I'm really not a fan of live TV talent
shows – I do try to avoid them whenever possible, however after
catching a few episodes of BBC's The Voice, I believe it has managed to succeed
where others have floundered. Firstly there's the positivity and
encouragement that comes across from the coaches. This comes as a
pleasant surprise, as it shows that they are taking their
responsibilities seriously. However their reactions are quite
understandable given the sheer amount of collective talent on
display. There's little doubt that the show has put The X-Factor and
other Cowell-produced egocentric monstrosities to shame. Even before
the live shows started there were several artists who didn't get
through that, if placed in other talent shows, would have wiped the
floor with the other contestants (I'm thinking of that amazing
red-haired 27 year old former backing singer who got beaten in the
head-to-head by the 17 year old Irish nose-twitcher...sorry I didn't watch it closely enough to remember their names!). Anyway, I don't give two hoots if some
of the artists have or have had recording contracts, it's just
refreshing to hear some genuine talent out there. Of course it would
be even more refreshing if they were to sing their own songs, but
maybe that's asking too much from this type of show...
Another reason (or excuse!) for
watching the live shows at the weekend was to catch the performance
of Lana Del Rey. I had heard her single “Video Games” a while
ago and didn't think much of it to be honest, but I recently bought a
copy of Sound On Sound (for the first time in about 10 years!) which
featured an article detailing how the song was mixed, so I was
intrigued to hear her perform live. The song she sang was a
different one, but in a similar style, and I have to admit that it
all sounded a bit...well...manufactured. There's no doubt she has a
certain quality to her voice (reminiscent of Kate Bush in places) but
it was style over substance, and (rather unfortunately) in my opinion
she was outclassed by the competitors before her.
This leads me to ask you to ponder the
(hopefully rhetorical) question, which is:
What would you rather listen to: an
average song with a great mix, or a great song mixed badly?
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