I’d been really looking forward to Australian Idol’s acoustic night, and it definitely didn’t disappoint. There was only one touchdown but several other performances that probably deserved them. One even moved me to tears! Of course, all this isn’t surprising considering the Idols had some help from Australian music legend, Ian Moss. If you’re going to perform acoustically, you can’t ask for a better mentor than Mossy.
Mark Da Costa was first up with his country-blues inspired interpretation of Coldplay’s “Yellow.” I must admit, this one lost me early. The moment he sang “thang” instead of “thing” I cringed, and I didn’t really recover. We certainly don’t say “thang” in Australia, even Chris Martin doesn’t say “thang.” It just came across very affected. I admire what he tried to do in terms of making the song his own, but I don’t feel he even came close.
Natalie Gauci helped to remove the bad taste in my mouth with her rendition of “Man in the Mirror.” It’s easy to forget exactly how good Michael Jackson’s music was, isn’t it? It was a great song choice and a beautiful interpretation. Natalie seemed so at home behind the piano, and that translated into a really breathtaking performance.
Carl Riseley was back in swing mode with his cover of the Cole Porter classic “It’s Alright With Me.” I really enjoyed hearing Carl play the trumpet, but I can’t say the singing grabbed me nearly as much. It was quite weak in a lot of places, and that distracted me from how much fun he seemed to be having.
Jacob Butler received a lukewarm response to his rendition of Keane’s “Somewhere Only We Know,” but I really enjoyed it. It was so refreshing to see him just stand there and deliver a song without the theatrics. This was definitely Jacob at his most honest and believable.
It was Matt Corby that made me cry with his amazing version of “The Blower’s Daughter.” The song choice already had me on side – it’s one of my favourites – and I was so impressed by Matt’s interpretation. He really does have a maturity beyond his years, and an uncanny ability to live in the lyrics of the songs he chooses. How last week’s performance was touchdown-worthy and this wasn’t I’ll never know.
Matt may have missed out on a touchdown this time around, but Daniel Mifsud didn’t. His surprising take on Kiss’ “I Was Made for Loving You” struck the right chord with Mark, earning him the ultimate compliment. I was so impressed by this arrangement – it really allowed the song’s romantic lyrics to shine. I also feel Daniel tends to imitate the original recordings, so it was lovely to hear him being himself.
Ben McKenzie managed to match the intensity of his cover of “Mad World” this week, with his take on Imogen Heap’s “Hide and Seek.” I was spellbound by this one, and probably would have cried again if my cat hadn’t started to play up! Like Matt, Ben also has such a gift for interpreting lyrics. He also manages to be mature, but still innocently childlike. A massive wow factor here.
While Ben wowed me, Tarisai Vushe underwhelmed me. I’ll be honest and say I’ve always found Des’Ree’s “Kissing You” a little on the boring side. Tarisai didn’t really bring anything to her performance to change my mind on that score. Yes she sang it very well, but I didn’t really care about it.
Marty Simpson has been hanging out to play with his guitar, and he didn’t disappoint with his cover of Snow Patrol’s “Open Your Eyes.” He seemed so much more relaxed on stage, and this made the whole performance very enjoyable. He really does need to watch his timing, but I could forgive that simply because he was doing the kind of performance he wanted to do.
Tonight’s verdict is going to be a really close call after so many outstanding performances. I’d like to think Mark will go, but that’s probably wishful thinking as his fan base seems to be very strong. The same goes for Carl, although I do find him a lot more likeable. I’m going to stick with those predictions though because I’m not ready to say goodbye to the others just yet!
