Two guys and two girls are going home tonight, and we only have an hour for our proceedings! We're also seeing the return of my two favorites from last season, Allison Iraheta and Kris Allen!
The group number for tonight is "American Boy." I've never heard this song, but apparently it's by someone named Estelle. It's funny when the guys are forced to sing "I'm liking this American boy." Casey looks like he has no idea what he's doing there. Funny stuff. Not one of the best group numbers ever, but my brother thinks it's good, so I guess it'll do.
Results time!
Siobhan Magnus is safe!
Haeley Vaughn is safe!
Michelle Delamor is safe!
Katelyn Epperly, who reminds me of Amy from the first season of The Apprentice, is safe!
That leaves Katie Stevens and Janell Wheeler. Well duh, Katie's been pimped since the beginning and went last. Who do you think is going to be safe? Indeed it is Janell going home. Too bad. I kind of liked her. I'm not going to lose any sleep over it, though. She does her teary-voiced, half-hearted sing-out and America officially forgets about her two seconds later.
Iraheta time! Allison's singing a new song caled "Scars." Hmmm. I remember hearing her first single and thinking they were marketing her to teens. This song is much more grown-up. Fear not, though! She's still as big a goof as she was last year with her hand motions and after-song chat with Ryan. Back to results!
Paige Miles is safe!
Lacey Brown is safe! Well, there go both my elimination picks!
Lilly Scott is safe!
Crystal Bowersox is safe!
That leaves us with Ashley Rodriguez and Didi Benami. I predict it'll be Ashley, and indeed it is. Ashley seems to maintain her composure by avoiding too many words when Ryan tells her it's the end. I'm sure the tears are all coming backstage.
Now it's the guys' turn!
Michael Lynche is safe!
John Park is safe! Good, those ten votes I gave him weren't a waste!
Aaron Kelly is safe!
Todrick Hall is safe! Hey, why don't we just look at the end of each row and figure out who our two options to leave are?
Tim Urban and Joe Munoz are the only ones left, and I say Joe's going. Ryan delivers the news and hey, I was right! Come on, the guy got no screentime! Wasn't it obvious?
Now it's time for the best winner this show ever produced (who'll still hold that title after this season is over), Kris Allen. He's performing "Let It Be," which will be available for download on iTunes, with all proceeds going to Haiti. As usual, he does a great job. It's times like these when I'm glad Adam Lambert's not our reigning Idol. I can't imagine that sort of aural assault raising as much for the Haitians in need.
One more hopeful still faces the chopping block. Let's put him out of his misery.
Casey James is safe!
Jermaine Sellers is safe??? Wow. Didn't see that one coming.
Lee DeWyze is safe!
Andrew Garcia is safe!
That leaves us with Tyler Grady and Alex Lambert. One is stuck in the 1970's and the other has a mullet. Tough choice. I say it's obviously going to be Alex, since Tyler's too distinctive, but...what??? Tyler's out? Now that comes as something of a shock. I figured his old-school vibe would garner him a fanbase that'd keep him around at least a few weeks. Oh well. I don't care. I liked Alex better last night.
I predicted Paige, Lacey, Joe and Jermaine to get cut. Instead it was Janell, Ashley, Joe and Tyler. Well, one out of four ain't bad. Poor Joe, though. He deserved better.
So we led off the show with "American Boy" and closed it with Tyler's reprise of "American Woman." If that represents some sort of progression it's a bit of an uncomfortable one.
See you next week!
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Top 12 Guys - Bring on the Averageness!
So now it's the guys' turn. After reading some of the other blogs from last night, it looks like I was more charitable to the girls than most people were. I try not to let the opinions of others influence my ratings, though perhaps a second viewing would've made me agree with the harsher critics out there. Oh well. Let's see how the men fare in their first turns on the Idol stage. We have a lot more acoustic guitar-player types this year. The big question is: will they be cool, creative Kris Allens, or will they be gimmicky, moderately-talented Jason Castros? Tonight we may get a glimpse into the answer.
Leading things off is playwright/scam artist Todrick Hall from Arlington, TX. His song choice? Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone." Wow. Bold. I'm sure Mike V. is going to hate this. Todrick switches it up and makes it into some smooth, jazzy type of soul thing. The vocals aren't the greatest, but the creativity adds some spark to it. As much as I want to hate him for scamming people out of money, I gotta give him credit here. It was nice to see some real originality. The judges all like his talent, but aren't fans of the new arrangement.
Sonestown, PA's Aaron Kelly takes on "Here Comes Goodbye," performed by Rascal Flatts and co-written by former Idol contestant Chris Sligh! Aaron sounds like a less-lispy, country-tinged Kevin Covais. You can tell the kid's nervous. While this performance has a very amateurish feel to it (not totally inappropriate, since he's obviously not a professional singer), it's much better than I was expecting. I gotta give him some props. The judges all concur that he was good enough to deserve another week. Aaron sure likes to smile. I guess that'll give him the likability factor.
Next is Jermaine Sellers, a church singer from Joliet, IL. Nice town. I took a train visit there this summer. Which former Idol contestant's song is he going to do? His pick is "Get Here," popularly done by Oleta Adams. Sooooo...Justin Guarini then? Jermaine starts off sounding too soft and slightly off-key and has moments of sounding breathy and strangled as it goes on, before finally reaching his screechy upper register and overbelting. Sorry, Jermaine. I'd love to see a fellow Illinoisan have some success on this show, but that wasn't good. The judges seem to be more critical of the song choice than the performance itself. Whatever. Neither was all that inspired.
Tim Urban, who replaced the whiny Chris Golightly, didn't tell his family he was called back for Idol because he wanted to surprise them. There's a prank for the ages. The Duncanville, TX native reminds me of Jon Peter Lewis. Is that good or bad? I dunno. He's doing "Apologize" by OneRepublic, and the head voice parts are weak. I didn't think he was anything special back in Hollywood, and he's not changing my mind here. His control needs some work. He's clearly got some talent, but it's not up to the standards of an Idol. The judges all agree it didn't work.
Joe Munoz, this year's no-screentime, blatantly-fodder contestant, is from Huntington Park, CA. Based on the Hollywood clips he seems like another guitar guy. He takes on Jason Mraz' "You and I Both," forgoing the guitar. Hmmm. This guy's actually a good singer. He reminds me a little of David Hernandez, but I won't hold that against him, since David was actually somewhat likable before he got eliminated and started famewhoring it up. Joe sounds weak on a few notes, which are probably nerve-related. It's not a great performance, but definitely a solid one. The judges are all generally positive, and Kara even calls him the best of the night so far. Simon, knowing that this guy isn't supposed to succeed, tries to bury him by calling him forgettable. I think Joe might be in some trouble due to his lack of screentime, but I think he deserves another week.
We have an interesting old-school rocker in Nazareth, PA's Tyler Grady. He's doing "American Woman" by The Guess Who. Ehhhh. I kind of want to like this guy, but this performance doesn't do anything for me. It's a heavy rocker, and this muted backing track sounds too wimpy for it to be believable. Vocally I hear nothing special. The judges all want to see him add his style to something that'll connect with a modern audience. That's probably the best advice if he wants to succeed on Idol.
Lee DeWyze is from Chicago (yeah!). He's the first guy tonight who actually picks up the guitar, for a rendition of Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars." I'm not a big fan of this song. It's bland, boring Britpop, though Lee tries to make it an American modern-rocker. I do like the tone to Lee's voice. He sounds like a potentially good singer, but it's hard to tell with all the off-key moments, particularly in the chorus. I'd kind of like to see him do well, as he seems like a cool guy with talent. The performance just didn't work. The lesser three judges hate the song choice and his arrangement of it, but Simon says it was the best of the night so far. Eh. I disagree, but I'm interested to see what else Lee can do.
John Park is from Northbrook, IL, (yeah!) and wants to marry Shania Twain. Hey maybe he should sing one of her songs! On second thought, that might be a little creepy. He's singing the jazz standard "God Bless the Child." Wow. Interesting choice. It's not the most exciting song, but John sings it competently. Pretty good, I just wish there were more of a "wow" factor. The judges all hate the song choice and feel like the performance missed the mark. What a shame. I thought it was better than that. I hope that doesn't bode ill for John.
The man who wasn't kicked out after all, St. Petersburg, FL's Michael Lynche, talks again about his daughter being born during Hollywood, since people just eat that stuff up. He's a personal trainer, so I guess all that bulk must be muscle. He's doing Maroon 5's "This Love" and becomes the second contestant of the night to pick up the guitar for his performance. Good song. The vocals aren't horrible, but they don't impress me much (don't worry John, I'm not stealing your girl). There's not much range in this song, so the whole thing comes across as a "whatever." Maybe I'm just jaded. The judges agree, however, that it was nothing special, so maybe they're equally jaded or...it actually wasn't great.
Alex Lambert from North Richland Hills, TX rocks the mullet and sings "Wonderful World" by James Morrison. There's a Gokey-esque quality to his voice, a Glambert-esque quality to his name and a Wagner-Trugman-esque quality to his comfort on stage. You can tell the guy's super-nervous, but surprisingly, I kind of like elements of his performance. His tone is nice, and if you take away the quavery moments he delivers the song decently. I think Alex has some potential, even if this performance wasn't as good as it could've been. Simon comes down on him for being so awkward, and Alex admits he hasn't performed in front of an audience too many times. It shows, brotha.
Say, did you know Fort Worth, TX's Casey James removed his shirt at his audition? I don't think they've shown the clip enough, and it'd be a shame for that vitally important piece of information to escape you. Kara DioGuardi has a huge crush on him because of it! His song choice is Bryan Adams' "Heaven," and it's probably the best performance of the night. You can tell he's a seasoned pro (he does introduce himself as a working musician, after all), as he seems totally comfortable on stage and delivers vocally. The judges give him his rightful praise, though I'm still slightly creeped out by the fact that he looks like a male Kady Malloy (does anyone besides me even remember her?).
Finally, Andrew Garcia, who I knew would get the pimp spot before the show even began, closes us out. What does the Moreno Valley, CA native choose? Fall Out Boy's "Sugar, We're Goin Down." I don't know this song, so I couldn't tell you if he changed it up or anything, but it seems like he stays in the same zone the entire time and never strays from it. It's not bad, but it's hardly interesting. The judges all agree with me that it was nothing distinctive or special, vindicating my opinion of their chosen male.
Unlike last night, the performance recap montage runs smoothly. Glad somebody got something right around there for a change. I'm even more surprised that only four of these guys played the guitar tonight. It seemed like there'd be more.
My Performance Ranking:
Casey (7.5/10)
Todrick (7/10)
John (6/10)
Joe (5.2/10)
Aaron (5.1/10)
Andrew (5/10)
Michael (4.5/10)
Alex (4.4/10)
Tim (4/10)
Tyler (3/10)
Lee (2.2/10)
Jermaine (2/10)
My picks to go home: Jermaine and Joe
Jermaine bombed, and I don't think he has the fan support to overcome it, while I fear Simon's comment about Joe not being memorable may have some merit. Unpimped contestants like Joe have to do extra well or have a hook (e.g. a cute kid or a distinctive look) to stay in it, and he may fall short there. It'll be interesting to see how America votes with him.
For what's supposed to be a girl's year, I didn't think the girls were significantly more impressive in this first week. We'll see over time who's got it and who hasn't. See you tomorrow when four people get the axe!
Leading things off is playwright/scam artist Todrick Hall from Arlington, TX. His song choice? Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone." Wow. Bold. I'm sure Mike V. is going to hate this. Todrick switches it up and makes it into some smooth, jazzy type of soul thing. The vocals aren't the greatest, but the creativity adds some spark to it. As much as I want to hate him for scamming people out of money, I gotta give him credit here. It was nice to see some real originality. The judges all like his talent, but aren't fans of the new arrangement.
Sonestown, PA's Aaron Kelly takes on "Here Comes Goodbye," performed by Rascal Flatts and co-written by former Idol contestant Chris Sligh! Aaron sounds like a less-lispy, country-tinged Kevin Covais. You can tell the kid's nervous. While this performance has a very amateurish feel to it (not totally inappropriate, since he's obviously not a professional singer), it's much better than I was expecting. I gotta give him some props. The judges all concur that he was good enough to deserve another week. Aaron sure likes to smile. I guess that'll give him the likability factor.
Next is Jermaine Sellers, a church singer from Joliet, IL. Nice town. I took a train visit there this summer. Which former Idol contestant's song is he going to do? His pick is "Get Here," popularly done by Oleta Adams. Sooooo...Justin Guarini then? Jermaine starts off sounding too soft and slightly off-key and has moments of sounding breathy and strangled as it goes on, before finally reaching his screechy upper register and overbelting. Sorry, Jermaine. I'd love to see a fellow Illinoisan have some success on this show, but that wasn't good. The judges seem to be more critical of the song choice than the performance itself. Whatever. Neither was all that inspired.
Tim Urban, who replaced the whiny Chris Golightly, didn't tell his family he was called back for Idol because he wanted to surprise them. There's a prank for the ages. The Duncanville, TX native reminds me of Jon Peter Lewis. Is that good or bad? I dunno. He's doing "Apologize" by OneRepublic, and the head voice parts are weak. I didn't think he was anything special back in Hollywood, and he's not changing my mind here. His control needs some work. He's clearly got some talent, but it's not up to the standards of an Idol. The judges all agree it didn't work.
Joe Munoz, this year's no-screentime, blatantly-fodder contestant, is from Huntington Park, CA. Based on the Hollywood clips he seems like another guitar guy. He takes on Jason Mraz' "You and I Both," forgoing the guitar. Hmmm. This guy's actually a good singer. He reminds me a little of David Hernandez, but I won't hold that against him, since David was actually somewhat likable before he got eliminated and started famewhoring it up. Joe sounds weak on a few notes, which are probably nerve-related. It's not a great performance, but definitely a solid one. The judges are all generally positive, and Kara even calls him the best of the night so far. Simon, knowing that this guy isn't supposed to succeed, tries to bury him by calling him forgettable. I think Joe might be in some trouble due to his lack of screentime, but I think he deserves another week.
We have an interesting old-school rocker in Nazareth, PA's Tyler Grady. He's doing "American Woman" by The Guess Who. Ehhhh. I kind of want to like this guy, but this performance doesn't do anything for me. It's a heavy rocker, and this muted backing track sounds too wimpy for it to be believable. Vocally I hear nothing special. The judges all want to see him add his style to something that'll connect with a modern audience. That's probably the best advice if he wants to succeed on Idol.
Lee DeWyze is from Chicago (yeah!). He's the first guy tonight who actually picks up the guitar, for a rendition of Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars." I'm not a big fan of this song. It's bland, boring Britpop, though Lee tries to make it an American modern-rocker. I do like the tone to Lee's voice. He sounds like a potentially good singer, but it's hard to tell with all the off-key moments, particularly in the chorus. I'd kind of like to see him do well, as he seems like a cool guy with talent. The performance just didn't work. The lesser three judges hate the song choice and his arrangement of it, but Simon says it was the best of the night so far. Eh. I disagree, but I'm interested to see what else Lee can do.
John Park is from Northbrook, IL, (yeah!) and wants to marry Shania Twain. Hey maybe he should sing one of her songs! On second thought, that might be a little creepy. He's singing the jazz standard "God Bless the Child." Wow. Interesting choice. It's not the most exciting song, but John sings it competently. Pretty good, I just wish there were more of a "wow" factor. The judges all hate the song choice and feel like the performance missed the mark. What a shame. I thought it was better than that. I hope that doesn't bode ill for John.
The man who wasn't kicked out after all, St. Petersburg, FL's Michael Lynche, talks again about his daughter being born during Hollywood, since people just eat that stuff up. He's a personal trainer, so I guess all that bulk must be muscle. He's doing Maroon 5's "This Love" and becomes the second contestant of the night to pick up the guitar for his performance. Good song. The vocals aren't horrible, but they don't impress me much (don't worry John, I'm not stealing your girl). There's not much range in this song, so the whole thing comes across as a "whatever." Maybe I'm just jaded. The judges agree, however, that it was nothing special, so maybe they're equally jaded or...it actually wasn't great.
Alex Lambert from North Richland Hills, TX rocks the mullet and sings "Wonderful World" by James Morrison. There's a Gokey-esque quality to his voice, a Glambert-esque quality to his name and a Wagner-Trugman-esque quality to his comfort on stage. You can tell the guy's super-nervous, but surprisingly, I kind of like elements of his performance. His tone is nice, and if you take away the quavery moments he delivers the song decently. I think Alex has some potential, even if this performance wasn't as good as it could've been. Simon comes down on him for being so awkward, and Alex admits he hasn't performed in front of an audience too many times. It shows, brotha.
Say, did you know Fort Worth, TX's Casey James removed his shirt at his audition? I don't think they've shown the clip enough, and it'd be a shame for that vitally important piece of information to escape you. Kara DioGuardi has a huge crush on him because of it! His song choice is Bryan Adams' "Heaven," and it's probably the best performance of the night. You can tell he's a seasoned pro (he does introduce himself as a working musician, after all), as he seems totally comfortable on stage and delivers vocally. The judges give him his rightful praise, though I'm still slightly creeped out by the fact that he looks like a male Kady Malloy (does anyone besides me even remember her?).
Finally, Andrew Garcia, who I knew would get the pimp spot before the show even began, closes us out. What does the Moreno Valley, CA native choose? Fall Out Boy's "Sugar, We're Goin Down." I don't know this song, so I couldn't tell you if he changed it up or anything, but it seems like he stays in the same zone the entire time and never strays from it. It's not bad, but it's hardly interesting. The judges all agree with me that it was nothing distinctive or special, vindicating my opinion of their chosen male.
Unlike last night, the performance recap montage runs smoothly. Glad somebody got something right around there for a change. I'm even more surprised that only four of these guys played the guitar tonight. It seemed like there'd be more.
My Performance Ranking:
Casey (7.5/10)
Todrick (7/10)
John (6/10)
Joe (5.2/10)
Aaron (5.1/10)
Andrew (5/10)
Michael (4.5/10)
Alex (4.4/10)
Tim (4/10)
Tyler (3/10)
Lee (2.2/10)
Jermaine (2/10)
My picks to go home: Jermaine and Joe
Jermaine bombed, and I don't think he has the fan support to overcome it, while I fear Simon's comment about Joe not being memorable may have some merit. Unpimped contestants like Joe have to do extra well or have a hook (e.g. a cute kid or a distinctive look) to stay in it, and he may fall short there. It'll be interesting to see how America votes with him.
For what's supposed to be a girl's year, I didn't think the girls were significantly more impressive in this first week. We'll see over time who's got it and who hasn't. See you tomorrow when four people get the axe!
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Top 12 Girls - Ladies First
So after all the waiting we're finally getting some performances out of these people! Now I have to write these recaps again! OK, OK, it may seem like a chore sometimes, but I'm sure once I find a favorite in this thing it'll get more exciting. Unfortunately, I won't be able to watch Lost, tonight which makes me glad Hulu exists.
Before I get to this recap I want to say a few things. For starters, I don't think I'll be continuing the play-by-play format of my past recaps this year. I'm sorry. I realize the world will seriously miss replaying the entire show through my eyes. It gets tedious recounting every judge's comment and useless filler segment they give us though, so unless some of that peripheral stuff is interesting I'll get straight to the point and talk about the performances. After all, the music is why I, and I'd assume most viewers, tune in.
Second, I'm going to try to be more consistent with my ratings this year. Last year I didn't have the best mental calibration of what each level meant, so some of them ended up making little sense in retrospect. I thought I'd spell out what each level means, which will make it easier for me and hopefully anyone else who might care about my ratings.
0/10: Horrific in every way.
1/10: Very, very bad, with perhaps a redeeming quality or two.
2/10: Clearly subpar, though not quite a trainwreck.
3/10: Strictly mediocre, forgivable but definitely not good.
4/10: Below average, but not terrible.
5/10: Average, about what you'd expect an American Idol contestant to be capable of.
6/10: Above average, but nothing that blows me away.
7/10: Good enough that people should take notice.
8/10: Very impressive.
9/10: Incredible, though not out-of-this-world.
10/10: Absolutely, breathtakingly perfect.
That's the system I'll be sticking to (or at least trying to stick to). Any decimal places I might add means that I found some middle ground between these levels, or that I wanted to identify the superior performance of two similarly-scored contestants. Like last year, I'll try to be as fair as possible.
Anyway, enough talk! Let's see how our girls did tonight!
First up, Paige Miles from Naples, FL, singing "All Right Now" by Free. The guitar sounds too low, which highlights the nerves in her voice. Ugh. She seems nice, but she's clearly not suited for this song. Too quavery and her enunciation is weird. While I didn't see all the preliminary stuff, I don't remember much from her in Hollywood. When you combine a poor performance with going first and a lack of screen time, I think she's an early favorite to leave this week. The judges disagree, and praise her to high heaven. Simon even says she has the best voice of the girls. Well, what do I know? Hey, I like the new graphics! The font they used in the auditions and Hollywood really left me cold.
Next is Ashley Rodriguez from Chelsea, MA. Sorry, but I hate Boston. Their sports fans are the most insufferable jerks you'll ever meet. The idea that a girl might be a Red Sox fan is a huge turnoff. You shan't get my vote, Ashley! I'm not sure if she likes the Red Sox, but we do know she likes Jordin Sparks. Heck, she even kind of looks like her. Therefore, she probably won't win. We don't need any duplicate winners. Her song is Leona Lewis' "Happy." The mix is terrible again. I know they want to highlight the vocals, but it leaves the singer too vulnerable. I'm not overly impressed with this. It's not terrible, but there are too many pitch problems here and there. The judges think it's too safe and Simon says she might be in trouble.
Janell Wheeler from Orlando, FL, a wine sales rep, is next with Heart's "What About Love." Hmmm. Finally someone with good enunciation. There's a soft piano backing to start, but once again the low mix leaves her voice bare and vulnerable. If she goes slightly off-pitch it's painfully obvious. I think they may have cut costs this year by replacing the live band with a backing track. She's clearly nervous, but there's something endearing about it. So far it's the best of the night. The judges' main criticism is her song choice. Eh, I think it worked OK.
Next is Lilly Scott. That's two L's, like Evangeline Lilly. Hey, did I mention I'm missing Lost tonight? The graphic says she's from Littleton, CO, though she says Denver. Maybe she wants to downplay her connection to the location of the Columbine shooting. Wow, she's only 20? I can't believe this girl's younger than my sister! Her song choice is The Beatles' "Fixing a Hole." Huh? Filler from Sgt. Pepper's? I'm not a big fan of her vocal mannerisms, but she pulls off everything she attempts to do here. Definitely the most interesting one so far. I'll give her a thumbs-up. Once again the judges agree with me (which may or may not be a good thing).
Katelyn Epperly from West Des Moines, IA is pretty, but I know she has a tattoo on her back, so...yeah. That drops her attractiveness rating a few points. Odd. They have her made up and styled to death for this performance. On the plus side, her rendition of The Beatles' "Oh! Darling" is superb. She makes it her own and hits all the notes. I like the slight raspiness she's got. Good job. We're seeing some improvement as the night progresses. The judges don't seem quite as high on the performance as I am, but they give her her due props.
Haeley Vaughn from Fort Collins, CO got her nose pierced to celebrate making it to Hollywood. The uglification of American girls continues. It's the third straight Beatles song, this time "I Want to Hold Your Hand." Interesting choice. She does an acoustic guitar version which is kind of cool, but she oversings too much at parts. She definitely got talent though. Her constant smiling is nice in theory, but her mouth is so big that it can be a little overbearing. I'll give her credit for an original performance concept, but I'll dock her some points for a flawed delivery. Simon rips into her while the other judges offer mild criticisms. She's had enough pimping that I think she'll be here next week, and I'm interested to see what she does.
Amarillo, TX's Lacey Brown is an event coordinator at a church. I don't like the red hair dye, but I guess it's less offensive than tattoos or piercings. Knowing this group, Lacey probably has at least one of those things, but we can always hope not. She does Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide," a slow song that's way too boring, and she occasionally stumbles on her words. Ergh. She seems likable, but this just isn't that great. No connection at all. The judges are all negative in their critiques. I'd say Lacey's in trouble. That was too forgettable.
Michelle Delamor is a sales associate, who also taught a children's choir in Miami, FL. Her family supports her big time. I mean BIG TIME. She has a posse everywhere she goes because they're so committed to her. She sings "Fallin'" by Alicia Keys. Wow, now here's a voice that carries the song. Some of the high stuff is a little awkward, but I like it overall. She keeps it under control pretty well and she seems to have a good feel for what she's doing. I wouldn't call it incredible, but definitely solid all over. Simon compliments her look, which doesn't surprise me given his thing for curly-haired women. Hey, I'm not knocking him. I love curly-haired women too. The judges all seem to agree with me again: strong, but could've been stronger. I like Michelle. She seems like a classy woman among a group of girls I'd never marry. Watch her end up having a tattoo or something.
Next up is Didi Benami, a waitress (and plant) from Knoxville, TN. She sings "The Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson. What to say about this? Nice...I guess. I like some of the stuff she does with her voice. To be honest, I sort of blanked out during this performance. It just didn't grab me. The judges all agree with me once again that it was too dull.
Cape Cod, MA's Siobhan Magnus has an Irish first name, a Scandinavian last name, and a ton of quirk. Nose ring? Check. Tattoo? Check. Glassblowing apprentice? Odd job check. In her interview package we find out that she talks robotically, sings like Adam Lambert and doesn't know what the term "dark horse" means. This girl is so odd and yet, strangely compelling. Her version of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" is actually really good. She's in control and really captures the song's feel. Everything clicks. The judges all agree with me again. Why don't they just put me on the panel and get it over with?
Crystal Bowersox from Elliston, OH has been getting a lot of screen time as the dreadlocked white mother who's kind of grungy. She sings Alanis Morissette's "Hand in My Pocket" and plays guitar and harmonica with it. I'm still not a fan of hers, but I'll give her credit for a good performance here. The rhythm is catchy, and her vocals are suited for a song like this. The judges all love her, and only Simon wants more from her, namely that she choose something more challenging. That's actually good advice. I'd like to see if Crystal could do something outside her comfort zone.
Katie Stevens from Middlebury, CT (I had a feeling she'd go last before the show began) was interviewed earlier before Michelle's performance, so between that and the pimp spot we know they intend for her to go far. She chooses "Feeling Good" popularly done by Michael Buble. I just don't get this stinking song's appeal. Why has it been done so many times on Idol? It's obvious Katie's talented, but this performance wasn't the showstopper they were probably expecting it to be. It seemed like it was all technique and no soul. The judges want her to choose younger songs. After all, she's only 17!
Hey, we ended on time tonight! What do you know? This show might go off without a...never mind. In the performance recap montage the lead vocal track cuts out and doesn't come back until the middle of Ashley's clip. Well, what's an Idol episode without technical problems?
My Performance Ranking:
Katelyn (8/10)
Siobhan (7.1/10)
Crystal (7/10)
Lilly (6.5/10)
Michelle (6/10)
Janell (5.5/10)
Katie (5/10)
Haeley (4.9/10)
Didi (4.5/10)
Ashley (4/10)
Lacey (3.5/10)
Paige (3/10)
My picks to go home: Paige and Lacey
I don't think I'll bother voting tonight. There's no one here I love enough (yet) to waste my cell phone battery on. See you tomorrow night when the guys try their hand at this whole Idol stage business!
Before I get to this recap I want to say a few things. For starters, I don't think I'll be continuing the play-by-play format of my past recaps this year. I'm sorry. I realize the world will seriously miss replaying the entire show through my eyes. It gets tedious recounting every judge's comment and useless filler segment they give us though, so unless some of that peripheral stuff is interesting I'll get straight to the point and talk about the performances. After all, the music is why I, and I'd assume most viewers, tune in.
Second, I'm going to try to be more consistent with my ratings this year. Last year I didn't have the best mental calibration of what each level meant, so some of them ended up making little sense in retrospect. I thought I'd spell out what each level means, which will make it easier for me and hopefully anyone else who might care about my ratings.
0/10: Horrific in every way.
1/10: Very, very bad, with perhaps a redeeming quality or two.
2/10: Clearly subpar, though not quite a trainwreck.
3/10: Strictly mediocre, forgivable but definitely not good.
4/10: Below average, but not terrible.
5/10: Average, about what you'd expect an American Idol contestant to be capable of.
6/10: Above average, but nothing that blows me away.
7/10: Good enough that people should take notice.
8/10: Very impressive.
9/10: Incredible, though not out-of-this-world.
10/10: Absolutely, breathtakingly perfect.
That's the system I'll be sticking to (or at least trying to stick to). Any decimal places I might add means that I found some middle ground between these levels, or that I wanted to identify the superior performance of two similarly-scored contestants. Like last year, I'll try to be as fair as possible.
Anyway, enough talk! Let's see how our girls did tonight!
First up, Paige Miles from Naples, FL, singing "All Right Now" by Free. The guitar sounds too low, which highlights the nerves in her voice. Ugh. She seems nice, but she's clearly not suited for this song. Too quavery and her enunciation is weird. While I didn't see all the preliminary stuff, I don't remember much from her in Hollywood. When you combine a poor performance with going first and a lack of screen time, I think she's an early favorite to leave this week. The judges disagree, and praise her to high heaven. Simon even says she has the best voice of the girls. Well, what do I know? Hey, I like the new graphics! The font they used in the auditions and Hollywood really left me cold.
Next is Ashley Rodriguez from Chelsea, MA. Sorry, but I hate Boston. Their sports fans are the most insufferable jerks you'll ever meet. The idea that a girl might be a Red Sox fan is a huge turnoff. You shan't get my vote, Ashley! I'm not sure if she likes the Red Sox, but we do know she likes Jordin Sparks. Heck, she even kind of looks like her. Therefore, she probably won't win. We don't need any duplicate winners. Her song is Leona Lewis' "Happy." The mix is terrible again. I know they want to highlight the vocals, but it leaves the singer too vulnerable. I'm not overly impressed with this. It's not terrible, but there are too many pitch problems here and there. The judges think it's too safe and Simon says she might be in trouble.
Janell Wheeler from Orlando, FL, a wine sales rep, is next with Heart's "What About Love." Hmmm. Finally someone with good enunciation. There's a soft piano backing to start, but once again the low mix leaves her voice bare and vulnerable. If she goes slightly off-pitch it's painfully obvious. I think they may have cut costs this year by replacing the live band with a backing track. She's clearly nervous, but there's something endearing about it. So far it's the best of the night. The judges' main criticism is her song choice. Eh, I think it worked OK.
Next is Lilly Scott. That's two L's, like Evangeline Lilly. Hey, did I mention I'm missing Lost tonight? The graphic says she's from Littleton, CO, though she says Denver. Maybe she wants to downplay her connection to the location of the Columbine shooting. Wow, she's only 20? I can't believe this girl's younger than my sister! Her song choice is The Beatles' "Fixing a Hole." Huh? Filler from Sgt. Pepper's? I'm not a big fan of her vocal mannerisms, but she pulls off everything she attempts to do here. Definitely the most interesting one so far. I'll give her a thumbs-up. Once again the judges agree with me (which may or may not be a good thing).
Katelyn Epperly from West Des Moines, IA is pretty, but I know she has a tattoo on her back, so...yeah. That drops her attractiveness rating a few points. Odd. They have her made up and styled to death for this performance. On the plus side, her rendition of The Beatles' "Oh! Darling" is superb. She makes it her own and hits all the notes. I like the slight raspiness she's got. Good job. We're seeing some improvement as the night progresses. The judges don't seem quite as high on the performance as I am, but they give her her due props.
Haeley Vaughn from Fort Collins, CO got her nose pierced to celebrate making it to Hollywood. The uglification of American girls continues. It's the third straight Beatles song, this time "I Want to Hold Your Hand." Interesting choice. She does an acoustic guitar version which is kind of cool, but she oversings too much at parts. She definitely got talent though. Her constant smiling is nice in theory, but her mouth is so big that it can be a little overbearing. I'll give her credit for an original performance concept, but I'll dock her some points for a flawed delivery. Simon rips into her while the other judges offer mild criticisms. She's had enough pimping that I think she'll be here next week, and I'm interested to see what she does.
Amarillo, TX's Lacey Brown is an event coordinator at a church. I don't like the red hair dye, but I guess it's less offensive than tattoos or piercings. Knowing this group, Lacey probably has at least one of those things, but we can always hope not. She does Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide," a slow song that's way too boring, and she occasionally stumbles on her words. Ergh. She seems likable, but this just isn't that great. No connection at all. The judges are all negative in their critiques. I'd say Lacey's in trouble. That was too forgettable.
Michelle Delamor is a sales associate, who also taught a children's choir in Miami, FL. Her family supports her big time. I mean BIG TIME. She has a posse everywhere she goes because they're so committed to her. She sings "Fallin'" by Alicia Keys. Wow, now here's a voice that carries the song. Some of the high stuff is a little awkward, but I like it overall. She keeps it under control pretty well and she seems to have a good feel for what she's doing. I wouldn't call it incredible, but definitely solid all over. Simon compliments her look, which doesn't surprise me given his thing for curly-haired women. Hey, I'm not knocking him. I love curly-haired women too. The judges all seem to agree with me again: strong, but could've been stronger. I like Michelle. She seems like a classy woman among a group of girls I'd never marry. Watch her end up having a tattoo or something.
Next up is Didi Benami, a waitress (and plant) from Knoxville, TN. She sings "The Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson. What to say about this? Nice...I guess. I like some of the stuff she does with her voice. To be honest, I sort of blanked out during this performance. It just didn't grab me. The judges all agree with me once again that it was too dull.
Cape Cod, MA's Siobhan Magnus has an Irish first name, a Scandinavian last name, and a ton of quirk. Nose ring? Check. Tattoo? Check. Glassblowing apprentice? Odd job check. In her interview package we find out that she talks robotically, sings like Adam Lambert and doesn't know what the term "dark horse" means. This girl is so odd and yet, strangely compelling. Her version of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" is actually really good. She's in control and really captures the song's feel. Everything clicks. The judges all agree with me again. Why don't they just put me on the panel and get it over with?
Crystal Bowersox from Elliston, OH has been getting a lot of screen time as the dreadlocked white mother who's kind of grungy. She sings Alanis Morissette's "Hand in My Pocket" and plays guitar and harmonica with it. I'm still not a fan of hers, but I'll give her credit for a good performance here. The rhythm is catchy, and her vocals are suited for a song like this. The judges all love her, and only Simon wants more from her, namely that she choose something more challenging. That's actually good advice. I'd like to see if Crystal could do something outside her comfort zone.
Katie Stevens from Middlebury, CT (I had a feeling she'd go last before the show began) was interviewed earlier before Michelle's performance, so between that and the pimp spot we know they intend for her to go far. She chooses "Feeling Good" popularly done by Michael Buble. I just don't get this stinking song's appeal. Why has it been done so many times on Idol? It's obvious Katie's talented, but this performance wasn't the showstopper they were probably expecting it to be. It seemed like it was all technique and no soul. The judges want her to choose younger songs. After all, she's only 17!
Hey, we ended on time tonight! What do you know? This show might go off without a...never mind. In the performance recap montage the lead vocal track cuts out and doesn't come back until the middle of Ashley's clip. Well, what's an Idol episode without technical problems?
My Performance Ranking:
Katelyn (8/10)
Siobhan (7.1/10)
Crystal (7/10)
Lilly (6.5/10)
Michelle (6/10)
Janell (5.5/10)
Katie (5/10)
Haeley (4.9/10)
Didi (4.5/10)
Ashley (4/10)
Lacey (3.5/10)
Paige (3/10)
My picks to go home: Paige and Lacey
I don't think I'll bother voting tonight. There's no one here I love enough (yet) to waste my cell phone battery on. See you tomorrow night when the guys try their hand at this whole Idol stage business!
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