As the numbers thin, the Rockers' skins are thinning as well, with emotions coming closer to the surface. And Brandon and Ty, the two Rockers who had their first experience in the bottom three Wednesday night, are feeling the pressure.

Even though they survived to spend another week in the Mansion, they're both still feeling, shall we say, vulnerable and are engaged in a certain amount of soul searching. It's brought out Brandon's insecurities. "Your point of view changes completely," he says. It's also made him realize that as a singer, he's a little bit out of his element. "I have a lot to work on," he admits.

For Ty, being in the bottom three feels like having a pit in the bottom of his stomach. It also makes him acutely aware of what he views as his responsibilities as Rock Star:INXS's only African-American contestant. There haven't been a lot of African-Americans who have made it in rock, he says (although the list of those who have made it is pretty impressive: Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone, Arthur Lee, Billy Preston, Prince, Bad Brains, Lenny Kravitz and to say nothing of Terence Trent D'Arby, who guested with INXS in 1999). Ty says a bad performance reflects poorly not only on him but on his race. It's an emotional outburst that shocks the other Rockers. MiG later admits he shares a somewhat similar sense of responsibility being the only Australian in the competition. (This also means that he has to deal with all those geographically challenged Americans who, when they hear he's from Australia, wonder why he doesn't have a German accent.)

It's a happier occasion the next day when the Rockers throw a surprise party for Jordis's birthday. She's impressed by the celebration, which includes a guitar-shaped cake. Jordis was awarded the encore this week, but when she returned from the elimination show, no relative or friend from home showed up at the Mansion -- could last week's visit from Marty's sister Liz have been a one-time thing? But then Jordis's boyfriend arrives and fills her birthday wish.

Next up is this week's clinic, which focuses on dealing with the press. Meeting Dave and Tim at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood, the Rockers are going to take part in an age-old show business tradition, the junket, and do a round robin of interviews with three journalists. Just before they're about to run the gauntlet, Dave reminds them that this is not a drill: these are real journalists, their tape recorders will be running and everything the Rockers say is on the record and could end up in print.

The journalists aren't tossing the Rockers softball questions, either. They put them on the spot -- asking how much they know about INXS's history, about relationships in the Mansion, about whether they'd miss a relative's funeral for a concert. Interviews are inherently artificial situations and some musicians never quite figure out how to deal with them. But a few of the Rockers are surprisingly at ease and professional in their sessions. Others act as though they're being given the third degree.

Ty is disarming, joking about the circumstances surrounding his knowledge of INXS's music and not pretending to know every song off every album. He deftly manages to turn a possible negative into a positive, explaining that he doesn't need to know the past -- he's here to be the future of INXS. Brandon, who has never been the Mansion's biggest talker, suddenly becomes a real chatterbox. He's not sure if he has a point and never really reaches one anyway. MiG decides to get some things off his chest. When asked if there's anyone in the Mansion he has problems with, after trying to evade the question, he comes out and tells the interviewer it's J.D. She then ambushes J.D., telling him that everyone in the Mansion has singled him out as a problem. J.D. tries to gloss over it, admitting that he has "a bad boy side that wants to screw everyone over," but he knows he can't screw everyone over. "INXS wouldn't hire me if I did that," he says.

Back at the Mansion, Dave and Tim give their critiques. The advice Tim gives to Brandon is "always say a little bit less." The press is always looking for sound bites. Give them too much, Tim says, and they'll use nothing. By being honest, Ty makes the best impression. J.D. tries to clear the air, telling everyone he's "disheartened" by what he was told. Dave tells him not to worry. Reporters will always use external information to push your buttons.

Brandon announces the posting of this week's songs. "The reason we're all here is in the room," he says. Ty immediately spots Bob Marley's "No Woman, No Cry" and pulls it off the board. It's his. No one objects. Suzie snares R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion" and decides she wants to rearrange it. J.D. encourages her, giving her pointers. She doesn't seem moved by what she perceives as his selflessness, but you have to wonder why she's so quick to take advice from someone who has proven himself so manipulative.

Things don't go as easy for J.D.'s selection. He chooses Nirvana's "Come As You Are" as his first choice, but Jessica wants it as well. He tries to smooth talk his way into doing the song, but Jessica is having none of it. She's determined to sing the song (and gets in a zinger about J.D.'s mauling of "We Are the Champions."). J.D. finally gets up and leaves the room, telling everyone that he doesn't care, and he'll just take the song no one else wants. He says it's part of his "killing them with kindness" stratagem, but it comes off as just petulant. MiG, still guilty over his dis of J.D., plays peacemaker and offers his first choice, Seal's "Crazy," to J.D. After all, he says, J.D. is crazy. Quoting Lincoln, J.D. observes that the best way to get rid of an enemy is to make them a friend, but MiG looks a little concerned when they hug.

The night ends with everyone partying like rock stars, but the morning means rehearsal, and not everyone is feeling up to the task. Jessica is feeling worse for wear, a fact she announces as she walks into the rehearsal room, much to Paul's chagrin. "That's not a good start to a rehearsal," he comments, noting they only have a limited amount of time that shouldn't be wasted. She probably needs all the time she can get, since one run through sounds like "poo." Marty is a different matter. He's bright eyed and bushy tailed and knows just what he wants. Paul admires this, saying that Marty always comes ready to work.

Suzie's ready to work, but the band is not enthusiastic about her ideas. Jim, the House Band's rhythm guitarist, asks, "Why are you doing this?" Her rearrangement of "Losing My Religion" is a risky move, one that she says could put her in the bottom three, but she's determined to be "creative."

To see who got the best of the various deals and whose creative decisions pay off, be sure to watch Tuesday's edition of "Rock Star:INXS" at 10PM ET/PT on CBS.