So last season, when Daughtry sang "I Walk The Line" in the key of Live, I had absolutely no problem with it. Why not let Chris sing a song in his chosen genre, I said. And yet tonight, seeing Blake sing 311's cover of "Lovesong" bugged the shit out of me. True, I hate 311 more than Live, but still, I'm not sure that was my problem. My problem is that vocally, Blake's middle of the pack, but he's better than almost everyone else because he's smart and is so talented even beyond the singing, or so I've been led to understand. He should be crafting his own arrangements, is what I'm saying, That's where his talent lies. Why rely on 311 to do it for him?
Am I just being a hater for no reason? I do love Blake, but...he needs to remind me why.
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I think your reaction to this performance might depend on whether you associate the song with 311 or the Cure. I didn't even know there *was* a cover, because I am very very old, but hearing Blake sing the Cure creates a weird disconnect between the Cure's...you know, Cure-ness, and Blake's Blake-ness, which is pretty much that he's that cute barista who always remembers you and flirts with you when you come in, and although he's half your age and it's not "real" flirting because he does it for everyone and you haven't showered, you appreciate the gesture and you always leave two dollars on a four-dollar latte. (Linda, back me up here.)
Too much baggage with the Cure, is my point. Blake's strength is that he can get the story out of the song even if he doesn't have the best voice in the competition; he needs to pick songs, like the Keane song, that let him do that more, because it's what lets the audience plug into him.
In other news, I am full of AI commentary today, and should go outside and interact with humans more.
See, I lived in a tiny glass box as a child, and knew almost no good music until I met Stephen. So I don't even associate it with the Cure -- I knew it, but I didn't have much of an association. I thought it was good, for the same reasons I always like Blake.
And what are those reasons? Well, I was asked last night (by Jessica Sierra's only superfan not already under a restraining order, so... whatever), "What is it about him?", meaning Blake. I responded that to me, it's exactly the kind of charm Sarah is talking about, where he's flirting on purpose and it's not gross because he would admit to it if you asked him, and because he is not ACTUALLY trying to get you to want to sleep with him (see: Constantine).
Vocally, I just think he has an interesting voice, in that it's kind of high and warble-y, and it sometimes seems like it's going to turn strained, but then it doesn't, quite. I share the conviction that the Keane song was, in some ways, the best show-off of his voice so far.
Although I also loved "Time Of The Season," because I am that easy.
I didn't realize that 311 covered that song, and because I was 17 when Disintegration came out, finding out that effing 311 dared to touch it makes me want to set myself on fire in protest.
As for last night's performance, I just thought it was stultifying. Shoehorning 10 performances into an hour meant they seemed to run about 45 seconds each -- in several cases, when songs ended, I hadn't fully realized they'd begun -- but his still dragged for me.
Eat it, Blake!
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