—he navigates the territory between English modesty and American self-assertion masterfully… When Billy Idol started changing costumes on stage at the Paramount Theatre last night before (what else?) “Flesh For Fantasy,” it seemed at first like some post-middle-age bravado. But when he when he eventually took off his shirt entirely, because he’s goddamned Billy Idol, there wasn’t the usual gut or inevitable flab you’d expect from an aging rock icon. And he seemed to have all his hair in classic punk-hero fashion, because this man stands in improbable defiance of time.”–Tom Murphy Westword
DENVER, CO
02.09.2015 / Paramount / Show review
“From the moment he stepped out on stage, Idol had the crowd in the palm of his hands as he effortlessly intertwined his hits and new material from new album, Kings & Queens of the Underground.”–Tracy Heck AXS TV, axs.com
DENVER, CO
02.09.2015 / Paramount / Show review
“Idol still has his provocative appeal: his spiky peroxide blond hair, his theatrical swagger and Elvis sneer, his black leather rock and roll brashne… Idol is cool. Idol is cocky. And who’s got a more wicked rocker scream than Billy Idol?”–Colleen Smith heyreverb.com
VANCOUVER, BC
02.12.2015 / Queen Elizabeth Theater / Show review
“One song into the Rebel Rocker’s two-hour set would convert all non-believers. The velvet sneer, the freakish rock-grating abs, the energy and showmanship of this prize-fighter; it is clear William Michael Albert Broad can certainly go ten rounds… When he darted from the dark shadows to the front of the stage bounding with a force that pushed the audience back, it was immediately obvious… this was his house and Idol delivered!”–Darryl Andrews National Rock Review
VANCOUVER, BC
02.12.2015 / Queen Elizabeth Theater / Show review
“There’s little flab on the 59-year-old’s tanned bod, and his vocal cords are in fine shape too. Judging by his recent album, Kings and Queens of the Underground, he hasn’t lost his knack for catchy tunes… [and] Steve Stevens—who’s been Idol’s musical mainman, on and off, since 1981—is still the six-string fireball whose intense riffing puts the rebel in Idol’s yell.”–Steve Newton The Georgia Straight
OAKLAND, CA
02.15.2015 / Fox Theater / Show review
“When the house lights went dark for the headlining act, audible excitement circled the building as people wondered what was going to unfold. Billy Idol was in Oakland, assuredly alive in body and spirit. The MTV idol hasn’t lost a step in years of what must be an exhausting calling; it’s not easy being a conduit for Generation X’s suburban angst. Idol’s timelessness is exactly that, and he carries the torch of rock and roll like it never got passed in the first place.”–Martin Hirschland SF Weekly
OAKLAND, CA
02.15.2015 / Fox Theater / Show review
“Billy Idol is clearly doing something right. I’m not talking about the sold-out show at Oakland’s Fox Theater last Sunday night… I’m not referring to the monstrous roar from the crowd that greeted him and nearly every song in the set, whether old or new, as well as every lick and stroke and slam from his band. And I’m not focusing on the contagious power of the new material that is, decibel for decibel and pound for pound, as good as the best parts of the catalog that first made him a star. Although these are all proof enough that Idol’s onto something good. Nope. Rather, I’m talking about the fact that the singer, who turns sixty later this year, looks and sounds good, maybe even better, than ever… Idol bounded onto the stage, fists thrust and lip curled, but as he ripped through the new, scene-setting “Postcards From the Past,” it was immediately clear he had outpaced his former demons…”–Steven Gdula Dinosaur
LOS ANGELES, CA
02.18.2015 / The Wiltern / Show review
“Billy’s still got it going on: The curled-lip sneer, the yelps and roars, the peroxide hair, and a solid set of hits and coulda-shoulda-been-hits… “Mony Mony,” his cover of the old Tommy James & the Shondells song, ended the night on an energetic high note, after Idol introduced the band, finishing with the announcement that “I”m Billy (bleepin’) Idol.” Indeed, he is.”–Peter Larsen OC Register
LOS ANGELES, CA
02.19.2015 / The Wiltern / Show review
“…the audience’s cheers could not be mistaken. He has developed an intense fan base over the years and he’s who they came to see. Opening with new songs from his 2014 album “Kings and Queens of the Underground,” the number of voices singing along and the amount of participation from the audience showed that even his newer songs have reached the fans, and they have embraced them just as they embraced his biggest hits of the ’70s and ’80s.”–Jared Bass Neon Tommy
LAS VEGAS, NV
02.21.2015 / Cosmopolitan / Show review
“…Billy Idol brought his A-game to the Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan on Saturday night. The packed house — even those with reserved seats — remained on their feet for most of the evening…”–Rebecca Clifford-Cruz Las Vegas Sun
SANTA ANA< CA
02.22.2015 / The Observatory / Show review
“Dressed in Black leather, Idol appeared ageless as he walked the small stage pumping his fist but more impressive than his looks was that his voice sounded flawless… Billy Idol successfully architected a high energy set with every element of his legacy spot on with no signs of slowing down.”–Chris Loomis socalmusictoday.com
