There is no denying that she stands out in the competition there is no one else in the competition like her. All Abi has to do is keep staying true to herself as James did the only thing she can do that could be a hindrance to herself would be trying to be something she's not. As long as she keeps doing what she's doing on the show she will do well for herself.

Abi is clearly a talented musician, but if she wants to market herself as a piano playing singer / songwriter, she needs to have absolutely flawless vocals, the whole point of such an act is the voice, nothing else....I'm not sure we've heard flawless vocals from her at any point this year.

I just don't think the show is right for her and as the weeks go on you'll see that she will start to get uncomfortable with the whole process.

And there in a nutshell is what some of us have been trying to say. I should be an Abi fan but she was not good last night.

Shows you haven't got a clue about what defines a singer songwriter.

'The whole point of such an act is the voice, nothing else"

That couldn't be more wrong if you entered a competition trying to be the wrongest person from wrongsville.

The whole point of such acts is about creativity and having someone worth communicating in song form. I once heard an interview with Sheryl Crow where she said she didn't feel her own voice was great, but that as a singer songwriter she believed the best person to sing her own songs and communicate the message was herself.

Which if course is absolutely right.

Sam B has the best voice in the competition if you measure it by being able to flawlessly belt out songs, so if that is the measure of what wins the X Factor then she wins it.

If it comes down at all the creativity and being an artist in the true sense then Abi is streets ahead of everyone else in the show.

I work open mic nights and in comparison she's pretty average. She's not terrible, she has talent but she's only original in as far as she's the only one on the show doing that kind of thing. (if it works though why not?)

Once you step outside the show, there's load of similar acts/people. She can play the piano well enough, but again it's nothing special even in comparison to other vocal/instrument performers like her, so it has to be her vocals and they weren't that great on the night.

I wouldn't write her off yet, yesterday might have just been a poor performance due to nerves etc..., but playing the piano/any instrument and singing isn't original, and doesn't make up for being lackluster in other areas.

You're trying to tell me you've often heard artists like Katie Melua, Lisa Hannigan and Marketa Irglova go offkey when accompanying themselves on piano but it doesn't really matter because they're being creative and original?

Their originality and creativity is important but the crucial thing is that they have beautiful voices and absolutely perfect tuning.

Right there are lots of creative people outside the X Factor, many of whom are better than Abi.

However, there are lots of people outside the X Factor who can sing karaoke, many better than the contestants in the show.

Bottom line is do you prefer a songwriting, instrument playing artist or someone who is only capable of performing covers of other people's songs?

Another thing that people don't seem to have picked up on is that Abi apparently did her own arrangement of Livin' On A Prayer. If so, I didn't find the arrangement particularly interesting or groundbreaking.

I'm sure it would be great for an O Level or something if she had managed to hit and hold any notes vocally. It was a vocal nightmare for her. She knows it. It was a struggle from start to finish and without the piano she'd have fallen apart completely.

Lmao. Everybody has different opinions, you don't need to get so defensive over it. I enjoyed listening to Rylan's singing whereas many didn't. I completely adore Abi's tone and everything about her voice, I along with others thought it WAS in tune and loved the performance. I've listened back and it sounds even better. Fair enough if you didn't like it because I understand that it won't be to everybody's taste but do NOT try and patronize me.


Whaaat? I heard honest critiques throughout the night. Sam Callahan, Luke & Miss Dynamix all received some. Also I'm not one of those people who believes everything the judges say, I can decide for myself whether I feel like a performance was in tune or not and Abi most definitely was.


Thankyou for the compliment. I'll pretend your emote doesn't exist.

I think people are putting the cart before the horse, Jackie. If the idea is to present yourself as a stripped back acoustic performer, then your vocals have to be absolutely perfect (as the whole point of such an act is the vocal, nothing else....there are no gimmicks or choreography or audience participation, people are just listening to your voice in silence).

I prefer someone who can give a decent performance, has charisma/is entertaining and doesn't hide behind gimmicks. (in this instance the piano)

In every day life I'd normally prefer the former, (though some of my favorite songs are overs) but x factor isn't every day life.

Abi isn't the best act on the show. If the show were about songwriting/instrument playing she'd be win in comparison to the others but it's not and her being 'different' and 'creative' doesn't make up for being poor in other areas. Put her among similar performers and she's not different or special, but average.

I agree that she's unique on the show, and it's her selling point. If it works and she wins then why the hell not. But for me, the image is really irritating, and I don't see why it should carry her when others are giving better performances.

So you're saying if you can play an instrument, sing completely out of tune and flat that is a mark of creativity and the sign of a true artist?

For me if an artist wants to do this sort of thing there needs to be some sort of purpose. I have only seen a handful of artists truly get away with this style of singing. First is Scott Walker. His 2006 album The Drift is a woeful, gut wrenching mess...the off key singing works because of the depressive nature of the album. Arcturus's La Masquerade Infernale from 1997 is another album with off key moments all the time...but this is in theme with the album which is more a maniacal, almost carnival-like depiction of hell.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZR3DP8XcvOg

no

that does not make her original

that makes her different

original means doing something no-one else has ever done , she isn't even original from an x factor perspective let alone the wider music world

just being different from the "usual belters" as people keep saying isn't enough , you have to back that up with performances and so far she hasn't

I really want her to be good , she is the only act left that I am remotely interested in , but she really has to up her game as vocally she is a long way off the type of acts she is being compared to

I do feel sorry for these little girls like Abi, Janet and so many that have gone before them. They are heralded as the next big thing in uniqueness and quirkiness which of course they are anything but.

Unfortunately, as young as they are and dreamers as we all are to an extent at that age, they fall for the hype and the (unwarranted) praise from the judges in the early weeks.

Once the producers see that they do not have significant voter support to sustain them to and beyond a recording studio, the tactics change and these young girls dreams are thrown under a bus and you can see them being visibly crushed for a couple of weeks on live TV before they are eventually released from their ordeal.

Katie Melua original? Oh dear.

Abi definitely has an unconventional voice. I would say it could develop more like this....

www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbdAVoIJzIk

And I don't think that she was 'offkey' she did bend some notes, deliberately I might add and sang in a minor key, but it certainly was done that way deliberately.

The piano is a gimmick? Get real.

I'm not even a fan of Katie Melua's (I do like Lisa Hannigan and Marketa Irglova though) but there is no way Abi is in Melua's league. Her voice is slight and reedy and not particularly impressive. If she had turned up on XF singing like one of the aforementioned ladies in this thread, she could well have been a contender for the win, as her opposition are absolutely nothing to write home about.

It is when it comes to x factor. It's something shes using to set herself apart from the other contestants that isn't necessarily related to her vocal ability/musical talents. (well it is in the sense it's an instrument and musical, but it's just adding another layer to the performance, and two level of average does not make an amazing performance0

She doesn't necessarily need it, and as someone who's been playing for 14/15 years and hangs around with a lot of people who play, I'm not convinced she's all that good.

How would you know what quality of TV speakers everyone uses?

As 'Living In a Prayer' is in E minor, I'd say that's probably the least she could have done....

Her voice would be thin and reedy through a prime pair of studio monitors, so the argument (which seems to be being repeated on any thread criticising St Abi) doesn't hold any water.....

Does bend notes mean she didn't hit what she was trying for by any chance? That's what it sounded like all the way through to me.

Depends whether you are talking about bending notes in a Tim Buckley sense or a Marc Almond sense. In the first instance it means taking the note slightly out for a dissonant effect on purpose. In the latter, yeah, it's pretty much trying to hit a note and going all round it.