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While Lloyd, Elvis and even Sindi have had their 'a ha' moments throughout the season, it's more like a flash in the pan than a consistently good repertoire over the last few months. The question is: Are our top three ready to be recording artists?
I'm not Randall so how would I know. What I do know is that at this moment I wouldn't pay to see any of them live. While Lloyd and Sindi generally put on energetic performances, as soon as they bounce around, so do their vocals. Elvis's voice is utterly beautiful, but he's as uncomfortable on stage as Mara is without her 'pain medication'.
HHP on the other hand is über-comfortable at the judging table. While Gareth was vomiting rainbows about how 'amazing' all the contestants are, Jabba picked up on their shaky notes and gave some honest criticism and opinion.
The rest of the judges, including Randall, are simply talking heads, hired to make the right noises, do the wrong things and create buzz for the show. Remember Cliff Jennings? Our judges' musical knowledge is of no consequence. As long as they elicit booing and baaing from an easily entertained audience, they've aced their KPAs.
But I digress. We’re supposed to be focussing on the 'best top three we’ve ever had'.
So let's rate their three performances this week.
Judges' Choice
Sindi: 6/10
Brenda Fassie's Vulindlela was a good fit, and Sindi looked amazing. But she's still not finishing her words!
Lloyd: 5/10
Taio Cruz’s Dynamite was a terrible fit! As HHP pointed out, Lloyd struggled to keep the vocals strong while keeping the crowd entertained. Lloyd is a crooner, not a player. It felt quite uncomfortable.
Elvis: 9/10
This was definitely my favourite performance of the evening. Elvis has a beautiful, resonant timbre to his voice that was demonstrated by the highs and lows of James Morrison's Broken Strings. The judges made a good call here.
Own Choice
Sindi: 4/10
Perhaps it was the tinny accompaniment, or perhaps the song was just too big for her. Sindi did not do Jennifer Hudson's Spotlight justice. It was a pretty emotionless performance.
Lloyd: 7/10
I was so excited to hear Lloyd had chosen Just The Way You Are by Bruno Mars. However, it wasn't as good as I expected it to be. As always he scored on the lilting chorus notes, but the verses were just a little iffy.
Elvis: 8/10
Bob Dylan's You Belong To Me is not the best song choice. But Elvis's soppy story about not being able to sing it at his sister's wedding was just the clincher he needed to get away with it. His performance was near flawless and as always, totally sincere.
Wooden Mic Hits
Sindi: 5/10
As if Josh Groban's You Raise Me Up hasn't been done to death already. Sindi's first few low notes were horrendous - it's as if she's being exorcised! Eventually things got better, but when she started screaming towards the end, it was the end for me. Sindi has no appreciation for nuances and subtlety - she performs every song like she's on a loudspeaker.
Lloyd: 8/10
Lloyd's interpretation of Avril Lavigne's When You're Gone was fantastic. The truth is, Avril covers are always better than the original. Although there were dips here and there, and that top note was a disaster, overall it was a winner. Lloyd has that innate ability to make you love him even when he screws up.
Elvis: 7/10
Elvis performed Daughtry's What About Now competently and confidently, but it wasn't his best performance yet. He's got a fan in HHP now, and I have to agree - he's my new favourite.
Final scores:
Sindi - 15/30
Lloyd - 20/30
Elvis - 24/30
Who do you think will make it to the final?
Vote for your favourite until 22:00 on Monday night. Here's how.
I'm not Randall so how would I know. What I do know is that at this moment I wouldn't pay to see any of them live. While Lloyd and Sindi generally put on energetic performances, as soon as they bounce around, so do their vocals. Elvis's voice is utterly beautiful, but he's as uncomfortable on stage as Mara is without her 'pain medication'.
HHP on the other hand is über-comfortable at the judging table. While Gareth was vomiting rainbows about how 'amazing' all the contestants are, Jabba picked up on their shaky notes and gave some honest criticism and opinion.
The rest of the judges, including Randall, are simply talking heads, hired to make the right noises, do the wrong things and create buzz for the show. Remember Cliff Jennings? Our judges' musical knowledge is of no consequence. As long as they elicit booing and baaing from an easily entertained audience, they've aced their KPAs.
But I digress. We’re supposed to be focussing on the 'best top three we’ve ever had'.
So let's rate their three performances this week.
Judges' Choice
Sindi: 6/10
Brenda Fassie's Vulindlela was a good fit, and Sindi looked amazing. But she's still not finishing her words!
Lloyd: 5/10
Taio Cruz’s Dynamite was a terrible fit! As HHP pointed out, Lloyd struggled to keep the vocals strong while keeping the crowd entertained. Lloyd is a crooner, not a player. It felt quite uncomfortable.
Elvis: 9/10
This was definitely my favourite performance of the evening. Elvis has a beautiful, resonant timbre to his voice that was demonstrated by the highs and lows of James Morrison's Broken Strings. The judges made a good call here.
Own Choice
Sindi: 4/10
Perhaps it was the tinny accompaniment, or perhaps the song was just too big for her. Sindi did not do Jennifer Hudson's Spotlight justice. It was a pretty emotionless performance.
Lloyd: 7/10
I was so excited to hear Lloyd had chosen Just The Way You Are by Bruno Mars. However, it wasn't as good as I expected it to be. As always he scored on the lilting chorus notes, but the verses were just a little iffy.
Elvis: 8/10
Bob Dylan's You Belong To Me is not the best song choice. But Elvis's soppy story about not being able to sing it at his sister's wedding was just the clincher he needed to get away with it. His performance was near flawless and as always, totally sincere.
Wooden Mic Hits
Sindi: 5/10
As if Josh Groban's You Raise Me Up hasn't been done to death already. Sindi's first few low notes were horrendous - it's as if she's being exorcised! Eventually things got better, but when she started screaming towards the end, it was the end for me. Sindi has no appreciation for nuances and subtlety - she performs every song like she's on a loudspeaker.
Lloyd: 8/10
Lloyd's interpretation of Avril Lavigne's When You're Gone was fantastic. The truth is, Avril covers are always better than the original. Although there were dips here and there, and that top note was a disaster, overall it was a winner. Lloyd has that innate ability to make you love him even when he screws up.
Elvis: 7/10
Elvis performed Daughtry's What About Now competently and confidently, but it wasn't his best performance yet. He's got a fan in HHP now, and I have to agree - he's my new favourite.
Final scores:
Sindi - 15/30
Lloyd - 20/30
Elvis - 24/30
Who do you think will make it to the final?
Vote for your favourite until 22:00 on Monday night. Here's how.
