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MMTV: Mediocre Music TV
Edition #9: The X Factor Live Week 1 (Live
Show/Results)
Written by: Wences Acosta
Now, here is a very interesting situation. The first week of Live Shows
have past and I feel....very underwhelmed. These are the shows that make
or break a contestant, and yet it just doesn't have the same feeling
that it did last year. Let me start off with where the show went right,
then where it went wrong (which is one major thing), and then I will go
to the actual acts.
The Good: First off, I love the hype for when
a contestant is going to come out. The color of an act as they are
posing before their black and white picture comes out is brilliant. I
also like the set lights after an act performs, as instead of the
classic lights zooming in on the act, they do what I call The Seizure
Lights which is just the lights flickering back and forth. This is
somewhat the same way they are doing it in The U.K. this year (where the
background statics until it is back to normal).
The Bad: Oh, is
this bad....First off, they attempted at doing a "Halloween" show, but
all they did was a few light effects. That only compares barely to the
pain we have to sit through with our lovely co hosts. Mario Lopez I can
forgive because as I have mentioned previously I have seen his work on
ABDC and he is a very decent host. Sometimes he misses but for the most
part he knows what he is doing. Khloe on the other hand, well that's a
donkey of a different color. I had small hopes that she wouldn't be as
annoying as her sisters, after all I never watch their shows such as
"Keeping Up With..." or "... Take New York", but I had faith that X
Factor would hire someone who could at least pass an audition. By the
looks of things, she had to have put out for someone, because Khloe has
only 2 emotions: Lost or Prompt Reading. She either has NO idea what she
is saying or she clearly is looking at a Prompt. Another thing that bugs
me even though it is supposed to be a good thing, is she likes to cause
drama. Let me explain, Natural Drama such as when Simon feuds with a
fellow judge is what this show runs on....Forced Drama such as Khloe
asking Demi which member of 1432 (Lylas Version 2) was the "good one" or
asking which song Simon would choose for Willie Jones, that is just
annoying. I want to like her, but she is making this experience very
painful.
Now, let me get to the actual acts, where this show
really fails. There are very few acts that shine from Good to Awesome,
Maybe 2 or 3 acts that are just Meh and not memorable at all, and then
the rest are very VERY crappy. Let me just dive in with each of the
categories...
Demi Lovato and The Teens:
#1: Jannel
Garcia "Home Sweet Home" One of the best acts in this night, as
shocking as it is to hear from me. I was willing to write off Jannel
because her personality went downhill, and she had a very bad version of
"I Kissed a Girl" last round, however....Tonight was just her night. She
chose a perfect song that I did not expect, she did it quite well and
out of all the acts I would rank her towards the top. Well Done Jannel,
you have made me a believer.
#2: CeCe Frey "Because The Night"
This was a Meh performance. On one hand, I loved the song choice, I had
not heard it before this night and I liked the rendition that was done.
However, her overall presentation and the way she executed it was very
forgettable. I will not take anything away from her though, and say this
was in the middle of the pack.
#3: Paige Thomas "What Is Love?"
Now, do not get me wrong, I love the song choice 100 percent and her
outfit was fabulous. As cruel as it sounds, the downfall began when she
opened her mouth. The song started on the right track but then slowly
derailed as the tempo picked up. I want to give her props for trying
this, but I will not be shocked if she ends up in the bottom 2.
#4: Willie Jones "Here For The Party" Ok, I seem to have mistook
Willie's talent for something else. Actually no, there is someone to
blame here and that is Ms. Demi Lovato. Willie showed he can do country,
but Demi had him do a song that was not his personality and was
practically a sabotage in her own category. He needs to go.
Singoff: CeCe (W) vs. Willie (L) CeCe chose "Out Here On My Own" from
Fame (You Go Girl!) while Willie chose "You Don't Know Me" from Eddy
Arnold. CeCe should not have been in the bottom though I can see why she
ended up there, while Willie, as mentioned before, needed to pull out
something amazing to stay in the game. CeCe had a very emotional
performance that had me on the edge of my seats, while Willie didn't. Do
not get me wrong, it was one of his better performances, but against
CeCe this just wasn't his night. After last nights fiasco, I am glad
Demi made the right choice.
L.A. Reid and The Over Agers:
#1: Tate Stevens "Tough" *sigh*. Tate, my little country bear, this
week, at least in his category, he was the best. Overall, he was just in
the middle of the pack but let me explain. He came out and did a
practical country song, and while it wasn't the best this week, it
proves that he is the best when it comes to Country. I will give him
credit on that,
#2: Vino Alan "Gotta Be Somebody" I was
honestly debating where to put Vino. On one hand, he sang a Nickelback
song worse then the original (which is saying something), yet on the
other hand the other 2 members of his team sucked. In the end, this is
where he placed, where it wasn't the fact he was good, it was just David
and Jason were worse. It pains me to say this, and I honestly hope he
steps his game up in the coming weeks.
#3: Jason Brock "Dance
Again" Ok, I get that Jason wanted to go for the glitter explosion,
but that was just a failed facepalm. I love the original song (even with
Pitbull), and I want to say I was entertained in the beginning, but in
my mind this performance just lasted too long.
#4: David Correy
"Your Love is My Love" Where do I begin? He could have changed the
arrangement to fit his own personality but chose to go with the
original, and to me it just seems like the moment he stepped into the
Live Shows, he became a major douche. I hope he learned his lesson
Singoff: David (L) vs. Jason (W) David chose "Since You've Been
Gone" from Kelly Clarkson, while Jason chose "One Moment in Time" from
(ironically) Whitney Houston. I liked David's performance believe it or
not. Sure it was a bit whiny but honestly he did here what he should
have done for Whitney. HOWEVER: THAT IS HOW YOU DO A WHITNEY SONG! Good
Gay God, Jason completely hit a homerun here and it really is no
surprise that David lost. Once again, it was a good choice and this time
in L.A.'S category
Britney Spears and The Young Adults:
1.
Arin Ray "Keeps Me Hanging On" This is how you do it! He made the
song his own, the dubstep mixed with piano instrumental was done
brilliantly. and his presence just screams out "Mini Usher" which in
this case is a good thing.
2. Diamond White "Hey Soul Sister"
Ah, Diamond, is there anything you can not do?. I liked her rendition if
this song, even if it wasn't the best in her category (I ranked her 3rd
best of the night), It was a little shaky, but the transitions in the
beat from down low to upbeat is great, and her confidence towards the
end shined especially in her "I Want The World To See" section. Well
done Diamond.
3. Carly Rose Sonenclar "Good Feeling/Somethings
Got a Hold On Me" Ok, I know I have Carly Rose for the win, but
listen to me just for a second. I have tried to like the performance,
but the thing is her voice, while absolutely stunning, does not match up
with the dancers and everything else Britney hooked her up with. Also,
in a way, I LOVE her voice for "Good Feeling", but the other half of the
song fell flat. I like her, and there is no doubt she has staying power,
but every good girl has a bad day.
4. Beatrice Miller "I Won't
Give Up" After re watching her performance, I will say it is not as
bad as I thought it was. Granted it is still bad, especially when
compared to the others in her group, but not that bad. I will say this
much, the main reason I hated this performance was the vulnerability
factor of it all. Usually it is a good thing, but it worked against her.
When she is strong, oh boy is she strong, but for the most part when she
is singing low, part of me just wants her to speak up and take control
and she doesn't.
Sigoff: Arin Ray (W) vs. Diamond White (L)
Arin Ray chose "I Look To You" from Whitney Houston, while Diamond chose
"Sorry Seems to Be The Hardest Word" from Elton John. First off,
Britney, what in the blue hell are you smoking? Whatever it is, turn it
sideways and stick it straight up your candy ass, because these 2 did
not deserve Bottom 2. Now, with that said, Arin went first, and with all
overused Whitney jokes aside, he had a good performance. Not great, not
bad, just good. It was listenable, but it wasn't a strong performance
like this song needed. Diamond on the other hand completely tore the
performance up, she didn't over do it and yet had enough strength in her
voice to make it an emotional performance. Surely between the 2, Diamond
is going to be sta,,,,GOING HOME?!? BRITNEY, SERIOUSLY WHAT THE FUCK ARE
YOU ON???. Arin's face says it all, and Diamond looks like she wants to
snap on Britney, which I would not blame her one bit. In my opinion
Britney just screwed herself.
Simon Cowell and The Groups:
1. Emblem3 "One Day" There is a reason this group is towards the
top of my list. First off to have the balls to choose a Matisyahu song
is brilliant and out of left field. This song went directly into their
style and there was no sign of failing at all. This was the performance
of the week.
2. Lyric 145 "Boom! Shake The Room/Gangnam Style"
I can almost copy and paste what I said for Carly here. These guys are a
hip hop group, and yet it feels like they are just running in Astro's
shoes. This was a good hype performance, but for actual hip hop, it was
lacking. Another BS move was the inclusion of lack of inclusion of
Gangnam Style. It would be one thing if they remixed it, but all they
did was include the chorus and move on like it never happened, as
another person would call it, it was a "Big Lipped Alligator Moment" in
which it just happened but is never mentioned again. It was entertaining
don't get me wrong, but Simon is dropping the ball here.
3.
Sister C "Hell on Heels" I think I give these girls alot more crap
then I'm supposed to. Granted, this week they stunk to high heaven in my
ears, but for their genre they are actually very good. Doesn't matter
that country is not my taste, because everyone has different tastes.
With THAT said, solo wise they are good singles, but their harmonies
suck. The only other positive that can come out is they weren't the
worse group this week...
4. 1432 "We Are Never Ever Getting Back
Together" ...that is where these girls come in. After the Lyla
fiasco, these girls became 1432 which stands for "I Love You 2". I find
it very creative considering Ray J released a song not too long ago
called 143. However, when they came out on stage, it was a total
train-wreck. I like this song, but these girls were all over the place,
one girl sang high while another sang low, the harmonies didn't match
up, I just felt sorry for these girls.
Singoff: Sister C (L) vs.
1432 (W). Sister C chose "When I Look at You" from Miley Cyrus while
1432 sang "Skyscraper" from X Factor's own Demi Lovato. First off, nice
to see someone go after a Miley song especially during a sing-off. With
that said, I liked their performance....if one of the singers didn't
kind of ruin it for me. The one who was in the middle snaps me back to
reality every time I wanted to get lost in it and I just couldn't really
get into it. As for 1432, these girls took this song and owned it. They
put each member in the right spot, they actually harmonized and sounded
like an army. To me, this just showed me that these girls can do this if
they keep it up. Simon, well done....don't drop the ball.
My Top
12 after Eliminations 1. Carly Rose Sonenclar 2. Vino Alan 3.
Emblem3 4. Lyric 145 5. Tate Stevens 6. CeCe Frey 7. 1432
8. Arin Ray 9. Jason Brock 10. Jannel Garcia 11. Beatrice
Miller 12. Paige Thomas If you have any opinions or comments,
please let me know at Slackercub@yahoo.com.
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