Top 6 (Plus Matt Giraud) - Disco Demolition Night

The show opens with a recap of last week's pointless Judges' Save, which means I need to vote extra hard, as former bottom-feeder Matt is going to be extra pimped from now on and some of my favorites could end up in trouble. At least, that's what I'm assuming is going to happen.

Lil Rounds leads off with no intro clip to Chaka Khan's "I'm Every Woman." Huh. So that's how they're planning to cut time. I guess there's no point in having intro clips, since there's no mentor this week. How much do you want to bet the show still goes long? Lil works the stage and all that, but her voice is drowned out by the band most of the way and she spends too much time playing to the studio audience. Eh. I'm just not feeling it. Randy says it sounded wild and gves the "you're not an artist" criticism...AGAIN. Kara agrees. Paula says Lil was on vocal rest, and applauds her for her recovery, but she doesn't think it was hot enough. Lil looks defeated, and Simon tells her she looks sad. I almost feel like they're antagonizing her at this point. Lil responds that she had fun this week. Simon then predicts that Lil's going home, in addition to the usual "no originality" criticism. Lil tells Ryan she absolutely doesn't believe she was karaoke and reminds us that America votes. You can hear Simon cackling when she says that. He knows half the voting public is putty in his hands. I'm not even sure why Lil wants to stay in this competition, unless she enjoys getting abuse from the four stooges.

Kris Allen has his guitar with him to sing "She Works Hard For the Money". Wow. Now there's a choice I wasn't expecting. He tells Ryan he chose it because it has a story to it. I like that. Rather than seeing the song as merely a dated dance number, he's looking at it from a different angle. He does a complete stripped-down arrangement with African drums and stuff. Wow, this is good. Much better than when crappy Jason Castro tried the same thing last year for Mariah Carey week. Are you watching, Lil? That's how you avoid getting called karaoke. Kara says the risk he took paid off big time. Paula says it had a classic Santana feel to it and commends him for his song choice. Simon calls it fantastic. Randy says it proves he's ready for the big time. You know what? He may not be the best singer in this competition, but if it were up to me, Kris would win this thing. I know both my readers (hi Kristi and Becky!) are huge Adam fans, but Kris in my mind represents what this show is all about. I mean, come on! He's living the American Dream! The odds were against him due to his lack of pimping, but he stayed true to himself, did his own thing and now finds himself as a contender for the title. Horatio Alger couldn't have written it any better. Adam's a great singer and performer, but he's been pimped since the beginning. What's the fun in seeing a foregone conclusion come to pass?

So how's Danny Gokey going to follow up that brilliant performance? How about a mediocre version of Earth, Wind and Fire's "September"? Yeah, that should do it! Or not. I hear nothing original here. The guy doesn't even use the high part in the chorus as an opportunity to show off his range. The song itself is good, but if Danny really wants to win this thing he needs to give us something memorable. What's this Lil-esque karaoke performance supposed to do for anybody? I'd say it's time for Danny to lose his predestined spot in the finale. Randy says it didn't have enough melody, but he turned it into something that really worked for him tonight. Kara compliments his pitch and calls it another solid performance She adds that she hopes we remember it at the end of the show. Foreshadowing? Paula says he showed off his agility and brilliance, and calls his voice one of the sexiest ever. Simon says he can't fault the vocals, but says he thought the performance was clumsy, awkward and lacking in star power. Paula shouts out "see you in the finals!" again. It's like she read my mind. She knew the audience didn't think he was Top 2-worthy anymore and wanted to remind us that we're supposed to vote for him. Nothin' doin', Abdul! Kris or Allison should be joining Adam in the finale. Hey, didn't Chris Daughtry go home the last time she told a contestant that? Am I getting my hopes up too much?

The backdrop parts to reveal Allison Iraheta sitting on the stairs. She's singing a slowed-down, rocking version of "Hot Stuff." Hmm. More Donna Summer. Unlike last week, she's back to bringing the ROCK. VOCAL. POWER. Maybe she got over that cold I suspected she had. Overall it's another winner for Allison. Can Paula honestly believe Danny belongs in the finale after seeing this? Randy says he thought the arrangement was a little overindulgent, but says she can really sing. Wow, Randy. Thanks for telling us that. You add so much to the panel. Kara agrees about arrangement and echoes the "one of the best singers" line. Thanks Kara. The people who just turned on their TV's and hadn't watched any of the season thus far are undoubtedly very grateful. Paula says the word "compromise" doesn't belong in her vocabulary and that the last note hit it off the charts. Okey dokey. Simon says it was brilliant. Go Allison! Seacrest hurries through her phone number, likely because they don't want to run long this week.

Adam Lambert is next. Will he own this week as so many have predicted? He's got some tough competition after Kris' performance. He's wearing the suit with slicked-back hair again, and since it's an even-numbered week (should be Top 6), that means he's toning it down and going slow. He's doing "If I Can't Have You," by Yvonne Elliman from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. His tender vocals on the verse are really nice. I like that part a lot, but when he goes over the top in the chorus it just seems odd. I don't mind a little over-the-top from Adam, but he needs to do it at the right moment, and I don't think that was it. Still, I like this performance for the most part. The crowd goes wild after he finishes. Randy says he's ready right now and that it's a hot one. Duh! Adam's going to be a star whether he wins this thing or not. Kara says he's brilliant. Paula says she felt the pain and vulnerability and predicts the finale for him once again. I guess we're at the halfway point of the Finals, so Paula's job tonight is to refresh the Danny vs. Adam showdown idea they've had in mind since the beginning in America's heads. Simon says he likes the originality and vocals. Adam gives Michael Orland some props for helping him with the arrangement. What a class act.

Now it's time for that guy who shouldn't be here. At least he's not getting the pimp spot, so there's still hope that he could go home this week. After getting two undeserved free passes this season, it would sure be sweet. He's doing The Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive." Well, it's not a karaoke version like LaKisha Jones did two seasons ago. I hate to say it, but this is probably one of his best performances. He infuses his own style into it and his vocals are spot on except for the creepy ending falsetto note. I still hope he goes home, but I'll give credit where it's due. He did a good job. Randy says didn't love the song choice or arrangement, but that he can really sing. Blah blah blah. Why do I even bother to recap comments like that? Kara says it was solid. Paula said he picks songs like she bowls: gutterballs or strikes. This was a strike for him. That Paula is so clever with her similes, isn't she? Simon says he didn't like it, and that Matt needs to get out of Idol-land and into the real world. Well, you could've let him go back to the real world last week but you passed it up. Thanks, Simon! He also says it came across as desperate. I didn't get that, but OK. I'm surprised he wasn't pimped more. I figured the judges were going to love him to death if he was even halfway decent (which I'd say he was) just so they don't look dumb for saving him. Oh well. Like I've been saying, I won't complain if he leaves tomorrow.

Anoop Desai finally gets the pimp spot for a show where the public votes! I thought for sure he was going to be thrown under the bus this week. Once again he's doing a slow song, Donna Summer's "Dim All the Lights." What's with the three I'm voting for all doing Donna Summer? He's got a new look, with a little bit of facial hair and a pink sweater. Anoop sounds OK, but the arrangement sounds very dated. I'm not familiar with the original, but I'm guessing he didn't do much to alter Donna Summer's version. He works the crowd and seems to enjoy himself, but I'm not crazy about this. It's OK, just not up to par with his best performances. Randy says the same thing he's said to almost everybody tonight: didn't like the arrangement, you can really sing, good job. Kara says it sounded like it could be on the radio. Yeah, oldies radio, maybe. Kara really needs to go. Her comments add nothing and she always seems like she's (poorly) acting the part of an "American Idol" judge. Paula says she liked it when he went uptempo because he looked like he was enjoying himself. Simon says it was mediocre at best and calls it his worst performance by a mile. Ouch. I didn't think it was that bad, but I'll agree it wasn't one of Anoop's stronger performances.

My performance ranking:

Kris (9 out of 10)
Matt (7.5 out of 10)
Allison (7 out of 10)
Adam (6 out of 10)
Anoop (4.5 out of 10)
Danny (3.5 out of 10)
Lil (3 out of 10)

So....predictions. I think Kris was the best of the night and has a big enough fanbase that he'll be fine. Adam got a truckload of praise and has a big fanbase, so he's safe. Anoop got the pimp spot, which usually guarantees safety, but with the double elimination I'm not so sure. After all, Lil got the pimp spot last week and ended up in the Bottom 2. Still, he should get an extra boost. I believe Allison's fanbase has grown over the course of the competition, and as the only girl left who'd be a worthy winner, I think she's got the support to stay. There. I've successfully convinced myself that my four favorites aren't in danger (though in reality I give Allison and Anoop an outside chance of leaving). Now it's time to deal with my three non-favorites.

I think this is finally the end of the line for Lil. She got the death spot and did nothing to improve her stock, so I'm confident she's going bye-bye at last. I believe Danny still has a huge fanbase, but he really didn't show us anything new. Then again, has he shown us anything new since the Semifinals? Even Kara hinted that it wasn't a particularly memorable performance. He should be in more trouble than he probably is. I thought Matt was good, but Simon hated his performance, so that'll make a lot of people rethink their enjoyment of it. As I said last week, I feel like Matt's run his course on this show. He's talented, but I don't get the impression that he's going to show me anything I'll be sorry to have missed. On the other hand, his fans might be voting extra hard to save him after he nearly left last week. Hmmm. This is tough, but I'm going to predict that Danny and his mediocrity live to sing another day while Matt and his mole leave us for real this time.

Tomorrow David Archuleta, Mike V's beloved Artichoke, is performing. I'll try to keep the squealing to a minimum.