Well now... looking at the song selection, all I could think was "What the hell were these people thinking". Honestly most of the tunes, the folks that picked them out have no chance of not screwing them up.
Well, I guess that's why we watch isn't it; so we can laugh at them when they screw the pooch.
Oh and what is it with there being a stones tune and a nirvana tune every single week?
The Reviews:
Lukas Rossi - The Verve, "Bittersweet Symphony":What the fuck was he thinking picking this song? I had hoped the vocal coach would have jogged him a bit... The vibrato monster is killing him. He COULD sing this song if he'd jsut stop growling in his throat. Also the drama level is once again floating around Freddie Mercury levels. Lukas, you are neither Freddie nor Mick Jagger. Get over yourself. Was it awful overall, no; but it WAS a bad version of this song. It's probably not bottom three but I hated it.
Zayra Alvarez - Blondie, "Call Me": When I saw her song selection I thought "Well, she could actually do this one. She's got the voice for it" and she does, but she doesnt know how to use it. God she would be great if she jsut had some training. Out of tune, flat, mispronounced... I'm sorry, great legs in a superhero outfit wont save you girl. To top it all off, her performance was robotic. I'd almost say she knows she's going off this week, but she's been so clueless and arrogant, she may actually think that was good. Bottom three, definitely.
Dana Andrews - Nirvana, "About a Girl": The thing is, she's TOO GOOD a singer for this song. She can't NOT sing it well, and that's not right for the song. As to how she DID sing it, not bad, but too country, and I don't think full acoustic was the way to go with this one. She should have put a solid bass line behind her. She did a good growl on this one, and got a great creepy look in her eyes. Very pro, very solid. The band loved it. She's safe.
Patrice Pike - The Black Crowes, "Remedy": Once again my thought was "wtf, does she WANT to lose"? I mean she's certainly no Chris Robinson. Wrong tone, wrong inflection, not enough energy she jsut sounded flat (in energy not in tone), no life. The band kicked ass on this one by the way. Not good, not horrible, probably not bottom three, but close.
Toby Rand - Billy Idol, "White Wedding": Well, he said he was gonna get down with it this week, and he picked the right song for it, but he's got big shoes to fill here. Odd arrangement, a little off in tone, not enough headroom or breath. Good pickup on the second verse though... overall not bad, but not quite right. A little too low in the high bits, a little too flat and growly in the sweet bits. Ok, not great, probably safe.
Magni Asgiersson - David Bowie, "Heroes": God I love this song, and I REALLY hate the Wallflowers cover of it, so I'm going into this one with high expectations... and it was pretty good. No it doesnt have the airy swings of Bowie, but he showed great range, and sweetness. Maybe a little too quiet, and not enough drama, but very good. It wouldnt surprise me to see an encore here.
Ryan Star - Live, "I Alone": Anybody who picks a "Live" tune for this, is either insane, or has balls of kryptonite (though I have a sneaking suspicion Magni could pull it off, plus he's got the look). Ed Kowalczyks vocals are so sweeping, dynamic, and powerful; with HUGE excursions all over the map... At least it wasn't lightning crashes, but... Ok, so he opens a little too soft, a little too breathy, but not bad. Transitions into the refrain, and he can't QUITE make it. It's a good try but thats HARD. The bridge is fine, and back into the scream for the finish... not quite, but almost. Better than I expected, and really not bad. Plus, a great performace, great energy, and climbing on the kit was cool.
Jill Gioia- The Rolling Stones, "Brown Sugar":Honestly, this is an easy song, especially for a serious pro Like Jill. The range on Brown Sugar is pretty much non-existent so this one is all about the performance. Does she have the balls, and the strut to carry it off. Also, will her clothes stay on for the whole performance (jesus she was wearing two handkerchiefs - I definitely saw ass cheek, and I think I saw Tommy Lees pubes... dude pull up your frikken pants). See this is where Jills background singer and studio past really hurts her. She isn't strutting enough, and what she IS doing feels a bit forced. Sure it's ok, and the vocals are spot on, but it's just not quite there on the performance side.
Phil Ritchie - The Wallflowers, "One Headlight": I hate Phil, and I certainly hope that everyone agrees with me after listening to this abortion. The refrain was actually good, but the rest of the time he thinks he's elvis crossed with Barry White. He was flat, the timbre was completley off, his performance sucked... I think he's secretly a bobblehead with a human body. Should be bottom three, but god knows why the chicks seem to dig him.
Dilana Robichaux - Cyndi Lauper, "Time After Time":I've given up trying to predict Dilana, either what she'l sing, or what she'll wear. This one was just weird on the second count, but I enjoyed the way she sang. THe vocal coach clearly helped. SHe was a little to quiet and breathy; and I think she could have handled the sweetness in the refrain with some practice instead of going back to the growl. That said, it was pretty good. Not GREAT, but really pretty good.
Josh Logan - Blind Melon, "No Rain": Okay, it's a good selection for his voice. He needs a little more breath, a little more in the highs... I actually liked his performance for the first time, in a rocked up arrangement of a seminal alternative tune. Not it wasnt great, it was jsut good, but it was his first performance I didnt actively HATE, so there's a plus; and hey he looked like he was having fun. He cut out like 2/3 of the song, flattened it out a bit... I didnt quite like it, but I don't think it was bottom three material.
Storm Large - Dramarama, "Anything Anything": Storm punks it up a bit, on a classic punkwave tune. Honestly, I think she went too crazy with it. She shredded it like a black flag tune, and the quality of her voice suffered. Her energy and performance kicked ass, but she may end up in the bottom three for this one. She way ALSO get an encore for it, because the band loved it.
Well, I'll say no-one had a truly excellent performance, but Magni, Dilana, and Dana all did pretty good jobs; and everyone else was all over the place.
Now, bottom three... I'm almost certain this is the week we see Zayra go. It would take a frikken miracle performance tonight for her to stay alive. Personally, I think that Phil did another horrible tune, but for some reason he seems to be immune to the fact that he sucks. Lukas probably belongs in the bottom this week as well.
Now, do I think the country will agree with me? I have a sneaking suspicion that Storm will see the bottom this week. I dont think her performance was worth it, but it's definitely her worst yet. Also, it wouldnt surprise me at all to see patrice or Josh there. No, I don't think they deserve it, I'm sure my picks were worse, but it wouldn't shock me either.
