- Anoop "Dogg" Desai started things off with "Caught Up" by Usher. After a couple of weeks of hitting high notes with wonderful ballads, Anoop decided to go up tempo tonight. He worked the stage a bit, but nothing like Usher does. The judges weren't overly impressed with his song selection or his stage presence, but Randy, Kara, and Paula agreed he sounded good if not a bit of a copy cat. Simon went the other way and called it a "complete and utter mess" and thought he sounded like a "wannabe"--which is exactly what these guys are, right?! They "wannabe" the American Idol.
- How would Megan Joy comeback after a poor performance last week? To begin she decided to sing "Turn Your Lights Down Low" by Bob Marley and covered Lauryn Hill. Dressed in a green foam bustier, dark blue jeans, and a ton of chains and necklaces, Megan seemed quite comfortable singing a song with a tempo more suited to her bluesy/jazzy voice. But after the song, all comfort went out the window when Kara started her critique--including a bit of a yelling match with the audience who booed her. Kara ridiculed her song choice, Paula suggested sitting on a stool, Simon called her monotonous and boring (cue the boos), and Randy thought it took forever...then he gave her a list of artists that she should have selected including Duffy and Amy Winehouse.
- So with two very subpar performances tonight, can Danny get things back on track? If he is able to do so he is banking on his interpretation of "What Hurts the Most" by Rascal Flatts. Accompanied by a fiddle player on stage, Danny stood behind the mic stand on center stage and tried to channel Gary LeVox...and he hit a home run. Danny is a wonderful singer with a soulful voice and he sounded great. Paula said she would "hit rewind" if she were listening to the song in her car. Simon thought it was Danny's best performance of the season! Randy and Kara rounded out the love fest--Kara said she got goosebumps.
BTW: Celebrity sighting--"Rules of Engagement" star and TV funnyman, David Spade was sitting behind the judges table and enjoying the show and the judges comments.
- Back to the singing competition and 16-year-old Allison who chose No Doubt's "Don't Speak". For tonight's performance, the auburn haired teenager strapped on her guitar and accompanied herself on the first part of the song. When she hit the chorus the guitar became merely a prop around her shoulders. It is no secret that I am not really a fan of Allison's, but tonight she didn't really have it going on. She sounded a bit rough in my opinion. Randy opted to critique her outfit which included a black and red dress with black tights. Kara thought the outfit took away from her strong vocals--which weren't that strong tonight. Simon continued the clothing comments saying she looked like she was from the "Addams Family". He (like Kara) thought she tried too hard to play the part of a rock star and said she shouted the song. Definitely not her best performance.
- Up next was Scott MacIntyre who chose "Just the Way You Are" by Billy Joel. With his hair swept up in an 1980's white man 'fro and wearing a tough-guy leather jacket, Scott went unplugged playing the piano with no orchestral support. Kara thought he did a great job on the song and complimented him on his new look. Paula made a few awkward comments about Scott's sight impairment and then mumbled on about nothing in particular. Simon said it was Scott's best performance "by a country mile" and Randy thought it was one of the best of the night. After being in the bottom three last week, Scott may have saved himself from the slow walk to center stage come tomorrow night.
- The other member of last week's bottom three who is still on the show, Matt Giraud, tried a new techique for connecting with the audience as he performed "You Found Me" by the Fray. Instead of taking his usual seat at the Idol baby grand on stage, Matt played the electric piano on a mini stage to the side of the judges table surrounded by a group of adoring fans. Matt did a nice job of imitating The Fray, which was not welcomed by the judges. Paula and Simon were disappointed in the performance with Simon confused about what kind of artist Matt is going to be. Randy and Kara agreed that he picked the wrong song by the wrong artist. Kara said he is a great performer and doesn't deserve to go home--which was a not-so-subtle plea to the voters to cast their ballots for Matt.
- Lil Rounds tried to rebound from a very questionable performance last week with Celine Dion's "I Surrender". Lil started out a bit weak on the song, but hit her stride mid-way through it. Randy wasn't convinced it was the right song for her, but thought she sang it well--then he encouraged her to go a bit younger and do something from artists like Mary J. Blige or Mariah Carey. Kara agreed with Randy about her strong vocals, but implored her to make better song selections. Simon thought it was a safe song/performance and one that she chose to "stay in the competition".
- With a tunnel-testing pompadour and no black fingernail polish, music man Adam hit the stage and offered his version of "Play that Funky Music" by Wild Cherry. Where so many of the other contestants merely doing karaoke tonight, it was nice to see someone take a chance and interpret a song in such a unique way. The judges all loved it and the crowd simply went crazy for the one Idol who has consistently brought something fresh to the show. Adam is definitely putting some distance between himself and the rest of the Idol wannabes.
- Kris got the opportunity to klose the show with his version of "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone" by 70's recording artist Bill Whithers. Kris ditched his usual guitar in favor of a keyboard and was joined by a string quartet on stage. After a slow start in the competition, I must admit that the Arkansas native is growing on me. Randy thought it was one of the best performances of the night, Kara complimented his artistry, Paula thought the song could be on his debut album, and Simon confirmed that it was his best performance of the competition.
So now it is time to predict who is going to find themselves in the dreaded bottom three tomorrow night. Taking up residence in the B3 will be Anoop Dogg, Megan Joy, and Matt Giraud. Going home will be...Anoop who will sing for the judges one last time, but because of poor song selection will not be rewarded with a judges save.
Tune in tomorrow night to see how the voting goes and how Fox wastes an hour of your life you will never get back.
Until then, I'll continue watching TV so you don't have to...
Peace!
Charlie,
ReplyDeleteInteresting show last night. Anoop was rough as was Megan. I agree, it would be interesting to hear her sing Amy Winehouse or as Erica says, Squirrel Nut Zippers:^) Other that that, she's fodder.
Danny is fading for me. I don't know what it is but during auditions, he was my favorite. Now I'm bored. I need to re-play his song to see if I missed something.
Love Allison but she was clearly punked by wardrobe. Her singing was a little rough last night. I think the guitar was a bad idea as it *was* just a prop as you so aptly pointed out. But she's just a kid (hard to believe) and is still learning.
Scott showed some simply beautiful piano work. However, for my taste, he did to much to the melody as far as the vocals went. I cringed more than once on some of those riffs. I'm thinking Billy might have too, if he was listening. So if it were a piano contest, he'd win!
Matt was good but ordinary. What he did last week was far better. I guess I like soul-full more than rocker for him.
Lil. Wow, I'm just not a big Lil fan. I get excited every time she starts a song and subsequently am extremely disappointed by the end. I want her to blow me away and instead I get bummed that it's not Latoya London:^)
Adam is Adam, again. He's got mad vocals (to quote Randy) and he is the quintessential performer. I think he'll probably win. He'd be awesome on Broadway, and I say that in a very constructive and complementary way.
And Kris, where did he come from? Wow! He went from also-ran to one of my favorites in just a few weeks. That was awesome!
And thanks for watching so I don't have to:^)
Tim
Tim, If I ever need a guest blogger, I know where to go. You have made blogging skills! I agree with you on just every point. I think the biggest thing these talented Idols need to do is pick what genre they are going to record once they either win Idol or get signed by someone and stick to it. Lil and Matt are guilty of trying to be more than they are--Lil has a powerful R&B voice and needs to interpret her song selections so they take advantage of that gift. Matt needs to sit at the piano, play like crazy, and get all "Justin Timberlake-y" on us. That's who he is (in looks and sound) and he should be proud. Megan has a unique sound, but her time on Idol is just about over as is Anoop who went back to trying to be a hip-hop singer when he is much better singing songs that are more ballad in nature. Adam is the clear leader in the clubhouse, but I'm not ready to count Danny out just yet--I love his whiskey voice and with proper song selection (like last night), he can bring down the house. The dark horse in the whole thing is Kris. Now that he is getting some recognition, it will be interesting to see how he deals with the pressure that comes with high expectations. As for your girl, Allison, she can sing, but I still haven't been blown away--maybe next week. Later.
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