For the last few years there has been much said in the media about the wheels coming off the X Factor bus, with constant references to the falling viewing figures and annual social media campaigns to “keep the X Factor winner off the Christmas number one slot” but, looking around the packed out Brighton Centre, and listening to the audience reaction, X Factor Live 2017 is not a bus – It’s a Juggernaut.
On a stage that bears all the hallmarks of the television production, stunning lighting, technical wizardry and video screens and with the trade mark gas jets, flame throwers, fireworks and confetti cannons, the top eight finalists are given the chance to shine and, mostly, they do!
Five After Midnight open the show by flying up through on-stage trap doors, and the audience volume goes off the scale. Their performance is strong, energetic, superbly choreographed and their stage presence is so strong that, in just a few seconds, the audience are dancing, singing and clapping along.
Boyfriend / Girlfriend pair Ryan Lawrie and Emily Middlemass both give very assured performances with Emily slowing down One Direction’s monster hit That’s What Makes You Beautiful to really make it her own, and Ryan leaping around the stage and playing to the video cameras as he delivers The Beatle’s Twist and Shout. Their decision to sing together could well be regretted though, as Emily is vocally, head and shoulders above Ryan.
Sadly, for every upside there is a downside, and in this show that end of the spectrum holds places for Four of Diamonds and Honey G. The girl group do all appear to try very hard, but they just seem to be four girls in search of direction. Their vocals pale against the other talent on offer and it is only when they team up with 5AM that the audience respond to them.
Honey G is the Marmite of the X Factor world, as the number of cheers versus the number of boos, as she takes to the stage, goes to show. Her appeal seems to sit mostly with the huge number of primary school age children in the audience, while the over 18’s take this opportunity to head to the bar for a refill knowing that they aren’t missing much.
Sam Lavery has such a powerful voice that she is able to take on Michael Jackson’s Earth Song and really do it justice, although the X Factor habit of cutting songs short means that the most vocally demanding part of the song, towards the end, is omitted.
The 2016 winner, Matt Terry, has the final part of the show all to himself and opens his set with I Put a Spell On You which grabs the full attention of the audience. Of course, his hit song that followed his win was When Christmas Comes Around which, in the middle of March, doesn’t really sit well. He makes amends by rising high above the stage on a large hydraulic platform to belt out his stunningly powerful version Sam Smith’s James Bond theme, The Writing’s on the Wall.
Although there is only ever one winner on the X Factor, the prize this evening goes to runner-up Saara Aalto. As she rises majestically through the stage holding 4 huge Helium balloons, and keeps on rising until she looks out over the packed auditorium, she delivers a flawless version of Bjork’s 1995 hit, It’s Oh So Quiet (originally a hit in the early 1950’s but still standing the test of time).
She returns to the stage floor and, following a very quick on-stage costume change, goes straight into Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance before returning, later in the show, with a mash up of Diamonds are Forever and Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend. Saara also provides the undoubted showstopper performance of the night by, once again, appearing through the huge on-stage trap door, this time sitting at a grand piano. She sings The Winner Takes It All and gives a performance that almost lifts the roof off the building and, when it ends, has everyone in the auditorium shouting and screaming for more.
There is no doubt that the popularity of the X Factor live tour lies in the diversity of the performers, the very carefully chosen songs and the incredibly high production values. It may not be to everyone’s taste but the audience love it and, at the end of the day, that audience is still counted in millions.
**** Four Stars