Posts tagged singing competition
Take The Poll: What’s Your Favorite Music Competition Show?
Nov 4th
Hey everyone – it’s Poll time here again at Remote Patrolled. Last time around we asked you to name your favorite new show of the Fall.
The result – The X Factor was our outright winner with 32%, with Revenge following behind in second place with 23%. I have to say though – Revenge gets better and better every week – so who knows where it would have placed a couple of months down the line…
For our next poll we’re sticking with the X Factor – a little. The question is simple – what’s your favorite music competition show?
Now I would have to say The X Factor personally, and that’s not just because it’s the new kid on the block. I’ve been following the Brit version for years and I just think the show is a more interesting format than the other singing contests out there – I love the idea of groups vs kids vs older performers. Plus I love all the OTT production which is so much more interesting to me than a singer simply stuck on a stage on their own.
I USED to love American Idol – but season 9 (Simon’s last) was wobbly – and season 10 was a disaster. More >
Quick Take: American Idol ‘Carole King Night’
Apr 28th
Question time. Are you still watching American Idol? And if you are can you honestly tell me you’re invested in this year’s contestants? Do you really care who wins?
I ask the question because honestly I’m puzzled as to how anyone can say they’re as committed this season as in years past. I’m not saying the likes of Scotty, Lauren and James aren’t talented – just that I’m finding it very hard to emotionally invest in this season. In recent years I was really rooting for the likes of David Cook, Adam Lambert and Crystal Bowersox and genuinely excited to see what they would perform each week. But this year I’m finding myself reaching for the fast forward button with ever increasing frequency. Idol season 10 is a big old bore…
Sure last year wasn’t much better but at least in previous seasons you could rely on Simon Cowell to deliver a ruthless assessment every few songs. But this year’s judges are getting worse by the week. Steven Tyler is now officially a total waste of time. I don’t think he’s given a single critical – or constructive – note all season. Every performance is ‘perfect’, ‘great’ or ‘amazing’. It’s like he’s More >
The Voice: First Impressions
Apr 27th
Okay everyone – here we go!
NBC’s The Voice premiered last night on NBC and later today we’ll get the first ratings in. So will the show be a big old bomb as I predicted or will American Idol finally have some competition on its hands?
Personally I think the show will debut to decent numbers – around 8 million viewers and a 3.2 18-49 share – but just like Paula Abdul’s Live To Dance it’ll slip week after week and be dead by the start of summer. I’m afraid I still stick by many of the comments in my original post – and with Fox scheduling a 90 minute Glee as a spoiler I think there’s an additional reason the show may struggle in the ratings. But what about the show itself – was it any good.
So here’s the thing – I watched about 45 minutes of The Voice last night and thought it was okay. It’s certainly not a train wreck and the format itself – with its revolving chairs – played less goofy that I thought it would.
American Idol: And In 7th Places It’s…
Apr 22nd
Hey everyone – I’m back again after a short break and straight into American Idol land….
Yep, and for the first time in a good few seasons I actually missed Wednesday night’s performance show – and wouldn’t you know it, the contestants finally took on some modern music after weeks of hackneyed themes like Songs From The Year You Were Born, Elton John Week and Motown Week.
Still, even though I missed Wednesday’s show I heard all about Hayley taking on Adele’s Rolling In The Deep, Jacob tackling Luther Vandross (again) and Casey planting a kiss on J. Lo… come to think of it maybe I didn’t miss much!
I must say though it was actually quite refreshing watching the Results Show having not seen any of the week’s performance episode. Not that that results were exactly surprising of course. Hayley, Jacob and Stefano ended up in the bottom 3, while James, Lauren and Scotty haven’t made a single trip to the Silver Stools. As for Casey – well I’m still not sure he’s convinced America that they got it wrong in Week 3 in sending him packing. I think we all know where the Judges’ Save should have gone!
More >
American Idol: The First Guy Heads Home
Apr 15th
No great shockers on the American Idol front last night as fading rocker Paul McDonald found himself the first male contestant of the season to be eliminated.
I was a fan of Paul at the start of the live shows but for me never really lived up to his potential and became somewhat of a one trick pony. There was the Russell Brand style dancing, the rose covered suits, the permanent grin and the good, but never great, vocals. Plus I didn’t really care for the songs Paul picked – Ryan Adams, seriously?
That said Paul had a really winning personality and was good for the mix of the show – so I wish him the best. I honestly don’t think we’ll hear much from him again (essentially he’s the new Michael Johns, who also finished in 8th place back in Season 7) but who knows, stranger things have happened in Idol history! Plus he’s perfect for a teeth whitening endorsement deal…
Quick Take: American Idol – Songs From The Movies
Apr 14th
So here’s the big question from this week’s American Idol – do you think Fox can get a refund out of Steven, Jennifer and Randy’s agents?
I’m thinking such a deal should at least be on the table because when it comes to actual ‘judging’ this year’s panel of JUDGES should be sued for false advertising.
Seriously did you hear, once again, the endless stream of drivel that came out of all three judges’ mouths? If this was the first American Idol you’d ever watched you might be wondering why every performance was ‘amazing’, ‘perfect’, ‘beautiful’ – when your eyes and ears clearly told you they weren’t! But in this season’s kindler, gentler Idol all the rules have changed and the bar is lower than ever… unless you’re a girl of course!
Yep, hot on the heels of last week’s controversial Pia Toscano elimination the ONLY contestant to get any kind of negative note last night was Hayley, whose version of Blondie’s Call Me certainly wasn’t perfect – but also wasn’t that bad. Hayley definitely deserved some criticism but was she really the ONLY contestant who did anything wrong last night?
American Idol: The Most Shocking Elimination EVER!
Apr 8th
Yep, you read that headline correctly – and I’m not taking it back!
Sure we’ve seen some stunning Idol results over the years – Jennifer Hudson‘s 7th place finish, Chris Daughtry finishing 4th behind eventual winner Taylor Hicks, heck even Crystal Bowersox losing out to Lee Dewyze last season…. but I don’t think any result has been quite as crazy as last night’s Idol. How on earth did front-runner Pia Toscano end up getting eliminated and in a lowly 9th place? That’s just an INSANE decision America!
Okay’s so Pia’s performance of River Deep Mountain High on Wednesday night could have done with a little more work in the stage presence department – a note helpfully passed along by Jennifer Lopez. But come on, vocally Pia was spot on – as she has been all season long. For my money Pia was the most vocally gifted contestant of the season – and also the most commercial. If she had won – which I thought was a very strong possibility – Idol could have once again had a winner who sold records. Imagine that!
Quick Take: American Idol ‘Hall Of Fame Night’
Apr 7th
Is American Idol still relevant anymore?
That was the question I asked myself last night while watching the latest episode of the Fox musical juggernaut.
You see, it wasn’t that any of the contestants were especially bad this week – there have been surprisingly few train wrecks this season (sadly). But I’m also finding it curiously hard to get excited about anyone this year. And that’s partly the singers’ fault – and also the show itself.
Yep, hot on the heels of Motown Week and Elton John Week, tone deaf EP Nigel Lythgoe decided to serve up Rock And Rock Hall of Fame Week, which of course resulted in covers of Elvis, The Beatles, Tina Turner and Johnny Cash. All classic artists and undeniable music legends – but do they really mean anything to today’s record buying public? And how can you produce a fresh take on songs that have been covered over and over again?
American Idol: Has Season 10 Already Peaked?
Apr 4th
Is it time to put the champagne corks away on this season of American Idol?
After slavish and gushing reviews in the likes of Entertainment Weekly and Rolling Stone and some great ratings that proved that Simon Cowell wasn’t the king of the Idol universe we all assumed him to be, the general consensus is that Idol is BACK – and better than ever.
But is it really?
I’ve made no secret of the fact that I’ve had an up and down relationship with Idol this season. I thought the opening show of Season 10 was terrible – the new judges were uncomfortable, Simon’s absence was acutely felt, too many weak contestants were passed through and the format felt tired. I honestly thought the show was dead.
But then as the auditions progressed my old love for Idol started to return. The judges started to settle in and found some interesting talents along the way. By Hollywood Week I was hooked once again. Group Night was terrific TV and most of all Idol was offering us some really exciting talents – a huge step up on last year’s dreary bunch (remember Andrew Garcia, Casey James and Tim Urban. Exactly). And to be fair the live shows More >
American Idol: Naima Adedapo and Thia Megia Eliminated
Apr 1st
And then there were 9…
Following last week’s Casey Abrams elimination and the resultant Judges’ Save it was a tense night for the remaining American Idol contestants as the prospect of a Double Elimination loomed large.
Unfortunately we as viewers weren’t given the power to eliminate Jamie Foxx and Will.I.Am who stank up a portion of the Idol Results Show with a noisy, chaotic song from the Rio movie soundtrack. Seriously Jamie – you’re an Oscar winning actor – stay in your lane! Oh and some vocal lessons wouldn’t hurt either… man, that was a brutal performance. (more…)
