It seems like Nathan Brake is becoming Australian Idol’s dark horse. Coming off the back of last week’s incredible performance of Music of the Night, he’s done it again with a little “Mad World.”

This Tears for Fears hit became an anthem for disconnected youth when Gary Jules covered it for the cult flick Donnie Darko. We saw Adam Lambert do it in the last season of American Idol, but I think quiet achiever Nathan’s version might just have the edge.

Nathan’s quiet build gives it just the right note of vulnerability. There’s none of Adam’s theatrical flamboyance here. Instead, this is a performance driven by pure emotion. But simply, I’m wowed.