4 minutes people!

I've got my Allens lollies - have you? ;) Well actually I don't, but perhaps I'll look into it for next week. Rach and Regz are out tonight, so I'll be your resident commentary-man!

And the countdown begins...

Episode Two begins!
Nice Idol moments in the TV2 ad beforehand, Ben singing at football games - isn't THAT a distant memory?!

Rainy, overcast shots of Riccarton Racecourse in Christchurch, with a man in black walking away from the camera.. wait - was that an Idolblog.com jacket? Hell yes!! Dom whips the crowd into a frenzy and it all begins..

Quick recap of Auckland auditions, including our favourite Auckland ginga ;)

First up is 'Jacob', who sang about going to see the King, hallelujah hallelujah, kinda catchy! Jacob seemed a tad upset, "I'm it New Zealand!". A quick combo of bad singers, Jackie almost constantly reprimanding Paul and Frankie for being too "nasty". "There's no need for this degree of rudeness". Harden up Jackie!

Jackie talks about how she's loving working with Paul and Frankie but says they can sometimes be too rude, and says she's not gonna have a bar of it. Dom scouts 'round the contestants, and we have our first 'real' singer Victoria. Paul's not too sure, but Jackie says yes, so it's up to Frankie. And in true Idol style, we'll find out - after the break ;)

Frankie doesn't think she's good enough either, so Victoria has to go *mopes*. She's a bit upset, and now her boyfriend Marcel's gonna give it a crack! He looks more the goods, great voice, and can groove a little too. Marcel is through!! What does Victoria think about that? :S

Contestant Angela, who's waiting outside, can't wait to rub Frankie's head! Once she gets inside, Frankie says he'll let her rub his head if she sings well.. And she doesn't. But being a strangely blue-eyed weirdo that she is, she rubs it anyway. She admits "I sucked, really". True dat, Angela.

Paul likened the next singer's voice to a ferry grinding against a wharf, and then another flurry of awful singers. What is wrong with you Cantabrians?! Finally Marino Mariner steps up, who's featured in the IB photo gallery, and sings a song I don't know but sounded great! Sure enough, Marino's through ;)

Lorna, who usually sings to the cows on her farm, sings a beautiful song, kinda Norah Jones-esque, and the judges are blown away. Jackie said it was lovely, Paul said it was great, and Lorna receives a unanimous yes. She's stoked! Poor cows, no more Lorna serenades for a while yet :(

So ten from Christchurch are through, and off we go to Trentham Racecourse in Wellington!

Bit of jamming in the foyer, from beatboxing to breakdancing to some chick singing with chips in her mouth..?! Some girl seduces the judges by promising to "be nice to them if they're nice to her". Yeah right.

Maselina is first up, and it sounds like she's singing a song from Church, lets see what Paul thinks about this one ;) Jackie loves it, Paul isn't sure, and Frankie says she has a soul of timber, whatever that means..

Wellingtonians profess their talents for anything from their funky slippers, Idol-styled batman masks, and "my great personality". Julie sings that awful "I believe the children are our future" song, and yet again - it was crap, Paul tells her that she can't sing at all.

Daniel sings Maroon 5's Sunday Morning, a personal favourite of mine, and sings it really nicely. Frankie said it's okay, but not good enough. Jackie said it was a multi-dimensional performance, and Paul sees a sparkle in his eye! Oooh Paul ;) Daniel's through, and to an ad-break we go..

The next contestant, Alice, is excited to be standing on the NZ Idol floormat, hehe. She's only 16, but has a mature voice, and she's hot! Not sure if she's quite NZ Idol material, but we'll see.. Jackie says "Oh gosh, I wish you could sing!" Paul says she's not good enough, and Frankie said no too. She's quite cool about it though, and off she goes. Cut to funny Maori guy who forgot his ID, so he wasn't allowed to audition, so he busts out with an impromptu performance with another guy's guitar. Who knows what might've been ;)

Francis, kitted out with a kiwifruit-coloured Beanie, sings another R 'n B style song, which is good, and Paul said he knew how to convey the song and 'believe' in what he was singing. Frankie agrees, and Francis is through! Why do all the "pop" singers suck? Enough R 'n B already!

An enthusiastic Nathan sings "Climb Every Mountain" awfully, no one should ruin songs like that! Paul calls it an "avalanche of destruction". Another series of awful performances, including a guy wearing a 'Meatloaf Appreciation Club' :D. Paul calls Zoe's performance "so unique, it was atrocious". Why do so many bad singers willingly humiliate themselves on national TV?! Jackie again has a go at Paul about "grandstanding" feedback - I reckon she needs to toughen up - bitchin' comments from arrogant judges is what Idol is all about! And to the ads we go..

Dom reckons he's gonna cook his dinner on ambitious contestant Jessica's dress, it's that hot.. sleazy Dom! The performance was "too much", said Jackie, Frankie "didn't hear a voice", and Jessica leaves with a little love message for Dom ;)

MORE crap singers, this show seems to have way too many! Some guy starts singing "Isn't she lovely" to Jackie, and Paul gets up and leaves hehe. Cre'Ammon (nice name) sings <em>another</em> R 'n B song, and gets through (surprise surprise), and Paul tells a guy who sings Somewhere Over The Rainbow to "click his heels and get out of here".

A young Pacific Island guy named Rongo gives a nice performance of The Carpenters 'Superstar' (?), Jackie calls it "wicked", and Rongo hugs his Mum and is going to Auckland!!

Frankie says the talent is significantly better than last year, Paul says it's much more dynamic, and Jackie is just as excited as the other two.

Well that's it for the auditions, (thank god) so tune in next week when the competition really heats up ;)

Until next time..