Kate Miller-Heidke has dabbled in dance pop for her comeback single “Can’t Shake It,” and the result is irresistible. As someone whose dance style hasn’t evolved since the 1980s, I could really relate to the song’s sentiment! Just because it’s got a mainstream vibe though, don’t think Kate’s lost any of the quirkiness we fell in love with. The lyrics are playfully naughty and her ethereal voice sounds brilliant.
Kate might not be able to shake it, but you probably will listening to this pop gem! “Can’t Shake It” is the first single from Kate’s new album Curiouser, which hits stores on October 18.
Former Australian Idol finalist Levi Kereama has tragically died after falling from a hotel balcony in Brisbane on Saturday night.
News reports claimed that the 27-year-old was suffering from depression, however this has been denied by his family. Queensland Police are not treating his death as suspicious.
“On behalf of Levi’s family, I would like to say thank you for your prayers and kind messages, it’s great to know that he touched so many people’s lives.”
Following his stint on Idol, Levi formed R&B outfit Lethbridge with his brothers. He had played at Brisbane’s Parklife Festival earlier that day.
What a terrible loss. It’s always awful to hear about the passing of talented people, but when they’re taken so young it’s that much more tragic.
Tonight was ABBA night on Australian Idol, a theme that was sure to bring some fun, and surprising performances. These restrictive theme nights are always so interesting. We see what the Idols can really do when they’re forced to step outside their comfort. So who soared and who slipped up? Read on!
Chrislyn Hamilton stayed fairly true to the original version of “Mamma Mia,” but I didn’t mind at all. It’s a really fun song, and she definitely had fun with this. It wasn’t her best vocal performance but it definitely had its moments. She’s a real entertainer though, and it’s easy to forgive the flaws because she’s just a joy to watch.
I thought it would take a miracle to make ABBA cool. Instead it took Sophie Paterson. Her stripped back mellow version of “Gimme Gimme Gimme” took it out of the disco and into the 21st century. It was incredibly smart because people are going to remember it. Sophie’s really hit her strides in recent weeks, so hopefully we’ll see her out of that dreaded bottom three again.
Thanh Bui showed us exactly what he should be doing in this competition with his rendition of “The Winner Takes it All.” I think maybe sitting at the piano forces him to be still, and that gets rid of the cheese factor we’re used to seeing from him. I hope we see a lot more of this Thanh, as opposed to boy band Thanh, because this Thanh rocks. And it was enough to make Marcia give a touchdown! Is it just me or do they mean more this year because Mark isn’t around to give them out willy nilly?
Roshani Priddis took “Money Money Money” to musical theatre, with her fantastic performance. When I heard the song choices for this week this was the only pairing that automatically made sense to me. I’m glad it lived up to my expectations. Roshani is proving to be Miss Consistency in this competition and I’m looking forward to what she brings every week.
Wes Carr excelled with his interpretation of “Fernando.” Wes is always good, but this time he was great. Maybe it’s because I saw him really step out of his comfort zone, but I appreciated this so much. It was true enough to the original not to alienate the older fans, but it was so much cooler. I also loved seeing him play the acoustic guitar again.
Mark Spano rocked out with “Waterloo,” or at least he tried to. Sort of. This is the thing with taking a risk. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. This to me didn’t really work. There were good moments there, but they were few and far between. I wonder whether he would have done better if he’d picked a less iconic song? I’m getting a little frustrated with Mark. He’s my favourite but he just doesn’t seem to be delivering which makes him awfully hard to support.
Madam Parker gave what should have been a fantastic performance of “Dancing Queen.” I really loved the arrangement, especially the start with the drums. But she was just so self conscious. It’s funny, because she really didn’t need to be. She said ABBA was so far out of her element, but it’s really not. If she’d really let go and enjoyed herself we would have done the same thing. Instead it was just OK.
I was a bit surprised that Teale Jakubenko picked “Thank You for the Music,” but I really enjoyed what he did with it. I loved the arrangement, and while his vocals weren’t as consistently strong all the way through it was really enjoyable. I also loved his positive attitude about the theme! Those good vibes really translated to a great performance, particularly when compared to some of those contestants who were a bit anti-ABBA.
Luke Dickens brought his gravelly rock voice to “Knowing Me Knowing You.” I have to admit, this is the first time I’ve really listened to the lyrics and the meaning behind the song. It’s always just sounded so happy, I’d never seen that darkness before! I did worry about how Luke would handle ABBA week, but he did it like a pro. He took all the cheese out of it and I loved it!
I’m actually surprised no one really slipped up! There were some amazing performances tonight, so it’s going to be tricky to pick who goes? I think Mark’s performance was the worst, but I think he’s got enough fans behind him that Madam might be the one who goes. What do you think?
Like many of you, I was first introduced to Lenka’s brilliant song “The Show” through Channel Seven’s latest lot of ads. This irresistably happy tune makes the network’s self promotion immensely more bearable, but I much prefer listening to it in its entirety. It builds slowly before exploding in a cascade of sunshine. Aussie girls are releasing some fantastic songs at the moment, and this is one of the best.
The official music video has embedding disabled on YouTube so instead I bring you this awesome live performance on an American radio station. It’s so nice to see Aussies doing well abroad, isn’t it?
The Australian stage has lost one of its greats. Musical theatre star Rob Guest died last night at the age of 57.
He suffered a massive stroke on Tuesday night, and was taken to St Vincent’s Hospital suffering bleeding from the brain. He never recovered.
The English-born entertainer started his career as a pop star in New Zealand in the 70s before moving to Las Vegas in the 80s. But it was in Australia where he made his home. He came to play Jean Valjean in Les Miserables in 1991 and never left.
But he will be remembered most fondly as The Phantom of the Opera, a role he played a world record 2289 times over a nine-year period.
Before he passed away, Rob was playing The Wizard in the Melbourne production of Wicked.
Rob Guest is survived by his partner Kellie Dickerson and teenage children Christopher and Amy. He will be sorely missed.
Augie March are back again, and it’s been worth the wait. Their new song “Pennywhistle” is a jaunty little ditty which gets better with every listen. Glenn Richards is in fine voice here, and you’ll soon find yourself singing along. The film clip is also brilliant. If this doesn’t put a smile on your face this Humpday, nothing will!
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi Oi Oi! It was all about patriotism on Australian Idol tonight as our newest talents paid tribute to our local legends. This week’s guest mentor was one of our finest, ex-Savage Garden frontman Darren Hayes.
Thanh Bui kicked it off with John Farnham’s “You’re the Voice.” I’ve always thought Thanh sounded a lot like Farnsy, and I thought this would be a great track to help him break away from the boy band mould. In the verses I felt like he didn’t quite sing with the authority the song called for, but in the choruses he soared. He’s got so much potential, and I just hope he gets the time on the show to realise all of it.
If they were still handing out touchdowns on Idol, Chrislyn Hamilton would have scored another with her take on Tina Arena’s “Chains.” As everyone else seemed to, I had my reservations about this one. I felt like she just hadn’t lived enough to perform this song effectively. Boy was I wrong. I got chills and a little teary watching her. She committed to this 100% and gave it her all. Wow and double wow.
Tom Williams came out next with Evermore’s “Light Surrounding You.” I will say this: it was better than last week. Having said that, I still hated it. It was just so boring. While there were some nice notes in there, there were also some clangers. I wasn’t engaged in any way, shape, or form. It all just operated on one level and I was glad when it finished so we could get on with the show.
I’m not quite sure what it is about Teale Jakubenko. When he stands behind a microphone I am so engaged, but then he steps away from it and he loses me a bit. Maybe he starts to think too much about performing rather than actually doing it. And I really don’t think the song helped him either. It’s a fantastic song, but one that spends a lot of time operating on one level. Personally I felt dropping to his knees at the end was complete cheese. But like Thanh, he’s really growing and that’s exciting. His voice especially is only getting stronger.
I’ve been saying all week that I really hoped one of our soul girls tackled Renee Geyer’s “Heading in the Right Direction.” I’m glad the one who did was Roshani Priddis. I loved what she did with it, the way she slowed it down and stripped it back and let the lyrics really shine. I was captivated from start to finish and I believed every word she sang.
Wes Carr rocked the pants off The Easybeats’ “Friday on my Mind.” Every week he just delivers a solid, confident performance and it’s a joy to watch. It looks like Wes enjoyed performing this one as much as I enjoyed watching it!
I was going to be disappointed if Luke Dickens didn’t bring out a little Barnesy. I was pleasantly surprised that the number he chose was Cold Chisel’s “Flame Trees.” It’s such a beautiful song, and I think Luke did it justice. To think that he went from being so sick he couldn’t talk to singing this well is phenomenal.
Sophie Paterson is back! I think that having Darren Hayes as a mentor couldn’t have come at a better time because he brought back the vulnerable quirky girl that we all originally fell for. I’m not a fan of “Don’t Hold Back” by The Potbelleez, but I loved this stripped back ballad version. I agree with Darren: if she’d done it up tempo I would have hated it. Instead I was mesmerised from start to finish, for not the first time tonight!
Mark Spano busted out a little more John Farnham: this time “Age of Reason.” In an Australian hit show too much Farnsy is never enough. It was good, but not great and I can’t exactly put my finger on the reason why. He sang well, he performed well, but ultimately it was forgettable. I’m still a fan, but with so many great people in the comp he really needs to lift his game.
Madam Parker closed the show with The Veronicas’ “Hook Me Up.’ It just didn’t work. The vocals were shaky and she just looked a bit lost out there. Even if she had nailed the vocals this isn’t really one of those songs that allows you to show off. It’s all about attitude, and Madam just didn’t bring any. I guess I admire her trying to step out of her comfort zone, but I also wonder whether she just didn’t have enough knowledge of Aussie music to pick the right song.
I’m almost ready to give away picking who’s going because I never seem to get it right! Again, I really think Tom’s time is up but I know to never underestimate the power of those squealing kiddies. Given that I think perhaps Teale or Thanh’s time might be up.
I fell in love with this song when I saw it in those three commercials where the people roll around in big clear balls. I was pretty surprised when I found out it was by our very own Lisa Mitchell. This is such a simple little song, and I think because of that it sneaks up on you. You just see if you’re not humming it after hearing it a few times. I also adore the fairytale imagery in the film clip. Well done Lisa Mitchell!
Jessica Mauboy’s well and truly shed her poppy Young Divas image with her slick new single “Running Back.” I can’t say I like the song’s sentiment (where’s the girl power?) but there’s no denying that it’s catchy. Jess is also in fine voice here. When she was competing with the other Divas I almost forgot how well she sings! Everything Flo Rida touches turns to gold, so his appearance here is sure to make “Running Back” a hit. It definitely deserves to be!
