The Horror The Horror (My Poor Ears Pt 2)

[dreamingfantasy]

I just heard the full version of Glee's "Defying Gravity", and quite frankly, I want to cry.

First of all, I hated the arrangement. The song loses so much meaning when put into a pop context. I really wish they could have done a stripped a cappella version. The effect would have been much nicer, and the style would have suited the soloists' voices

Comments

[bsofthewest]

I agree with you 100% on DG, but...Lea as Elphie....the thought makes me retch!
I just friended you...I don't want to miss your fics. C_E can be difficult to get into. There are other outlets for a good writer such as yourself, if they should prove negative. BS

[dreamingfantasy]

Yeah. I'm super anti-Lea these days, mainly because the Lea fans keep comparing her to Idina and saying that she should be Elphie. God. *dies*

I friended you as well. Just don't expect too much posting on this journal since I'm not really the journal keeping type. Occasional rants? Yes. :)

Fics-wise, I'm just going to keep trying for C_E. It's something to work towards in my writing, and getting in would affirm not only my writing skills but also my grasp on the characterizations of our two lovely leading ladies.

[bsofthewest]

Fics-wise, well said!

[acastleonacloud]

I agree. I also think that because they repeat "Defying Gravity" so much at the end, there is nowhere really to go with it. I wish they'd included a little more of the lyrics.

Also, I feel like it's hard to go through an emotional journey when you switch off every other line.

The end note seriously irritates me.

[dreamingfantasy]

Hmm. I'm not sure I would have wanted to hear Lea sing "So if you care to find me [...]" since they definitely wouldn't have given that part to Chris... She may have the power for it, but I think emotionally, it would have fallen flat.

[acastleonacloud]

True, but I do think the arrangement really lacks something. I enjoyed it a lot at first, in the beginning, but by the end I thought it was really disappointing.

I'm never sure what Lea will do, haha. Usually I'm expecting a mediocre, flat acting performance with great vocals, but I have seen her act really well a couple of times in Spring Awakening. I think she has the potential, but doesn't tap it often enough.

[dreamingfantasy]

Hm, yeah. My friend loved her in Spring Awakening, both singing and acting-wise. I think it really just depends on the character. For one, I can't see her pulling off the Elphaba type of character. I think she's the type of actress who doesn't really delve super deeply into her character unless she has to (at least, that's the way it comes off in interviews), and so I think her acting suffers from that. For Spring Awakening, she spent years working on that and even shaping the character herself, so it really would have been quite sad if her acting had still been bad.

I'm trying to keep an open mind towards her, but the Lea Glee fangirls are not helping... XD

[loorea]

Oh wow, do I agree with you on everything

[dreamingfantasy]

Yeah, I know what you mean. I loved Lea when "Don't Stop Believin'" came out, but now the more solos she gets, the more I dislike her. XD You're right about her voice sounding the same all the time; it's what my friends describe as the "stereotypical Broadway voice". I completely agree with you on "Maybe This Time"; as soon as I heard it, I knew it would be a complete smackdown. However, the thing is with "Maybe This Time" and "Defying Gravity" is that not everyone hears what we hear. For the less musically-inclined people, Lea sounded as though she held her own in "Maybe This Time", and I think people, who haven't seen Wicked and who may or may not have listened to the original cast recording, don't really think "Defying Gravity" is the atrocity that we think it is. Even my younger sister, who generally has good ears, liked it

[loorea]

Oh I am with you about the solos thing. The more we're forced to hear her sing, the more I resent her. Maybe This Time was defenitely a smack down! Kristin just.... killed it. And I think a lot of people who watch the show aren't really Broadway people... They're the ones who love pop and all the modern crap out there these days, so this new version of Defying Gravity is right up their alley. It takes out all the meaningful points of the song, loops the more memorable, and slaps a Brand New label on it. I don't think many of them have heard of Defying Gravity. And I have this sneaking suspicion that a lot of the teenage Glee fans are Broadway fangirls who obsess over things like whether this hottie is gay and if Chenzel is real, and, of course, think Lea would be the most fabulous Elphie. I don't think any of them understand the song and it's meaning

[dreamingfantasy]

God. Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, they release solo versions of the song. >