Andrews – The finale of “Andrews Idol” season two provided another thrilling evening of local musical talent, with Austin Zackary taking the $1,000 top prize and dedicated studio recording time provided by Multimedia Ninja.
Zackary’s powerhouse vocals have sustained him throughout the season’s competition, and Saturday night saw his range extended to new heights.
Beginning his first set with “I Bowed on My Knees” by The Gaithers, the song was a dedication to his father as his favorite song. Every hand was raised in praise as Zackary turned his first song into a worship moment, especially considering the kidney stone he endured during the Elite 8 of the competition finally passed just in time for Saturday’s finale.
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Dubbed “The Outlaw” by emcee Logan Massey early on in the season for his long beard and country classic cover fare, Zackary channeled Jamey Johnson with “In Color” for his second set, wowing the crowd with his stunning take on an oft-played and well-covered staple.
For his third set, Zackary crooned through “You Don’t Even Know Who I Am,” Patty Loveless’ mid-1990s tear-jerker ballad about a mutually estranged marriage. Zackary then trod another well-worn cover path with “Something In the Orange” by Zach Bryan.
The Zacks had it, as he enticed the crowd to sing along. Hitting that one line with a magical tone, the audience was taken back to when that wood used to creak.
Second-place contestant Allison Hasty brought her A-game and heavy tunes, which also stretched her vocal talents to new octaves. To cover an Adele tune is ambitious at the outset, but to sing a version of “Easy On Me” is doubly so, and Hasty brought her own stunning range to an astounding rendition.
With a glitch in the song-track system, Hasty changed up her second set song for her third choice without a hitch. Covering Dolly Parton’s classic song “I Will Always Love You,” made even more popular by Whitney Houston, Hasty cinched her role as a dynamic vocalist.
That third set was a charm with Hasty’s version of “How Great Thou Art,” which again had the crowd in praise and in awe and wonder at both the subject matter and Hasty’s vocal stylings of this classic hymn. To close her evening, Hasty chose another “Queen” to emulate with her take on Beyonce’s empowerment ballad “Listen,” further proving her prowess to take on a variety of genres.
Tied for third place, Adrian Stover, once again accompanied by guitarist CC Loud, brought another blistering performance for all four sets in this finale round. With a voice given to a particularly wide-ranging pitch and tone, Stover began the night with “Stone” by Whiskey Myers, giving a rocked-up version of the gritty country bottle ballad.
Whipping the crowd into a frenzy with his second song of the night, that early 1990s anthem to which everyone sang along because these days mot people, like 4 Non Blondes, are all wondering “What’s Up?” Stover then spoke straight to every GenX heart in the venue with a staggering rendition of A-ha’s “Take On Me,” with Loud’s guitar gently wailing over that already haunting song.
For their last song, the duo once again proved their penchant for putting their riffy spins on 1990s classics by covering a cover in choosing to play Nine Inch Nails’ “Hurt,” as done by Johnny Cash. The crowd collectively swayed throughout the entirety as they indeed did have it all with this exceptional version of a beloved tune.
Also tied for third place, and doing a cover of cover, Gage Hill brought his upbeat take on Cody Johnson’s version of Conway Twitty’s smoldering love advice from the moon tune “I Don’t Know A Thing About Love” for his first set. Hill then stuck to his country guns with Kenny Chesney’s feel-good and gonna find love song “How Forever Feels,” giving the audience a bit of pep in an otherwise somber song night.
Keeping that momentum, Hill then channeled Tyler Childers with his cover of “Whitehouse Road,” which had the audience singing along about those grocery bills. Ending his final set with his take on The Eagles’ “Heartache Tonight,” every toe was tapping and every hand was slapping the tables in time with the lively beat.
Along with the winner’s $1,000 first prize, second place received $500, with each of the third-place finalists receiving $250. Season three of “Andrews Idol” is tentatively scheduled for spring 2024.
Details: thebluestage.com/andrews-idol.