This was more like Picnic At Hanging Rock than anything approximating to Rock Night. Only Josh and Marcus seemed to stick to the schedule and only Josh with any real conviction. Marcus stared up rock chicks' pants and Stacy scared the pants off viewers with a dreadfully off-key act which must surely see Stacy not stay. Drew and Melanie did REM and U2 anthems pretty damn well and impressed us but not with their abilities to rock with Simon playing oh-so-safe tonight.
Rachel did the Stones and did a great version that was rock but was just wrong which was a shame but it probably doesn't matter as she'll get plenty of votes from all the people who don't care much about whether an artist means what they're singing. Astro really won the show and, if Drew, Josh and Melanie allow him to keep stealing the show, he may have won the $5 million. My guess is that he's won a contract already.
Leroy
He's the right age to have lived with real rock when it was taking off. We've Got Tonight did eventually get going but never really struck me as more than a smart ballad - which he is very good at doing, of course. The bit where he was supposed to let go and roar a bit more was a bit of a let down and at one point he glanced across at one of the backing musicians as if to check whether he was OK to sing the next line. It was a clean, well-tuned performance but nothing that anyone would rush out and buy and certainly not download. I have to agree with LA and Simon's comment "You can't win this competition." But he'll enjoy being part of the top ten, which ain't bad going when you think about it.
♫8 ☼4
Rachel
How on earth can a tiny 12 year old (OK, she's 14 but that doesn't really affect the image) sing I Can't Get No Satisfaction? Well, in terms of the notes and style, very well indeed - and it's not as easy as you'd think with some tricky low notes in there. She can put on a great act and, although it was a little bit lacking in the intensity that Sir Mick can still bring to it, she got our attention and is looking popular. My problem is that she isn't an adult and just cannot possibly deliver the emotion needed to make any sense of tracks like this. It's all wrong and I'd far rather go and watch Leroy singing this - but that's not saying a great deal either. This girl needs to have fun or, if it has to be a slow one, it has to be about something believable for her. For all that she'll sail through to the next round.
♫8 ☼7½
Chris
Everything's Going To Be all Right / No Woman, No Cry
Rock steady or reggae night? Must have misheard the intro. Oh well, never mind. Everything shouldn't be all right as this was pretty boring and just went on with the occasional uh, uhh which seems to be a prerequisite of stuff like this. I don't really know how he's managed to get this far. I', not sure about the Occupy Wall St T-shirt going down too well, either. After all, where does he think the $5 million's going to come from at the end of the day? It's time he went but there's another seven acts to follow and one of them might be bad enough to keep him doing the uh uhh stuff for another week. One who won't will be Astro who does all this far, far better - and with more style and originality by miles - and I don't see the voting public spending money on both for long.
♫7 ☼3
Stacy
It's all Coming Back To Me Now
Although you get the impression that she's a good singer, she hits a weird variety of notes on this number and it's actually quiet painful to listen to. She has an expression that's not pleasant on the eye either. The second baby in the screeched baby, baby bit was way, way off-key. Meatloaf would not be a happy man listening to that. In fact, she may well have blown her chances of getting any further.
♫3 ☼4½
Melanie
Everybody Hurts
I was worried for a moment when Simon announced that he had a very personal relationship with Melanie having been inside her home, the last word coming as some relief. This fabulous track is no rock track and Simon is certainly being very cheeky putting this on this week but (a) it's a sure-fire vote winner and (b) Melanie created real atmosphere around the words, heading even towards jazz at one point and out-gospeling Stacy briefly too. The ending wasn't good. It just stopped, neither at one point or another. In a way, because the REM track is just so wonderful and meaningful, comparisons are seldom likely to be good. and that says a lot - it has to be someone with a special talent that can take a track like theirs and make it truly great. We've seen people in the past who can do that on American Idol and X Factor UK in past years. So I was disappointed that Melanie didn't take the opportunity Simon had given her to join that small club. No problem staying another week, though.
♫8½ ☼7½
Josh
What Did I Say
The Foo Fighters number worked well for him. At last - a real rock song on Rock Night! It may not have been anywhere near my favourite rock tracks of the century but he was good. Not fantastic, but good, and will be safely through to a round where we can see him seek another special and memorable performance to match some of his better ones to date. For all that he's a potential winner.
♫8 ☼8
Astro
Every Step I Take (or whatever)
To the sound of The Police's classic backing he raps away on top and it actually works pretty well. In fact, it worked tremendously well. Well done to the little kid, showing Rachel how it should be done. LA has also managed to age him several years which can only do him a lot of good. Smart kid, smart choice. Another definite contender now but a star, come what may. I don't recall saying that in any previous competition.
♫9 ☼10
Lakoda Rayne
You Can Go Your Own Way
I didn't recognise the start of this at all and was worrying that there could be a third group going home but it did eventually turn into the highly recognisable Fleetwood Mac track. The four girls - and we got a chance to get to know a bit more about them for the first time too - looked good and sounded together and, at last, looked as though they were enjoying themselves. It wasn't great and we're still waiting for that special performance from them but, with a bit of luck (and there are several far less deserving acts to get rid of before them) they'll get another chance next week. Each has quite a sparkling personality and great natural looks and you get the feeling that each of them is itching to give it all but they hold backin order to stick to the group rules laid down. Set them free and I reckon they'll surprise us all.
♫7½ ☼7
Drew
With Or Without You
I'm really hoping for something special from Drew. It's been a pretty average night with only Astro setting the place alight so far. U2 were a rock band, for sure, although this was more of an anthem but I loved her interpretation of it. She was gentle and remained in her style all the way through. To be absolutely honest I was hoping she'd erupt and really break out at the end and show how she can be exciting and run with the tune too and make it go where it wants too instead of controlling it so much. But that was good, not inspiringly good, but good enough all the same. She'll be back.
♫8 ☼8½
Marcus
Take Another piece Of My Heart
So Marcus gets to close the show. Janis Joplin still does this like no-one else can but, in a set dressed as hell and some slinky dancers to distract him and us, Marcus put on a good show. He looked comfortable on a big stage and can easily handle that part of being a star. The voice was in tune and he did well. I just didn't believe a word of it - all just show. However, that's the business he's in and it's probably not fair to knock him for doing as he's told. The amusing thing was that, as LA described him - a PK (preacher's kid) - things like scantily clad girls don't seem to be something he was that keen on his parents watching him perform with. So when the show had him starting off by sliding on his back through the open legs of about a dozen girls wearing tiny shorts on a black set lit solely by flames you tended to forget whatever he was singing and wonder what he saw and what his parents thought of it! He'll be around for a while yet and this may just be one of those performances we don't bother about too much.
♫8 ☼8
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