Glassblower Beauty Siobhan Magnus- American Idol's Exciting & Unpredictable New Star

March 18, 2010. Dubbed the Bay State songbird, Siobhan Magnus hails from rural Marstons Mills, a village of Barnstable in ye olde Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The village- which sits on glacier outwash plains populated by lakes, bogs, and ponds- boasts of Prince Cove, a gateway to the Atlantic Ocean. So, when judge Ellen DeGeneres told Siobhan on American Idol during The Rolling Stones night on Tuesday, "You rise above a sea of people," she was literally and thematically correct.

Siobhan had just performed 'Paint It Black' and polished off the dark drama she brought to the already-dark song with a long intense 'scream' à la Adam Lambert before her final colorful tender multi-note ad lib. She was the star of the night. No one else came close. Not even favored-to-win Crystal Bowersox, whose 'You Can't Always Get What You Want' was below par. But even if Crystal had been up to snuff, Siobhan would still have reigned.

Where does Siobhan's deep powerhouse voice come from? It certainly has much to do with genetics. Perhaps her lungpower does, too- apart from Siobhan being age twenty, strong, and able. But does her apprenticeship as a glassblower help? Free-blowing entails blowing short puffs of air into a molten portion of glass pooled at one end of a blowpipe. Well, my glass bubble burst when I learned that you don't need powerful lungs to become a glassblower. So, I weakly cling to the idea that the act of frequently puffing into molten glass must strengthen the lungs. No matter. Siobhan's enormous singing talent needs no justification.

American Idol judge Simon Cowell has described Siobhan as 'quirky' and has called her 'a funny little thing'- probably because he's 'a big funny thing'. He has not yet commented on Siobhan's large 'quirky' tattoo on her right arm- on prominent display on Tuesday night when Siobhan was bare-armed. Looking like a gorgeous Gothic Super Dollfie clad in her strapless blue-black pouf-skirted short dress with fitted bodice and shod with pitch-black workingman's boots, Siobhan darkened the dark Stones classic 'Paint It Black'. Her black tattoo of a well-dressed, top-hatted skeleton holding an umbrella is from the book cover of Edward Gorey's The Gashlycrumb Tinies. The 1963 darkly-hilarious alphabet book is about twenty-six children who meet with unique funny demises." Siobhan, who grew up near the popular author-illustrator, has a Gorey-like sense of humor. She told American Idol that the tattoo was of Mary Poppins.

The Gorey tattoo is just one of Siobhan's four tattoos. On her left wrist, Siobhan wears a tattoo that says in Swahili 'I find hope', from a song by Hanson, a favorite rock band of hers- Hanson's lead singer, Taylor Hanson, has included himself in Siobhan's rapidly-increasing fan base by wishing the power-vocalist luck in the American Idol competition. Another Siobhan tattoo is of a heart representing the band Hole, and the fourth one is the beautiful graphic Egyptian symbol for protection, the Eye of Horus.

Siobhan Magnus, who has an Audrey Hepburn look with Gothic tinges, is the dark horse who snuck up from American Idol's competitive ranks to become a frontrunner. Her dream of having a professional singing career is one glass bubble that won't burst.

Siobhan's Songs- with performance dates and songwriters.

March 16, 2010- 'Paint It Black' by Mick Jagger & Keith Richards.
The late Brian Jones, who died in 1969, contributed to the 1966 song's signature riff; he played the sitar.

March 9, 2010- 'House of the Rising Sun' by Anon. (Folk Song).
March 3, 2010- 'Think' by Aretha Franklin & Teddy White.
February 23, 2010- 'Wicked Game' by Chris Isaak.

Second Hollywood Week Solo- 'Living For the City' by Stevie Wonder.
Hollywood Week Group- 'Bad Romance' by Lady Gaga.
First Hollywood Week Solo- 'A Woman's Worth' by Alicia Keys.

Audition- 'Love Of My Life' by Queen.

Sources: bostonherald; bostonherald2; capecodonline; wikipedia; wikipedia2;

Related articles (for a recap of Tuesday night's performances, visit the first link):
American Idol 2010 Siobhan Magnus Hit Girls' Bases-Loaded Home Run on Rolling Stones Night;
American Idol 2010 It's Yours to Lose Crystal Bowersox; 'Give Me One Reason' Why Not;
Hallelujah! Ellen DeGeneres Hugs Tim Urban, Big Mike is Best W/ 'This Woman's Work';
Hot Tween-Appeal Tim Urban- Check Out His Abs- He Doesn't Need American Idol;