Canadian Idol 6 - Episode 013

Tonight is Part 2 of the final 16. At the start of the episode Judge Jake Gold has this to say about Part 1: “Last night’s performances by and large, outside of a couple of them, were pretty lame.”

For a class that started as the most talented in Canadian Idol history, the performances that will determine the final 10 performers of Canadian Idol 6 have not been impressive to date. Will tonight make up for that?

Mitch MacDonald starts us off with the J-Hawks’ Blue, a great, under-rated and under-aired tune. He gets points for song choice, but not for performance. His falsetto doesn’t crack to break your heart, the way the song needs. In fact, his throat sounds really tight, like he’s got a bad case of nerves. Jake wonders what the hell Mitch is doing. Sass and Farley are kinder, but Zack points out the obvious – not a star turn. I’m colouring him gone.

Gary Morisette decides to go with House of the Rising Sun. He tries starting quiet and slow, then bringing the band in and the tempo up after 4 bars. From the blow-it-up section, on, he’s fine, but he simply cannot do subtle – the opening 4 bars are flat to tuneless, the rest of the song is the same emotional note all the way through. Don’t think we’ll be seeing Gary next week. Hey Gare – I’m serious about you hooking up with Costelli and hitting the road.

Katelyn Dawn tries on The Cranberries’ Zombie, leather pants substituting for attitude. She doesn’t evoke the overwhelming sorrow and dread of the original, but she’s not horrible and she is an attractive young female. She’ll be back.

Oliver Pigott starts Lean On Me a bit off and he has a communication problem between himself and the rest of the band when the song switches to the swing section (“You might call me, brother…). This guy lost a lot when he put down the guitar and I’m starting to think he better pick it back up pretty soon or he’s going to find himself watching little brother Sebastian on the hotel TV.

Speaking of whom; Sebastian does Sam Cooke’s Bring It On Home. He’s sticking with the suit coat look he adopted two weeks ago. He gives the camera a come-hither look that visibly weakens the knees of the woman I watch the show with. He plays with the background singers and owns the stage without pissing on the poles. Farley calls him, “The first real sex symbol we’ve had on this show,” and he is.

Earl Stevenson takes on Dylan’s Like a Rollin Stone. Between him and Mookie, they have the soul supply cornered, what with their loose shoulders and gangly bodies. Zack calls him “One of only two people in this grouping that I would go out and see.”

Insert Gillette product placement here.

Katherine St. Laurent does every chick’s favorite Karaoke tune, Love is a Battlefield. As 50% of the female contingent for this group, she may squeak into the top ten alongside Katelyn. But for myself, I won’t miss her if she gets left behind.

Now Drew Wright is a guy I have ignored like no one else in this competition. He sings The Reason tonight and there’s nothing particularly wrong with his performance or his voice, but this guy simply does not inspire me. He doesn’t irritate me enough to complain about, which is more than I can say for some of the others, but that surely isn’t sufficient reason to let him take up space in the top ten.

So that’s it. I’m calling for Drew, Mitch and Gary from tonight and Adam, Mark and and Marie-Pierre from last night to be the losers of tomorrow night’s results show. Talk at you right afterward.