The pre-credits sequence is all about how close victory is for the final four acts: Carlito Olivero, Jeff Gutt, Alex & Sierra and Restless Road. Whoever thought the final four would be them? It's the semi-finals and you're not going to believe this, but the pressure is more intense than ever! There's also some big talk from the judges -- even Demi, who no longer has a dog in this hunt, but assures us she's going to be totally honest anyway. Doesn't she have more reason to be honest now?
Out come the mentors, and then Mario tells us that they are completely defanged this week, because the results are going to be determined by votes only. "But they'll still have plenty to say." Oh good, I was worried. He also tells us that one act will be sent packing this week, while the other three go to the finals week. And thence into obscurity. Tonight's themes? Viewers' choice, head-to-head duets and a "killer song" to get them into the finals… so not a theme at all. Mario asks Demi how she's feeling about being an impartial judge without an act in the competition anymore, and somehow makes it seem not all that passive-aggressive. Demi ruefully says this isn't her first time in that position, so she promises to "lay it out there like I always do." Mario checks in with Kelly, who tells us how proud she is of Jeff. Paulina's rather less coherent and Simon vows, "We are ready to kill tonight." Interesting. Does everyone know where the exits are?
Four acts and ten songs means we had time to interview all the mentors, but now its time to get things moving. Fortunately Paulina's introduction of Carlito gets the proceedings off the ground like an overburdened C-130. In his intro reel, Carlito talks about being in the bottom two last week -- again -- but now he's looking at it as being in the top four. His America's choice song is "Boyfriend" by Justin Bieber. Maintaining the glass-half-full attitude, he says that people picked a song for him who didn't know who he was a few months ago. And clearly they still don't. He shares an old memory of receiving a karaoke machine from his parents when he was little and gets pretty verklempt over his gratitude for their support, which they could ill afford. Ready to vote for him yet?
Oh, maybe he should sing first. His performance is laid-back, but energetic and his trademark flop-sweat of desperation evaporates almost as soon as he picks a young woman out of the audience to… sit in a chair. Then the backup dancers get a turn and he works the other side of the stage, and then the judges' table, pulling Kelly out of her seat to dance with him and maybe secretly ask if she'd like to be his new mentor. Kelly loves it, saying it's what she's been waiting for from him all season. Demi is happy for him too, saying he had the confidence and the heartthrob thing working. Simon is impressed too, even though he doesn't consider Carlito the best singer, but he always comes back from the bottom two as strong as he can. Paulina says Carlito was singing to the girls, and again describes him as "multifacetic." I'm going to have to add that word to spell-check at this rate.
Simon introduces the first of his groups, Restless Road, in such a bad fake Southern accent that, for a moment, I think he's introducing three guys named Raius, Laius and Row. They're happy to have been given a Luke Bryan song, and then we get a little backstory on all three of them from their parents. Including Colton, who nearly died at birth. What, are you going to not vote for someone who nearly died??? Don't feel bad actually, because their rendition of "My Kind of Night" isn't that great, and is actually less attention-grabbing than the video loop of a passing roadside motel sign playing every five seconds behind them. They seemed to have a good time, though, and so did Kelly, who says it was fun to watch. Demi was less impressed, saying that it was awkward and nervous and "not a semi-finals performance." Paulina isn't blown away either, but the audience doesn't boo her as much as they did Demi because she's so much harder to understand. Simon pooh-poohs all that and says they got confident, remembering to add that America chose the song brilliantly. Flatter us all you want, Simon, I'm still not voting.
Mario comes back from the ads with Restless Road's three moms, who relay a little hometown support before Simon gets to introduce his second act in a row as, simply, "The incredible Alex & Sierra." They're still feeling good about their second song last week -- as they should -- but Alex's parents fix that in a hurry by having unearthed some ancient video of him singing at a pageant in his toddlerhood. Sierra's mom gets to make a few comments about her too, but she's not a native English speaker so we also get Alex's parents' take on her as well. Their song, as they learn via text message, is "Little Talks" by Of Monsters and Men. Which they're happy about, but are also a little concerned with regards to learning the lyrics.
Fortunately, some clever production designer turns out to have put some of the lyrics on the projection screens behind them, so if they get lost they can just look over their shoulders. For once, Sierra greatly outshines Alex, who seems a little uncomfortable with the song and his bro-clothes and no guitar in sight. Or maybe her voice is just a better match for the original recording. Kelly says they kind of make her mad by killing it before her guy has to come out. Demi shares that she's downloaded their performances and made them her alarm clock, and is annoyed to say that she thinks she's looking at the winners. Paulina says they're stronger and more prepared every week. Unlike Paulina. Simon thanks America for the song, and tells them that they're not performing songs but making records, and they're one of his favorite acts he's ever worked with. But then Mario comes out and mocks Alex for being a pageant boy, so their heads don't get too big.
Kelly finally gets to introduce Jeff Gutt, whose intro reel is all about how bad he wants it and needs it. For his son Talon, you know… like someone with the name Talon Gutt isn't going to do fine in life no matter what. Oh wait, this isn't Westeros? Never mind. America assigned Jeff "Hallelujah," which by an amazing coincidence was the song he first auditioned with last year. He's happy to be coming full circle on that, even though it seems to me that would mean asking for trouble, karma-wise. His performance begins with him on his knees, a dramatic pose in dramatic lighting. And it's very "Jeff Gutt sings 'Hallelujah'" if you know what I mean, and I think you do. But that's what everyone seems to want, because it earns him a standing ovation from all four judges. Demi says she thinks it'll be him and Alex & Sierra in the finals, and that of all the versions of this song ever, his version is her favorite ever since last year. Paulina says everyone knows the song but he made it his own, which I certainly can't argue with. Simon makes a show of being all reluctant to say that was one of the best versions he's ever heard. Obviously Kelly's proud of him too, and promises to get it from iTunes right now. Word to the wise, though: it's not really an alarm-clock song.
Moving on to the first-ever duet round, and according to a random drawing, Carlito will be up against Alex & Sierra. Each act talks about how the other could be a formidable opponent, but then there's some prep footage in which both acts have to rehearse together, so it's not like they'll be surprising each other much. They're singing that Oscar-winning song from Once, and is it still a duet when three people are singing? Does this make Alex & Sierra a duet within a duet, or a meta-duet? Whatever the case, Carlito seems to have the upper hand in this performance, while Alex & Sierra seem to be a little uncomfortable with their harmonies. Paulina says as much, being Carlito's mentor and all. Simon tells Carlito and Alex that they both did well, but Sierra stole it. Kelly gives a stream-of-consciousness narrative of the whole performance that has Mario saying, "Thank you for the recap, Kelly." Demi just comments, "What she said." She adds that it was the best vocal performance yet for Carlito and Sierra, both of whom surprised her. Alex didn't surprise anyone, apparently.
That means the duet is Restless Road against Jeff Gutt. Neither of them seems intimidated by the other, unlike the match-up. But they're doing "Every Breath You Take" by the Police, which gives Jeff home field advantage. Kelly's strategy was to make Restless Road Jeff's backup singers, which is pretty much what happens, just by unavoidable virtue of the arrangement. Advantage: Gutt. Kelly thought they were both really good, but "the Gutt killed it." Simon concedes the field and manages expectations at the same time, saying his group was never going to out-sing Jeff, but they stuck with their thing. So he basically begs for the votes to get them into the finals. Paulina's also Team Gutt, whereas Demi liked the country part of it but thought Jeff stole it. No argument here.
Demi videobombs Paulina while the latter namedrops Marc Anthony during her introduction of Carlito's final performance of the night. Carlito's doing a more driving version of "I Need To Know," flanked by speakers lit up to look like giant Lego bricks from which emerge backup dancers from a community theater production of Tron. And yeah, there's some Spanish in there. Carlito works his ass off, and he gets a standing ovation from... well, Paulina, at least. Kelly says he isn't messing around. Demi's comments are in Spanish, but I know enough to tell that she's pleased with him. Simon says it was like singing and magic at the same time, which Carlito seems to think is much cooler than Simon does, but Simon thinks the song was perfect for him and this is his best week thus far. Paulina just grubs for votes, because "Carlito is iiiiin this competition!" I couldn't have said it worse myself.
Simon laments that this could be the last time we ever hear Restless Road sing. I could live with that. He has them singing "Wanted" by Hunter Hayes and the way the night's going, it's a little odd to see their intro reel presciently positioning them as the underdogs. The staging of the performance has them spread out across the stage, which may or may not be what Demi was asking for earlier when she wanted them to open up. Each of them gets a verse with a few harmony bits, and Zach gets a few chances to make the girls scream with his deep-voice. It's their best of the night to be sure, but the song isn't a terribly demanding one. Still, they get a four-way standing ovation from the judges' table. Kelly says she felt like they were singing to her, and that she wasn't expecting Zach and Andrew to sing so well. High praise indeed. Demi says they need to keep doing this, and that they just saved themselves. Paulina says they "finally" did an amazing vocal, and Simon agrees that they saved the best for last and likes how they supported each other, and -- wait for it -- begs for votes. I know, right?
Alex & Sierra are up again, with a Sara Bareilles song this time. It's "Gravity," and Alex basically sets it up for Sierra to knock down. Especially the big note on "down," and a few sweetly-sung lines at the end. They also score a four-way standing O from the judges' table. Kelly's moved to tears by the way Sierra has grown lately. Demi's also choked up as she talks about how significant the song is for her, and that she's looking at stars. Is she sure she isn't just thinking of the song's music video? Paulina goes on about different people and love and the X Factor so long that even Simon gets bored. He cuts in to say it was raw and subtle and he wants to bottle the last ten seconds of the song. Also, he would like us to vote for them, if you can believe that shizz.
Finally, Jeff is up again. He's doing "Demons" by Imagine Dragons, which is a little weak at first, with lots of intentional vocal breaks thrown in, but when the big part kicks in it turns out to be a great fit for him. And it gets all four judges on their feet, too. Demi is amazed at how far he's come since last season, and says it's his time now. Paulina says they've been choosing amazing songs, and that Kelly did a great job. Simon says it's an incredible song, and that this is the best show of the season so far overall. Kelly weepily says she's enjoyed being his mentor, like one of them is about to die or something. Jeff in turn says he never could have done this without Kelly, which just made me realize what a bizarre alliance this was from the beginning. I mean, do you think Jeff Gutt could have picked Kelly Rowland out of a lineup six months ago? A lineup that didn't also include Beyoncé, I mean?
So Mario opens up the voting, reminding us again that it's all on us, because there's no "final" showdown tomorrow to determine which three acts get to stay. "Who's it gonna be and whose X Factor dream will end?" he asks. And how are they going to fill an hour without a sing-off at the end? Yes, Enrique Iglesias will be performing on tomorrow's show, but I can't imagine he'll be willing to sing that slowly.
M. Giant is a Minneapolis-based writer with a wife, a son, and a number of cats that seems to have settled at around two. Learn waaaay too much about him at Velcrometer, follow him on Twitter, or just e-mail him at m.giant[at]gmail.com.