American Idol: Top 8 Guys Perform

Well well well....a lot has happened in the media since our last Idol recap! And before I can possibly begin to blog tonight I must get everyone up to date on one of our probable Top 12 contestants, David Hernandez! Just click on this magical link and you will learn some things that will make you look at him in a whole new way! All I can say is, THANK YOU DAVID for giving me material to last an entire season!!!! Anyway...this is a blog discussing the TALENT on the show...so I'll try to keep my joking comments to a minimum. I'm sure David's "vocal" talent will, in the end, outweigh his "dancing" talent as was the case tonight. But it is hard to look at him the same way isn't it?

Anyway, if you couldn't translate Paula Abdul tonight, it was overall a great night for the guys yet again. They are clearly the front runners in this competition. So 4 of the 5 we deemed as Top 12 material last week still have nothing to worry bout. Another guy with Dreads redeemed himself to definitely get the 5th spot. So what about the 6th spot? Well there are 3 potentials. In my opinion, 1 that deserves it, 1 that has no shot at it and 1 that probably is going to get it instead! I am not happy about this folks! While VOTEFORTHEWORST.com is great for uncovering information about contestants like in Mr. Hernandez's case, it also possibly has an effect on worse talent staying in this competition longer than it should! But, it's what keeps everyone on their toes. Okay...I'm rambling!

It's 80's night folks! Here is my breakdown of the top 8 guys along with their most embarrassing moments:

1. Luke Menard - "My older sister dressed me up like a ballerina" - Well I guess it's better than undressing in front of a bunch of other men right? Whoops??? Sorry David H! The only thing better than LUKE singing WHAM's "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go" may have been David Hernandez dancing and singing this after the big reveal of his PAST. But Luke got to sing those George Michael high notes. And well, there is a reason they put him first! He should've been gone ages ago and when you put a mediocre singer 1st, you may as well be kicking him out the door yourself! He is FINISHED!
2. David Archuletta - "I'm thirsty and I have to pee! Oh yeah and my Mom finished singing a song for me when I lost my voice!" - David had a lot to live up to after his declaration of being the most probably winner of Season 7 last week. He came out with Phil Collin's "Another Day in Paradise" because he liked the message. I mean...you'd think this guy was running for President with all of his picking verses that send a good message or songs that inspire the world. Or singing John Mayer's Cookie Cutter Chord Combo Political Statement song to "CHANGE THE WORLD" (yep..just can't let it rest!) Anyway besides all of that cheesy stuff, his piano playing transition to pianoless singing was a nice touch. Obviously, the kid has tremendous talent. But this week he at least showed some weaknesses in song selection. 2 dreary songs in 2 weeks. It will be interesting to see him try an upbeat song next week and if the judges and America will be singing the same praises for Archuletta. I know I know..I said I'd be easy on him. But there are a lot of good Guy singers this year, so I really can't declare him the winner just yet! He's safe this week though!
3. Danny Noriega - "Tripped in the movie theater in front of his 'Crush'" - Please note that he used the word "Crush" instead of the "GIRL he liked." I think we'd be fooling ourselves to think that would've been the case! Anyway, Danny tried to take on some Soft Cell's "Tainted Love" It really didn't work. He is tiring on me. He was tiring on me at his audition! But...votefortheworst have begun their campaign! Can they pull another Sanjaya on us? I really really hope not. This guy should go NO further!
4. David Hernandez - "I had a booger in my nose once" - Sure David, I'm sure that's your most embarrassing moment. Not the whole world learning what your job has been for the past 3 years (including when you auditioned for American Idol!). This publicity is either going to work FOR or AGAINST David. This week, I don't think it's really going to matter. He still sang the hell out of "All Coming Back to Me Now." Now let's clarify something. The song was written by Jim Steinman and performed by Celine Dion in the 90's (and in the past couple years by Meat Loaf). But was it recorded in the 80's too? Maybe Jim wrote it then. Who knows??? Who cares?? The point is David sang it very well, minus a couple off notes here and there. It was good that he sang a ballad tonight because if he did something like "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" I would be thinking more on the lines of "yeah...he really wants to call Papa, 'Daddy' doesn't he???" Poor poor David....but here's my thoughts on the situation he now finds himself in. When he signed up for Idol, he had to know that his past would come to haunt him. He is probably one of those guys that is PROUD of what he had to do to make a living and say stuff like "it's really good money!" The big question is if he disclosed this information to American Idol beforehand. I mean, we all know what happened to Frenchie Davis in season 2 when she didn't disclose info! She got the boot! Something tells me, Idol is going to milk this publicity for all it is worth! There are controversies every year, and they don't get more hysterical than this one!
5. Michael Johns - "I used to be a Kangaroo Mascot and got beat up!" - Well Michael still carried on his "polished performer" stage presence. Paula actually nailed this critique with her comments on his unique "hop" and stance on stage. It works for him! and he really does seem like a Michael Hutchence carbon copy. I mean....he really should've auditioned for Rock Star INXS a few years back! He performed "Don't You Forget About Me" and pretty much rocked it out. Mixed in some unexpected high notes and mostly to success. He's definitely going to be around for awhile. Something tells me when the Top 12 begins next week, we'll be seeing multiple females going home before the guys start getting picked off. Of course, that depends on if Danny makes it through!
6. David Cook - "I once was performing a song and forgot 2nd verse and stood like a statue during it!" - Well, I may not have indicated it in the blog last week, but I was starting to lose my interest in Mr. Cook. He pulled me back in this week with his risky take on Lionel Richie's "Hello" I mean, who saw THAT coming?? He turned it into a rock ballad and it worked! That one may actually get a few downloads on Itunes! He's definitely going to rock into the top 12!
7. Jason Castro - "I pulled a dread out on a date!" - Well once I heard the opening guitar riff, I knew what song was coming our way. Jeff Buckley's rendition of "Hallelujah." A song I've heard many times on THE O.C. (yeah I watched it!!) or in SHREK or in probably various other shows. But always forget to download the song. I did this time. I love that tune and Castro had the perfect voice for it. He lost the guitar and just sang an emotional rendition of the tune. Very smart choice! He definitely redeemed his misstep last week and has solidified his top 12 status, and possibly more!
8. Chickezie - "I used to go to the Women's Restroom in High School looking for urinals" - Well, I knew he was trying to sing Luther's rendition of "All the Man/Woman I need" Sure, I guess Whitney's version is the most known. But I didn't think he did TOO bad. Unfortunately, if you don't blow people away with a group of guys this good, and you have a quirky guy like Danny Noriega in the competition, there's a good chance you might get edged out. I hope not Chickezie, but I'm prepared for the worst! And the WORST is Danny Noriega!

I think I pretty much already did my analysis above so nothing left to do but spit out my guesses!

Definite Top 12ers: David Archuletta, David Hernandez, Michael Johns, David Cook, Jason Castro

Definitely Eliminated: Luke Menard

Who Should be eliminated: Danny Noriega

Who shouldn't be, but probably will be: Chickezie

Elimination Picks: Luke Menard, Chickezie Wildcard: Danny Noriega

Really pains me to do it, but I took a risk last week and it paid off. And I am in a quest for my 4 for 4! Simon likes risk takers, so that's what I'm doing! That's it for tonight folks. I'll see you tomorrow night for the top 8 female performances. In the meantime, I will heed Paula's advice and "LEAVE THE PLANET" for awhile. Perhaps I will then learn how she is able to communicate with America as well as she does!