AMERICAN IDOL–SEASON 10, MUSINGS #3

 

[Update, after the Results Show: Not only was I correct about who was going home, but guest performer Adam Lambert was even more amazing than ever! Once again, he took my breath away. He put all the current contestants to shame, singing beyond perfectly and keeping it simple while staying put on a stool, rather than walking with no purpose, like most of them do. And it was the best he ever looked, too! I still love that boy.]

Well, last night, we finally got around to the first official performances of the Top 13 on American Idol this Season 10. I’ve softened up on most of them because many of them are really pretty talented. Not all, but many, especially the guys.

Here are my thoughts, and some of Mr. X’s, as the show went along, for whatever they’re worth, including some about the judges: [Sorry they’re not amusing this time, though.]:

Lauren–she’s talented enough, but she seems like a crazy girl from a teen horror movie who’s going to go off the rails at any moment, if you say anything negative to her. She can definitely sing, but…Charlie Sheen can act, if you get my drift.

Casey–for a little while, his rendition of Joe Cocker’s With a Little Help From My Friends actually gave me chills, in a good way, but then I felt it got a little weak, for him. Just a little. But, I love everything he does, and always look forward to seeing him. He’s one of the only three I voted for. Can you guess the others?

Randy’s actually been far superior to how he was on all the other seasons! His criticisms, both good and, especially, bad, are mainly correct thing this season, even when he’s going against the other two judges and the audience. And, he’s actually increased his vocabulary! You go, Dawg.

And Jennifer is always so lovely to the kids. You can tell it hurts her to have to tell the truth and say they came up short, like Ashthon and Karen did. I’ve always stuck-up for Jen and I’m so glad my feelings about her goodness have been borne out.

Ashthon isn’t quite as awful as the long-forgotten Lil Rounds of some seasons ago, but she’s weak and should definitely not be in the Top 13 as one of the judges “Wild Card“ picks, especially over Kendra, who was the best girl there. Mr. X said, “She’s second tier.” Right on, bro. (By the end recap, I had already forgotten about her!)

Paul–God, I love this guy! He’s so in charge! I’ve never been a fan of this kind-of voice, but I just love him. And his unique impromptu movements, too. Mr. X said, “This guy’s got entertainment value.” He’s one of the other two I voted for.

Ryan finally found a move he can do–the Paul McDonald!

Pia seems like a nice girl, and I’m sure she’s good, but she does nothing for either Mr. X or me. And some of her high notes last night actually caused us pain. Neither of us gets the judges’ love of her.

James–I think he should have gone more crazy with Paul McCartney’s Maybe I’m Amazed, which is weird because I’m not a fan of his usually-weak Adam Lambert imitations. He missed a perfect opportunity with this performance. But he’s growing on me–I couldn’t stand him until last week.

Haley–Mr. X was impressed with her yodeling rendition of that country song last night, but that’s what she always does, no matter the style of the song. He calls it something like “vocal rodeo”; I just call it “Maya Rudolph national anthem-style,” for those SNL fans among you who know what I‘m talking about. (Google it if you don’t–it’s the perfect send-up of all these people who think that vocal gymnastics are necessary for getting attention.)

Jacob–he really missed on his usually-reliable high notes. I Can Fly was a bad choice for him. Randy’s the only one who told the truth about this song; the other two copped-out by saying that Jacob is just too good to judge. Mr. X felt bad not liking the performance, and pointed-out that at least he “struck-out swinging.”

Thia–she sounds so much older than her fifteen years. But I just don’t know about her old-fashioned choices. And it’s weird that she thinks that the classic Smile is a Michael Jackson song! No matter how old or young you are, if you’re in the music biz, or aspire to be, you should know the history of at least the song’s you’re attempting to sing! Someone on the show should correct her, but I guess that no one there is bright enough to know it themselves. I’m sure that Associate Music Director Michael Orland does, though! But at least I’m happy to see that Thia seems so much less full-of-herself than when she was when she was on America’s Got Talent a season or two ago.

Stefano–that Stevie Wonder dance remix was an excellent choice for him. He’s cute and likeable, and I loved his clothing. I’m glad to see him in the Top 13.

Karen–I love her name! Duh. She looked the best she could possibly look! But she started her Jennifer’s-ass-kissing begging-for-Latino-votes Selena song too low, in my opinion, and got blown-away by it, so it was a rough outing for her. It seemed to just kill Jennifer to have to be honest and tell her it wasn’t good.

Scotty–he just seems like such a good kid. And, he’s very comfortable on stage and doesn’t try to do anything other than what he feels. He sounds so much older than sixteen. He just loves singing that country music. I think that he’s the purest country singer they’ve ever had on the show, even more so than Carrie Underwood and Kellie Pickler. (I guess he has to change his name to Scottie to match them now.) Jennifer made a great point about him opening up as a performer last night with the Garth Brooks song; I had already written a similar note.

Ryan still engages in unimportant banter with the judges, but at least it’s not the usual painful self-important verbiage he had with Simon.

Naima–I realized that she’s actually my favorite girl because all week I thought of her singing the Donny Hathaway song last week to make it into the Top 13, so I was glad she was here. She moved and performed so much better than we expected! Mr. X said that, by doing the Rihanna song, complete with dance moves, she actually came off as the most current contestant! She made herself look so much younger and hipper than she had appeared to be in the past–she seemed like an old mother before. I like the tone in her voice, but she didn’t hit such fabulous notes. I hope she gets to stick around this time, but they may have screwed her with giving her the inane number of “36,” rather than “13.” Ryan explained that they just didn’t want to saddle anyone with “unlucky 13,” but I called that number, just to see if would work, and it was actually a sex line!!! (BTW–she’s the last one I voted for, surprisingly.)

That’s it. I hope that either Ashthon or Karen go. (Sorry, my namesake.) But, as long as the eliminated contestant is anyone other than Casey, Paul, or Naima, I’ll be fine. So, I guess, contrary to this website’s title, it really is all about me!