So this year I decided to pay attention to the whole American Idol competition, I’ll admit it is very entertaining. This coming from a guy who really cannot stand the whole ‘reality television’ movement. As far as the women on the show, all eye-candy. Even Paula Abdul has started wearing cleave-shirts which I can’t really complain. There are a few good voices on their side of the show but nothing that really stands out above and beyond for me. I’m a metalhead. My ideal female vocalists are Pat Benatar, Cristina Scabbia, and on the far end of the spectrum, Angela Gossow. In any genre they’re hard to beat.
As far as male vocalists go on the show, from the first episode I had my ear on Chris Daughtry. Skip the whole shaved head metal look, the guy has a set of a pipes that’d make David Draiman blush. Still, I found myself agreeing with Simon Cowell that while he could nail the notes there was something missing.
He definitely found his core this week, as he nailed a version of Hemmorage by Fuel… The guy belted out the notes but also had enough emotion in it to grab the attention of anybody in earshot. I’d call it the same feeling I got when I heard my first Disturbed or Queensryche album. They said it right, he could be on the radio now, and I’m sure regardless of the outcome of American Idol the guy has the attention of metal acts, record producers (God save him), and metalheads like me who’ll put up with the pop crap to hear some real vocals.
The best part was when the cameras panned over the other male contestants after Chris sang… They all had the same “Oh crap…we’re dead” look on their face that you see on a 5 year old who just put a sandwich in Dad’s new VCR.
