supernova

(S02E11) Before the competitions begin we learn that no one in the house except Dilana wanted to play with Gilby this week. Dave has strong words about that and with good reason. Why wouldn't you want to play with the guy in the band you are supposed to be auditioning for?

Dilana, Won't Get Fooled Again--Gilby's no Slash but hey who is and he and Dilana make a pretty hot combo. Dilana's smart enough not to grind on Gilby's thigh like Jill did but she does sing with him and delivers a powerful and energized performance.

(S02E10) Two great ways to judge someone's character are how they react when things are going badly and how they react when things are going well. This is Ryan's week to shine. His performance was great but his attitude is still horrible. Every time they show house shots it seems like Ryan is being a jerk of some sort, especially with the women. Supernova gives him the encore which will unfortunately only feed that ego of his. By contrast, Lukas has been taken down a peg. He is keenly aware that his performance was subpar and admits that he should be bottom three but also thinks he can sing his way out of it. Arrogant yes, but not unbearably so.

(S02E09) This week's song choices made it tough to see who should be in this band and who shouldn't. While I respect the need to mix up the catalog, for the most part this week's selections made little sense.

Patrice, Higher Ground --Tommy Lee plays drums. She probably couldn't go wrong with the energy of Tommy Lee behind her. I may find him personally tiresome but no one plays harder drums. Overall though she could have rocked just a bit harder.

Josh, Santeria -- Not sure why he gave up the chance to sing Higher Ground and maybe prove he could rock instead of another softer song that he can smile his way through. It was nice but he just needs to be doing his Jack Johnson thing elsewhere.

(S02E08) What does it take to get into Supernova? Last year, the rules were simple: sound enough like the late Michael Hutchence to front INXS but not so much that you seem to be part of an INXS tribute band. This season Gilby seems to be looking for someone to make him believe in rock and roll again, Jason just seems to be looking for this show to end and we all know what Tommy Lee is looking for.

(S02E07) Tonight began with a little sample of the Supernova music. The aspiring rock stars nod appreciatively. Maybe the blistering Southern California heat has made me cranky but the music didn't make me giddy with anticipation. If anything it was a lot less intense than I had imagined it would be. As Gilby said, they aren't looking to do heavy metal. Instead it sounds more like Velvet Revolver. But it's hard to critique songs that aren't fully formed yet so let's get right to the performances. It was a bit of a rough week in my opinion.

(S02E06) The thing that I am enjoying most about this show is that some of the aspring rock stars actually are trying to get better while those who can't step it up are getting left behind. Tonight's episode begins at the house where everyone takes a look at Dana's performance via cell phone and finds it lacking. Storm and Dilana instruct Dana in how to be more rock star but it's clear she doesn't fit in. Ryan goes so far as to say that he was embarrassed by her performance (he should talk).

They try to stir up some drama between Patrice and Jill when it comes to song choice but let's just get down to the performances...

Patrice, Helter Skelter -- She sings well enough but as my mate pointed out, she's a bit Liz Phair, cute but not really rock.
Josh, Come As You Are -- Smiling even during Nirvana? Josh tries to rasp it up and go darker but there's something lackadaisical about his performance
Storm, Just What I Needed -- She's definitely sexy and she's got Tommy's attention but I'd like her to tear up the stage a bit more, she's too controlled, I found myself watching the fabulous backing band instead.

(S02E04) Welcome to the results show, or as I saw it tonight, the evening of non-originality. The most innovative thing this evening was Lukas's makeup. He seems to do more with his makeup each night than most of the women. Most male singers throw on a little eyeliner and that's it. Lukas must have a trunk-sized make-up kit. The singers tonight however decided to recycle everything that had already gone before.

Toby wins the encore, which I don't quite get. He's good enough I suppose, and quite a tasty muffin but I would have given the encore to Phil. The bottom three are Jill, Zayra and naturally Chris.

(S02E03) Last week, I got accused of being a bit bored by this show. Untrue, I just want the show to really rock.  The performances seemed a bit stronger this episode. Here are the songs and my notes:

It turns out somebody already came up with the super-lame Supernova name for their own band. According to MTV News, the Orange County-based punk band, Supernova, has filed a trademark infringement suit against producer Mark Burnett for this summer's Rock Star: Supernova. The original Supernova formed in 1989 and released four albums, the most recent in 2000. The band is still alive and kicking: recording a new album and performing gigs next month. The lawsuit names Burnett, his production company, and the three members of the new Supernova band: Tommy Lee, Jason Newsted and Gilby Clarke. The band wants Burnett to make it clear that the television show is not associated with them, wants to prevent Burnett from trademarking the Supernova name, and claims the producers of Rock Star knew the band existed and was still together. Didn't anyone check out iTunes before naming the new band?

(S04E02) Okay, obviously there are some serious Rock Star fans out there if the comments on my last post were any indication.  Tonight's results episode brings us one surprise. Who knew Chris actually had curly hair? He's a bit cuter when he's not trying to be Marty from last season but his assertion that he is one of the best singers in the world is a bit of hyperbole. The house dramatics show that Lukas is a bit of a firestarter, telling the group that many of them sucked. Yup, he's this season's JD Fortune all right.

Tommy Lee, who looks like he's been up since last night, chooses Dilana for the encore. She's definitely unique but she still scares me a bit. Methinks Tommy L. has a bit of a crush. I still say I'd like her better if she blinked now and then.

The bottom three are Chris, Phil and Matt. Chris sings "L.A. Woman." He's better than last night but still seems awkward and thin-voiced.  Phil sing "Stars" by Switchfoot. It's nice to hear a song that hasn't been done a zillion times before. He does a decent job with it. Matt promises to rock Duran Duran and sings "Planet Earth." Bad song choice and bad rendition.

Supernova decides to send Matt home, definitely a fair choice since he was the worst of the three.

Words I am already tired of hearing on this show: baby, brother, dude, man and rocker.

When Rock Star was created last season it seemed like it would be the anti-American Idol.  Instead we got the aging band INXS looking for a second shot at glory and a bunch of aspiring rockers from musicals and small-town bands who went right back to their small-town bands and musicals with the exception of J.D. Fortune who went on to tour with INXS giving them modest success and a catchy little tune called "Pretty Vegas."

This season would be different, right? After all, we've got Tommy Lee, he's a rocker. And Gilby Clarke, he was in a band with rockers (Guns n' Roses) and Jason Newsted, bassist for Metallica. This won't be a thing like American Idol. This year it will actually rock.

Well, for the most part, it was pretty much American Idol with more guitars. This round of nominees are a bit less inspired than last season. They are prettier and seem a bit less hungry.  Many of them front mildly successful bands. And, while I really like to believe in my heart that a woman can win this, I find it hard to believe that Supernova, which purports to be a "dirty rock and roll band" is going to choose a female singer.