Thursday, November 22, 2012

X Factor US 2: Top 10

Was the theme "SONGS THAT WILL MAKE YOU CRY UNCONTROLLABLY"? This episode was annoying emotional with full of tears and sob stories. I don't understand! Anyway, the performances were ranging from strange to good, but that's about it. I'm completely changing my opinion on these talent shows and suddenly backing up The Voice than this show for one reason that can be described as: TALENT. Haha.

Anyway, on to the rankings!

10. Cece Frey
Wind Beneath My Wings
I seriously cannot handle Cece on ballads. Why sing songs that are way to big for your range? It's like Justin Bieber doing opera. Yes, she did put a lot of emotion into the performance, but her vocals were all over the place. It was way out of her range, she hit a couple of bad notes midway and her vocals were shaky. She did better than last week's disaster, but that's not saying much. Maybe Cece really has ZERO control over her voice no? 4/10

09. Arin Ray
Hero
While he did improve from last week's Crazy For You travesty, I thought he slightly struggled still with this Enrique Iglesias song. I felt like there was a huge disconnect between this ballad and Arin's smooth R&B inflections. I also think Arin has a bad habit of being unable to catch his breath after every verse making his gasps audible. I don't know. He did better, but not good enough. 4.5/10

08. Tate Stevens
I'm Already There
If you've seen one Tate performance, then you've seen it all. Haha. I can't deny the fact that he's a good vocalist and he actually sounded good with this song. However, his voice just doesn't provide any versatility. Add to that the shoddy arrangement that made the whole performance a little lackluster. Tate will be back next week, so my opinion doesn't matter. Haha. 5/10

07. Vino Alan
God Bless The USA
The song that saved Kristy Lee Cook from elimination during her American Idol run. Haha. Look, Vino sounded good as usual, but this was the cheesiest song EVER and I don't know if I'll be able to evaluate this song objectively. I just can't. Oh, and why did he sing this like he's angry or something? I like that he has found the flaws in the voting system and exploiting them with this song choice. Haha. 5.5/10

06. Paige Thomas
Everytime
How come they criticized Paige for her emotions during the performance and Cece got a pass? True, she did choke towards the end and sounded muffled, but  the first half of her performance sounded incredible. Paige definitely won me over since her Take My Breathe Away and it's such a shame that even her mentor can't compliment her. Sad. 6/10

05. Fifth Harmony
I'll Stand By You
This was good, but a tad underwhelming. These girls need to learn how to harmonize fast because I'm beginning to feel like Fifth Harmony is just an excuse to keep five contestants in the show at once. This performance proved that they can sing gorgeously as individuals, but they're just that - 5 solo singing who occasionally harmonize. Oh, and with five voices, I didn't understand the need for a gospel choir. 6/10

04. Beatrice Miller
Chasing Cars
I know now what's wrong with Beatrice. This kid just doesn't seem to have a lot of skill and full control of her voice. She has a beautiful tone and she always sounds good when it's within her range, but gets terrible when she wants to go for a power note. Her Chasing Cars rendition was vocally uneven, but she sounded brilliant on the verse - when she's not straining - and the emotions were palpable. Still not completely buying the whole "alt rock chick" vibe going on, but whatever. 6.5/10

03. Emblem 3
Secrets
The vocals were shaky in parts and they were too lackadaisical in their delivery, but they sounded nice with an arrangement that's in their usual jam. I would've liked something more emotional and I know they could've done better, but I digress. At least, they didn't go ballad on us. 6.5/10

02. Carly Rose Sonenclar
Over The Rainbow
Vocally, Carly Rose is above and beyond everyone else that it's not even close. I thought her rendition of Over The Rainbow was sublime, her vocals were utterly stunning and the arrangement was probably the best way to showcase her talent. Plus, the vocals dynamics were spot on and she just nailed those hard notes with such consistency and precision. If only she was able to connect with the song as good as Diamond, she would've been the best. 8/10

01. Diamond White
Because You Loved Me
I've NEVER been a fan of Diamond White - just read my previous reviews prior to the live shows - but she's slowly making her way to the top. This, to me, was the best I've heard her sing. I was about to criticize her for singing another diva ballad, but I wasn't mad for this because she just sang the living daylights out of this Celine Dion song. Her vocals were gorgeous, her pitch was on point, the liberties she took - especially towards that last note - was impressive and she was emotionally connected with the material. Impressive stuff. 8.5/10


PREDICTION
Who should go home?
Cece Frey
Arin Ray
Who will go home?
Arin Ray
Paige Thomas

2 comments:

dizzygirl said...

poor arin. aside from the terrible song choice, he also had the most forgettable sob story.

and omg, cece was beyond horrible! i understand why the judges gave her a pass though, but they should've done the same for paige.

only performance i liked was carly's.

sidenote: britney has like 20 words in her vocabulary. and chloe? wth is she giving comments like she's the 5th judge? she's so awkward.

X said...

Ok, so I'm convinced that you and I are watching 2 different shows. I thought this was one of the best nights for almost all the contestants.

Carly Rose was by FAR the best of the night though. I got goosebumps with that performance. I can't believe she's only 13. She's amazing every week, but I think this was her best so far. Everything about it was spot-on.

As for Diamond... it was good, but I don't think it was any better than any of her other performances.

Cece vs Paige - they gave Cece a pass because her vocals only cracked a little because of the emotions. Paige flat out fell apart for the whole last half of the song. I will admit that the first half of Paige's song was easily her best... you can't completely fall apart and expect to get good comments from the judges. I personally think she should have gone home... but I'm guessing she got pity votes.

As for the rest... Vino and Emlem3 probably gave their best performances so far. Tate was Tate.
Fifth Harmony harmonized throughout the whole song, so I'm not sure what you're talking about there. I do agree with the choir thing though... don't understand it.

Beatrice and Arin both suffer from poor song choice, yet again (I blame it on Britney).

I'm not going to rate them aside from saying my #1 was Carly Rose and my #10 was Paige.

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