Top 11 - Drive Out the Snakes

Tonight we're doing songs from members of the Grand Ole Opry and Randy Travis is our mentor. All but tonight's lowest vote-getter are going on tour this summer. Now there's a group that won't be getting my money.

It's also St. Patrick's Day, so that means they have to make the set light up green for a moment with a bunch of shamrocks! I'm glad Carly Smithson isn't here this year. We wouldn't hear the end of it.

We lead off our show with Michael Sarver, who's doing Garth Brooks' "Ain't Goin' Down 'Til the Sun Comes Up." Once again, my Josh Gracin comparison is dead on. He has a harmonica player onstage with him. The vocals are nothing special, but they're passable for country. The weird thing about this guy is that he doesn't look like a star and his vocals really aren't that good, but somehow his performances never seem like complete trainwrecks. He likes to smile a lot too, so you can't help but feel happy for him when he's up there. So what can I say? This isn't outstanding, but it's fun. Randy says he didn't show enough vocally. Kara says she missed the big notes but was impressed that he remembered all the words. Paula says she had fun and that the genre suits him. Simon says he couldn't understand a word, and that Michael came over as a clumsy, likable guy on karaoke night. He might hit the Bottom 3 for going first, but he probably has the fanbase to stay another week.

Allison and Kris are next after the commercial, and they do their arm-wrestling routine again. Those two are such fun together!

Allison Iraheta's doing Patty Loveless' "Blame it on Your Heart." Now this is great stuff. Allison really owns the stage and sounds perfect. How did this girl fly under the radar for the auditions and Hollywood? So far she's been the most consistently strong contestant. The funny thing is, she seems completely shy and awkward most of the time, but she's totally poised while performing. Kara says she made it her own and keeps getting better every week. Paula says it was a rock solid performance and thinks she's an amazing artist. Simon says it was a little bit tuneless in parts and that she seemed to struggle with remembering the words, which Allison says she didn't. Ha ha, Simon! Randy thinks it was dope. You know something? Allison reminds me more of Kelly Clarkson than dumb ol' Alexis does. You might want to transfer the coveted mantle of "next Kelly" to Allison next week, judges.

Can Kris Allen hang on another week? Well, to make his case, he's going to perform Garth Brooks' "To Make You Feel My Love." It's not the most exciting song, but if you can appreciate good control and pitch, this performance has it in spades. There's a minimal backing track, which can expose a singer's flaws, but Kris pulls it off. His head voice at the end is a little shaky, but overall it's a thumbs up. Paula's pleasantly surprised and loves him without the guitar. Simon says it was terrific and the first time he's thought Kris had a shot at doing well in the competition. Randy says he didn't know he had such tender moments in him. Kara says it was beautiful. He'd better be back next week, or this show is officially too slanted against the ones without screentime.

Diva time! Lil Rounds is doing Martina McBride's "Independence Day." She's not going to diva it up though. She's going to hold back and honor the country genre. Of course, Randy Travis advises her to slow it down to get her riffs in. So...which way is she going to do it? Well, the vocal starts out sounding just OK, but it feels disconnected for some reason. It gets worse as it goes on, especially the chorus. All this performance is doing is proving to me how weak her voice really is. Her sustained notes are terrible and there's a notable lack of power in her vocals. Melinda Doolittle she isn't. Chant with me now: O-ver-ra-ted! There's a long run at the end before the final glory note. How country of her. I'll give Lil credit for making an effort, but this just isn't good. Randy says it was an ambitious song choice that didn't feel comfortable on her. Lil responds by saying she wanted to show that she can do other styles. Kara says she did what she felt, which is part of being an artist. Paula says everything went right for her. Oh, quit the BS. Simon, while struggling with calling Lil "Little," says she came over as a wedding singer forced to sing a request she didn't feel comfortable with. Lil's probably safe for this week, but she's been exposed early.

Next is Adam Lambert. What'll campy theater boy do for country week? Why, a Middle Eastern-influenced version of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire"! Uh, what? Now this is confusing. It's slow-paced and almost creepy, but there's something about it that makes it interesting. I wonder where he got this version from? Since no Adam performance would be complete without them, he makes weird melodramatic-scary faces at the camera and does some occasional shrieking. My brother is impressed by his voice but not his song choice. That was just...puzzling. Somehow it seems to fit Adam's style though. Kara says it was interesting but she liked it. Paula loves it. Simon calls it horrific, indulgent rubbish. Randy says it was like Nine Inch Nails doing country! It was current! It was fresh! It was hot! David! Archuleta! Phonebook! Adam should be fine for this week. It was another love-it-or-hate-it performance, and enough people love him.

Scott MacIntyre's tonight's first gender-bender: he's doing Martina McBride's "Wild Angels." Randy Travis hates the song choice. I'm not expecting much after last week's disaster, but to my surprise Scott actually sounds really good here. When the big chorus comes in he seems to be feeling it and not getting swallowed up by it. As much as I want to dislike Scott for being so pimped and having a boring style, this is very good. Paula calls it an impressive, lovely performance, but she wants him to mix it up next time and do a song without the piano. Simon says he chose a similar song as last week and wants him to pick something different. Randy wants to see him do more vocally. Kara wants him to up his game. Sheesh, and I thought it was his best performance yet.

Alexis Grace, who kind of looks like Dolly Parton in a petite frame minus the plastic surgery, is singing "Jolene." Will she do better than Brooke White last year? Alexis starts on the stairs and progresses down them over the course of the performance. Ehhhh, I'm not feeling it. The vocals aren't bad, but like Lil, there's sort of a disconnect going on here. Her jerky hand movements are getting annoying too. Randy says she tried to bend it in a bluesy sort of way that didn't work. Kara says she lost her edge a bit. The one you forced her to adopt, Kara? Paula says she was an artist by telling the story of the song. Simon says it was OK, but a bit soundalike. Alexis says she'll bring back the dirty next time. I have future sympathy for her daughter when she reaches junior high. If a classmate finds pictures of Alexis it's all over for her social life.

The Taylor Hicks the judges like, Danny Gokey, is our second gender-bender of the night. He's taking on the first hit of one of our own Idols, Carrie Underwood's "Jesus, Take the Wheel." He gets really nervous in front of Randy Travis and has to start over about a hundred times. Will he choke tonight? Oh yeah. This song does not work with his voice. Even my brother comments on how terrible it is. He says he can see Carrie Underwood crying already. Danny's off-pitch most of the time, and when the big chorus comes in it's a mess. He ends with a ridiculous run. This is worse than LaKisha Jones' version. Kara says halfway through he came out of his shell. Paula thinks it's brilliant and that Carrie would buy the record. I'd imagine she has better uses for her money, Paula. Simon's only problem is with Danny's wardrobe. Interesting. I hadn't noticed, but his outfit does remind me of Melinda Doolittle's in the video ranked #8 in the post below. Randy says the verses were pitchy and he needs to support them better. Danny's got the fanbase to be safe, but I didn't think that was as good as the judges did. Man, I got in a lot of references to former Idols there, didn't I? Let's keep it going! Uh...Rickey Smith!

So, Anoop Desai. Are you going to redeem yourself after last week? Well, he's going to keep it simple with Willie Nelson's "Always on My Mind." Good song choice. I believe it's been done before, but I won't hold that against him. It's another minimalist arrangement that leaves little room for error, but Anoop handles the first verse and chorus flawlessly. The crowd even cheers as soon as the music picks up. Now this is the Anoop we were all hoping for! He loses the pitch a few times later on, but overall I'd say this is his best performance. It's nice to hear his vocals in all their glory. I like it. I'm feelin' it. Paula says Anoop is back! Simon says Anoop went from zero to hero. Randy says he showed off how good his vocals were and that the arrangement was dope. Kara calls it the best of the night. Good job, Anoop. Now let's keep it up next week.

Megan Joy "Don't Call Me" Corkrey chooses Patsy Cline's "Walkin' After Midnight." OK, I can hear her doing this, as it's got kind of a jazzy side. My early interest in Megan is shattered once the performance begins and I'm reminded of how annoying her voice is. This time she even adds some goatiness to the mix. I hate Amy Winehouse and her obnoxious jazz inflections, so you can guess how I feel about Megan. While she plays to her personal style well, I can't honestly say I enjoy this. As Simon would say: ob-noxious! Randy calls it very good and the perfect song choice. Kara raves about her performance and mentions that she did it all with the flu. Paula tells us Megan's been in the hospital (you're pimping again!) and calls it fantastic. Simon says it was better this week than last week. Argh. We may have to put up with her in the Top 10.

After going second to last the previous week, Matt Giraud is now getting the pimp spot. Sigh. He's our final gender-bender of the evening, and once again Carrie Underwood is the artist. This time the song is "So Small." It's another piano-based performance, so it's nothing we haven't seen before. His vocals sound OK, but they don't elevate to another level when the band gets louder, hence he gets drowned out. The final note is off. I still hate Matt, but I guess he did all right here. I'm hardly blown away though. Whatever. Kara calls it amazing. Paula loves his authenticity. Simon says he doesn't think Matt's gotten enough credit for his vocals and calls him one of the best of the night. Randy calls it his favorite performance of the night. Blah. Why don't they tell him to change it up and get out from behind the piano? Are the subtly trying to de-pimp Scott and pimp Matt?

My performance ranking:

Allison (9 out of 10)
Scott (8 out of 10)
Kris (7.5 out of 10)
Anoop (7 out of 10)
Adam (6 out of 10)
Matt (5.5 out of 10)
Michael (4.5 out of 10)
Alexis (4 out of 10)
Lil (3.5 out of 10)
Megan (2.5 out of 10)
Danny (2 out of 10)

Prediction

Bottom 3: Alexis, Michael, Kris
Going Home: Alexis, and the Judges' Save makes its debut

Whom I Voted For: Allison, Kris, Anoop

I've had a tough time gauging the popularity of each competitor, so I won't be surprised if none of my Bottom 3 end up there. I guess we'll find out soon enough.

Tomorrow Carrie Underwood is the returning Idol, and she's doing a duet with Brad Paisley. Sounds like a good time!