Wednesday, May 11, 2011

American Idol Season 10 - Top 4 Perform

Hello American Idol enthusiasts and welcome back for yet another recap of this crazy show!  Well, I'm stumped.  We are down to 4 contestants and 3 of them are 3 that we figured would be sticking around to the end (ever since Pia got the boot).  But there is one that has been quite the stubborn contestant that just won't take a hint!  And for the Top 4 we have the bizarre combo of "Inspiring Songs" and "Lieber & Stoller Songbook".   It's like taking random themes from previous seasons and throwing them into one show.  Weird.  Oh yeah, and OF COURSE Lady Gaga had to grace us with her bizarre presence.  How can anyone take her critiques seriously when she looks the way she does?  I mean, there are no words to explain the horns coming out of her face and the makeup that she put around her face and straight into her hair.  I mean WHAAAAT!?!  (For the record, I am not pretending to be any expert on make-up artistry and know that it was probably some kind of dye in her hair, but let me make my jokes!!)   Talented lady (even if she ripped off Madonna for her first single off this new album), but I just don't see the appeal of her theatrics and outfits.  But whatever.  So, who goes home tonight?  I have my guess, and it is just that...a guess.   But we'll go through the recap as usual!  Let's do it!

  1.  James Durbin - 1.) "Don't Stop Believin" - Journey, 2.) "Love Potion Number 9" - L&S 
    If there is any 80s song that has stood the test of time and reinvented itself generation after generation, of course it is the Journey classic.  Nobody can get enough of the soothing sounds of Steve Perry.  My wife and I even requested the band to play it as the final song at our wedding (complete with Sopranos ending).  It's a fantastic cheesy song that everyone gets a kick out of and laugh at while singing their hearts out and raising their fists in the air and getting all squeaky with their voices.  I have no doubt in my mind that this is what James was thinking when he picked the song.  "ooooh yeahh...that will be really funny, yet realllly cool!  yeaaah."  For me?  For you? For me?  It didn't really work.  I don't care what the judges say or how the in studio crowd reacted.  They're reacting to the SONG, not James performing the song.  James strained on those high notes.  No one sounds good singing like Steve Perry except Steve Perry.  Sorry!  That's just how it goes.  Anyone else that sings it, it's meant to be semi-joking, unless you're the cast of Glee and completely change it into a duet.   And they did NOT try to sound like Steve in the process so it worked.  Plus Leah Michelle took all the high notes.  Works better for a girl wouldn't you say!?  Not much else to say about that.

    As for the Love Potion, well that was classic Durbin.  If you hate Durbin, you certainly hated this.  If you like him, you loved it just like every other performance he's done.  One thing cannot be argued, this guy knows how to put on a show.  Although, I can't help thinking he has an unfair advantage with utilizing effects and props and whatever.  Sure, maybe they're all his suggestions and any one of them could suggest the stuff but it just seems like he's getting special treatment.  Pyro-technics to sync with him jumping and landing on the ground.   And how about the song seeming a little longer so he could do a dramatic 30 second pause before his final notes.  Not to mention the crazy guitar solo that let him run into the crowd for his next shot.   It just seemed a little TOO polished for the Idol stage.   Am I crazy?  But, don't get me wrong, he will totally be here next week.  Unless the Chris Daughtry effect happens to him too.  (or as Ryan likes to call him..."Daughtry"  No Ryan, the whole band didn't get eliminated in season 5, just Chris!)  After a couple crazy eliminations this season already, I just can't see that happening.
  2. Haley Reinhart - 1.) "The Earth Song" - Michael Jackson, 2.) "I Who Have Nothing" - L&S

    Oh, how I wish that this is the end of the road for Haley!  She certainly has been on quite a ride for none of us expecting her to last long.  Top 4?  Impressive, Haley!  And that's where the impression should end, in my opinion.  Good singer?  No doubt.  But, the attitude is AWFUL!  And that above anything is what turns me off from her.  The first song was no doubt awful too.   Too much growling.  And her muppet alias morphed from Cookie Monster to Grover "Near!?!???   Faaaaaaaaarrrrrr!!!!!!"   Too much screaming.   And way way way way way too much talking back to the judges.  They were fairly judging her and she was all obnoxious and "well...I didn't know that I should do that.  That is NOT the end of my vocal range!!!"    And then when the 4 were rounded up between songs they pretty much said it's a 3 way tie minus Haley.   And Haley went all "oh well, thanks a lot!"    A B-word came to mind watching her attitude through the whole thing.   And I might have blurted it out at the screen.   Enough already.  I hope America has had enough.  Go let her spend time with her BF Casey who will give her a standing O for apparently anything she blurts out.

    Song #2?  Yes, it was much much better.  I'd say Jordin Sparks still reigns supreme with this one since it was her "MOMENT" song.  Haley vocally was awesome on the song, but I already had a bad taste from her attitude leading up to it that I didn't care.  And her facial expressions throughout the song did her no favors.  I think I'm just over her so I can't judge this fairly!  Moving on!
  3. Scotty McCreery - 1.) "Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning" - Alan Jackson, 2.) "Young Blood" - L&S

    There is no doubt that "Where Were You..." is one of the best songs that came out of the 9/11 tragedy.  The lyrics were simple and reflected what most of us were thinking as we lived through that awful event in our country's history.  And I couldn't help thinking that where Scotty was when the world stopped turning.  He was 5 years old.  Sure, 5 year olds can feel pain too.  No doubt.  But I just couldn't buy Scotty singing this song.  My wife loved it and I'm sure many out there did.  Maybe, I'm a shallow person yet again.  But, I felt like Scotty knew this song would give him an edge in the voting (like he needs it) and I really wasn't FEELING him sing it.  I felt him being all "Scotty" up there with his droopy eyes and "pretending" to emote feelings.   My favorite thing was how you could only hear one guitar playing a cool little rhythm as he sang.  And sure he had a guitar in his hand.  But, there was no way what he was strumming was turning into what we were hearing.  It was all for show folks!    None of this will matter in the end.  Everyone loves Scotty.  Everyone that knows the song loves the song.  And most of the people that know the song and love the song are Scotty's fans.  So this played to his strength big time.   It wasn't awful, don't get me wrong.  But, it was not his greatest performance either.  And based on the judges' critiques you would have thought he brought the house to tears.  He did justice to the song, but I don't want to over praise him for it.  Now, if Alan Jackson was up there performing the song, I'd be a bawling mess still thinking about it!

    Song #2 was just silly!  Silly Scotty.  I was laughing, rolling my eyes and laughing again.  But gosh darn it if I wasn't tapping my feet right along to the craziness.  His mannerisms and facial expressions were all over the place but it was classic Scotty.  Really, I don't think the kid can do anything wrong at this point.  He is a very polished and seasoned performer for his age.  He has a lot of growing to do, but I think he has this competition in the bag.  And, hey, he may deserve the win.  But that doesn't mean I can't critique him along the way.  We know the judges really won't.  And damn, have we heard Steven Tyler say ONE bad thing during this entire show!?   Ugh.
  4. Lauren Alaina - 1.) "Anyway" - Martina McBride, 2.) "Trouble" - L&S

    Guys, I just can't help it.  There is something about this Lauren girl that makes me want to root for her.  Which is so crazy because I was so against rooting for her in the beginning.  (I know, I say it every week)   Once I heard that she picked "Anyway" as her inspirational song choice, I knew she'd really have to bring it to hit some of those big notes.  And big notes were what she'd have to do after her flub last week.  Kids, she went to TOWN on that song!  And, you see, here's a song that she could identify with!  I felt it, and the big notes?  They were all there.  Wonderful performance by Lauren and I think it was just enough to keep her in this competition.  Well, that and a huge round of sympathy votes from last week.  That's my thought at least.  She'll really have to wow the crowd next week to get to the finals but for now?  I think she can be content with making the Top 3 which is a feat in itself.  We'll see though.

    Song #2 - Well this was a little saucy wasn't it!?  She came own owning that stage.  She got over her fear of being perceived as evil.  (Okay, I found that tough to swallow.  How could anyone not want to say the world EVIL in a song???  It's all in good fun!)  And she just went out there had had fun with the song.  I will say that the beginning was much better than the end.  I think she lost herself somewhere in the middle when she started running to behind the judges table and back to the stage.  But, she still put on a good show and it was just good to see her enjoying herself out there and singing well (for the most part).   I think personality goes a long way in this competition. There is no doubt that Lauren, Scotty and James have a personality that America enjoys.   I can personally attest that I do NOT enjoy Haley's personality as much as theirs.  And her attitude tonight was flat out AWFUL.  The camera is always on Haley.  And more importantly, the MIC is always on! 
I don't think it's any secret where I'm going with my pick tonight, is it?  Hey, I knew who I wanted in the top 3, and I think it's going to happen.  I went out of my way to vote a zillion times for Lauren to keep her in it so I did my part.  (I can text with the best of 'em, teenagers!!)   Because, I think either way, a girl is going home tonight.  So let's make sure the right one goes home.  An American Idol should be someone a kid can look up to and be inspired.  (duh..."IDOL")   I don't see that in Haley.  Yeah, I'm usually all about "the best voice".   But a good voice looks much better on a good personality, doesn't it?  (I think I may have stolen that off of Steven Tyler's notepad)   Here are my picks: 

Safe: James, Scotty 

Bottom 2 - Lauren, Haley (I don't know if they'll really tell us who the bottom is this week, so close to the end) 

Elimination Pick: Haley Reinhart - Casey's beard misses you!  Do us all a favor and go see it!  

That's all I have folks.  I think I may have overanalyzed some of that stuff just a tad, but I enjoyed myself!  I'm sure you all have different opinions which is great!  Unfortunately, I'm not going to be around much to defend myself or discuss with you guys.  I'll be traveling starting tomorrow and not sure if I will have much access to comment.   So you may be without my results show commentary as well.   If I get a chance I'll throw in some small tidbits from my phone.   But, I promise I'll read everything and look forward to your comments and opinions as always!   

Hope you enjoyed MY ramblings as always too and I'll see you when I see you! 

4 comments:

Ian said...

Another pretty good show overall.

I think I liked Scotty's first performance better than you did. I thought his vocals were perfect for it, and I didn't sense any artificiality. Maybe I wasn't paying as close attention though. His second performance? Yeah, it was pretty goofy, but hey, it was fun. Nothing wrong with that. As always, go Scotty!

Lauren's performances were both good, despite a couple of bad notes here and there. I didn't give her any votes, but I hope she makes it to next week.

I'll confess that I got up to make myself some food during Haley's first performance, so I only heard it in the background for the most part. It sounded OK to me, but when they played it again during the recaps for the numbers, it sounded like the same old mediocre Haley. At least she brought some passion to it and hey, she inspired a reference to Grover. That's always worth a few points. The second performance was better, but I agree, Jordin Sparks pretty much owns that song on Idol.

I agree with your comments on "Don't Stop Believin'." It's a good, popular song, but James hardly brought anything new to it. I did like what he did with "Love Potion No. 9" though. Turning a gimmicky pop song into a heavy rocker? Hey, credit where due.

Is it just me, or does James get the pimp spot every other week? Scotty still has yet to get it, so I wonder if he's so far ahead in the voting that they're trying to handicap him.

The worst part of the show was Lady Gaga. I wish they hadn't brought her creepy mug onto our screens. On the bright side though, Scotty gave me yet another reason to like him by showing that he wasn't overly impressed with her. I find it annoying how much people suck up to her and talk about how "talented" she is when her music is pretty much crap. I don't care how much musical ability you possess if you're not capable of producing something pleasing to my ears. Scotty handled himself with class, but you could tell he wasn't a fan of her whole schtick. It was a nice dose of realism on a show that gets caught up in the hype all too often.

I agree that Haley seems the obvious choice to leave us tomorrow night, but I almost wonder if we're in for a shocker. Hey, if Haley's fans are worried for her, it could happen. I highly doubt Scotty's going to get the boot, and Lauren may get a boost from last week's Bottom 2 appearance, so that means it'd likely be James. I can just imagine the outrage if he left us at this point. Of course, I'm probably overanalyzing and it will be Haley.

Nicole said...

I'm mostly in complete agreement with you this week, except for the Journey song. I really liked it. I really liked both of Durbin's songs. I said the same thing about the stage effects that you did here re Adam Lambert, but as a praise rather than criticism. I think they all DO have access to the same effects and crew, but Durbin, like Adam, takes advantage of them better.

I was ALL ready to comment on Haley's 'tude but you said it all. She chipped away at me for weeks until I actually became an all-out Haley FAN. Now, she lost it all in one week. My biggest pet peeve on this show is when these newbie kids who are NOTHING without Idol talk back to seasoned industry people. The only words that should come out of their mouths are "thank you for your comments." Scotty actually has that down. Haley would not have survived a season with Simon!

Scotty! You got that just right too. I can't believe that a teenager is already such a marketing pro. He's going to go far in the biz. While thankfully the music industry is shifting back to being talent based (as opposed to the late 90s phase of being all marketing ala Spice Girls and Britney Spears and boy bands), marketing is still at least 50%. And that boy sure knows how to play to his base!

I missed Lauren's first performance due to a satellite-killing downpour... My post to FB was that I'd have to get my weekly dose of mediocrity elsewhere. But I heard from more people than you and Ian that she was good. Her second performance supplies the mediocrity I was looking for. And, I'll take a low blow at her... she looked awful in both her outfits last night. Dress for your body, girl!

I sure do hope Haley goes home. I think, though, that Scotty is the only sure thing.

Joe Clarkson said...

So my thoughts about last night..

James- I know that people like him, and that he has a ton of fan support, but I would not be upset if James went home tonight. I think that James receives too much praise from the judges. He's clearly a great performer, but I'm not a fan of his voice at all. There have been great rock singers on American Idol (Adam Lambert, David Cook, Bo Bice), and I would take any of them over James. Vocally, I feel like he's not as good as the other three. Clearly, he's a more experienced and polished performer. Nonetheless, he can leave tonight, and I won't be phased.

Haley- I disagree with Jennifer about the song choice being a factor. I completely agree with Randy when he said that she screamed toward the end. To me, it was the weakest performance of the night. I'm so happy everyone has addressed the attitude. Such a turnoff. It's human nature to get defensive, but not like that on national television. Not a smart move on Haley's part.

However, she rebounded in a big way. "I (who have nothing)" gave me goosebumps. I completely agree with Jennifer when she said that it was one of the best performances of the season. I know that people will disagree with me, but I prefer Haley's rendition over Jordin's. Again with the attitude thing though. When the judges were giving her feedback, she had a crappy attitude.

So Haley was the best of the night and the worst of the night. Unfortunately, the attitude might have put the nail in the coffin.

Scotty- I loved the first song, and the second song was alright. I think Scotty is pretty close to wrapping it up. I didn't think last night was his best night, but he's safe.

Lauren- I know I'm extremely bias, but I was so proud of her last night. I thought "Anyway" was one of her best performances. I thought she wiped up the floor with the other three in the first round. "Trouble" wasn't her best vocal performance, but I loved the attitude and the show she put on. She listens, something that Haley struggles with. I'm also going to disagree with Nicole, because I thought Lauren looked beautiful last night.

I really have no idea who's going home tonight. I'm a little nervous for Lauren. I was blowing up her line last night. Haley was not rocking the American Idol attitude last night, but her second performance was AMAZING! We'll see. I'm prepared for anything. I really hope Lauren makes it through this week.

Nicole said...

It was so sad seeing your post with all the comments deleted that I thought I'd repost mine:

I'm mostly in complete agreement with you this week, except for the Journey song. I really liked it. I really liked both of Durbin's songs. I said the same thing about the stage effects that you did here re Adam Lambert, but as a praise rather than criticism. I think they all DO have access to the same effects and crew, but Durbin, like Adam, takes advantage of them better.

I was ALL ready to comment on Haley's 'tude but you said it all. She chipped away at me for weeks until I actually became an all-out Haley FAN. Now, she lost it all in one week. My biggest pet peeve on this show is when these newbie kids who are NOTHING without Idol talk back to seasoned industry people. The only words that should come out of their mouths are "thank you for your comments." Scotty actually has that down. Haley would not have survived a season with Simon!

Scotty! You got that just right too. I can't believe that a teenager is already such a marketing pro. He's going to go far in the biz. While thankfully the music industry is shifting back to being talent based (as opposed to the late 90s phase of being all marketing ala Spice Girls and Britney Spears and boy bands), marketing is still at least 50%. And that boy sure knows how to play to his base!

I missed Lauren's first performance due to a satellite-killing downpour... My post to FB was that I'd have to get my weekly dose of mediocrity elsewhere. But I heard from more people than you and Ian that she was good. Her second performance supplied the mediocrity I was looking for. And, I'll take a low blow at her... she looked awful in both her outfits last night. Dress for your body, girl!

I sure do hope Haley goes home. I think, though, that Scotty is the only sure thing.

Btw - I loved Gaga on both Wednesday and Thursday nights. I actually don't even grasp how anyone could not be a fan of hers. Remember, this is coming from someone that RARELY listens to current music and sticks more with people like Dylan, Paul Simon, and Willie Nelson!