American Idol has lost me. After being an avid follower for many years, I have given up. While I can definitely look back and see that there are a few standout contestants who've piqued my interest (Bo Bice, Carrie Underwood, Daughtry, David Cook), I'm pretty sure what interested me most was their story, not the fact that I was in love with their voice or artistry. I like the idea of a young girl coming out of Nowhere, Oklahoma to become the new queen of Nashville. I love that a dude like Daughtry can, in some ways, live out the plot of the movie Rock Star. Their stories are captivating because they're the musical equivalent of Rudy.
However, I can honestly say I've never spent money on an A.I. contestant's music, and here's why. I'm a guitarist, but when it comes to music, the voice is the instrument that is most crucial for me. No matter how great a band or artist's arranging, writing, or playing may be, if I don't love the voice, then the music becomes nothing more than white noise. So how do I, personally, decide what voices I like/dislike? The number one criteria for me in determing a great voice is that the voice cannot be "plastic." I suppose when I use this term, I'm borrowing from Mean Girls, but it's the best word I can muster. I have little to no interest in a polished, perfect sounding voice.
I totally respect people's opinion to feel differently on this, but when a singer's voice is pristine and shimmering without flaw or imperfection, I tend to disengage. I will always acknowledge that they are extremely talented, but I just listen and feel as though what I'm hearing is an audible version of a Vogue magazine cover where some celebrity is sent through hours of makeup, photographed, and then retouched for hours on a computer to create an illusion of perfection and beauty. No pores, no pimples, no scars...and as little reality as possible. Plastic. Looks good, but it's just too good to be real.
So what do I like? People whose singing voices are akin to jabbing knitting needles deep into your ears (no offense, Rebecca Black). Auto tune addicts (no, Kesha, I couldn't POSSIBLY be referring to you)? Not at all. I want singers to have strong sense of melody and to be highly talented...but I also want to hear some humanity, some frailty, some aggresion, some urgency. Why? Because those things touch on what it is to be human and I don't just want that in your words, I want it in your voice!!!!
Though he's not the only one, one of the best examples I can think of is Eddie Vedder. Now, I know he gets the rap of being the guy who spawned the low, booming grunge rock vocal, but a) I don't think that was his intention (Scott Stapp was a highly unintended/unfortunate consequence of songs like "Jeremy") and b) that's not the entirety of what his voice is about. I also know that his views on life might differ a bit than mine, but I can't help but admire the artistry in his vocals.
The video below shows a bit of what I'm talking about. When I hear him sing this song, there is a fragile beauty to the delivery. The rasp and grit in the vocal take away the veneer and add an urgent vulnerability that aligns perfectly with the pensive content of the song. Rather than sounding like the voice of an angelic choir, his voice sounds like a deep, woody instrument. The imperfections along the way don't detract from the beauty. Quite the opposite...the rough edges become the beauty. Hopefully the video shows what I'm having difficulty putting into words.
To those of you who prefer singers who can belt it out Celine-style, please don't take offense. I realize that it's just a preference of mine and don't mean to sound like I'm bashing on polished voices. Just not my cup of tea (I actually prefer coffee, apologies to tea drinkers).
Effective score=7.6/10 (with 7 points coming as bonus for use of a video)
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