Opening proceedings was 14 year old Astro, who smashed it straight into the stratosphere with a riotous and frenetic run through of Kriss Kross' Jump, which allowed him to bounce across the stage with his unforgettable swagger, and lyrical flow. To see someone of his age with such confidence and ability is insane, and he is the real deal. What a way to open the show.
If that set the bar for what was to come, then it should have been clear that the rest of the acts would follow suit, and pick their performances up a notch.
Chris Rene blasted through a solid rendition of Love Don't Live Here Anymore. I can't say that I am familiar with the track, but he came across well, and you never once thought that he was going to be in danger after the performance.
Philip ran through I'm A Believer, and did a good job, although I thought he would be in danger early on, purely because of who he was up against in the boys competition. There was nothing inherently wrong with his performance, but it just didn't ignite anywhere near as much as the other boys showings. It also seemed miles away from the style he had been singing in earlier in the competition.
Marcus Canty rounded things off with Culture Club's Do You Really Want To Hurt Me? making an 80's classic both contemporary, cool and relevant, whilst working the floor like a seasoned pro. Great vocals too.
With all four boys performing their hearts out, somewhat predictable, LA Reid chose to boot Philip off the show, which was probably the right decision in the circumstances.
On to the groups, where things really kicked it up a notch. Paula had done a fantastic job mentoring the groups (acknowledged by Simon too, much to his chagrin) and each one tore it up on their first outings. The Stereo Hoggz were precision drilled and utterly flawless on their take on Marvin Gaye's Try A Little Tenderness. Mixing in a contemporary dance interlude, with immense choreography and thundering beats, their performance was one of the highlights of the entire show. They look the part, they have the personality, the dance moves and (most importantly) the voices to go a long way in this series.
Incredible.
The Brewer Boys were next up, merging in Rich Girl to George Michael's Faith. It was an ingenious arrangement, and the boys did a fantastic job on the vocals. A thrilling performance, even if they were up against it from the get go in their category. They got a little bit of bad feedback, but on the whole, I thought they did a terrific job.
Intensity were up next, a bundle of energy, blitzing through a double header of The Clapping Song, mixed into Footloose. Simon picked up on the current flavour of the choice (what with the Footloose remake being recently released) and the band put in a brilliant performance. They worked well together, especially considering the number of them on the stage, and they could well become the next big (young) thing in the charts. The panel likened them to Glee, and they are not far wrong. There are a couple of brilliant lead vocalists in the pack, and I am sure they will perform their way into the hearts of the US nation as the weeks go on. Contenders.
If Intensity took things up a notch,Lakoda Rayne took it up five.
They were phenomenal.
Rocking a country pop look and sound to an inspired choice of Dexy's Midnight Runners' seminal Come On Eileen, the girls looked awesome, and put in one of the most stirring performances of the first week. They were unbelievable to watch, utterly thrilling and nothing short of immense. I genuinely hope they go really far in this competition. They SHOULD be, and deserve to be, real contenders. The country pop market is massive in the States, and there is no reason why they shouldn't explode. Hopefully they will get the votes they need - in the UK, girl groups tend to struggle, but hopefully they will have a better chance on the US show.
I can't wait to see what they do next . . .
After all four groups had performed, Paula booted off The Brewer Boys. Hard on them, considering how well they had done, but they were the weakest of all the groups. The other three were just THAT good. A real shame for them as well, as they couldn't have done anything more.
With Nicole's Over 30's category up next, it was clear that she has the weakest of all the categories, but there are a couple of massive shining lights in there. Dexter was up first, but his merging of Britney's Womanizer and Katy Perry's I Kissed A Girl didn't really do anything for me. Leroy was up next, performing Pink's Nobody Knows, which was pleasant, if not life changing. He has a wonderful voice though, but the song choice didn't really do anything for me.
In fact, Nicole's song choices got a big criticism from Simon, fearing she had sold her acts short somewhat in the selections.
Dexter was chosen as the next act to leave the show by Nicole, which made a lot of sense to me. He was probably the weakest of the entire final 17, and I think Nicole made the right choice in getting rid of him. It was hard on him, given his heartbreaking story, but in terms of talent, there was no doubt that he should have been the one to go.
And then came Simon's girls . . . Five acts, all rather solid, with two to leave the show this week.
Simone was up first and put in a satisfactory, if not mind blowing performance of Just Be Good To Me. It was a good song choice, and a good production. She certainly looked the part, but this week her vocals didn't seem to set the place alight. She was clearly capably of more on the vocal front, and ultimately it would cost her. On another night, she could well have knocked this out of the park, but this time out, it was only a solid, if not explosive performance.
With yet another ingenious song choice, Rachel Crow mashed up Bieber's Baby into Where Did Our Love Go? It worked so well, even if her styling was WAY off this time out. A solid vocal performance, and a great mix of tracks for the market, she put in a great representation of herself as an artist. This is the kind of record she would be making should she win, and it was one of Simon's best decisions of the week to get her doing these tracks.
Drew threatened to steal the show with a heart breakingly reflective and hard hitting performance of Flashdance's What A Feeling. Simple arrangement, delicate and tender vocals, and a soulful performance like no other. Mind blowingly good. There was no way, yet again, that Simon was going to get rid of her after this showing.
Tiah smashed a pounding version of Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This). I don't like the song, but Tiah did a great version of it, backed with a solid stage production, which made it one of the most eye-catching and entertaining songs of the night.
Melanie Amaro followed, proving just why Simon had to bring her back in the competition. Powering through Whitney's I Have Nothing, she showed not only her immense talent, but what a great recording vocal she has. She didn't deserve to go out at judges homes, and I was so glad to see her return. A great decision.
With big performances from the girls, Simon made a tough decision, letting both Simone and (shockingly) Tiah go from the competition. Tiah was unlucky, and should have stayed really, but Simon still has a really strong category with Melanie, Drew and Rachel.
I would have liked to have seen Tiah remain, as he clearly say something in her very special indeed. Also, Drew and Rachel are very young. They are immensely talented, but I would have like another girl to remain who was a little older. However, that is the point of the competition, and that was the decision he made.
Down to the last 12 now, things will really pick up a gear when the publi vote strats next week.
The first live show was AWESOME . . . hands down blew the UK show out of the park.
Unbelievable.
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