Play a Song For Me

It's a darned good thing I declared the end of hockey talk in yesterday's Blog, because the only stupid NHL news yesterday was that Mats Sundin signed for a year with the Leafs. If there's one thing I hate about the end of the Playoffs, it's that we now have to listen to Leaf Nation rising again...BLECH!!

Last night I watched my first episode of the summer of Canadian Idol. I believe the audition rounds kicked off last week, but I missed the debut. To be honest, I haven't paid a whole lot of attention to the show since the first season, when I fell in love with the underdog Ryan Malcolm from Kingston who went on to win the whole she-bang. The next year, that floopy haired angel-boy won, and I lost interest. Last season, I watched on and off, and was proud that Eva Avila, a Gatineau native, eventually won it all, but I really didn't care.

This season, however, I've discovered a new twist that really boosted my interest in the show. This year, contestants are allowed to bring in instruments to audition with if they wish. And I am a sucker for boys with guitars. Most of the guys who came in with 6-strings slung around their necks...Well, I loved 'em.

There were a few who did not impress, like the guy who called himself "Strings" and sang "Purple Haze" after plugging in his electric guitar and making a lot of racket by running his face up and down the strings. I couldn't have agreed more when Sass begged him to stop.

But there was a young cutie-pie teacher who played "Beast of Burden", and a burly-looking boy who sang "Drift Away". Both made it through to Toronto, and they were two of my favourites on the night. Oh, and the rocker from Saskatoon who they showed playing with his band before his audition - the judges weren't sold on him when he came in and strummed for them, but after Farley asked him to sing the last line of O Canada, they handed him his gold ticket to T.O. And there was also a hot young dad who not only won my heart with his guitar playing, but he had the most adorable little boy...I would've put him through just because the kid was so cute.

These are the parts of the audition process that I love - when someone walks in there, and really knocks your socks off. The rest of it I find contrived, twisted, and painful at times. There are the people who walk in who profess to be stars-in-the-making, but they sing so badly, it'd almost make you want to change the channel. Then there are the people who know they have no talent, but they do something whacky just to get on TV. It's gimmicky, and while it might've made for good TV a few years back, it's all just getting old now.

But I really do think the introduction of instruments in the audition process has breathed a bit of new life into the Idol process. And judging from the snippets they showed of next week's Toronto Round, the boys will be allowed to bring out their guitars again.

Guaranteed, I'll be in love with one of these lads before the summer's out!