18 February 2017 (gig)
21 February 2017
LeAnn Rimes showcases her vocal prowess for an enraptured palladium crowd.
The Saturday night concertgoers were pumped up even before Rimes belted out the opening notes of the sell-out show and quite frankly it was easy to see why.
From minute one, the Jackson native’s vocal powers shine through.
Openers ‘Love Lines’ and ‘Remnant’ hit the early mark before Rimes pulls out all the stops, with her yodel inflected country hit ‘Blue’.
This proves to be an interesting treat, not just because it brings a unique sound to the night, but it feels like classic country .
Much of the evening is taken up by fresh labours of love [in more ways than one] in the form of new album Remnants. It’s an album all about love. ‘Love Is Love’ happily shouts from the rooftop that love is for all, regardless of politics or religion, ‘Outrageous Love’ longs for a deep and passionate love, while the aforementioned ‘Love Line’ also holds an equality message at the heart of it. ‘Do It Wrong with Me’, also tackles Cupid’s favourite subject, while ‘Mother’ is an appreciation that despite their faults that special parent did the best they could.
Fortunately, the audience is also lovesick and laps up every minute of it, whilst expressing their own undying devotion for the star. “Love you LeAnn” is a repeated call throughout the night, and to be fair to her Rimes responds in kind. “I love you too” she reciprocates.
The singer’s stage patter is pleasantly affable, as she seems genuinely grateful to receive such a warm reception. In between tunes, Rimes cheerily complements the crowd on their willingness to talk to her, the British pub culture, and fondly recalls past visits to these shores.
“I played C2C a few years ago… You guys gave me seven ovations for songs you didn’t even know”, she gushes.
The songstress’ latest offerings make little secret of their equal love philosophy. As if to emphasise her support, Rimes plays host to a shock engagement of two lucky chaps, before serenading them as they dance the night away.
Despite the prevalence of the new tracks there’s still time for some old standards. ‘How Do I Live’ gets a beautiful piano led revamp, while there’s also an opportunity to fit in a quick medley of songs recorded with Rimes’ favourite British duet partners.
Unfortunately, though ‘Can’t Fight the Moonlight’ is a tad shoehorned in, amongst several passing covers and an arrangement that seems a bit too rough to fit the song.
Sadly, fiery songs like ‘Gasoline and Matches’ and ‘Spitfire’ are absent from the evening and would have served as a welcome excuse to move bums from seats.
Nevertheless, LeAnn Rimes sends the punters home happy after an impressive London Palladium show.
