Rock Star Supernova’s Elimination Night Aug. 23

Rock Star Supernova’s Elimination Night Aug. 23 by Roxanne McDonald

Wow.       The one with the most poise, the one most likely to win maybe, has gotten a little egomaniacal already?

RockStar SuperNova’s elimination night (on August 23) was expected, though some of the subterfuge going on and shared with us on Wednesday was not. 

Evidently, as the house cams reveal, Dilana is starting to show off — in the wrong way.  First, she digs Ryan, telling him he would have been nothing without the house band; and then telling him in a taunting way, “I’m getting more votes than you.”  The remaining seven have been reading some of the comments and critiques on the Windows Live Space page, and one of the posts is addressed to Dilana and claims it is down to her and Ryan.  (Of course, thousands who know what they are talking about disagree.) 

So back at the show on this Wednesday night, Dave starts with a mini-lecture, or pep talk, about the Internet and its instant connectivity between rockers and fans, etc.  He calls “Hammer time,” and admonishes, “Where would ANY of you be without the house band?”

Ryan is asked how he feels, and he responds that when you are on top you shouldn’t be so disrespectful.  After clips of the last seven practicing in the studio for the new Supernova track, “Be Yourself,” Jason says that one person stood out and they are “gonna rock with Toby today.”  And rock they did.  Toby with the band sounds like a reincarnated Freddy Mercury; the song is an especially good one this writer suspects will be the most-listened to on the album (or, whoops, CD), and especially great lyrics penetrate, such as “I’m sick of being haunted by all the cliches that I know – whatever that means.”

Then Wednesday holds more controversy, showing the details (clips) of the “Media Day” mansion interviews the seven had with Jamie.  The camera cuts to Dilana in the interview saying Lukas is a different person every hour and sometimes she wants to “punch his lights out.” 

In the same series of press interviews, Lukas is told what Dilana had said, and asked for a response, says, “Oh, really?  Well, tell her to mind her own business.” 

Brooke asks Dave what’s going on; Dave says he needs to speak to someone; and Dave then says, “Dilana, what the HELL were you THINKing?  NEVER bag on your peers like that.”

Dilana admits to screwing up and seriously apologizes, and says she and Lukas are just so much alike that sometimes she has this urge to mother him like a mother dove.  Lukas of course speaks up that he doesn’t “need a dove,” and when asked how he feels about the earlier slams, etc., mildly shrugs and says, “I have to live with it, literally.”

After one last reproach and reminder that it will happen all the time when you are well known and that they all need to develop thick skin, Dave turns the elimination part over to Brooke.  She announces that as of last night’s closing of the show, Patrice, Storm, and Toby were in the bottom three.  And as the voting continued, Magni was added to the list.

As the “worldwide” voting finished, the three in the bottom were Magni, who does a STUNNING Jimi Hendrix, “Fire” (even pulling off the genius guitar riffs and getting comments that no one ever broached even the IDEA of doing a Hendrix and that Magni’s performance was, Tommy says, “ridiculous” — as in good, duh);  Patrice, who does the Pretenders’ classic, “Middle of the Road,” which she has, she notes, arranged for Gilbey; and Toby, who does “Plush” in an Eddie Vedder-style voice after the shock of his being in the bottom 3 leaves Tommy with what he says he feels is starting to be a complex.

With four trips to the bottom and some gentle and supportive comments form Supernova, Patrice is cut tonight.  But in a respectful and respectable exit commentary, Patrice says, “I’m a fan of yours.  I have a long list of [great] things I’ve done, and this is definitely on that list.”  Now THAT’s graceful.

Rock Star SuperNova this Tuesday (the 22 of August, with seven performers left) was cranked up even more – if that’s possible. 

Magni did Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit, to an appreciative crowd and SuperNova.  Patrice did her best to wow with an original, “Beautiful Thing,” though Dave Navarro suggested she do what they had advised Zayra to do: go solo.  Yet, at the same time, Tommy added that they “have the technology” to make a song and performance like that work.

Storm took on the most admirable challenge, one this writer was thrilled with.  She did Aerosmith’s “Cryin,” and woked those ranges and Tyler yadadadadows in her own unique and impressive style.  It may have only added to her popularity and esteem when she returned the flirty talk regarding her corset, but probably stung a little when Gilbey said to Storm that now that the best of the best remained, he wants “memorable”.  (I’m thinking memorable speaks to, for example, Lukas’s evocative version of Creep a few weeks back.)

Dilana brought on Sting’s “Every Breath You Take,” and did her usual quasi-lurching that is so appealing to the crowds, and did some clever subliminal chanting, wherein instead of a three-syllable “ooh-ye-ah” did a chant of “Di-la-na, Di-la-na, Di-la-na.”  Asked whether her song choice had any significance she responded that yes, it was her mom’s favorite song … and she and her mom have not spoken for years, so it holds bittersweet memories for her.

Gilbey or Jason (sorry I missed the camera shot) said her instincts are so good.

Ryanalso did an original song titled “Back of Your Car,” and was praised for his continued growth, while Toby kicked ass with his version of Clapton’s “Layla,” during which he stripped off his shirt, revealing a big EVS on his torso.  He was of course asked who or what EVS is and explained that it is the abbreviation of a common catch phrase back home: “whatever”, or, as he pronounced it, “whatevah”.

Toby had engaged, too, by interacting with the audience, delighting his many groupies.  He also impressed Gilbey, who commented that Toby took a risk changing up a classic, and that while he didn’t really care for the version what he did care for was Toby’s performance, which, Gilbey said, was “crazy!”

And Lukas did a brilliant rendition of a song called “All These Things,” by The Killers.  He even camped up the message of the song by checking himself in the reflection of one of the house gits, then strutted his usual strut back through the outreaching crowd.  Navarro said it was “unbelievable;” Tommy did his classic commentary, saying, “Two words: check please,” and throwing down his mike; while, unfortunately, Gilbey kept it real by suggesting Lukas not do so much with his back to them.  Lukas responded that he wanted to enjoy everyone, wanted to enjoy the band, too, for the two and a half minutes he had the opportunity to do so, but Gilbey reiterated that “these [the audience members] are your people.”

Yes, Lukas, we ARE your people.  Keep playing it as Lukas would, dignified, humble, yet all-powerfully rock-starish!

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