Fourth Week: Halloween
It has been a tumultuous week to say the least for the UK's X-Factor. First we had the news that Kelly Rowland had had to pull out of this week's show due to "illness", which some people have translated Kelly throwing a tantrum after Tulisa attempted to bully Misha B by calling her....a bully. This brought The Urbanite with the first bit if bad news for the week, because not only did it mean that we were deprived of Kelly's beautiful face for the night, but it also meant we had to put up with that burke, Alexandra Burke, for the whole night.
Next, that guy out of The Risk that no-one really notices decided that he didn't want to be spend the rest of his life being "that guy from The Risk that no-one really notices" - and jumped ship, leaving the other three band members stunned. Well, The Urbanite can reveal that the X-Factor producers navigated themselves through that conundrum doing what they do best - going to another group, this time Nu Vibe, and stealing their best singer. So now, Ashford from Nu Vibe is the newest member of The Risk.
And lastly, in other news, Rhythmix were forced to change their name to Little Mix due to a dispute with a well-established charity that goes by the same name.
All this must have caused a headache for the UK X-Factor PR team, who are already struggling with the realisation that US X-Factor is already ten times better, even though it is in its first year.
Anyway, Halloween night went ahead, and here is The Urbanite's analysis and predictions.
1: The Risk
Having only two days to prepare for last night's show, with Ashley leaving the band on Thursday, this was always going to be a difficult performance for The Risk. Opening the show with 'Thriller', the band started very very slowly as the harmonies failed to instantly gel. The performance did, however, get much better towards the end and the band should have done enough to survive this week. If they do, I can see them getting a lot better since in Ashford they actually have a great singer who can contribute a lot to the group. Solid, but average first performance 6/10
2: Johhny
Since The Urbanite has to write this post every week, and seeing as Johnny is fast becoming a favourite with the public, one would imagine that we would get used to his annoying personality and focus on his music. But The Urbanite can't. HE IS JUST TOO ANNOYING. This week he is tasked with singing a blues song, 'Ole Devil Called Love', which goes down such a treat Gary leaves his chair and gives Johnny a hug. I'm not able to really comment as I fell asleep half way through, but to be fair to Johnny he sounded like he was born to sing the blues and the song did not sound as half as bad as the other songs he had previously sung. Improving, but still annoying. 7/10
3: Sophie Habibis
It is a nice coincidence that Alexandra Burke is on tonight's show, because Sophie's X-Factor career is beginning to remind me of Alexandra during her spot on the X-Factor. No-one really noticed her until she came alive in the fifth week and blew everyone away with an action packed performance. Unfortunately, we are still waiting for that performance from Sophie. Last night she sang 'Bang Bang', in a Lily Allen type English accent, and it really worked. For the first time The Urbanite can see the type of singer Sophie can be, although the market for singers like her is saturated at the moment. Despite the great singing, Sophie is still not really performing, and if she wants to keep our attention for the next two months she is going to need to start dancing and moving around the stage a bit more. Good, but still not amazing 7/10
4: Marcus Collins
Writing about Marcus every week becomes a little bit boring - but in a good way. This is because the guy is so consistent in his performances that you kind of know what to expect. This week he sang a mash up of 'Suicide Blond' and 'Superstition', which again worked a treat. He has a lot of charisma, is the most natural performer out of the boys and owns the stage when he is on it. It would be a shock if he does not make it to the final three of this competition. Brilliant 9/10
5: Misha B
All the talk last week was of Misha being the bully of the X-Factor. The diva that has already thought she has won the show. This is a shame, because without the Mancunian songstress this show would be dead. She has brought something completely different to proceedings, and if these allegations prove to hurt Misha's standing with the public then it will obviously be the X-Factor's loss. Putting all the week's troubles behind her, Misha performs 'Tainted Love' superbly and even chucks in a little rap to mix things up a bit. Once again, it really really works and this is her best performance so far - definitely on a par with her first week. Even though she is dressed up like a Quality Street chocolate. If this is how good Misha is after four weeks, imagine what she can do after ten. Amazing 10/10
6: Janet Devlin
Janet is slowly losing the spark that she had built up since her audition. Yes, she has a great recording voice. And yes, she does sound unique. But there is a danger with Janet that she is unable to mix things up, and this week was another example of her limitations. Singing 'Sweet Ol' Child of Mine', it was another pedestrian performance from the girl which again sounded good, but failed to inspire. Janet will be safe for a few weeks, but as the weeks go on, if she doesn't change things up a bit, she won't. Boring 7/10
7: Frankie
Quite how Frankie survived last week is anyone's guess. His first song on Saturday couldn't have been any worse, but the public chose to see the carcrash that the guy is perform for one more week. And, once again, Frankie decided to shout and scream nonsense into the microphone. Apparently he sang 'Should I Stay or Should I Go', though I couldn't tell over all the shouting. On form like that, the guy should go. Let's see if the public agree. Awful 5/10
8: Kitty
Kitty continues to surprise The Urbanite. And not in that annoying way where we just want her to get off our screens. In that good way where you are actually intrigued as to what she will do next week. Don't get me wrong, she is a pain the arse. But she genuinely has a good voice, unlike Frankie, and doesn't really deserve the abuse that she gets. This week she sang 'Sweet Dreams', and once again did a really good job of it. She will still worry about her place this week, but with performances like that she should get another crack next week 8/10
9: Little Mix (Aka Rhythmix)
Little Mix were forced to change their names this week, but that did not really affect their performances. Putting another fun, interesting performance the girls are making this a really difficult competition to predict. They can, and deserve, to go far, but I just feel The Risk have more to offer vocally. Still, there version of 'E.T' was good, and they should be safe for next week. 8/10
10: Craig
Closing the show is Craig, who remains the dark horse of the competition. Along with Marcus, he has been consistent this year and puts in another great performance, singing Adele's 'Set Fire to the Rain'. One of the best performances of the night, and a great way to end the show. 9/10
Out of all three weeks, this week was probably the strongest with the majority of acts singing well. Apart from Frankie, of course, who is slowly becoming the joke of the competition and an annoying person. Quite a few acts (Janet, Sophie, The Risk) may be worried, however, due to the strength of certain people.
Hard one this week, but judging by recent patterns you have to say that Frankie and Kitty are living life dangerously, and I predict both to be in the bottom two. The judges will be split down the lines, and Frankie will go with the lowest votes.
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