I didnt bother writing a review for last week's anugerah semi-finals since I only liked two performances: Farah Wahidah's Keliru and Siti Nurulhuda's Aku Tak Biasa. The other contestants, in my honest opinion, were hardly worth mentioning because their song choices were not so good (which was surprising as I'm sure they had a mindboggling plethora of indonesian songs to choose from!). Actually, I'm abit loathe to write about tonight's finals too; I feel that some of the better singers were dogged by poor song choice and the judges (as well as the general audience) were biased. As I've mentioned before (I think!) in an entry regarding last season's judging system, this whole Anugerah business is quite flawed...
1) The voting duration for each contestant is unequal; thus the contestants who sing first would have a longer "timeslot" for their supporters to sms in their votes whereas the later performances would have a shorter "exposure" period. What the producers should have done instead, was to allow voting to be done only after the last contestant has performed (like in the american idol system).
2) Text messages for voting are priced at 50cents per message; while this isnt really a hefty tag, the producers should provide other avenues for audiences to show their support, for instance, via internet voting or by phonecall. Let's face it, only us younger folks are keen to text-message and therefore, the contestants with an older following (or those not used to text-messaging) might lose out in a solely sms-based fan-support system.
3) All of the appointed judges in the finals are fresh faces and therefore, their opinions would only be based on the performances of the contestants during the finale and might even be influenced by the amount of fan turn-out of each contestant (a massive fan turn-out, for instance, might deceive the judge into concluding that a particular singer has greater appeal and will eclipse the better but less popular performers). Moreover, having one or two judges on the panel who've been with the contestants from the early stages would be more beneficial as he/she would be able to ascertain which individuals have shown the most improvement, proven to be the most consistent, most versatile, etc. These factors, which I think should have been important factors in deciding the eventual winner, have been sadly overlooked.
4) The live band was mostly much too loud, drowning the contestants' voices at the most ill-timed moments. If possible, some of the singers sounded even more karaoke than when they were singing along to pre-recorded music. The conductor should have toned down on the percussion instruments and dependence on electric guitar...
5) Having judges with proper credentials is most vital in ensuring a just competition. The 1st judge sounded as if he didnt know what he was talking about and the fifth judge looked and sounded like a pervert; it was pretty clear he was favoring the more aesthetically-pleasing contestants. On the other hand, judge Babes Condes & one or two others, gave very balanced and relevant opinions.
With all these said, it's quite obvious that I'm not too happy about the results... especially in the song-writing category. I was rooting for Disuatu Hari Nanti by Thaqif but instead, the BIgg fella who sang the forgettable Cermin won... damn~! well anyway, here are my two-cents worth on our eight finalists;
1. Zulyana - Puncak Kasih. Strong vocals, pleasant tone, pretty face = quite a package, but frankly speaking, i thought she didnt have that extra oommph to her performance. Luckily for her, I wasnt amongst the panel of judges... she won third placing.
2. Dina Ardiana - Kaulah Segalanya. This was the wrong song choice for her; while her high range was good, her vibrato on the lower registers sounded quite awful. However, i think the real fault lies in the weird arrangement of the song... the live band simply butchered this indon classic.
3. Hermi Ali - Nian Di Hati. A commendable effort. Rather credible in the upper ranges but barely audible in his lower register. Would have been perfect if not for the diva-ish hand gesticulations -- turned me off!!! Star quality??? like real!
4. Norazela - Hanya Untukmu. Being a school teacher, she has an automatic massive fanbase. Otherwise, her vocals were rather mediocre despite having a pleasant tone. Song isnt challenging enough and the performance was only above average at best but she still managed to get to the number two spot. Judges kayu lah...
5. Aqmal N - Ghazal Untuk Rabiah. A very difficult song executed quite credibly. Some parts were abit wayward but on the whole, he was able to show off an amazing range and vocal flexibility. Perfect song for the right voice; certainly the best performance for the night. A deserving winner...
6. Rashidah - Menghitung Hari (not the Kris dayanti version). Uh-oh.. bad song choice. It made her sound really old although undeniably, she had one of the better voices in this competition. She should have picked something more mainstream and vocally challenging.. could have shown off her versatility abit more. Too bad...
7. Farah Wahidah - Kehujung Dunia. Undoubtedly my personal favorite for this season but unfortunately, the absolute worst song for her to choose. Didnt she know that Siti Sarah songs have never been well-received by the general malay-pop-listening audience??? Farah has a superb tone, strong stage-presence and a good vocal range; it's such a waste that her talent was not manifested properly for the finals...
8. Siti Nurulhuda - Teratai Layu Di Tasik Madu. She's a Siti Nurhaliza clone minus the awesome vocal range; with the band drowning her from start to finish, it was virtually impossible to listen to her remarkable vocal texture. Her faltering on her high notes, whilst struggling to be heard above the booming music, was all the more apparent. Not a fantastic singer but she could have performed a gazillion times better if the music arrangement hadnt been so fucked-up.
So there you have it folks~ the final episode of Anugerah 2004. The only thing to look forward to now is the upcoming Singapore Idol in mid-august. Watch this space, people!! ;p
