Tag: Brooke Addamo

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Q & A with Owl Eyes

Australian audiences were first introduced to Brooke Addamo as a fresh-faced teen on Australian Idol. She’s done some growing up since then, and adopted the stage name Owl Eyes. With the release of her debut EP Faces, it’s time to reacquaint yourself with this talented young singer-songwriter. I caught up with her recently to chat about her stage persona, Faces, and her upcoming launch shows.

It’s not so common for a solo performer to take a stage name. What was behind that decision for you?
I decided to go with a stage name to separate myself from my normal self. Having a different name helps you create a stage persona and let’s you be more creative.

And why Owl Eyes?
I feel owls are such a good representation of my music; it’s that combination of light and darkness, pop music with some substance behind it. Among many other reasons I choose it after going through some of my favourite songs and came across Devendra Banhart’s “Owl Eyes,” and it just sounded right to me.

If local audiences think you look familiar it may be because they spotted you on Australian Idol. How was that experience for you?
Australian Idol was fine. I mean I was 17 at the time, so it was a good experience for me to go through. It really did make me realise what I didn’t want to be and made me a stronger person in the decisions I make. I feel it actually makes me work harder because people have these preconceived ideas of what I am so I have to constantly prove myself as a serious artist but when good things happen I’m more grateful because I know how hard I worked, so it all balances out in the end.

There can be a bit of a stigma around appearing on a talent show like that, particularly when you’re a songwriter with independent leanings. Did you feel that, and if so how did you overcome it?
I have felt that at times but I have been pretty fortunate that once people hear my music they kind of discard the stigma and judge me purely on what they hear. The fact that I didn’t go very far on the show has actually benefited me in the long run and similar artists have set good precedents and I think people are more forgiving towards artists like myself and see it more as an awkward teenage stage or a learning curve, rather then something that defines the artist.

Continue reading “Q & A with Owl Eyes” →

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

From Australian Idol to Indie Artist: Meet Owl Eyes

I always had a lot of respect for Australian Idol as a way to give emerging artists a foot in the door, but appearing on the program was always a bit of a double-edged sword. For every Lisa Mitchell and Ricki Lee Coulter, there are the hundreds of finalists who struggle once their tenure on the talent show is up. You might not remember the name Brooke Addamo – she finished 11th when we all had our eyes on Wes Carr – but she’s hoping her new incarnation sticks. She’s reinvented herself as a singer-songwriter by the name of Owl Eyes, and she’s preparing to release her debut EP Faces.

The disc, which drops on September 10, features the single “1+1” which is already enjoying steady airplay on JJJ and community radio around the country. It’s a world away from the pop mould Idol tried to force her into, and that’s a very good thing.

Some EP launch shows are in the works, but before that Owl Eyes will be warming up the stage for a host of other bands around the country. Make sure you arrive early to catch her at the following shows.

10 September 2010 – Corner Hotel, Melbourne (with Custom Kings)
11 September 2010 – Revolver, Melbourne (with Metals)
18 September 2010 – Spectrum, Sydney (with Metals)
30 September 2010 – Bella Union, Carlton (with Nicolas Roy)

Image used with permission from Shiny Entertainment

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Brooke Addamo Gets Idol Chop

You’re kidding me, right Australia? After a stellar run on Australian Idol, Brooke Addamo was sent home tonight. This talented teen hasn’t put a foot wrong all competition, so I’m not really sure what happened! I know I sent through a few messages to save her tonight, so I can’t even say I didn’t try!

Once Brooke found herself in the bottom three with Thanh Bui and Sophie Patterson I was almost feeling confident. Sophie is a stellar talent, but after her second week in the bottom two I thought perhaps she just wasn’t connecting to the Aussie public. Thanh’s performance last night was nowhere near his best, and his delivery of it tonight wasn’t much better.

My husband is going to be gutted when he gets home and hears the news! What a terrible end to a great week of Australian Idol!

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Australian Idol Gives Singers a Second Chance

Australian Idol was back tonight with its wildcard show. But before the judges gave eight singers one more chance, it was time to announce two more finalists. Those lucky singers are Brooke Addamo and Madam Parker. Worthy contenders both. This is shaping up to be some top 12.

Amanda Grafanakis opened the show with the Tina Turner classic, “Simply The Best.” This was a zillion times better than the last time we saw her. Her voice still wasn’t all that strong, and it never will be. But the difference here was her performance. She gave it everything she had and it was a joy to watch. Some of the world’s coolest rock chicks haven’t got classically wonderful voices, so I think she’s definitely got potential.

Nicole Banks was up next with Sara Bareilles’ “Love Song.” I really enjoyed her last week, but I felt like this was a bit of a step backwards. She’s got a lovely sweet voice, but she does seem to have a problem delivering that and connecting to a lyric at the same time. She’s definitely got something, but I’m pretty sure this isn’t strong enough.

Luke Dickens showed his softer side with Robbie Williams’ “Angels.” He seemed to cop a bit of flack from the judging panels, which surprised my husband and I here at home. We really enjoyed it! I thought he brought a strength and masculinity to it that was lacking in the original. Clearly we aren’t Robbie fans.

I was thrilled to see Roshani Priddis up next, and to see how well she pulled off Alicia Keys’ “If I Ain’t Got You.” This was the first star performance of the night for me. She ticked all the boxes: amazing voice, passionate and sincere delivery, engaged with the audience, entertained. Wow. She’s top 12 for sure.

James Spargo got a great Fathers’ Day present: a second chance to enter the top 12! Sadly I don’t think he made the most of it. He was a whole lot better than he performed last week, but I felt song choice let him down. Five for Fighting’s “Superman” is an amazing song, but the falsetto sections exposed all of James’ vocal weaknesses. It’s a shame. I still have a dirty big crush on him.

Brooke Schubert took on a massive song in Trisha Yearwood’s “How Do I Live,” and she won. I know what a hard song this is. I’ve been known to belt it out very badly in my car. So I take my hat off to her. She’s a beautiful girl and she presents herself so well! I’d also love to see her bring out some slide guitars if she gets another chance!

I was pretty psyched when I heard Jonny Taylor was singing Hootie and the Blowfish’s “Let Her Cry.” But I have to wonder whether my love for that song made me a little critical of his performance. I felt it started out quite weak vocally, but I concede that it did kick up a notch towards the end. I also think such powerful story songs like that are so hard to truncate to fit an Idol format. They seem to lose a lot of emotion in that condensed form, and for me this wasn’t as good as it should have been. Personally, I preferred “Hound Dog!”

Considering how disappointed I felt at Jonny Taylor’s performance, I was a little nervous when I heard Sophie Paterson was singing another of my favourite songs: Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours.” I didn’t need to stress. She did an amazing version of the song, stamping her own personality onto Jason’s amazing foundation. This is another girl who really needs to make the top 12.

I guess in light of what I’ve said already, it’s no surprise that I believe Roshani Priddis and Sophie Paterson will earn places in the top 12. Who’ll join them? It’s going to be tough. Some people didn’t perform to the potential they’ve shown throughout, others showed such amazing growth, it’s going to be really interesting to see what the judges decide to do. We’ll find out tomorrow as the Australian Idol top 12 is revealed!

Image source: Vivido @ Flickr