Rock Star: INXS

Needless to say everyone I know laughs hysterically at my reactions to this show. Bit of a sore point...

One year is still too short of time.

What happened to Hutchence???

Um, why??????

I'm still pissed with myself that I chickened out of auditioning.

BTW, VegGrrl, can you explain why RS:INXS is garbage?

I guess Dee's not watching this? I was hoping she would be.

> would have thought Terence Trent D'Arby was their all-time career nadir

Would have thought Jon Stevens was, no?

I won't be watching this again.

If they had a show where they just auditioned bass players all night, though, that would be watchable.

word!

I certainly believed it was, til TTD showed up. Ya know what would save them a whole mess of trouble? Just sign Weiland to INXS. Auditions over, he's exactly the kind of has-been freakshow they need. He also enjoys singing with his shirt off, as Michael was wont to do. Waxy, corpselike torso notwithstanding...

What's wrong with Terence Trent D'Arby?

I don't have the abs for the finals. :-(

WHAT WAS THAT??

There are three Canadians on this show!

One thing that struck me as odd was that INXS is auditioning lead singers by having them sing with another band.

I assume this is how it'll be until the last few weeks, because with so many singers, there's too much rehearsing to do. INXS need to REECORDE TEH NEUW ALBUM so that they can invite this superfantastic new singer into the studio to lay down them dope vocal trax.

Yes, I have a heart of stone.

I didn't watch last night, so it's all new to me.

Because it counts? Or because it's a lesser evil?

Ooh! Tomorrow, they have to sing INXS songs. I was wondering when that was going to happen.

Yeah, that's probably it, all I could think was "Are these women modelling themselves on Cher???"

>the monday and tuesday hours of Rock Star INXS were near-hysterical cover-song-hell entertainment, at least for anyone who hates the retarded inbreed "rock music" became sometime way back in the early 80's. lowlight after lowlight after lowlight... the producers must have put out a call for "the worst cover band in town who'll play for FREE." i noticed that the drum kit says "House Band." plus Dave Navarro at the INXS "judge's table" saying things like, "pretty dope, man!" and "it's classic, it's modern, it's timeless!"

there's exactly ONE guy with a native Australian accent AND looks totally cheesy to boot. he's the only person of the 15 who could conceivably sing for/fit a terrible aussie band like Inxs. so what the hell, why not six girl bar-band singers and a black guy in a mohawk? someone had a very keen sick sense of humor putting this show together.

they shoulda had ONE guy with a shag haircut though. instead of the hippie-girl who sang "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" and was the first one booted off. <

Tuesday night he did Aerosmith's "Walk This Way." Too much Tin Pan Alley in it. He received mild compliments, translated He sucked eggs.

Dave Navarro is little more than an oily lickspittle. It's a good image for USA 2005. He's such a fop, I'm convinced it must be part of the contract. "Dave Navarro agrees to play the part of the fop for the duration of the series."

Some dumb woman picked "Purple Haze," a GUITAR TUNE, to showcase her talent. The hack band blew her away AND THEY'RE NOT ANY GOOD.

Some fool sang Bryan Adams' "Summer of '69" flat. He also played guitar, and it was out of tune with the hack band's guitars. I liked him slightly. He was so genuinely awful and raw -- total clueless and unprepared seat-of-the-pants white trash, he was kind of like a finger up the nose and digging for boogers to the concept of the show.

And now I'm sick of the theatre arts semi-pro with the mohawk who does a half-pint version of Corey Glover or the bass player from King's X doing hip and over-the-lip-of-the-stage modern twitchy iterations from "Bye Bye Birdie."

This show is about contempt. Young people performing songs they don't really like that much for a band they don't like, in front of bandmembers, much older, who don't like them and -- if they had a shred of self respect, would be more honest in their loathing. No one in America knows the names of any members of INXS and I guarandamntee you when this is over, they still won't. One fucker looks like a poor man's Mickey Rourke and no one knows who Mickey Rourke is except a guy who plays heavies in movies no one goes to see. Everyone else has shitty hair and hunches over in cheap waxy-shined leather jackets so you can't see too much of them, as they look like proper middle-aged men who are turning into grizzled, taciturn bricks. Which is exactly as they should be but not good for the series, so they all kind of get camera angles that make them look like collared lizards.

The series get minor points for showing that husky women often look good, even when wearing tight leather pants. Or am I the only person who finds husky women stimulating? How did this get by producers of an American TV show?

There are way too many people flaunting tattoos before they should be flaunting tattoos.

And very little of it rocks. One of the most rock parts was not rock, but some woman who performed "Roxanne" and who seemed genuinely in love with the song, a song I hate.

Almost none of the songs chosen for performance have nothing to do with whatever it was the INXS was once known for. The remnants of INXS are so desperate they should be put to death quickly and painlessly. It's too shameful, making them appear in a variety show in which everyone scrapes, grovels and acts as phony as possible.

Talk about bringing your own personal baggage to an experience! It is blatantly obvious that A) all of the singers there adore INXS, and B) INXS adores the vast majority of the singers in the competition. There are some people who are there solely for television purposes (Mick Jr.) but by and large everyone on that stage deserves to be there; any contempt is coming strictly from you.

"You're just not right for our band, INXS."
"But maybe you should give Big Country a call. I think their singer killed himself, too. I don't remember if he did or not, actually. Either way, he's dead. Good luck to you."

The thing that baffles me about this show is how all of the singers are trying to show how balls-out aggressive and melismatic they can be, which really magnifies how utterly incompatible they all are with the style of Our Band.INXS. I suppose that JD, the guy who's been doing his own arrangements is the best candidate, since he's at least got some kind of creative instinct. It's to the detriment of the show if they don't demand every one else follow his example.
The whole presentation's so clueless and desperate with the constant talk of "rockers rocking", the band and singers headbanging and pumping their fists on the sidelines, and the completely uninspired and inappropriate song selection (what if they said "allright, this week, everyone's got to sing one of the songs that inspired us to start Our Band. INXS 25 years ago" and had to sing Saints and Scientists songs they'd never heard before?). And the post-performance exchanges between the contestants and Navarro & the band are so profoundly awkward, with the contestants straining to fake their confidence and the band emptily complimenting their awful performances.
Still, this is the best show on tv right now, and I don't want to miss a single episode.

Jordis and mohawk guy are vocally the two I'm most impressed with, plus I think Jordis is out-of-control smokin' hot. The thing I like about both of them is that neither sounds or sings like Hutchence but both have a wider ranger of vocal emotion to draw on than most of the other contestants; mohawk dude is rather unambiguously the best singer in the competition and Jordis is the most engaging.

The hell they do. It's a paycheck. The mugging is phony. I always expected one of INXS to start twirling his moustache.

And the post-performance exchanges between the contestants and Navarro & the band are so profoundly awkward, with the contestants straining to fake their confidence and the band emptily complimenting their awful performances.

Exactly. Glue on the plastic mile-wide smile, eat what's said to you, and ask for more. And always remember to act RAWK! What happens when you put a bunch of people insane for TV fame together in a "competition."

Honestly, she's the only one among the women that doesn't scream "suburban sports bar cover band" to me....She actually sings like people sing when their making records, not auditioning for a reality TV show....Seems nice too.....by far the best of the competition I think.

She's definitely the best of the women, for sure. But the women are rather embarassing overall.

Black Mohawk dude is awesome. He's got it.

You're confusing it with SchadenFreude. Or maybe the morbid fascination with varieties of bull and bear-baiting, only the spilled blood is mental, not physical.

Why are you people watching this show if it's filling you with so much incandescent rage?
It doesn't. It's interesting, fun and relaxing. Maybe you weren't asking me though.

Yep that's her...yeah she's good....

Honestly, though, does ANYONE think that a woman has a chance of winning this....I think INXS wants a guy....They seem to like the look of that English guy and the American ass-kisser dude that (who admittedly does some good fairly unique arrangments of his songs) looks he should be in an emo band.

1) When did INXS become a rock band?

2) Not that I actually believe INXS will have a "hit" subsequent to this show (is the show even attracting many viewers?), but aren't they setting themselves up as a house band controlling its moppet lead singer? Who will be the leader of the new INXS?

3) Why does INXS keep saying their music is 'diverse'? To me, they had two modes: ballad and pop/funk (of the mildest kind).

4) Why does INXS (except one?) wear sunglasses? Why do they continue to wear the same outfits, show after show?

5) How ridiculous are the singers ("This is the toughest thing I've ever had to do!"?

...

4) Why does INXS (except one?) wear sunglasses? Why do they continue to wear the same outfits, show after show?

I explained it. They're middle-aged men who look like middle-aged grizzled bricks but for the sake of the show and concept, they have to be disguised and shot so they still kind of look like they belong on the show, next to all the young, buxom and wrinkle-less people filling the auditorium.

When they were formed. What do you mean? What are they? A polka band? Reggaeton? Free jazz?

This is the question isn't it? Some of these posts are carefully picking the show apart as if it's a philosophical thesis that needs debunking. Show you skills and pick a slightly harder target! Sheesh. Enjoy it as camp comedy or turn it off.

Neal Carlson was born and raised in Queens, New York, along with his one brother. He attended SUNY Brockport College, where he graduated with a B.A. in communications, and also spent some time attending Middlesex University in London.

With so much experience in New York and London, it's no wonder that Neal is drawn to the classic rock of Rod Stewart's band Faces and the Rolling Stones (especially "Exile on Main Street"). From this foundation, Neal has developed his own unique blend of straight-ahead rock and psychedelia: he explains that his song lyrics are about "celebrating and partying with a purpose."

Neal started out performing in the coffee shops and dive bars of New York's Lower East Side, a breeding ground for many of the best-loved acts in rock history. Ceaselessly creative, he has since released a solo acoustic album called "Pseudovibe," founded a rock band called Bona Roba, and finished a second CD titled "Reach In and Get Her."

Neal has a great sense of humor about life and his music -- you'd have to in order to describe your own style as "loud, fast and sweaty" -- but don't be fooled. His ambition to succeed is as powerful as anyone's, and he backs it up with true rocker's voice and attitude.

====

Ceaselessly creative, get a copy of "Pseudovibe" -- you can't make up better copy -- and review it.

I pity you, fool!

That was pretty obvious. It's a crippler on live TV without instant pitch correction but he could still get by on recordings and in clubs.
I have loads and loads of CDs I like with people who can't sing on them. Sometimes I like that they can't sing.

The girl who keeps getting admonished for singing "metal" and "country" could be still hanging by a thread. It's pretty obvious INXS has a gut dislike for her and the only thing saving her was that the others in the elimination were fair to awful.

I still love Heather a whole bunch -- she seems to have the least-developed ego (INXS surely wants somebody they can stand, right? And I think giving the Joan Jett selection to the birthday girl was a sweet gesture), isn't obnoxious, and she's a consistent performer. Having heard Joydrop, I think Tara should do something soft instead of going all rawk-Shirley Manson-esque if she wants to survive. Neal had no sense of melody because he wants to be too much like Mick Jagger. Ty's too faux-operatic.

Also delusional -- the guy who does "Sweet Home Alabama." Solid for a surf-bar classic rock band on the California coast. No way he can do INXS. Here's where I converge with Metal Mike. The producers who put this show seem to show a sadistic sense of humor. It's hard to imagine the members of INXS not squirming inside at the thought of realistically having to assess someone for their band on the basis of an enthusiasm for singing a Lynyrd Skynyrd tune.

The Aussie has an inside trick. I think he's awful but he could easily be chiseled into shape for one or two INXS gigs before being given the bum's rush.

Last night was a cavalcade of disastrous performances.

The highlight of the week so far has been the people mourning the loss of Neal, choking back tears and saying "It was just, like, 'woah' This could happen to any of us. Any one can go (snaps fingers) just like that."
The only things I would change about this show right now would be to show more of the Real World-ish interactions inside the house and add regular cameos by Navarro-caliber rock stars offering tips for successful rocking.

After reading the CBS website I am more and more convinced that the band just wants Jordis but would settle for Ty.

Yeah. Often, you knew who was going to be horrible right when they hit the stage. I set the TV to mute twice and watched the subtitling.

It was torture watching the midwestern barfly who sang "Sweet Home Alabama" last week struggle through "Tempted." The girl in the flowing white gown was a couple degrees of magnitude beyond ludicrous during the Clash tune. The standard performances were Chuck Barris-material. They could have tightened up the show and eliminated half the contestants last night. As it is, they're stuck in this interminable model in which someone is slowly dismissed each week.

The performances were so rotten it was even impossible for Navarro to be the usual oily fop that he is. Here's where a Barris was needed. No one can step in on camera and treat a developing farce as what it is. Shows that deal in contempt and the generation of it often really foul their own nests. Ratings were up and down last week, but generally mediocre for the slot. I'd like to see if they go up as a result of Tuesday.

Mig did fine. I still think as the Aussie, he's the only logical choice if he doesn't immolate himself. It's easily within the relam of reason to suppose they'll all wind up being so unsuitable there won't even be one token gig outside the environs of the TV contract.

Maybe all this free publicity isn't really worth it...

I thought MiG was fine (in comparison, he was totally fab).

Ty still really couldn't control his 'theatricality' ... but in the end, are the farriss-es et al. going to choose someone who can't sing over someone a tad 'fake' ?

And, unlike Mr. Carmen Electra, I though the RocktheCasbah woman ruined the show AND looked horrible.

Note to remember: When Navarro praises the house band (apparently called House Band), you know your performance sucked (that's you, JD).

Q -- when INXS says (or is it only one of them) the singer was "pitchy" -- do they mean they were out of pitch/tune? I've not heard the word pitchy before (and they've said it so often -- again, not a good sign.)

I still don't think I can bear watching this show regularly until it's down to the final five or so.

If Jordis does make it to the end, or close to it, won't the real money be in her solo career? INXS would come off looking like her backing band, which wouldn't be the case for almost all of the other contestants (from what I've seen).

This must be pc TV writers writing-for-hosts speak for: "You sang flat" or "You sounded tone deaf," or "You call that singing?"

One could see that Heather wanted out Tuesday. She telegraphed the message through her eyes again Wednesday. And INXS granted her wish, showing they have some decency. Heather, whoever she is, deserves grudging respect, because she's been the first to demonstrate, as someone with talent, that one of the ways to win is by NOT PLAYING.

Dave Navarro continues to be an oily stink beetle. As an LA rock star, he has surpassed Slash as an annoying cartoon, and Slash was cast as an annoying cartoon, on the annoying -cartoon- series about Robert Evans that no one watched.

The rhythm section of INXS took over from the hack band for the duration of the show and it made a difference. Other than that, the escalation in elimination was also scripted. If INXS had really been in charge, they would have also dismissed a couple of the guys, like JD and doof from Michigan or Minnesota, dudes who stank things up every bit as much as the women chosen for special treatment.

ps. Neal rules.

Nice to see all 4 Canadians are still hanging in there...

bear in mind i am uk based and never seen a single episode ..

Jordis continues to impress....Did a great job with "The Man that Sold the World" Twin Cities in this mutherfucker.

That kid that sang The Letter just sucks beyond belief...I can't understand why the INXS guys like him so much....wierd....I think they think he will be a good "fit" or something? He's also a fucking ass kisser, which maybe helps.....

the hippie guy has gotten a slick makeover and is my new favorite to win...Jordis the best, hands-down, but I think they really want a guy to win....

The rest of the chicks left (with the exception of Jordis) have no shot and will be eliminated quickly....

Ty KILLED "Kick" on his elimination round...he's still a little "Broadway" for me, but man he's a good performer and can fucking sing the hell out of a song....

Most of the performers did well on Tuesday, except for Ty "Mohawk" Taylor. He saved himself on Wednesday and a girl was given the boot. I would have kicked him out, too, just for so. He's as rock and roll as the porpoise that juggles beachballs at SeaWorld.

oh you handsome dolphin

-- Hari A$hur$t

I'm assuming you've since realized he is dead.

this show confuses me on so many levels, but none so much as the enthusiasm these people spout about INXS songs I doubt anyone has ever heard. "Beautiful Girl"? In what parallel universe that is NOT AUSTRALIA does INXS inspire anything more than a yawn?

I've started watching the show anyway.

If he were less the trained theatre guy who emotes and mugs ad libitum, he'd be better for the job, but still inappropriate for INXS. It's nice that they humor him, along with about half of the others. Shows the pure milk of human kindness is still around in unexpected places.

(Currently listening to the actual INXS. "This tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime will be the last tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime that we will fight like this!")

quit ruining my "career" NED!!!!

She looks like she smells, has Predator's wig and has the face, body and posture of one of the aliens from Bad Taste. The chick with the fringe who looked like a more attractive Penelope Cruz was hotter than ol' girl Jordis.

I thought that was the best part of that Metallica movie outside of Lars' Dad.

Soulless bastard.

JD has "HUMAN" tattooed on his right forearm and "BEING" tattooed on his left forearm. Now imagine the obvious presentation of those tats being done at chest height at the end of an ostensibly serious conversation where someone was apologizing for throwing him under the bus during an interview session as part of JD accepting dude's apology.

I'm going to be repeating this shit for WEEKS. IT's too bad I just changed my name.

Jordis had her worst performance.....I can't believe that that chick that BUTCHERED "Come as You Are" by Nirvana didn't get bounced....jesus....it's like HELLO GIANT AIRPLANE HANGAR SIZED SPORTS BAR IN MENDOTA HEIGHTS! What a shit singer she is...

Mig is a hobbit....

It's a 4-way race between Jordis, Marty, Mig and Suzie now (even though Suzie's convinced everyone watching hates her).

I really can't see a girl winning this either, especially not Suzie since she ends up in the bottom 3 most weeks even after she performs well. I've reconsidered with Jordis : she still has the posture of one of the aliens from Bad Taste and looks like Predator but a quite a pretty Predator, really and she does have a fantastic voice. Those dreads need to go, though. Not a good look on whites and very unhealthy.

Realistically it's between Mig, Marty and J.D although i expect Jordis to be in the final. Marty is a bit too boring to win and J.D is too weird, self obsessed and not as strong vocally as the others. The final : Mig vs. Jordis vs. J.D. Mig wins and joins the band until Tim Fariss catches him laughing at his permed hair and gets fired so he becomes a professional body double for Willem Dafoe.

Deanna should've gone last week instead of Jessica because Jessica is a better performer and, most importantly, is far more attractive. Deanna is outta there this week.

I can see why the Farriss brothers always wear shades, the one with the beard looked seriously strung out sans them when he was doing the radio promo.

But she's still, basically, white and dreads look ridiculous on anyone who isn't black.

What was the motivation and did he do it himself or did someone do it for him..?

A take on the show via the LA Times (not from Hilburn, thank fuck):

IF you'd told me just a few years ago that there'd be a TV show, one on which singers compete to replace Michael Hutchence in INXS less than a decade after his suicide by hanging, I would have laughed. Or maybe cried. And if you'd told me I wouldn't be able to stop watching it, I might have hit you.

But yes. Three nights a week, the five surviving (for now) mid-40-ish members of INXS, three of whom have the worst examples of facial hair in recent memory, and their guitarist buddy Dave Navarro adjudicate the rock-god-ness of 15 young emulators. The winner will, the band claims, go on tour and join them in their super-famous, glamorous lifestyle. (That INXS still had any money and could fill a stadium has come as a surprise to some.)

The contestants, at this point, range across a spectrum. At one end is Jordis Unga; striking, talented and also young, anxious and untested. At the other is J.D. Fortune: He has great abs, an impressive pelvis grind, and you can practically watch his ambition eating him alive. (On his weblog, he recently wrote that "Growing up I always believed that I would go somewhere. I remember many nights crying myself to sleep because I had come so close to my dreams only to have them vanish before my eyes." Enough said.)

For the most part, the contestants the show rounded up are poseurs who apparently never met a microphone they wouldn't slobber on. (Although now midway through the show, the extreme cases have been eliminated.) But it isn't poor Hutchence they're imitating; it's the look and sound of rock itself.

The reason they have to imitate is that rock 'n' roll as we once knew it is beyond dead. And the reason I can't stop watching "Rock Star: INXS" is that, well, I miss rock. Watching these junior anthropologists struggle to reenact rituals invented before they were out of grade school — and sometimes succeeding — calls to mind a million things long gone: blue hair, abundant psychedelics, passing out on golf courses, smoking on public transportation….

But the show isn't intended to deliver real rock antics; instead we get an onslaught of commercial packaging. The show is wildly over-blogged. An official site, rockstargohome.com, has a blog and message boards. INXS.com has blogs on which the band members type. The show's MSN partnership site has contestant blogs — and even Verizon-branded ringtones.

Nothing feels less "rock" than over-promotion, but evidently some marketing wunderkind told them some horse-pucky about how "Blogs are the future."

But still, there's a nostalgia to the show that the fresh-faced contestants aren't quite aware of. For those of us in our 30s, it's like traveling to a beach vacation town where the bars play happy '70s disco, punky '80s new wave. Even the music one hated back then sounds great now — because it sounds like you're young again.

As a TV show, though, it's failing for a simple enough reason: Because the contestants have to sell the idea to INXS that they'd make good, happy bandmates, the show lacks drama. That absence is so apparent that the show's episode slated for Monday night, the "behind the scenes episode" where the reality-show shenanigans would normally take place, recently and untraditionally moved from CBS to VH1, where it will air on Sundays.

And yet on a recent episode, Unga overcame her young nerves; she nearly burst into tears during her stellar version of David Bowie's "The Man Who Sold the World." (As a performance, it was better than even Kurt Cobain's cover of the song.) And that's why I tune in, three bloody nights a week, even if the show generally is about as honestly rock 'n' roll as an Oxnard-based wedding cover band. Sometimes the contestants do more than make me reminisce; maybe they'll reinvent rock all afresh.

Last week's main performances were all top-notch (guess they've been eliminating the right people all along). This week, they were some tear-jerkers (Jordis did Imagine and Marty did Wish You Were Here) over-the-top extravaganzas (Suzie did Bohemian Rhapsody, MiG did Live and Let Die, Ty did You Can't Always Get What You Want) and JD exorcized his Elvis-impersonator past with a not-really-that-different version of Suspicious Minds.

Bottom 3 was JD, Ty and Jordis and in their INXS they "underwhelmed" so said INXS (I agree -- JD seemed to have given up -- I thought he was gone -- Ty tried, but INXS pointed out he messed up a lyric (in the chorus!) Jordis seemed confidence-free).

Ty got booted and basically accused America of being racist and that's why he was in the bottom three. Perhaps true, but not exactly what CBS wants to hear, especially a day after April on BigBrother called her own viewers "pieces of shit" (this was truly nuts).

Final five - Jordis, JD, MiG, Suzie and Marty. Unless a huge recovery, Jordis and JD will be gone next. Marty probably won't match up to Suzie (on a serious roll at the right time) and MiG and so it'll be down to Suzie/MiG... perhaps.

Jordis is great, but I could see her being next just cuz honestly I don't think she's a good fit for the band anyway. Expect solo record deal soon though, I think she might have a shot.

Mig is okay...he seems so fakey to me when he tries to rock...his voice isn't all that great either...I think they like the fact he's an Aussie and he's got a good look.

Marty's the true darkhorse that won't go away, he seems to really work at it...and always learns from the previous week...he'd be a good team player, wouldn't actually be shocked if he pulls it out.

JD the human piece of shit...hm...it was good to see America actually reward one of his horrid, overwrought performances by putting him in the bottom three....also, I think the laziness he showed in the studio is going to come back to haunt him....he seems to think if he keeps saying he's going to win, it will happen....

But, I guess I'll pick Jordis as the next to go...and I get the feeling she won't even be that upset about it...she's had her ride, got her name out there...

Damn, I worked late at thought it was a 9pm CST, but came home to CSI instead...damn wish I would've seen Ty's thing. Ty was good, but I think he peaked early....always seemed a bit "broadway" for rock...my wife kept calling him "Rent", which isn't too far off the mark...still, man he had had some good performances over the course of the show and a powerful voice..should still be there over JD IMO.

So he should be quadruply upset at INXS for eliminating him.

His performance was pretty off on that to begin with, regardless.

I would've booted JD but I suppose he's good to have around for the laffs.

there's no way the producers will let JD be kicked off until the last three at least....

I am more amused by the mentalists who follow this show than I am in actually watching it, even though I used to love INXS.

I will admit that half the time I was watching the show, I was thinking "What would Dan Perry think of these singers?"

The overall talent pool is about 1 gajillion times better than the most recent season of AI.

"By the way, Rock Star: INXS has been expensive for CBS. The WSJ says “the 38 episodes will cost in the neighborhood of $50 million to produce, say network executives familiar with its pricing"

I never watched any of the first few weeks of shows and based on the discussion above I am glad to have missed it. This stuff is more interesting to me than all those other 'do you wanna be a star' type reality shows.

JD has to stick around to be the show villain for as long as possible. He seems to provide most of the interpersonal tension we ever get to see.

That said, being the least prepared guy for the new INXS track session certainly reflects very poorly on JD no matter how he tried to spin it.

Everyone here's right about JD, though. He's only still there to create drama.

Have this theory that Navarro's daily comments about BB's costumes are meant to undermine the whole idea of the spokesmodel host: "Those boots sure aren't made for walking." I mean, he knows and she knows that she didn't choose her clothes. Even loved Ty's (surely accurate) racism speech making the cut. And I've been pleasantly reminded of some older INXS tracks I'd forgotten. Best surprise of the year (I joined the show late too).

They are full of shit. It doesn't take much effort to glue on a smile and spout slogans and cliches straight from co-dependent therapy class. It's understandable given the conditions they're working under. Snap out at Dave Navarro after one of his smarmy after song hot washups, call him an oily charlatan as useful to the proceedings as a chrome-plated turd nd where would that get you? Bottom tier votes, "Oh, he made nasty on Dave."

I've been completely sucked in,

I thought it was better early on. It's gotten dreary and turned into a slow slugging match as the contestants in a small group get picked off one by one. They tried to juice it up this week by dragging the format into a "bottom four," trying to build up suspence by giving someone grace at the last minute. It was contrived. Bottom three is the bottom three. Add another for the TV crowd and you're just trying to make people sweat more, which is sadistic.

On Wednesday, everyone was either wretched or close to it. Could have sent them all home or just made them draw straws. Drawing straws after the poor performances actually would have been more exciting fair than to have to listen to the standard admonishments and one-sentence lectures delivered during the dismissal ceremony.

"So Dave, what's this I hear about a new tattoo for your face?"

"Dave, do those leather elbow gloves cover the old needle scars on your forearms pretty good then?

"Brooke, what mountains of flesh you have!"

"Brooke, I would rather heat my liver with booze than have you go down on me."

For Ty to have said to the camera: "A plague on you, you're too bad to curse."

For anyone to say to JD: "How fiery and forward you are!"

I only actually watched the boot-off episode last night. Funny how, right after Ty gets through his bit about how black people are not respected in rock music, Andrew (I think) tells him what a good soul singer he is. Heh.

Every other reality show on television disproves this. It's surprisingly difficult over time, and usually turns into bare knuckle bitching in 2-3 episodes if not sooner.

I've always been under the impression that all the bitching, drama and backstabbing on other reality shows was actively encouraged by the producers, or whoever it is that wrangles reality show contestants.

oh whatever....a guy i know's g-friend wento HS with jordis and said she's basically a nice person, very confident in her abilities, and talented....they were good friends.

Rock Star: Flickerstick

Marty is fine, not my cup of tea and too nu-rock for me to see him being the best choice for INXS.

Suzy was alright and while the question coming down to 'who is the best person for INXS' would not eliminate her on the basis of being a woman but... I think the best person for the band is JD.

INXS would probably have the easiest time dropping him into the band. He's mellowed a bit (seemingly) in the last few weeks and given his passion for the role he'd be like wet clay in their hands whereas Marty seems to have pretty strong ideas for what would make him happy and that's a stylistic shift for INXS.

JD might not have the best voice of the 4 remaining but it is good enough for me and he has a better stage presence than the others (save for maybe Suzy). his original song at least sounded like it could have been an INXS song so he seems to be on the right wavelength. we'll see.

I say either Marty of Suzy goes tonight. Probably Marty.

Last night, I'd turned away from the tv during his performance to do something else, but when his vocals came in on "Money" I turned around and did a serious WTF?! He nailed the fuck out of it.

Mig gets lamer with each passing week. I'm beginning to buy the theory that he's a mole, because there's no way he's deserved to never be in the bottom 3 thus far.

Suzie is incredibly talented, but I'd never realized exactly who she sounds like until last night. Fucking Linda Perry! I might never have realized it if they hadn't made her sing a 3 Non-Blondes song, either. But now she's irreversably tainted in my mind.

Marty is a big goob. "Trees" could be a radio hit, sure... because it's lowest common denominator garbage. I admire his drive and his desire to bring INXS "into the future," but the way he occasionally slips into a post-grunge Scott Stapp voice makes me batty.

I suppose it's between JD and Marty at this point. If JD wins, the band makes a decent album, tours, and then walks into the sunset. If Marty wins, they walk into the sunset before an album is even finished.

Having Suzie do that Linda Perry song plays right into my thought that Suzie could have Pink's career. bwa ha ha.

I liked the verse of "Trees" but thought it went in the wrong direction in the pre-chorus, and the lyrics of the chorus of course bug me to no end. Dude slaughtered the bridge of "Creep," although I guess that is one of the harder singing parts in any rock song of the last few decades, really.

And I think it was a big oversight on the part of Burnett and INXS to handle the bottom three like they did. Breaking the news to someone that fans thought they sucked right before they have to perform to "save" (provided INXS hadn't already made up their mind) their skins is a little harsh. it'd be better to have had more than three sing and then reveal who was at risk so they aren't thrust into an artifically nervous situation. and now there is MiG, not having sung an INXS song. you'd think INXS would want to see him sing their material a few times before having to make a decision on him.

provided the whole thing isn't scripted to bits. I can't believe that they just decided, impromptu, to have all five singers up on stage with INXS backing in last Wednesday's show. if that wasn't pulled off then everybody looks bad and i can't see them having risked that.

Bye Suzie.

JD will win. I love to hate and hate to love him, but he's probably the most dynamic and earnest of those competitors left. And looking back on the whole series, I can't think of anyone else I'd rather see fill the vacancy.

I was really worried he'd make it into the top 2. At this point, I'd be happy with either JD or Marty named as the winner.

I guess the MiG=mole thing wasn't true after all.

Also, I really hope that the first single is accompanied by a Tupac-style video where Michael Hutchence's head appears in the sky to look down and nod approvingly at Cockface.

So, who's up next season? It's gotta be Joy Division or Nirvana.

Are YOU the new lead singer of George Harrison?

Fall 2006
ROCK STAR: GEORGE HARRISON
(CBS, Tues, Wed, 7:45pm; Mon, Fri,10:30; Sunday 11:00am; sometimes Thursday)

Hahaha my girlfriend made this exact same joke last night.

Marty really got the good end of this deal--it's waaaaay better to be opening up for INXS with your own band than being the lead singer for them.

That said, I didn't realize he did an acoustic cover of the Killers. Rad.

Seriously, is there any band with a large enough catalog of hits AND no lead singer to do another series like this? Or will they have to put together some bogus supergroup to make an aggregate of their hits and fame?

Season Two will probably be the Doors or something.

Rock Star: Tortoise

You can pull in their 5 or 6 million viewers with celebrities dancing, apparently. That sounds like a cheaper show to produce (ie not 3 episodes a week, no mansion, smaller crew).

And if they do it next year, they probably won't have a band with as broad an international appeal as INXS (which would offset middling US tv ratings). But what do I now, I am no producer.

You beautiful sick fuck.

Motherfucking J.D.

I WILL NEVER BUY INXS MUSIC AGAIN.

JD SHOULD HAVE BEEN WIPED ON THE CURTAINS OR SWALLOWED

IF I GET A FREE TICKET TO SEE INXS, I'LL BE TAKING SIZE D BATTERIES TO THROW AT THE CUNT.

FUCK HIM AND HIS HORSE HE RODE IN ON

HE SUCKS BAD!

"OURH8NIT: According to POPBITCH, Van Halen will engage in some sort of pathetic Rock Star INXS reality show type competition to find a new still-not-David-Lee-Roth singer."