Recap of the America's Got Talent 7 Austin, Texas Auditions (June 4, 2012)
The 7th season of America's Got Talent has two episodes of auditions from Austin, the state capital of Texas. This is a recap of the first episode, which aired on Monday, June 4, 2012.
The first audition was a Mexican-style Mariachi band, but the 10-year-old lead singer was the star of the act. His name is Sebastien De La Cruz. The band's name is Mariachi El Charro De Oro. The judges were enthusiastic about this, and the act got three YES votes for the Las Vegas round. This kid and the band could make the Top 48, but their issue will be uniqueness. These bands tend to sound too similar, so they will need to somehow mix it up to have a chance for the finale.
Bandaz Brothers are the second featured balancing act of America's Got Talent 7. The other is solo act Cristin Sandu. These guys are originally from the country of Iran. One is young, and the other is the 58-year-old uncle who has been retired for about 11 years. The ring rust seemed to show, as the act was a bit wobbly. For some reason, the judges downplayed that and sent them to Las Vegas. Look for Cristin and the Bandaz Brothers to have a rivalry showdown in Vegas. It is doubtful that both acts will make the voting rounds. As a balancing act, both are good. The problem is with balancing acts in general, which tend to come across as boring due to the slow pacing.
Next is the backstory that will have some people racing to the phone to vote if given a chance. Tim Poe is a U.S. military veteran who was injured by a grenade when serving a tour of duty in Afghanistan. He now talks with a stutter due to a brain injury caused by the grenade. He is a pretty good country singer. Technically, he is not so great. But he does have a fair degree of emotion in his voice. Look for Tim to be a big favorite if he is selected for the Top 48 voting rounds.
There were no other serious contenders the rest of the show. The third from last featured audition was Lulu, an overweight pole dancer. I'll admit I enjoyed watching her get on that pole. This woman is quite overweight and does not have the artistic movements needed to be a talented dancer. But she had fun, and that really showed. Howie said YES, but he obviously knew the other two judges would say NO. And that's exactly what they did. Then, Nick came out to join Lulu and dance on the pole. He had a bikini top on under his shirt.
Joe Castillo was the second to last performance. He does an art act that consists of the use of sand and light to create pictures. He drew set of patriotic pictures while Lee Greenwood's "God Bless The USA" played in the background. This was impressive in terms of talent, but it doesn't translate so well to the big stage. If Joe makes it to the voting rounds, he will have a tough time advancing. The act does not have room to grow.
The last act suffers from the same problem. David Smith, Jr.'s Human Cannonball act is impressive, but he is just going to the same thing all over again in every round that the judges or voters let him survive. I suppose he could set himself on fire or something, but those are only marginal steps to liven up this exciting but limited show.
This was the end of the first hour of Austin auditions for the 7th season of America's Got Talent.
