Sunday, October 9, 2016

X Factor UK 13: Top 12

Yikes. What a disaster!

I don't know. This season showed SO MUCH promise with fantastic contestants from Caitlyn Vanbeck, Samantha Antkinson, Christian Burrows, Matt Terry, Olivia Garcia, Janet Grogan, James Wilson, and we end up with this group? This has become a complete circus.

Ok. I'm not saying there's no talent left. I'm still keeping an open mind about things, but I'm not holding my breath for outstanding performances in the likes of Louisa Johnson, Leona Lewis, or James Arthur. This will be a loooong season. I can sense it. Haha.

Oh, and Brooks Way were axed from the show hours before the live shows! Wow.

On with the show!

11. Bratavio

Boom Boom Boom / Barbie Girl
[GROUPS]
No words. 1

10. Honey G
California Love
[OVERS]
Can't take Honey G seriously - the same way with Bratavio - but at least there's some semblance of.. wait, who am I kidding? This was awful! 2

09. Emily Middlemass
Closer
[GIRLS]
I had so much high hopes for Emily as I really thought she was the strongest in her category with a clear vision of who she is as an artist, but this song choice was baffling to me. It sounded incredibly karaoke - far from who she really is - the verses were pitched to a lower key and when the performance picked up, she was all of a sudden at the edge of her upper range. Disappointing. 3.5

08. Sam Lavery
Impossible
[GIRLS]
While this was miles better than Emily, Sam's version of Impossible was lackluster. There's a certain texture to her vocals that I really liked, but it was non-existent here. Plus, I agree with Simon that she was shouting the notes towards the end. Sigh. 4.5

07. Freddy Parker
Killing Me Softly
[BOYS]
He sounded good on the piano, but everything just went straight to hell when he decided to stand up and work the stage. It was completely useless as he was just woo-ing endlessly and no lyrics was actually uttered. He could've had a very raw and vulnerable performance, but it didn't happen. 5

06. Ryan Lawrie
Perfect
[BOYS]
Decent, but forgettable. Yes, he sounded okay with the song and some of his melodic choices were neat, but I felt like he got lost in the mix. Is it better to be bad and memorable than decent but forgettable in X Factor? I'm not so sure. 5

05. 5 After Midnight
Can't Stop The Feeling
[GROUPS]
Not a big fan of the group, but this was quite good - relatively to the others, at the very least. I don't like that they relied heavily on the backing track to support the vocals with their dancing, but I digress. 5.5

04. Gifty Louise
That's My Girl
[GIRLS]
Like 5 After Midnight, Gifty was lucky that she had a strong backtrack to support the chorus, but in terms of the overall performance, I genuinely enjoyed it. I thought he had enough swagger to pull of the song choice, her verses were solid, and the little choreography in the middle was a nice touch. 6.5

03. Relley C
Shackles (Praise You)
[OVERS]
There's no denying the fact that Relley C provided the best vocal performance of the night - her pitch was the most consistent - and she looked like she was having fun while doing it, but I can't shake off the feeling that's she's not distinct enough to actually standout in the real world. I felt like I've seen this performance countless times and she needs to be more than just a good singer. 7

02. Matt Terry
You Don't Own Me
[BOYS]
Not sure about the song choice, to be quite frank, but Matt made the most out of it. I thought his transition to a much higher register gave it some oomph and that made a huge impact to his overall performance. He kind of lost me towards the end as he did vocal tricks that weren't really necessary, but that's me nitpicking. Also, his tone reminds me of Adam Lambert. 7

01. Saara Aalto
Let It Go
[OVERS]
I dread Let It Go on reality singing shows as they usually turn out to be a complete disaster, but the theatrical take on the song gave Saara some much needed space for reinterpretation. I thought her vocals were astounding, her range was great, and there's a total immersion from the performance. Do I think it's something I would hear on the radio? Not at all, but her performance was riveting to say the least. 7.5


WHO SHOULD GO HOME?
Bratavio

WHO WILL GO HOME?
Sam Lavery

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