Just another priceless work of art

Germany will have to wait for one more day; today, the focus will be a couple of leftovers, one from American Idol and one from Sweden's Darin.

Mario Vazquez was on the fourth season of American Idol and made it to the top twelve before choosing to drop out for "family reasons." He's since released his first single, which is described here as having "done well." I'd like to think it has (I brushed it off at first, then found myself listening to it compulsively for a few days, and now have cooled off towards it a bit, though I still like it), but I haven't yet heard it on the radio. He has an album due out September 12, 2006 and, most excitingly, when describing it, he says, "I definitely feel it’s very unlike any other Idol record out there. It’s very dance oriented so that’s going to be refreshing to the Idol fans." Today's song isn't very dance-ish, but, hearing it, I was worried the album would be full of carbon copies. I still don't know if I'll buy the album, but I'm at least intrigued.

Gallery--This is a song that I, the girl who criticized Kimberley Locke's "Supawoman" as being generic R&B, should probably not like; it is R&B, and hardly revolutionary. "Gallery" was written by Ne-Yo, and you can definitely hear that; it's melodic R&B of the sort that has made me, against all my normal inclinations, enjoy Ne-Yo's "So Sick" and "Sexy Love." This song has unfortunately spawned a billion posts by MySpacers, Liverjournalers, and bloggers talking about how the lyrics resonate with them. I don't think the song's message is one of its stronger points (though it might be a good selling point if he's aiming at preteen girls intent on being told they are special and being "rescued" by a guy; I think, though, if you really want to be picky about it, you could argue it carries the message that girls will do stupid things for money and need to be talked out of selling their souls to be with a rich guy). I do think, though, that the lyrics are a strong point; they flow beautifully, but it's the sound of them, not so much the underlying message, that helps the song. The verses make the song; the rhythms and rhymes there are unique, suprising, and pleasing to the ear, while the chorus feels a little lackluster in its rhymes and melody (and the only offputing part of Mario's singing is in the chorus--"just not fair" and "I can't take"). Otherwise, Mario's voice is great for "Gallery"--smooth and melodic to match Ne-Yo's melodies.

US residents can buy a version of this song at MSN Music, but it's totally different (I don't really like it, which probably means it'll be the version that takes off); you'd be better off buying this version (the non-Baby Bash edit) on iTunes.

Walk The Distance--Darin's cover of a Robyn song. It's a midtempo song that's not quite bouncy but never drags. It's Darin--really, what more do you need to know?

You can buy Darin's second album, Darin, here.

Next up: Alexander Klaws of Germany, I think.

mario vazquez american idol darin