‘The X Factor’ UK review: Tamera Foster, Rough Copy, and Sam Callahan tackle big bands
Was “The X Factor” UK’s attempts at a big band success story tonight particularly successful? It just depends on just who you are talking about. We had a couple of artists previously in danger trying to surge their way back into the competition, and also a couple of favorites disappoint. The truth here is that this is a style of music that is going to benefit certain singers and hurt others, and that’s just based on what happens when you have some of the themes based so much around a certain genre of music or a format.
Take a look below at our take on all of the performances, and be sure to also stick around at the bottom to share some of your thoughts! This is an interactive article, and your thoughts can be a nice little indicator of where the competition’s results could be heading tomorrow.
Abi Alton, “That’s Life” – The surprise to us was just how much this felt almost like a vintage performance of the song would be. While it was a little timid, this felt once again like the judges using Abi almost as their favorite contestant to just go at with criticism for whatever reason. This was a good performance! While there were moments that could have been better, it was almost straight out of the 1940s with everything from her voice to the sense of style.
Sam Bailey, “New York, New York” – We were worried that this song could be interpreted as cheesy, mostly because it has been a few dozen times in the past. Then, we remembered that this is Sam performing the song! She is the sort of woman who has proven time and time again that she can nail anything, and she also apparently is good enough now to get Michael Bolton to hang out with her just like he’s a pal.
Nicholas McDonald, “Dream a Little Dream” – Apparently, it is not enough for Nicholas to be referred to as “baby Buble” by Louis Walsh. He has to also sing one of his most-popular standards, and even dress a little bit like him, to boot. Not that we can really complain about any of this, given that it was in the end a pretty good performance. It wasn’t altogether memorable, but there weren’t any bad notes in it and we therefore can’t complain.
Luke Friend, “Moondance” – Luke is one of those guys who was going to have a terrible time with this theme, and understandably when you stop for a second to think about it. He’s a rocker and a performer, and not someone who does crooner type music. It also didn’t help that this was probably the least-known song out of any that were performed tonight. Probably the worst performance he’s had in a few weeks. It just felt a little off at times with the band.
Hannah Barrett, “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World” – This is a song that we have heard completely conquered on singing shows over the years, so while Hannah did a pretty phenomenal job with it, we probably weren’t as impressed as we would have otherwise been had we not had such a history with it. There just needed to be a little bit of energy behind her stage presence, and we almost wish you could see some of that happy smile Hannah had on her face after the performance and find a way to transplant into into the performance for what she is doing on the stage.
Rough Copy, “Hit the Road, Jack” – This is a performance that the boys really needed to nail, since it was the first time that they have been around here as the only member of Team Gary Barlow. While there were some definite reasons to be worried about them being able to get it together and pull something great off, they did it! Gary’s arrangement was also great, and the whole interactivity of it was a nice little way to shadow perhaps that they are not exactly the best singers still in the competition.
Tamera Foster, “Cry Me a River” – A great performance from Tamera, but the problem for her unfortunately remains the same week after week: We don’t know if she’s likable. She doesn’t really ever feel genuine in the confessionals before her performance, almost like there is something that she is holding back. We know that this is a singing competition and that should matter the most, but it doesn’t. You have to want to help someone in order for them to advance. This is why Sam Callahan has yet to be in the bottom, despite Tamera having a far superior voice.
Sam Callahan, “Ain’t It a Kick in the Head?” – This was a nice little way for Sam to cap off the show: With a fun performance that was not something that you have to sit here and say that he butchered vocally. He’s still not going to win any singing awards, but he at least knows that a good percentage of big band music requires a ton of charisma in order to pull off. Therefore, this was at least his best performance in a few weeks, and the fan base will keep him for another week. But, did anyone else pick up on Gary’s refusal to actually judge him? He’s totally playing a mind game, thinking that if he doesn’t really give him any feedback, his fans will not be so angry and power-vote.
Over all this was a pretty good episode with some strong performances. Grade: C.
Click here if you want to see where we ranked the contestants leading up to the start of this show, and we’ll be back tomorrow with the full results.
Photo: ITV