With bootcamp over, the remaining 29 acts are now moving to the next stage of the competition, judges houses!!!  The next two weeks, the contestants will be put on trial to see who has what it takes to make it to the liveshows. Tonight, the contestants will be whittled down from 10 to 5, to then be cut to the Top 3 in next weeks show. Pressure is on! ... It's time to face the music! On a side note, I've found my danish collaborator!! His name, well nickname, is bong, with a lowercase, his name is clickable and directs to his YouTube channel, why don't you give him a look? He was a contestant on this year's XF but didn't make it. Still, he will certainly be an excellent collaborator, being able to bring us insight and also some translation!  bong's collaborations will be in a different colour, red, so you can know who is who. Hope you like how this turns and please give us some feedback!

Here are my favorites to continue from this week when they cut the field down to 3x5. The ones I believe in, but not necessarily my personal favorites. You tend to favor those who were exposed more. For instance,
Cutfather says Amie has a fabulous voice; I don't think I have heard her. No we haven't!

• Martin 
• Annelouise
• Michael
• Ercan
• Maria
• Patricia
•   Sten
• Sandra
• Mia
• Tommy

So now we are going to the recap!!! 29 contestants and 3 judges are headed to 3 different judges houses across the country!! In the next two days, well, weeks in TV time, we'll know our finalists!!! Will your favourite 9 make it? Judges houses are on!!! Oh!! I'm really feeling the emotion!! The preassure is higest than ever! Only 5 will remain in each category after tonight! I hope I speaked danish, thankfully, we have bong to translate some parts for us!

Cutfather's bootcamp is headed to Skrøbelev Gods, Langelands. It's certainly a beautiful place, dating from 1669! Pernille is at Skodsborg Kurhotel, Nordsjælland. Finally, Thomas is at Næsbyholm Slot, Midtsjælland (Slot means castle, an entry for your Danish dictionary) Love the mystery in this stage of the competition, must confess it's always my favourite!

Are we starting with the Overs? Thomas is giving them a speech while they freeze outside. He's being joined by Djuna Barnes. Blachman had given the overs a task: Sing a sexy song! And he expressed his expectations to see some of them fall through dramatically. You could say that happened. I am not sure it had much impact on his decision, though. Talking about the quality of the contestants he said: "It will take some kind of genius to lead the group of overs anywhere in this competition". Not good encoraugment, let's say.

First contestant is coming!! Michael takes the stage. He looks really nervous ... Mmmm, interesting. He's got a nice raspy tone and a really good voice. But his nerves!! Oh my! I could feel he was about to faint. Wonder what they said ... Probably that he was all nerves ... Not sure how that was supposed to be "sexy". Neither were Blachman and Barnes, but Michael insisted. Barnes said: What's under the cap you are wearing, and Michael responded: Hair. Uhm, I perceived it as an insult? (as in: Any brain? because he did not respond well), but maybe it was just what it was... What's under your cap, take it off. I am not sure. In their discussions afterwards they found him "one-dimensional".

Mia is next! She's lovely! She's singing a danish song, very sweet! She's one of my faves! Powerful voice in small body. I felt uniqueness in her and that's why I love her. Unlike Michael, she was really confident and had lots of personality, which make a nice bonus! Another solid performance. But not really a sexy song. (Mia came out from the audition right after me, she got three yesses, I had gotten three nays, and I was sulking and could not even pull myself together to congratulate her. I regret that. Sorry, Mia, and congratulations. I am glad to see you get this far.)

Following is Sandra! Like the way they are doing this, trying to show the most amount of contestants. She's got a nice voice. They only showed a few but she was good, a bit nervous and I wished she had sang something different, still, I liked what I saw. She sang Anne Linnet's "Smuk og dejlig". She appeared to be nervous, and Blachman picked up on that. That's what he does, read people, or more precisely, test people.

Tommy is one I really like. He's got a big voice, raspy and powerful. He reminds me a bit of David Cook, that big voice and personality. Bummer! They only showed two seconds! Still, like him, a lot. He did not stick to the marked spot, but was right up in the judges' faces.

Next is Maria. bong is right, she's got something special. Would love to see how she does in the liveshows. Her voice is one of the most interesting and unique, incredible styling and precesnce. She really catched my attention! I want her in!! A good performance, but I am still not impressed by her voice, she should probably have sung it in a slightly higher key, and her English pronunciating is somewhat wanting.

Martin is next. He's got a great voice! Wonder why they didn't show him before. Nice phrasing and tone. He's got a certain raspiness, which I must say is really special. Big pipes! Still, I don't think Thomas likes him enough to put him through. "You Give Me Fever" A sexy song?

Sten is probably one of the guys who is less known. Wierd movements but cool voice. Nice tone and phrasing but lord! What was that performance?! That dancing and eyes made me sick!!!! Loved the expression in both Thomas and Djuna's faces! Akward! Maybe it was You Sexy Thing (Hot Chocolate), but I am not sure. I don't care enough to find out. Barnes asked: Did you feel sexy while you sang that? Later she remarked to Blachman that it was a bit like a Chippendales show (male strippers). I don't think she meant it in a positive way.

Who will follow? OMG!!! Patricia!!! She's def my favourite in all the categories! WOW!! She has it! She has the X factor! She has that freshness and uniqueness that will get her far in this competition. She actually reminds me of Anna Faroe, who impressed me this much last year and the second I heard her sing I knew she was in! The most incredible performance so far! If Thomas cuts her, I'll take a plane to Denmark and stab him repetidely, no joke (actually it is). But she's in, Thomas face tells it all! Look at that smile!!! Wonder why the girls are saying. Finally a contestant who had grasped what Blachman wanted from them: Flirt with me today. Oh, sexy voice. Patricia informed us she has been writing songs since the age of 17 (now 32), but had a break due to personal issues. "What kind of issues," asked Blachman? She spent time at a psychiatric hospital, and some years getting well. "But you are OK now?" Yes, she is more than OK in this competition, if you ask me.

Ercan follows. Still don't like him. He's voice? Amazing! Look? Yikes. Needs an extreme makeover!! Oh!! That hair!! Kill me now ... Still the goofy look, now with a hat, but a great, great voice. Ercan sang a Barry White song, once again, was it sexy? Hm. Maybe when Barry sang it.

Best for last? Certainly love Annelouise! She and Patricia are finalists! Amazing vocals, perfect and unique phrasing and pleasant tone! She's got the voice of an angel, as cliched as it sounds. My favourite performance? At least my second, cause Patricia rocked it!

Based on this performances, who do you think should advance? Certainly Patricia, Annelouise, Maria, Mia and Tommy, but god knows my favourites don't always make it. I always tend to go for the more indish alt side! Prob Ercan or Martin are in, but not sure! The ones I selected really rocked it!

We are back with Pernille and the groups! The groups will start singing now! If you thought the Overs were freezing, Groups are certainly colder! Pernille is being joined by Le Gammeltoft, who, from what I heard, is a DJ. Pernille always accentuates the level of the groups this year; and she is right, the average was high when you looked at the top thirty groups, but that does not mean the top three groups are better than the top three unders or overs. Let us see what can she can accomplish with the groups, once they have some professional coaching. Pernille is joined by Le Gammeltoft who is a radio DJ with a vast knowledge of music and owner of a record label. Gammeltoft's criterium was simply: I want you to give me goose bumps. Pernille states her criteria at various times throughout the program: We must feel that you really want this. And it must be catching. And we want to see you develop from one time to another. And whether you tell a story. And group dynamics, who does what. In a previous program she said, we want to see some development from one week to the next. I will come back to Pernille's criteria. I gave it some thought, from an amateur perspective. I think groups are a different kind of animal than solo artists. My critera: 1. They must listen attentively to each other. It is always harder for the groups to compete, because if one is off-key or slightly on the wrong beat, it affects everybody. Great vocal groups listen to each other. 2. Somebody should lead (not necessarily the same person all the time). 3. They should be able to harmonize, at least to some degree at this stage, or it's too late to learn it. 

First act performing is Anna og Sofie! We'll get to see them sing, finally! Oh! They had a good start! But they ruined it! Forgot the lyrics and kind of missed the song. It was a bit sharp and off tune. They can do better! I felt power in their voices but they screwed it! Don't think they'll make it. Pernille started out asking about their internal dynamic: "Who does what?" She might have a prepared set of questions to ask each competing group, and we sometimes get a glimpse. I have summed up some of her criteria above. Anna og Sofie cracked up, forgot the lyrics, and excused themselves several times. " ... oops ... so sorry ... never happened before."

Rikke og Trine are next. Remember the good voice girls with boring song choice? Well, they are back! Hope they pick a better song ... Oh! They are boring me again ... They've got nice harmonies, after all they are twins but that song! Why? Did Pernille said something of Rikke getting lost? They really need Pernille to pick their songs, cause with this material, they are getting cut! ................................ Sorry! I fell asleep!! Not at their best today. Still singing in unison. What's more, they did not fulfill Pernille's (proclaimed) criterion: You must want this. When asked, on a scale from 1 to 10, how high is singing to you, they said 7. What?? You must want it, really bad.

Oh! Revival was a nice surprise! I actually expected a goth dark duo but they had nice pop vocals! Strong performance by dark girls. They have something interesting, I would actually love to see them after the makeover, cause they can really sing! Goth-like, they have not impressed me much. Judges said they looked like they didn't really want to be there.

Heffers is so boring!! What the hell was that? Pernille looks confused! And so do I! How did they get that far singing like this?! Le Gammeltoft falling dead was genius! The show has a nice way of picking a line from the song that illustrates the contestants situation. It went: "Where did you think you were going?" Not the best.

Regulær follows! Oh! They forgot the lyrics ... and don't actually have the best voices. Actually a pretty decent performance. They are not liveshows level. They haven't impressed me much.

I love Michelle og Liva! They have nice vocals and amazing look! One of the best so far but the talent poll is not that high in this category. They are the best so far but they don't even touch Patricia's level! Nice tone and harmonies but that's it. They sang The Cardigans, "FWIW, I Love You". And they did it beautifully! So nice. Very cool. Harmonies.

Jakob og Rudi are clearly better, I've been a fan since their audition and I'm sure I'll keep liking them. OMG! Loved that song! Amazing unique vocals and harmonies! Groups are all harmonies and they really got that! They are the first group I see that are definitely finalists, Pernille's face tells it! One thing they do have (or at least express), is eagerness, they really want it. "We feel, live and breathe music". That is the attitude, that is what Pernille has been searching for. You can tell that they really LISTEN TO EACH OTHER, feeling the music. Delicious performance, if you like their style. Not really my thing, but to each his taste.

DeeVibez are another group I love! They are singing "Rehab" and I must say it was amazing! Lovely vocals and performance, they are so good together! They were meant to be a group! DeeVibez is like three Sidsel twins with powerful vocals! Gammeltoft said: "I could feel that!!!". Nice how they harmonize, and they are not afraid to try something new. Also, they are working on their moves and stage performance. They have potential.

Last group performing is Troels og Lasse. I still don't like their style. Are they gay? No offence intended but the show led me to think that. They are good singers, actually like the glasses guy's voice more. The harmonies weren't perfect but worked together, and that's what matters! Troels (skinny, no guitar) is a bit off key at times. When it's good, it's good. Not really good, but good. BTW, they aren't gay, they share everything but woman and bed!

So, based on that, the 5 acts advancing will prob be: Michelle og Liva, DeeVibez, Troles og Lasse, Jakob og Rudi and maybe Revival or Rikke og Trine. I'm really uncertain about this bunch of contestants. Only a few stand up and the rest are subpar.

And we are finally headed to newcomer's Cutfather judges houses! The Unders are next! A talented bunch of people follows!! Oh! What happened to Sarah's and Rasmus's hair! They look disgusting. Cutfather will be joined by Kenneth Bager! Cutfather's assistant is a heavy, and an old friend of Cutfather, who has produced for among others Moby, Cartoons and Infernal. 

First under in is Jean Michel! He is one of my fave unders! Hope he doesn't screw it. Oh! He just sang the "Fuck You" version! What a way to insult on TV! Oh no!!! He forgot the lyrics, fuck! That's not good, nerves ruined this, Cutfather's face was a big no. Jean Michel was worried that he might forget the lyrics, like the last time. Good voice, singing "Fuck you, and fuck her...." And then he forgot the lyrics. Just for a moment, but the magic was gone. Cutfather was not too crazy about him afterwards: "This is the third time we see him, and there has not been a lot of development."

Tharek is next. He also forgets the lyrics! Come on! What's wrong with you kids?!! Don't liked the few I heard at all! Another one who's also out. Tharek announced to the interviewer that he felt superior relative to his contestants. In fact, he felt safe, and ... he forgot the lyrics.

Will Samanta also screw her performance? Let's hope no. She's got a hot voice! Pretty powerful and dinamic. Like her! At least she was the first not to kill her chances. "... running around ..." Cufather: "More power!" Afterwards he said: I cannot really feel her.

Julie follows and she's another strong contestant! Don't like that song but her voice is amazing. Unique and on tune, she could do really well with a quirckier song and without that green thing in her hair. It looks horrible. But, yeah, I liked this! She sang "Det' ikke det du siger". The line continues: It's more in the way you say goodbye. It's a relatively an old Danish song. I am not superstitious, but I would be careful about picking a song that spells disaster. Or I will, in the future. Anyway, Cutfather had some praise for her: I think she catches a trend.

Ericka proved to be a front runner, will she impress once again? You bet it! Best performance so far! Perfect low and high notes, amazing pitch and a really unique tone. Is she foot in the finals? I think she's, of 4 contestants, she's the best! Ericka sang Shantelle: "Impossible". (Oooh, the song title. :-) Careful.) Cutfather finds that Ericka consistently picks RnB songs which are a little bit out of her league.

Next is Amie. Did she already made it to this stage as a duet with her sister last year? I think it was her. She's better off without her I can see. Powerful vocals and strong presence. Cutfather seems to like this girl. I think she's in! Another cool performance! Judges were unsure about her personality and star quality.

Dark teen Ali follows. He impressed at the auditions but it didn't impress me. He certainly has incredible vocals but what the fuck is he doing?!!! He goes singing off the room! Wonder what Cutfather thinks about him. Vocally, amazing but wierd audition! Ali belted out "Kald Det Kærlighed" (Call It Love), as if it were a drinking song. Cutfather's feelings were mixed.

Newly dyed Sarah follows. I know I said her hair was disgusting but it actually looks so much better! All her look seems to be improved! Nice vocal, raspy boyish tone. She's emotional and an incredible performer! Another contestant that's in? Certainly ... Sarah sang Bruno Mars: "When I See Your Face" during an interview, and did it beatifully, as far as I could hear. Unfortunately she had picked Kings Of Leon, Use Somebody to perform before the judges, and it was not good. I won't say it was bad, but it was not her best. The judges agreed that she has personality, perhaps with the right coaching?

The other guy who dyed his hair, Rasmus is next. Who forced you to do that?! His singing the Kings of Leon tune too, fourth time I heard this! He definitely was the best! Amazing vocals and nice note changing, love his acoustic voice! He sang beatifully, especially compared to Sarah's version. "Could you feel him," asked Cutfather. "I felt him all the way over here, my trousers were waving," said Kenneth Bager.

Oh no! Babou is the last contestant performing. Hate him. Hope he screws it. Unfortunately, he doesn't. He sounded very Justin Bieber, which is bad! The worst contestant, tough his voice wasn't horrible. Babou is under a lot of pressure, most of it self-imposed. He has high expectations of himself. And he demonstrated his great voice in Shontelle's Impossible. Kenneth Bager could not see any point in hearing the anyone else, and illustrated how Babou will wipe away all opposition on his way to the final, his arm sweeping across the desk. My conclusion is: It's the same as Ercan in the overs: VOICE IS KEY! The rest is immaterial, it's voice quality and singing skills, that's it. Have that, and you are safe. Babou and Ercan may come across in a peculiar way, but you cannot put a finger on their singing.

They are making Jean and Ali sing again! Both sounded great but Jean was really good! Hope he's in over Ali. Jean Michel and Ali were in the balance, and were called in again to sing their best song! Ali started out with Papa Roach: Hollywood Whore (I think), while Jean Michel gave us Mustang Sally. But who won. Ooh, suspense. 

Based on this performances, the contestants advancing should be: Amie, Ericka, Sarah, Rasmus and maybe Jean or Julie. The ones who screwed it don't stand a chance.

And we are off to the results! Only 5 can advance from each category. We are back to Pernille. Jakob og Rudi are first, of course they are in!! Most obvious decision. "We need to feel that music is a necessity for you." Isn't that enough to tell them they are in? Thinking about the way they said "We want this, we want this!" They are followed by Regulær, who are predictibly cut, as well as Revival and Heffers. DeeVibez are next. They must be in! Pernille gave her speach: "It must be breathtaking. And you must really want this, so much you cannot live without it," ending off with "I can't live without you in the five tomorrow." Drama. Ho-hum. I guess you had to be there. And they are!! Troels og Lasse follow. Will they make it? Yes they did!! 4 acts left and only 3 places. Rikke og Trine follows. Did Pernille see something in them? Accordingly she did, cause they are in! Michelle og Liva and Anna og Sofie remain. The first act delivered, the second, not so much, so we all know who's in, Michelle og Liva advance! Pernille made the right decision on this one, all groups are amazing! I think Pernille's criteria are rules of thumb, rather than mandatory demands, seeing that she favored Rikke og Trine over Anna og Sofie. She liked them better, although Anna og Sofie "really want it", more than Rikke og Trine did. X Factor judges rely a lot on intuition. Their "criteria" are rationalizations, post fact. They are relevant, but they are weighed off. (Not much new in this, and I am sure the judges know that, I just felt the need to point this out.)

We are back again with Cutfather! Pernille called in the groups individually, while Cutfather mixed them two and two. Both would be in, or both out, except for the last pair, Jean Michel and Ali. Ooh, the suspense is killing me. Julie and Tharek are called first, will them both be cut? Unfortunately, they are. Babou and Sarah are next. Please, cut Babou!!!!! Well, they are both through. You win some, you lose some. This was a tie I guess. "We are not angry, but very disappointed," was the message. "You have a lot to learn yet. Make it better. Tomorrow. Because you both passed." Part of me finds these dramatic announcements hilarious, another finds them ridiculous (can you tell?). Samata and Amie follow. They are both cut!! Amie deserved it!! Amie took it bad. Not gonna try this again. She was at bootcamp last year together with her sister. Rasmus and Ericka follow and of course both of them are in! Only one place left! Jean and Ali remain. Only one can make it. The are head to head on this one ... Jean makes it!!! Yes!! Glad Cutfather gave him another shot, he's my fave!

Last judges houses decision! We are with Thomas and the talented Overs. They certainly have a great amount of talent! Cutfather's decision to call in a yes-no pair was born of necessity. With Blachman, it's the way to go, to live up to his Bald Butcher image. Like I said earlier: He is testing people. He is testing the one who will pass. First in are Patricia and Tommy, who are definitely in, no doubt about that! Oh no!! Thomas cut Tommy!!! At least Patricia is in, she's the winner, I'm telling you ... Mia and Martin are next. Mia is definitely through, Martin not so sure. Mia is in!!! Martin isn't ... Maria and Sandra follow. Maria is in!!! Amazing!! Thomas is my fave judge ... Annelouise and Michael are next, and we all know who is. There's no mystery here, cause Annelouise is in! Four girls through!!! Only two remain, Sten and Ercan, hoped Tommy was still here but unfortunately will have to keep lookin at Ercan's horrible taste. I'm hearing Ellie Goulding's "Your Song"!!!!! Four of my five favorites among the overs continued, with Ercan instead of Tommy. No doubt the right decision. I even pronounced: "He (Tommy) will be in the live shows." I am no oracle. But it seems I have picked four winners among the overs, four among the unders, and four among the groups. Pretty good. We will see how my predictions hold next week.

So, what are your thoughts now?? I think Thomas made the best decision with his finalists, I'm hoping to see three woman in! Pernille made good choices too and Cutfather also but he cut some talented guys. You can see the complete list of semifinalists below, again, I choosed my finalists in blod:

We need to hear more of Michelle og Liva, my new favorite group, along with Jakob og Rudi. A third? It's a toss-up, really. Maybe Rikke og Trine. No. Yes. I don't know. Troels og Lasse will go.

Today I feel very certain about Rasmus and Babou. Jean Michel will go. The last place, well... Sarah seems to be growing on Cutfather. But Ericka is cute. But she is so young. But so is Sarah. I don't know. Tough one. No, Ericka, because Sarah was not doing her best today. Damn.

In Blachman's group I pick Patricia and Ercan, not because he is the only guy, but because of what I heard in his voice. And Blachman always complements him for all his hard work in private. I think Blachman has a luxury problem now. Each contestant has clear qualities. As to Pernille's feeling excited about her groups, and Blachman's reservations about his overs, well... The opera ain't over till the fat lady sings. The winner could be from the overs.

And how many times must a man hear Shontelle's Impossible, or Bruno Mars' When I See Your Face? I can understand why the young singers would pick recent songs, that is natural. But the overs should be able to draw on a bigger repertoire.