MMTV: Mediocre Music TV
Edition #10: The X Factor Live Week 2 (Going to the Movies)

Written by: Wences Acosta

*sigh*. Sometimes, when I watch these shows, I love the moments that happen. From Adam Lambert's "Mad World" to Chris Rene's "Young Homie", shows like X Factor and American Idol bring out the best of me. There are weeks though, where I just want to choke whoever is behind these music choices. That is where this week came in. Most of the songs tonight just made me facepalm, and had me hoping and praying that it would end. I even told Robert that I wanted to do an induction of this show, but this commentary is probably as close as we are going to get. So, with that said, here is each performance and what I thought of them, PLUS as an extra bonus, I will put in my thoughts for the sing-off.

#1. Arin Ray "American Boy" (Movie: Obsessed)
Side Note: I have never seen Obsessed, but the idea of Beyonce vs. Ali Larter is one I am very intrigued in. With that said, I like this performance, but it is a step down from last week. It's a good rendition but his voice didn't fit the song as planned, and PLEASE do not get me started on his rapping. The thought was nice, and the rhyme scheme was creative, but it was poorly executed. Overall, I would have to say that he did a good enough job to stay, but not good enough to really stand out.

#2: Paige Thomas "Take My Breath Away" (Movie: Top Gun)
Side Note: Never seen Top Gun before *hides behind shield*. Regarding this performance, I know I said that for the most part she is very rocky with her vocals but this performance is a whole new ballgame. I do not know what she drank in the water, but almost everything was on cue. Her vocals were amazing, the theatrics of her being lowered down were amazing, it almost added up....almost. In a sense, I was hoping for more in the actual stage presence, but in the end the improvement in vocals saved this and I loved it, and I think it was a job well done.

#3: Vino Alan "When a Man Loves a Woman" (Movie: When a Man Loves a Woman)
Oh My God...I think I died and went to heaven. The downside was that his performance was very bland, as much as I hate to admit it, BUT the key is that his voice saved his ass. I can listen to his rendition so many times, and it was just beautiful.

#4: Emblem3 "My Girl/California Girls" (Movies: My Girl and Katy Perry: Part of Me)
Ok, here's where we run into a problem. The instrumental that was used for this was "That's What Makes You Beautiful" from One Direction. I repeat.....ONE DIRECTION. What was I calling them within these past couple of weeks? Even Demi, somebody who's judging has not been the best, brought this point up. Do not get me wrong, the mash up somewhat worked, but some of the parts were not working with the beat. Also, I said Arin's raps were whatever, but these guys....well they rhymed, so that's a start. The rap was just rushed, especially for the beat. Overall it was ok but I can see this band going bad.

#5: Beatrice Miller "Iris" (Movie: City of Angels)
No....No, No, No, No, NO!!!!!. Did I mention No? Good, well Beatrice, I hope you are happy. You took another song that I liked, and completely slaughtered it. It is hard to explain, but to have a little girl singing this is an insult enough, yet alone with her vocals. She needs to go soon, and if she isn't in the bottom 2, I will be sad.

#6: Jannel Garcia "I Love Rock and Roll" (Movie: Crossroads)
Now, I get why Demi is making her a rock chick....but this was just a bad choice. Jannel is just too clean for a song like this from Joan Jett. I liked it for what it was, and there was a portion where she was actually getting into it (Second Verse), however, it was one of her lower performances. I hope she stays, but if she does she needs to make better choices then this.

#7: Tate Stevens "Wanted Dead or Alive" (Movie: Harley Davidson and The Marlboro Man)
Now, we are back on track with my country bear. This is a true performance, based on the fact he chose a song that stuck with his strengths, he had actual stage presence, and he had some nice mark out moments as well, such as when he was trying to get the audience to shout Wanted at him and all they did was cheer....it is brilliant. Overall, I loved it, and I know he is in this to win it.

#8: Lyric145 "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" (Movie: Mary Poppins)
Ok, let me get this off my chest: Nothing to do with the song, but the stage. If you are gonna choose a song from Mary Poppins, STICK WITH MARY POPPINS! Do Not go off and choose an Alice in Wonderland theme unless you are doing a rap version of "Painting The Roses Red"....On second thought, that's a bad idea *slaps hand*. Now, on the actual performance, it is not as bad as I first thought. Granted, it is very weird to hear Mary Poppins go Hard, but here it is and it is very good for what it is. I could easily see this song on a mixtape or even as a default song on your local DDR Machine (If DDR Still exists somewhere in this world). I listen to this song now more then ever, and honestly, as bad as it is for a show like this, it is entertaining and very fun and for that I will give them a pass.

#9: Diamond White "I Have Nothing" (Movie: The Bodyguard)
So, somewhere along last weeks eliminations, they decided to pull a Melanie and bring Diamond back at the last second. According to them, she was a wildcard, Which means between her, Sister C, David Correy, and Willie Jones, they brought her back, and if that's the case, wise choice. I digress though, as this weeks performance proved both that she deserves to be here but she doesn't deserve to win. Let me explain, the song choice was beautiful, and as shown in Boot Camp, she did the song justice. HOWEVER, there are times when she is right there, and she barely misses the notes. I love her, and I honestly think that if she was given more then a week to practice these songs she would be a genius, but it is what it is. I also believe that give her a few years and she will be unstoppable, as she is practically Whitney's lost love child, but for now, I want to see how far this child can go.

#10: CeCe Frey "Eye of The Tiger" (Movie: Rocky 3)
You can somewhat combine what I said with Beatrice (No No No!) with Jannel (Should not have done this song). I will give her credit, as in the middle of the song, when it turns into a dance track, it actually becomes listenable. Overall though, the arrangement was bad, the vocals were not there, it was just the wrong song.

#11: Carly Rose Sonenclar "It Will Rain" (Movie: Breaking Dawn Part 1)
Ah, I had a feeling we were going to see Twilight somewhere in the mix. As a side note, I have always loved the Twilight soundtrack, especially the first one with Paramore's "Decode" and Linkin Parks "Leave Out All The Rest". With Carly Rose, I know she could blow this song away, and I was not disappointed. The song built itself up from an acoustic performance until it hit an epic finale with choir and all. I love Carly, and hope she has a future after this show, win or lose.

#12: Jason Brock "I Believe I Can Fly" (Movie: Space Jam)
First off, to choose a song from Space Jam is ballsy, although it pains me that he didn't choose the rap. On a serious note, I am sad that he went with this and not Monica's "For You I Will", because that would have fitted his voice a little more in my eyes, but instead he sings R. Kelly's song with the same background they used last year for the finale when Melanie Amaro sang that song. With that said, I liked it, and it certainly wasn't the worse of the night, I just couldn't take his performance serious. I like him, but this was just there for me.

#13: Fifth Harmony (Formerly 1432) "A Thousand Years" (Movie: Breaking Dawn Part 1)
Oy, what is with all the teenage girls going with Twilight? Robert, don't answer that. So, after all these transformations from Lylas to 1432 and now finally Fifth Harmony, I have to say I love this name, it actually sticks for the group. Not only does it have an official-ness to it, and there are 5 members of the group....The harmonies are what make this group. As solo artists, they are incredible, but as a harmonic group they are an army. I can legit see them towards the end, and dare I say they might be the next Pussycat Dolls in their impact into pop music.

Singoff: CeCe Frey (W) vs. Jason Brock (L)
CeCe chose "You Haven't Seen The Last of Me" from Cher, while Jason chose the always fabulous "Total Eclipse of The Heart" from Bonnie Tyler. This is the second time both of them have been in this position, especially from last week mind you. On CeCe, this was a very emotional performance and even with a few scratches in her voice, this was an amazing live performance, especially for survival. As for Jason, this was a song made for his type of voice, especially in the final moments. There was a moment where he needed to catch up to the timing, but he played it off well. The vote went to deadlock as follows: Demi sending home Jason (protecting her act), L.A. sending home CeCe (protecting his act), Britney sending home CeCe (Either as a big fan of Jason and/or doesn't like CeCe) and Simon sending home Jason (Either as a big fan of CeCe and/or wanting to see what America thought). No matter what, it was a right choice to send it to deadlock, but America got it wrong in the sense of who was on bottom. CeCe should be counting her lucky stars.

Well, until next week guys, here are my Top 12 revised, and again I am not changing no matter how good or bad an act is. See ya next week guys.

My Rankings of The Top 12 (Plus Diamond, Minus Jason)
1. Carly Rose Sonenclair
2. Vino Alan
3. Emblem3
4. Lyric 145
5. Tate Stevens
6. Diamond White
7. CeCe Frey
8. Fifth Harmony
9. Arin Ray
10. Jannel Garcia
11. Beatrice Miller
12. Paige Thomas
If you have any opinions or comments, please let me know at Slackercub@yahoo.com.