Jandy’s Meanderings

It’s probably something of an exercise in futility to post about Australian Idol, considering everyone I know is in the United States and it isn’t shown in the United States (and I get it via downloads of questionable legality), but I want to really badly. And then I think, well, if I don’t, no one I know will find out how great a show it is. So I will. Probably not as often or as regularly as I have American Idol and SYTYCD, but still. I seriously think that last fall’s Australian Idol spoiled me for Season Six of American Idol, because it’s a better show overall. I gave some reasons for that back here. The top twenty-four they’ve picked this year includes rockers (like you’d expect to see fronting Creed or something), pop singers (nailing Whitney Houston), folksy singers (who could headline Lilith Fair), Broadway babies (straight off regional casts of Les Mis), crooners (bringing Big Band back), and everything in between. It’s beautiful.

Here’s an edited video of all the singers shown in the audition shows who were brought back to Sydney for Hell Week. I’ve edited them some so that it would all fit under ten minutes, but they’re all represented here. I put a title saying “Top Twenty-Four” over the ones who, yep, made it in the Top Twenty-Four. To my mind, the best thing Aussie Idol does and the thing that American Idol most needs to pick up from them is the use of instruments and original songs. Now, if they follow last year’s model, they won’t be using original songs for the competition (they had a special showcase episode where the singers could perform originals if they wanted to), and they won’t get to use their own guitars/keyboards until about halfway through. Still. It adds SO MUCH. Tell me you don’t agree.

Selected full audition videos after the jump.

My other favorite thing about Aussie Idol: the judges are insane. Especially Mark Holden, but really all of them. I mean, you could probably make a case for Paula being insane on American Idol sometimes, but she doesn’t hold a candle to Mark. And it’s fun insane. They can also be mean (like in the first couple of auditions here), but somehow when they’re being mean they don’t seem as mean as Simon is when he’s mean. I don’t really know why, except that it seems like they’re having more fun than he is most of the time. A medley of judges-gone-insane:

And finally, a few full audition clips of my favorite contestants. Note, these vary wildly in volume. I equalized the volume for the clips I edited together, but I forgot to do so for all the individual ones. Just…watch your speaker volume so you don’t go deaf or something.

Brianna Carpenter is a folksy singer with completely her own style, and it’s a style I love. I would’ve killed the judges if she hadn’t made it in the Top 24. But she did, so I don’t have to do that. Now, if Australia votes her out in the semi-finals or something, I’m going to be very annoyed with the whole country, but we’ll see.

Daniel Mifsud’s voice is like butter.

I couldn’t actually tell you what I liked so much about Holly Weinert’s audition. She got a little yell-y at the end of it, but it worked for me, and I love her commitment to it.

Matt Corby is sixteen. I have a completely inappropriate crush on him. He’s adorable and plays a mean guitar. A lethal combination to girls everywhere.

Natalie Gauci stepped up when the judges feared she couldn’t do well at anything but her original song. She’s got a nice combination of talent and gumption which could take her a long way.

Twenty of the top twenty-four auditions are here; there are also a few up there of contestants I liked but who didn’t make it into the top twenty-four. (The other four weren’t shown in the auditions, which I think is a better hold-over number than American Idol usually has.) The semi-finals are all this week, so we’ll see who makes it into the top twelve finals.

Posted in music, television |
Tagged:Australian Idol