True Villains' blaze of rock 'n' roll glory on "America's Got Talent" couldn't save them from the burn of Simon Cowell.
The Nashville rock band opened the Season 18 live shows Tuesday night with an explosive performance of the original song "Dead to Me." Lead singer Beau Lastavich electrified the studio audience with his confident growl, as fiery pyrotechnics blazed behind the band. Lastavich then took the musical heat to another level by closing the performance with a daring fire-breathing routine.
"I love you today even more than at the audition," judge Sofía Vergara said. "I'm so happy that you guys brought this energy to the opening of the show because we needed to start like this tonight."
Vergara's co-judge Cowell was not on the same page, however. While the British entertainment mogul praised True Villains' showmanship, the band's original song left him cold.
"There's no question you can play really well, you can sing really well," said Cowell, but "I hated the song."
With viewers set to vote two of the 11 performing acts through to the next round, Vergara was quick to put Cowell in his place. "Well, America is the one that is going to decide, not you anymore," she said.
Here's what else went down.
Trap choir Sainted brought equal parts spirit and swag to the "AGT" stage.
Decked out in glamorous fuchsia ensembles, the 26-member choir from Charlotte, North Carolina, delivered a vibrant medley performance featuring covers of "Look at Me Now" by Chris Brown, "Hot in Herre" by Nelly and "Return of the Mack" by Mark Morrison.
The members of Sainted elevated their soulful vocals with sleek synchronized movements onstage, inspiring Vergara, along with judges Heidi Klum and Howie Mandel, to get out of their seats and get their groove on.
"You guys lifted the room up," Vergara said. "That was amazing: the songs, the outfits, everything."
Cowell gushed over the choir's vocal prowess. "It was like seeing 30 brilliant solo artists all together," he said. "This was what we were looking for."
Ray Wold's love for his mother is hot to the touch.
The stunt artist thrilled the judges and studio audience with his death-defying mother-son act, which saw him and his elderly mother maneuver various props they set on fire.
Paying homage to action hero Indiana Jones, Wold opened the performance by swinging around a flaming whip onstage. Wold's mother later upped the ante by igniting a huge blaze with a flame thrower. The duo closed the performance with Wold getting into a water-filled tub that his mother set on fire (a soaked Wold emerged beaming as flames covered his back).
"It's the craziest pairing I've ever seen in my life, but it's also very, very inspirational," Vergara said. "I want to be you guys with my son Manolo in the future."
Wold's arson art didn't sit well with Mandel, who gave the stunt artist a red X during the performance. "I love my mom and if you love your mom, you don't set her on fire," Mandel said. "It's just wrong."
But it was this combination of absurdity and wholesomeness that won over Cowell in the end.
"I thought it was beautiful," Cowell said. "Where else are you going to see a mom setting her son on fire? I’ve never seen this before, and that's why I love this act."
For Lavender Darcangelo, there's nothing finer than feeling.
The singer, who previously earned Klum's Golden Buzzer, slowed things down with a soaring rendition of the Foreigner ballad "I Want to Know What Love Is."
Klum was moved by Darcangelo’s passionate singing style.
"I am so proud of you," Klum said. "I feel you when you are singing. I hope everyone in this room felt you."
Cowell echoed Klum's praise, complimenting Darcangelo for making the song her own with her powerful emotional delivery.
"It's just the most amazing feeling when a contestant who everyone loves nails it," Cowell said. "The whole song took on a completely different meaning for me, and that was beautiful."
Viewers can vote for their favorite act on the NBC website through 7 a.m. ET Wednesday.
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