Editor’s note: The below recap contains spoilers for Dancing With the Stars Season 33 Episode 4.

Monday evening on Dancing With the Stars might’ve been boogie-filled, but Hair Metal Night was hardcore. Replacing the groove with tongues out and guitar playing in the air, the rock’n’roll spirit was surely in the house. After Rosie Perez came in as a guest judge earlier this week, it was KISS member Gene Simmons’ turn to sit with the judges and offer commentary on the stars’ performances, albeit more from a stage presence standpoint than choreography. While several contestants showed improvement after critiques made on Monday’s episode, with model Brooks Nader and former NBA player Dwight Howard getting significantly better scores, others were sent home in an emotional double elimination. Here are some of the highlights from last night’s tribute to rock music, which turned up the competition to eleven.

Several Celebrities Channeled Their Inner Rock Star With Intense Paso Dobles

If Week 1 featured a lot of cha-chas, Hair Metal Night was filled with paso dobles, which seemed like the ideal dance style to match the metalhead attitude. The first to hit the dance floor with a massive mohawk and a leather jacket was football player Danny Amendola, who once again demonstrated his continued effort to be attentive with his facial expressions. As judges praised his growth on the show and offered pointers on how he could refine his moves, Simmons’ observations were about pro partner Witney Carson rather than his thoughts on the star’s performance (a behavior that was, unfortunately, recurring throughout the night).

Although Simmons was clearly a bad call to evaluate the celebrities given his constant commentary about the women’s looks, this episode was strong because it allowed many contestants to redeem themselves after getting lower scores on Soul Train Night. Nader and her pro partner Gleb Savchenko didn’t impress the judges with their sexy rumba because it relied on chemistry more than the content of the dance itself. Their cha-cha to Poison’s “Nothing But A Good Time” was everything that viewers and judges wanted to see from the model, proving she is focused and capable of handling more intricate choreography. This redemption sentiment carried on with Howard and Olympic medalist Stephen Nedoroscik’s routines. After judges were critical about their struggles with technique and musicality, the athletes took the feedback to heart and came out sharper and more attentive to the beat. Howard even channeled his inner matador with his paso doble, which was his most challenging dance number yet.

As these participants flourished, others had a harder time with the dance styles they were given. Rugby player Ilona Maher struggled with timing during her jive to Quiet Riot’s “Cum On Feel the Noize,” and was emotional after her performance. Amid tears, the athlete received a lot of love from the audience in attendance. Reality royalty Phaedra Parks embodied storytelling through her paso doble, but lacked finesse in certain moves, earning lower results in comparison to her strong opener on Monday.

Related I’m So Happy ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Is Receiving Hype Again ‘DWTS’ is so back! It was not talked about for a while, but the hype is there again.

One of the top performers of the evening, Joey Graziadei, built on the momentum of the previous episode and delivered an even better dance number. According to Derek Hough, it was the best tango that he had ever seen a male contestant perform on the show. The ex-Bachelor was able to keep the frame throughout without making it look stiff or off the rock star character he was aiming at channeling. Similarly, Chandler Kinney and Jenn Tran were praised for their continued growth and ability to incorporate different personas on the dance floor. Although Kinney earned lower scores than Monday night, she still landed at number 2. Tran’s results were bumped to mostly 8s, with her snatching the third spot on the leaderboard.

Actors Reginald VelJohnson and Eric Roberts Say Goodbye to ‘DWTS’ in Double Elimination
Image via Disney

By the end of the two-night event, two actors were sent home with the lowest scores and votes combined. Eric Roberts and Reginald VelJohnson were the eldest contestants eyeing the mirrorball trophy, and despite having physical limitations from injuries, they still had a beautiful trajectory on the dance floor. The Family Matters alum quickly gained the support of fans at home for his sweet and overall positive attitude to the show every time he is on. The relationship that he fostered with pro partner Emma Slater was noticeable through their performances and in their rehearsals, making it sad to see them go. The hope is that DWTS takes on The Bachelor’s initiative and comes up with a variation of the dance competition only featuring participants in their golden years.

With 9 stars left in the show, the stakes are getting progressively higher. As more contestants hone their dance skills, the more difficult it will be to predict who will get eliminated next and who will make it to the finale. If Hair Metal Night is any indication of where DWTS is headed, Graziadei and Kinney will likely stay to the end — yet, they better watch out for Tran, Nedoroscik, and Amendola, who are also proving their worth one choreography at a time.

ReviewHair Metal Night was electric, with Joey Graziadei once again proving to be a top contender.ProsSeveral stars had much more improved perfomances this time around, especially Brooks Nader and Dwight Howard.Graziadei, Chandler Kinney, and Jenn Tran delivered striking dance numbers, shaking up the competition.The choreographies had more content than previous episodes, with routines getting more challenging and exciting. ConsGene Simmons’ comments were more uncomfortable than encouraging.

U.S. reality show based on the British series “Strictly Come Dancing,” where celebrities partner up with professional dancers and compete against each other in weekly elimination rounds to determine a winner.Release Date June 1, 2005 Cast Carrie Ann Inaba , Bruno Tonioli , Len Goodman , Tom Bergeron , Cheryl Burke , Tony Dovolani , Derek Hough , Mark Ballas , Karina Smirnoff , Maksim Chmerkovskiy , Kym Johnson , Sasha Farber , Val Chmerkovskiy , Emma Slater , Sharna Burgess Main Genre Reality Seasons Studio Expand

Dancing With the Stars airs on Tuesday nights on both ABC and Disney Plus.

Watch on Disney +