July 18 – Shut Up
Rock Star: Supernova, July 18 – Shut Up by Jenn Brasler -- 07/19/2006 Everyone is whining this week, whether it’s on stage or at the mansion. Why is Jill so upset with Patrice? What’s up with Phil’s (right) voice? And will these people ever just shut up and rock? Brooke has stumbled into the first challenge from the new season of Project Runway - she’s wearing a curtain with chains. The rockers are here, Supernova is here, Dave is here. Dave is, incidentally, now single again, so I guess his hitting on Brooke isn’t so much a big deal anymore. Brooke tells us that this week’s song-selection process was the most intense so far – it got ugly. In footage from the mansion, my backup boyfriend Toby tries to organize a calm, fair process, but my real boyfriend Josh declares that he’s taking “Come as You Are.” He grabs it and Patrice pipes up that she wants “Helter Skelter.” Toby tells them to put the songs back up. Josh is sick of being a nice guy, so he takes the song and leaves. Part of me thinks Toby is smart for trying to keep everything fair, but part of me thinks that this isn’t kindergarten – it’s a competition. You want to take the song that’s best for you, and possibly a song that one of your competitors wants so that that person is at a disadvantage. You don’t play nice and hope that everyone’s happy. Patrice wants “Helter Skelter” because she’s been singing it all day. Lukas has ended up with “Let’s Spend the Night Together” and isn’t sure about it. Jill loves “Helter Skelter” and won’t shut up about it. Patrice asks Jill if she doesn’t know her better than this (I guess Jill kind of thinks Patrice might give in and give up the song. Yeah, right). Jill says this is a competition. Yes, it is. That means Patrice can take that song and sing it without worrying about your feelings. Jill adds that she can sing any of the songs. So shut up and sing one! She doesn’t need “Helter Skelter”; it’s just the point of the matter. Patrice replies that she doesn’t need it either. Outside, Josh asks Patrice what she got and she tells him she might have “Helter Skelter.” Josh asks if she’s holding it. She is, so he says it’s hers because possession is 9/10ths of the law. Inside, Jill says she doesn’t like being condescended to. Neither do I. But I like whiners less. Zayra wonders if they’ll have to resort to punches next week. Oh, poor naïve Zayra. She seems to think she’ll still be around next week. I doubt anyone is surprised that Tommy’s response is to praise the wonder of the catfight. Just sit there and look pretty, please, Tommy. He’s glad to see everyone taking the song selection seriously. Well, Supernova mentioned its importance at least ten times last week, so anyone who didn’t consider it this week isn’t smart enough to still be around. Tommy adds that they’re finally starting to act like rock stars. Brooke tells us that tonight there will be even more drama: one of the singers will perform with a member of Supernova, though the singers don’t know which song or which member. How is that drama? Anyway, enough talk – let’s rock. Patrice did wind up with the Beatles’ “Helter Skelter.” She goes right into it. I would have figured this would be the surprise Supernova-aided song, since Mötley Crüe did a cover of this. Patrice sounds good, but she’s just kind of standing there for half the song, which is boring. Then she starts walking down the stage and dancing around a little. Maybe she’s nervous. The performance is okay, but maybe she shouldn’t have been adamant about doing this song. After so much fighting over it, she should have hit it out of the park. And yet… Tommy says this was definitely a song worth fighting for, and he would’ve done what Patrice did. He says she did well and sounded killer. She gets a “horns up” from him. Dave thinks the performance was a little on the cute side, and I agree. (The audience does not; they boo.) However, Patrice brought it vocally. Jason thinks Patrice looks comfortable up on stage. Really? I didn’t see that. He adds that she had good energy. Brooke gives a well-deserved shout-out to the house band. Yay, house band! Josh is still in possession of Nirvana’s “Come as You Are.” He’s playing guitar! Swoon. He sounds good, of course, but he’s pushing the Kurt Cobain growl a little too much. (Hmmm… my spellchecker recognizes Cobain. How weird is that?) On the “and I swear that I don’t have a gun” line, Josh gives a little wink and a smile, which I find adorable. It’s a very calm performance, but it really highlights his voice. Dave says Josh was terrific and commends him for fighting for the song. However, he thinks Josh should change up his performances and bring something heavier. I agree – he’s still stuck on soul. He reminds Josh that they’ll be at Wembley, not coffeehouses. Gilby thinks Josh has done a good job representing himself, but not Supernova yet. Dave says Josh should channel the intensity he used to hold onto the song into his performances. Storm is aiming for something more rock and roll than last week (when she was called Broadway) with the Cars’ “Just What I Needed.” She’s pulling a Dilana, staring straight ahead all intensely. She sounds pretty good. She definitely has some fierceness here, and I think Supernova appreciates it. Jason especially looks into it. Tommy has to take a minute before he can say anything. Dave calls tonight’s performance night and day from last week’s. Jason says Storm is always professional and people see that. Tommy has figured it out – he just wants to see more of Storm. She gives an amused little smile and replies, “Six letters: Google.” Lukas was concerned about “Let’s Spend the Night Together” by the Rolling Stones because of its pop hook, but he’s trying it anyway. I don’t know about this. Lukas growls his way through the song, which should probably worry Jason more than the fact that he constricts his vowels. On the other hand, Lukas sounds nothing like Mick Jagger and could never be accused of impersonating him. Still, this is just okay. I think the band is overshadowing Lukas. At least he’s very into it and acts like he was never worried about the song. This is exactly what the band is looking for. Dave thinks Lukas comes off arrogant in performances… but that’s awesome – you have to be. Tommy says Lukas is raising the bar again, and he’s pulling up a barstool. Gilby says if they ever cover a Stones tune, that’s how they’ll do it. Instead of “Helter Skelter,” Jill wound up with “All Right Now” by Free. I’m still scared of her after last week. She sounds and performs much better this week. I don’t think she has the best voice out of everyone in this competition, but she’s making up for it. Jason is singing along. Jill has definitely redeemed herself, at least with me. Jill tells Supernova that she had a great time on stage. Tommy calls her Jilly and says he’s “definitely all right now.” Gilby praises her voice. She oversang a little, but it was the first time he could imagine the band behind her. Having been told to put more “show” in his “showboat,” Ryan will be doing Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son.” Wow, where did this Ryan come from? I can barely remember him from week to week, but this performance is one of the best of the night. He’s just going all out and put everything he has into it. He’s having so much fun with the band that he almost forgets to sing the chorus again. I’m waiting for him to crowd surf. Maybe someone other than Chris is listening to Supernova’s advice. Tommy says Ryan can obviously sing, but he doesn’t move around much. They want to see him rock. Gilby thinks Ryan looks uncomfortable performing and wonders if he’s having fun? Ryan says that people wonder if he ever smiles, so he just wants to smile for a second. Awww, he’s kind of cute. Phil is singing a song that freaked me out as a child, Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit.” I would never think of this as rock. Before Phil can start, Jason pretends that he’s just had the brilliant idea to play bass with him. How spontaneous and not at all planned! Anyway, Phil is… okay, he’s not singing. He’s whining or slurring or something. It’s really annoying. At least the arrangement is rocking and Phil is attempting to give a performance. His eyes are creepy. This version is freaking me out more than Jefferson Airplane’s used to. Dave compliments Jason first. Jason jumps up and down, asking, “Gilby, how’d I do?” over and over. Hee. Dave says it’s about Phil right now and Jason pouts. Dave reminds Jason that he’s already in, which cheers him up. To Phil he says that he finally has some intensity. Phil boringly says he’s been storing it up. Wake up, Phil. You’re on stage! Dave says this is the competition right now. Tommy likes that Phil cranked things up a notch and needs to keep turning it. Yeah, crank it to 11! Jason liked Phil’s vibe. Dave says Jason shadowed Phil but didn’t swallow him up; Phil went with it. Last week Tommy proclaimed Dana (another singer I keep forgetting about) “born to be mild,” and he was totally right. This week she’s trying again with Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life.” It’s an interesting arrangement; heavy on the synthesizer. Dana seems to be focusing more on her voice than her performance, and yet she sounds off. She’s so not right for this competition. She’s boring, too. She understands that this is a rock competition, right? Has she ever even heard a Metallica or Mötley Crüe or Guns N’ Roses song? Tommy says Dana is hot (of course) and can sing, but he felt like he was watching a Celine Dion extravaganza. Hee. He wants her to kill it. Dana asks if she needs to be mean. Tommy says she just needs to bring it harder. Gilby doesn’t see Dana fitting in with Supernova. “I’ll show you, Gilby Clarke,” Dana declares. Okay, I like her there. Gilby appreciates that answer. Toby got the encore last week, so he has a lot to live up to. He’s doing Soul Asylum’s “Runaway Train.” Sadly, I’m not that impressed. It’s not his best performance. There’s just nothing spectacular or that interesting about it. I thought we could expect more from the lovely Toby. He still has the voice, but he’s just standing at the mic, singing. (He also screws up the lyrics.) And then… it ends. Bleh. Sorry, Toby. Dave says last week he told Toby his vocals were dialed, but he also wanted him to bring up his stage performance. Toby says he wanted to show emotion. Next week he’ll rock the crap out of it. I’m sick of them saying they’ll be better next week or rock harder next week. They need to bring it NOW. There might not be a next week. Tommy says they’re looking for someone who might fall off the stage. They want Toby to scare them. Toby thanks them and tells them to take it easy. Magni is taking a break from the classics and is going for “Plush” by the Stone Temple Pilots. Ooh, this is the perfect fit for him. His voice sounds terrific, and though he’s spending most of his time at the mic, he’s doing what Toby didn’t – he’s connecting with the audience and not reigning it in. I do wish he’d done more to change the arrangement, but it sounds great. Tommy has one (sort of) word for Magni: Magni-ficent. Wow, I bet that took him a while to come up with. Gilby doubted Magni’s stage presence, but he’s been killing it. He had a great time watching him. Oh, great, it’s time for Zayra. She’s killing… I mean singing “Everybody Hurts” by REM. You know, after the way Supernova criticized her last week for not being up on their music, she should have gone for something much harder. She sounds okay, but I’m still not impressed with her voice. Her glory note is really bad. People, stop voting for her. Put us out of our misery and send her home. Dave admits that he thought Zayra should have gone home last week, but now he stands corrected. Gilby agrees that he thought they’d made a mistake. So… why did they vote against Chris? This is ridiculous. Zayra should not be here. Chris should. Zayra confirms that Gilby voted against her and says, “Love you, too.” She’s so bitter. Gilby tells her this was risky but awesome. Tommy just says it was very nice. I don’t understand what’s going on here. Are we listening to the same person? Last week Jenny almost wound up in the bottom three. This week she’s doing Incubus’ “Drive.” The song is almost unrecognizable at the beginning, but when she starts singing, it’s obvious what it is. She’s playing guitar again but she’s not as stiff as she was when she played “How You Remind Me.” Her voice is right on target. She’s another one who needs to bring something heavier, though. While this is a good performance, it’s nothing Supernova would do. Dave says Jenny was good, but her song choices have been safe. Exactly. He’d like to see her take more risks. Gilby agrees; Jenny’s taking a step in the wrong direction. This was too Lilith Fair and they want Ozzfest. Jenny promises to bring it and thanks them. Last but never least is Dilana with the Cranberries’ “Zombie.” This is another arrangement that almost masks the song. It’s quietly fierce, and though the Cranberries are more Lilith Fair than Ozzfest, I could see Supernova doing this. Dilana does her thing, then picks up a tambourine and accompanies herself. Nice. The audience loves it, of course. Dave tells Dilana he’s always looking for that one performance that gives him chills. This was it. The sound goes out for a second (appropriately, it’s when Tommy starts talking), but I think he says something like, “Dilana, I wanna.” Clever. Gilby doesn’t have anything to criticize, so he tells Dilana to just enjoy her moment. After a break, we see that the early bottom three are Jenny, Dana, and Ryan. What’s wrong with you people? Vote! Vote! Vote! No, not for Zayra! Then come back Wednesday night at 9 p.m. EST to find out who gets the encore and who gets booted.http://www.realitynewsonline.com/cgi-bin/ae.pl?mode=4&article=article6265.art&page=1
Rock Star: Supernova, July 18 – Shut Up by Jenn Brasler -- 07/19/2006 Everyone is whining this week, whether it’s on stage or at the mansion. Why is Jill so upset with Patrice? What’s up with Phil’s (right) voice? And will these people ever just shut up and rock? Brooke has stumbled into the first challenge from the new season of Project Runway - she’s wearing a curtain with chains. The rockers are here, Supernova is here, Dave is here. Dave is, incidentally, now single again, so I guess his hitting on Brooke isn’t so much a big deal anymore. Brooke tells us that this week’s song-selection process was the most intense so far – it got ugly. In footage from the mansion, my backup boyfriend Toby tries to organize a calm, fair process, but my real boyfriend Josh declares that he’s taking “Come as You Are.” He grabs it and Patrice pipes up that she wants “Helter Skelter.” Toby tells them to put the songs back up. Josh is sick of being a nice guy, so he takes the song and leaves. Part of me thinks Toby is smart for trying to keep everything fair, but part of me thinks that this isn’t kindergarten – it’s a competition. You want to take the song that’s best for you, and possibly a song that one of your competitors wants so that that person is at a disadvantage. You don’t play nice and hope that everyone’s happy. Patrice wants “Helter Skelter” because she’s been singing it all day. Lukas has ended up with “Let’s Spend the Night Together” and isn’t sure about it. Jill loves “Helter Skelter” and won’t shut up about it. Patrice asks Jill if she doesn’t know her better than this (I guess Jill kind of thinks Patrice might give in and give up the song. Yeah, right). Jill says this is a competition. Yes, it is. That means Patrice can take that song and sing it without worrying about your feelings. Jill adds that she can sing any of the songs. So shut up and sing one! She doesn’t need “Helter Skelter”; it’s just the point of the matter. Patrice replies that she doesn’t need it either. Outside, Josh asks Patrice what she got and she tells him she might have “Helter Skelter.” Josh asks if she’s holding it. She is, so he says it’s hers because possession is 9/10ths of the law. Inside, Jill says she doesn’t like being condescended to. Neither do I. But I like whiners less. Zayra wonders if they’ll have to resort to punches next week. Oh, poor naïve Zayra. She seems to think she’ll still be around next week. I doubt anyone is surprised that Tommy’s response is to praise the wonder of the catfight. Just sit there and look pretty, please, Tommy. He’s glad to see everyone taking the song selection seriously. Well, Supernova mentioned its importance at least ten times last week, so anyone who didn’t consider it this week isn’t smart enough to still be around. Tommy adds that they’re finally starting to act like rock stars. Brooke tells us that tonight there will be even more drama: one of the singers will perform with a member of Supernova, though the singers don’t know which song or which member. How is that drama? Anyway, enough talk – let’s rock. Patrice did wind up with the Beatles’ “Helter Skelter.” She goes right into it. I would have figured this would be the surprise Supernova-aided song, since Mötley Crüe did a cover of this. Patrice sounds good, but she’s just kind of standing there for half the song, which is boring. Then she starts walking down the stage and dancing around a little. Maybe she’s nervous. The performance is okay, but maybe she shouldn’t have been adamant about doing this song. After so much fighting over it, she should have hit it out of the park. And yet… Tommy says this was definitely a song worth fighting for, and he would’ve done what Patrice did. He says she did well and sounded killer. She gets a “horns up” from him. Dave thinks the performance was a little on the cute side, and I agree. (The audience does not; they boo.) However, Patrice brought it vocally. Jason thinks Patrice looks comfortable up on stage. Really? I didn’t see that. He adds that she had good energy. Brooke gives a well-deserved shout-out to the house band. Yay, house band! Josh is still in possession of Nirvana’s “Come as You Are.” He’s playing guitar! Swoon. He sounds good, of course, but he’s pushing the Kurt Cobain growl a little too much. (Hmmm… my spellchecker recognizes Cobain. How weird is that?) On the “and I swear that I don’t have a gun” line, Josh gives a little wink and a smile, which I find adorable. It’s a very calm performance, but it really highlights his voice. Dave says Josh was terrific and commends him for fighting for the song. However, he thinks Josh should change up his performances and bring something heavier. I agree – he’s still stuck on soul. He reminds Josh that they’ll be at Wembley, not coffeehouses. Gilby thinks Josh has done a good job representing himself, but not Supernova yet. Dave says Josh should channel the intensity he used to hold onto the song into his performances. Storm is aiming for something more rock and roll than last week (when she was called Broadway) with the Cars’ “Just What I Needed.” She’s pulling a Dilana, staring straight ahead all intensely. She sounds pretty good. She definitely has some fierceness here, and I think Supernova appreciates it. Jason especially looks into it. Tommy has to take a minute before he can say anything. Dave calls tonight’s performance night and day from last week’s. Jason says Storm is always professional and people see that. Tommy has figured it out – he just wants to see more of Storm. She gives an amused little smile and replies, “Six letters: Google.” Lukas was concerned about “Let’s Spend the Night Together” by the Rolling Stones because of its pop hook, but he’s trying it anyway. I don’t know about this. Lukas growls his way through the song, which should probably worry Jason more than the fact that he constricts his vowels. On the other hand, Lukas sounds nothing like Mick Jagger and could never be accused of impersonating him. Still, this is just okay. I think the band is overshadowing Lukas. At least he’s very into it and acts like he was never worried about the song. This is exactly what the band is looking for. Dave thinks Lukas comes off arrogant in performances… but that’s awesome – you have to be. Tommy says Lukas is raising the bar again, and he’s pulling up a barstool. Gilby says if they ever cover a Stones tune, that’s how they’ll do it. Instead of “Helter Skelter,” Jill wound up with “All Right Now” by Free. I’m still scared of her after last week. She sounds and performs much better this week. I don’t think she has the best voice out of everyone in this competition, but she’s making up for it. Jason is singing along. Jill has definitely redeemed herself, at least with me. Jill tells Supernova that she had a great time on stage. Tommy calls her Jilly and says he’s “definitely all right now.” Gilby praises her voice. She oversang a little, but it was the first time he could imagine the band behind her. Having been told to put more “show” in his “showboat,” Ryan will be doing Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son.” Wow, where did this Ryan come from? I can barely remember him from week to week, but this performance is one of the best of the night. He’s just going all out and put everything he has into it. He’s having so much fun with the band that he almost forgets to sing the chorus again. I’m waiting for him to crowd surf. Maybe someone other than Chris is listening to Supernova’s advice. Tommy says Ryan can obviously sing, but he doesn’t move around much. They want to see him rock. Gilby thinks Ryan looks uncomfortable performing and wonders if he’s having fun? Ryan says that people wonder if he ever smiles, so he just wants to smile for a second. Awww, he’s kind of cute. Phil is singing a song that freaked me out as a child, Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit.” I would never think of this as rock. Before Phil can start, Jason pretends that he’s just had the brilliant idea to play bass with him. How spontaneous and not at all planned! Anyway, Phil is… okay, he’s not singing. He’s whining or slurring or something. It’s really annoying. At least the arrangement is rocking and Phil is attempting to give a performance. His eyes are creepy. This version is freaking me out more than Jefferson Airplane’s used to. Dave compliments Jason first. Jason jumps up and down, asking, “Gilby, how’d I do?” over and over. Hee. Dave says it’s about Phil right now and Jason pouts. Dave reminds Jason that he’s already in, which cheers him up. To Phil he says that he finally has some intensity. Phil boringly says he’s been storing it up. Wake up, Phil. You’re on stage! Dave says this is the competition right now. Tommy likes that Phil cranked things up a notch and needs to keep turning it. Yeah, crank it to 11! Jason liked Phil’s vibe. Dave says Jason shadowed Phil but didn’t swallow him up; Phil went with it. Last week Tommy proclaimed Dana (another singer I keep forgetting about) “born to be mild,” and he was totally right. This week she’s trying again with Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life.” It’s an interesting arrangement; heavy on the synthesizer. Dana seems to be focusing more on her voice than her performance, and yet she sounds off. She’s so not right for this competition. She’s boring, too. She understands that this is a rock competition, right? Has she ever even heard a Metallica or Mötley Crüe or Guns N’ Roses song? Tommy says Dana is hot (of course) and can sing, but he felt like he was watching a Celine Dion extravaganza. Hee. He wants her to kill it. Dana asks if she needs to be mean. Tommy says she just needs to bring it harder. Gilby doesn’t see Dana fitting in with Supernova. “I’ll show you, Gilby Clarke,” Dana declares. Okay, I like her there. Gilby appreciates that answer. Toby got the encore last week, so he has a lot to live up to. He’s doing Soul Asylum’s “Runaway Train.” Sadly, I’m not that impressed. It’s not his best performance. There’s just nothing spectacular or that interesting about it. I thought we could expect more from the lovely Toby. He still has the voice, but he’s just standing at the mic, singing. (He also screws up the lyrics.) And then… it ends. Bleh. Sorry, Toby. Dave says last week he told Toby his vocals were dialed, but he also wanted him to bring up his stage performance. Toby says he wanted to show emotion. Next week he’ll rock the crap out of it. I’m sick of them saying they’ll be better next week or rock harder next week. They need to bring it NOW. There might not be a next week. Tommy says they’re looking for someone who might fall off the stage. They want Toby to scare them. Toby thanks them and tells them to take it easy. Magni is taking a break from the classics and is going for “Plush” by the Stone Temple Pilots. Ooh, this is the perfect fit for him. His voice sounds terrific, and though he’s spending most of his time at the mic, he’s doing what Toby didn’t – he’s connecting with the audience and not reigning it in. I do wish he’d done more to change the arrangement, but it sounds great. Tommy has one (sort of) word for Magni: Magni-ficent. Wow, I bet that took him a while to come up with. Gilby doubted Magni’s stage presence, but he’s been killing it. He had a great time watching him. Oh, great, it’s time for Zayra. She’s killing… I mean singing “Everybody Hurts” by REM. You know, after the way Supernova criticized her last week for not being up on their music, she should have gone for something much harder. She sounds okay, but I’m still not impressed with her voice. Her glory note is really bad. People, stop voting for her. Put us out of our misery and send her home. Dave admits that he thought Zayra should have gone home last week, but now he stands corrected. Gilby agrees that he thought they’d made a mistake. So… why did they vote against Chris? This is ridiculous. Zayra should not be here. Chris should. Zayra confirms that Gilby voted against her and says, “Love you, too.” She’s so bitter. Gilby tells her this was risky but awesome. Tommy just says it was very nice. I don’t understand what’s going on here. Are we listening to the same person? Last week Jenny almost wound up in the bottom three. This week she’s doing Incubus’ “Drive.” The song is almost unrecognizable at the beginning, but when she starts singing, it’s obvious what it is. She’s playing guitar again but she’s not as stiff as she was when she played “How You Remind Me.” Her voice is right on target. She’s another one who needs to bring something heavier, though. While this is a good performance, it’s nothing Supernova would do. Dave says Jenny was good, but her song choices have been safe. Exactly. He’d like to see her take more risks. Gilby agrees; Jenny’s taking a step in the wrong direction. This was too Lilith Fair and they want Ozzfest. Jenny promises to bring it and thanks them. Last but never least is Dilana with the Cranberries’ “Zombie.” This is another arrangement that almost masks the song. It’s quietly fierce, and though the Cranberries are more Lilith Fair than Ozzfest, I could see Supernova doing this. Dilana does her thing, then picks up a tambourine and accompanies herself. Nice. The audience loves it, of course. Dave tells Dilana he’s always looking for that one performance that gives him chills. This was it. The sound goes out for a second (appropriately, it’s when Tommy starts talking), but I think he says something like, “Dilana, I wanna.” Clever. Gilby doesn’t have anything to criticize, so he tells Dilana to just enjoy her moment. After a break, we see that the early bottom three are Jenny, Dana, and Ryan. What’s wrong with you people? Vote! Vote! Vote! No, not for Zayra! Then come back Wednesday night at 9 p.m. EST to find out who gets the encore and who gets booted.