Longing for the day ...

Idol predictions

OK, well, I was right about Emilia but wrong about Marty and Casey.

I'm not surprised at Marty - he's been sailing close to the wind for a few weeks. But I agree with Mark that it would have been a pity for him to go out this week. I'm not unhappy about Casey - I've been critical of her for ages. Seems she's getting close to as far as she can ...

Emilia's limitations were just too obvious last night. She could be really something with a bit of work, though. Stay tuned for that one.

Another Idol moment

A few notes on tonight's performances:

Casey: A trademark powerful performance but it seemed to lack something. Went for the big note at the end and hit it big but didn't do much with it ... hmmmm ... nothing wrong, exactly but I'm still not a fan. Didn't move well.

Courtney: Yet another great showing. Perfect singing, but he's gonna have to start to move a bit more if he wants to get to the end of this (this is a disco show!!). Did work the crowd well in the breakdown. Loved the falsetto/rock ending. :-) Dicko and Mark were right, too.

Chanel: This genre was always going to be a tough one for Chanel - she just doesn't sing this way. Took a while to warm up to being in tune, but moved OK, if tentatively, and worked the crowd a bit. The arrangement was ... interesting. Finished strongly. Mark and Dicko were both right again - so was Marcia. She'll do better in the other genres if she survives this week.

Daniel: Disco was gonna be a challenge to Daniel, too. Also sarted a little pitchy ... moved more than before, but needs to do more. I wonder whether this was in the right key for him ... . Certainly showed off his range, but phrasing was a problem ... just didn't do it for me. As with Chanel, the judges were right agin ...

Ricky-Lee: Disco's her thing and it showed. Also started a little pichy and tentative ... but hit her straps and went there. Showed how it's meant to be done - let it all hang out vocally, moved with purpose ... Good stuff!! I share Mark's concern, though.

Haley: Also well prepared for the visual aspects - looked fabulous! The jazzy start was a good idea but didn't quite work ... seemd a bit stilted somehow. Warmed up after the big note and the breakdown/keychange. Obviously not her strongest suit. This was the first song that wasn't a little pitchy ...

Anthony: His training was always going to stand him in good stead here, but there was a risk that he'd do the plastic thing. I don't know that he did on this occasion, but ... something wasn't right. Mark agreed with me, so did Dicko. Perhaps it was the song choice - it was certainly a technically perfect performance. Moved well, sang well ... but ...

Marty: Starting sitting down was cheesy. Interesting song choice - not sure it worked. Marty doesn't have the right kind of falsetto to pull the Bee Gees off ... solid but not spectacular. Marcia was right about his comfort level. Disco's not his thing, either.

Emilia: Bit pitchy - highlighted by the backing vocals. Started without confidence ... great legs (Marcia agreed) ... not enough big notes ... keychanges were a little shaky and all went down. Should have been great but her voice is just not there ... looked more 80s (Sheena Easton) than 70s ... but "Pauline Hanson" is a bit rough.

Great to hear so many key changes in one night. But Dicko was right - they make life harder and are unnecessary. Still, they go with the territory.

So, who's gone? I think Chanel, Emelia (again) and Daniel ... probably in that order.

My favourite is now definitely Ricky-Lee ... closely followed by Anthony ...

Footy finals

Commiserations to the Lions and Cowboys on their defeats this weekend. In the Lions' case, Port just plain wanted it more. Every time a ball was spilled and up for grabs, a Port player seemed to be the one who suceeded. Two goals late in the third quarter and they game just slipped away.

Desire is such an important part of football success ...

The Cowboys put up an excellent showing, but the Roosters were just tooooo good. The referee didn't help, with a couple of basic calls wrong (like the non-penalty at the very end) and a seemingly endless ability to ignore the Rossters slowing the rucks down. The Cowboys got pinged a few times for that, but I don't remember the Roosters being penalised once ...

Finally, our Grand Final is on Wednesday night. We're playing against the Murris, who beat us once and lost to us once this season. They're a bunch of extremely talented young people, so it should be a great game an an excellent workout ... my fitness will be severely tested.

Fun! Fun! Fun!

Extremists?

ROTFL!!!!

I just saw a TV ad for the Family First Party. For this mob to call the Greens "extremist" is the pot calling the kettle black.

These guys are driven by the ideology of a fundamentalist Christian church (I forget which one)! Whose "family values" are they promoting exactly?

I shall ignore them at every opportunity.

On that note, it's been an intersting campaign so far. I have no idea which way it's heading, but we'll know in a few weeks. Still hoping Howard gets flogged!

Missing Idol

Didn't manage to catch Idol last night because I went to see my parents and they watched Bradman ... also a good show.

However, there seemed to be no surprises in the bottom three ... except I'm still waiting for Casey to be dumped. She must have a massive fan base somewhere. I remain unimpressed every week but ... obviously I'm wrong.

At least I've finally been right about Amali. She's been one of the weaker performers for some time. Just too young ... hasn't connected with the songs much. Still, watch that space .. with a few more tough days she's gonna be scary good!

Since my predictions contain the kiss of death, I think I'll nominate a few favourites: Courtney, Ricki-Lee and Anthony ... but there's not much in it.

Well done, the Cowboys!

To be honest, the Broncos haven't looked like a side that could win a final for about four weeks.

Gordy said they were having trouble getting up for finals whe they'd already cemented third place, but that's not good enough. In finals football, momentum is everything, and the Cowboys proved that tonight. They always looked like they were gonna wipe out a lucklustre Brisbane side.

Well done, boys. Good luck against the Roosters next week.

I feel sorry for Gordy. He deserved better. I've met him twice and he's a champion bloke as well as a champion footballer. I'll miss him.

In other news, when will Wayne Bennett change Karmichael Hunt and Darren Lockyer over? I've had a particularly bad view of Lockyer's short kicking game all year and have to wonder whether he's a five-eighth of the future. Karmichael, however, seems to have all the talent you could want ...

Next year's looking good ...

Utterly forgettable Idols

Enough said.

But the beatbox thing is interesting. I'll be watching those guys with interest.

Best wishes, Dan

Well, I was shocked to see Dan knocked out. But I was not displeased.

As I have noted before, Dan had the weakest voice and one of the weaker on-stage presences in the competition. I was sure he'd go further, though, because, as Dicko and Marcia have pointed out, he's gorgeous and the girls love him.

So, why was he knocked out despite the pathetic performances of Casey and Hayley? Possibly song choice - I'm no fan of Creed - but in this case, I think there was something more interesting happening. It's what my former boss calls "expectations management" in elections.

Remember, this is not a talent contest, it's a popularity contest in which talent plays a major part. Dan was, despite his performances, annointed by the judges as unlikely to be beaten. If his voting base is young girls influenced by his appearance, I suspect they may have believed Dicko and thought that if he was going to win anyway, they might vote for someone else. If enough of them do that, Dan gets the least votes.

I'm rather frustrated that I can't see the voting totals each week. I'm sure they would go a long way to confriming or disproving my theory. If anyone knows where I can see them, please let me know.

Bring on Sunday!

Federal Election comments

OK, I'll probably only say one thing about this election: I hope John Howard loses.

The vindictive part of me wants him to lose badly and be personally humiliated by the defeat, preferrably going down in history as the worst Prime Minister this country has ever had - but that's not really fair.

There's not a lot of difference between the major parties' platforms, anyway, but I dislike the way this country is headed. I can't stand the legalistic, inhuman rhetoric that we face daily. I think the War on Iraq was a terrible mistake on many levels and I detest our treatment of asylum seekers.

I think the debate over school funding has departed from the "each to his need" philosophy that has underpinned the Australian approach to public services, including welfare, and I think so much of our current public policy is un-Australian.

Having got that off my chest, though, I have to respect John Howard for the cunning and tenacious politician that he is and has been. He's done it well, and, like him or hate him, that has to be respected.

I just want him replaced ...

Still being Idol

Didn't post last week following the Jakarta bombing. Thought Thursday night's show was interesting, but don't have time to go into it here.

Tonight I'll try to give an entrant-by-entrant critique in order - then a summary and prediction ...

Casey: Interesting song choice - a ballad. Obviously hasn't learned the lesson about "rocking the joint". Fairly pitchy in places and had no confidence in her diction and phrasing. I don't think her big voice at the end made up for it on this occasion. Looked awkward for a girl who just sent a week with a choreographer.

Dan: Used that "nice guy" appeal thing to perfection in the footage. Then, like Casey, didn't move much at all - though he walked with confidence. Was a bit pitchy early and late, but made the big notes when it counted. He's not going anywhere - Mark's right.

Emelia: played up the random talent thing during the footage. Sang without precision early. Dodged the big notes - probably because she can't hit them - we saw that on Thursday night. Pretty ordinary - quite sloppy, I thought. Last week I thought she should try Pink and I was listening to that album today - didn't think she'd pull it off and still don't.

Still waiting to be rocked ...

Anthony: Showed some humility in the footage - which was good to see. Thought the song choice was ordinary, but I hate that stuff. He certainly did it well - showed some genuine feel and, although the song has no big notes, he finished on one anyway. Looked like he enjoyed it and he's not going anywhere.

Hayley: Seemed an honest blonde in the footage. Great song, didn't need to stuff with the intro. Still had that pubs-n-clubs feel, though a cut better than average. Lacked conviction ... just not quite there. Dicko was right about the movements - and I shared Mark's reservations.

Amali: The footage had no surprises - she's a young woman lacking a little confidence. Semed to be a victim of the poor sound quality of the night. Squibbed the big notes and sang well within herself. Worked the crowd well and is soooo pretty. Certainly reached out tonight and moved forward. She's not going anywhere this week.

Obviously there's a lot evident in the live performances that's not coming through the TV ...

Courtney: Came across as a great tryer in the footage. Interesting, if a little obscure, song choice. Showed the benefits of the movement lessons and sang with his usual control and gusto. He's not going anywhere.

Chanel: Came across as honest but prepared to try in the footage. Interesting song choice - Shirley's a class act. Good to see she stuck to her slinky approach rather than going for Shirley's power. Did it well ... in her own way, as usual. Rose to a new level tonight. She's not going anywhere.

Daniel: Genuinely can't move - but with his voice, that's not a problem. No idea what the song was but, as usual, he sang it well with only a few glitches. Needs to get busier - away from the ballads. Tend to agree with Dicko rather than Mark ... though I get Mark's point.

Marty: Looked like a complete rocker in the movement sessions. Obscure song choice but started solidly. Sounded limited when he went to the falsetto notes. Finished strongly but I was waiting for it by the end. I agree with Mark and Dicko - interesting that he was not well. I didn't notice, which is good.

Still waiting to be rocked.

Ricky-Lee: Came across as really enjoying movement. Sounded a lot like Beyonce, but her early movments lacked purpose. Outfit didn't do much for her. Certainly let it all hang out vocally. Didn't deliver on the promised booty-shaking! She's not going anywhere.

Still waiting to be rocked.

I should point out here that I'm a firm believer that Australian Idol is NOT a sining contest - it's popularity contest involving singers. Hence the observations on he footage and also on the other shows. Image will cover up for a lot - like Dan - but can also be a significant liability - like Angie and Casey. That's a pity, bu it reflects the views of the industry heavyweights like Dicko ...

OK, so ... my tips ... I think Casey and Hayley are clearly at the bottom of the pile tonight. Marty, Emilia and Daniel could be in trouble, too. Mainly because of song choice ...

Only time will tell.

Angie fan club

Well, I was disappointed about Ngaiire, but I'm gobsmacked about Angie. I picked the other two to be in the three, and probably expected Amali to be the one to go, but Angie is just so fabulous.

That said, her performance on Sunday was not as good as her earlier ones - she should have stuck to the R&B or soul numbers. I gotta say, though, that the short bit of her band playing during her profile made me wanna go see them badly. They sounded awesome.

One day I'll get to see live bands again ...

Ngaiire fan club

I'm very disappointed. Perhaps they should have reversed the wildcard selections and had 2 by popular choice.

Still, the two they picked are not bad.

A quick note before I watch the first final - I'm backing Dan to win. I don't think he's the strongest performer in the bunch, but he's a strong performer and he's got that "great Aussie Bloke" thing going for him. Australian audiences have backed that repeatdly in Reality TV shows ...

Of course, there's a lot of time to go and a lot of performances to watch before we find out!