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13 Comments | American Idol, Pop Culture, Reality, Television | Tagged: Adam Lambert, Allison Iraheta, American Idol, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, entertainment, Fox, Kara DioGuardi, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraurd, Megan Joy Corkrey, Music, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, reality show, Ryan Seacrest, Scott MacIntyre, Season 8, Simon Cowell, Television, Top 9, tv | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Idol Finds a Couple of Piano Men Among the Top 9

April 1, 2009

As American Idol’s Top 9 flaunt their version of popular iTune downloads, it was a couple of men behind the pianos that really stole the show tonight, proving that you could make an old song new again.

As much as I complain about theme nights, the free-for-all song choice nights are worse. This week the contestants got to pick song of their choice as long as it was a popular download on iTunes (way to work in that sponsorship). Unfortunately, this late in the game, there are still contestants that don’t know the difference between picking songs they love and songs that are right for their voice.

Luckily, a few have mastered that skill and they showcased it tonight behind the ivory keys.

When you put Scott MacIntyre behind a piano, you know you are going to see mad piano skills. But tonight I think we finally got the vocals to match those skills. For weeks, Scott has suffered from the wrong song choice. This week he got it right and his rendition of Billy Joel’s “Just the Way Your Are” had me loving Scott just the way he is.

Likewise, Kris Allen left the guitar behind this week, but not his vocal groove. Instead he brought out the keyboard and belted out a soulful version of “Ain’t No Sunshine.” I was so taken with his rendition that I forget the song was more than 30 years old. In a sea of talented guys, Kris is giving it his all to stand apart. And I’d have to say he’s succeeding. If he keeps turning in performances like this one, he’s got a chance at winning.

But not all the stars played an instrument tonight.

Some might call him outlandish; others might say that he’s just weird. But the truth is that Adam Lambert is mesmerizing. I never know what to expect from him, except that he’s going to be unique and different. In a night full of bad songs choices and copycat renditions, I really enjoyed Adam’s version of Wild Cherry’s “Play that Funky Music.” It was fun. It was hip and it was marketable. And he gets kudos for giving credit to the band.

Adam has a real talent for picking the right song and so does Allison Iraheta. After I finally stopped laughing over the tidbit that 16-year-old Allison “grew up” with her song choice, “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt, I really enjoyed the performance. It was very cool to see her with a guitar tonight. I honestly think she was born a couple decades too late, because she reminds me of an 80s rocker. She even looked the part tonight. I would really like to hear her sing Pat Benatar or Joan Jett.

On the other hand, for the last few weeks, Lil Rounds has been suffering an identity crisis with her song choices due, at least in part, to conflicting advice from the judges. Tonight, we saw the return of the diva Lil when she belted out “I Surrender” by Celine Dion. Although the performance might not have had a lot of originality, it proved that Lil is a vocal powerhouse and that she’s still in the game.

But powerhouse is not how I’d describe Danny Gokey. What hurts the most about Danny’s performance of Rascal Flatt’s “What Hurts the Most” is that it solidifies my opinion that he’s plateaued in the competition. I think we see the best that Danny has to offer already. Don’t get me wrong, he didn’t do a bad job on the song. But we didn’t see anything new from him. He didn’t bring anything original to the stage tonight. However, the judges loved him. But I have to wonder if that’s because his performance was so good or because those that preceded Danny were so bad.

But not everyone is improving.

Last week Matt Giraud found himself in the Bottom Three, but I believe it had more to do with singing first than with his performance, which I loved. But this week, the doubt got to Matt and he went against the judges’ advice to stick with R&B, choosing “You Found Me” by The Fray. And I think it was one of the worst things he could have done. And his performance left me hoping Matt finds that blues again before next week.

And although I was so glad to see Anoop Desai finally decided to do a little something with his wardrobe this week, I’m not sure it helped his performance. His look was more memorable than his performance. He’s already been in the Bottom Three once and the combination of his lackluster rendition of Usher’s “Caught Up” and the dreaded first spot to perform will probably land him there again this week.

Finally, poor Megan Joy. She can’t pick the right song to save her soul. The girl has a really unique voice, but without the right song it’s just wasted. And “Turn Your Lights Down Low” by Bob Marley and Lauren Hill was definitely not the right song. If this girl has any hope of really being a contender, she better get some help with song choice.

My best three performances for the night were Scott, Kris and Adam. My bottom three were Matt, Anoop and Megan. And I really have to say that it’s time for Megan to go home, but I wouldn’t be surprised in Anoop went instead.

And lastly, I have to make a couple of comments about the female judges. More than once tonight, Paula had insightful, well constructed comments. In fact, they were so well formed that I have to wonder if someone is whispering them in her ear because they are so different that what we are used to from her.

And Kara needs her own personal fact checker. She has great advice, but she keeps stumbling with her references. Tonight she told Adam that his performance was reminiscent of Studio 57. Now, I was a little young for the party scene in the 70s, but even I know it was Studio 54. A couple weeks ago, she called The Grand Ole Opry, Opryland. And last week her “six words” for Adam turned out to be eight.

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14 Comments | American Idol, Pop Culture, Reality, Television | Tagged: Adam Lambert, Allison Iraheta, American Idol, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, entertainment, Fox, Kara DioGuardi, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraurd, Megan Joy Corkrey, Music, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, reality show, Ryan Seacrest, Scott MacIntyre, Season 8, Simon Cowell, Television, Top 9, tv | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Motown Greats Rock American Idol Top 10 Results Show

March 27, 2009

Tonight, the American Idol stage was seething with talent and I’m not talking about the Top 10 who awaited their fate. I’m talking about performances by the greats – Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder. It was a reminder that the Top 10 still have a long way to go.

Season 2 winner Ruben Studdard returns to American Idol to perform "Together." Photo courtesy of American Idol.

Personally, I would have liked to have heard more from both Smokey and Stevie instead of Ryan’s false drama. But in the end, we had to get to the business of the night in which more than 36 million votes determined. Ryan told us that is the most votes any Top 10 in the history of Idol has ever gotten.

The first to get sent to the Bottom Three surprised me more than anything else. Matt Giraud did an awesome job Wednesday night with “Let’s Get it On” so I was really shocked to find he wasn’t safe.

But after we learned that Michael Sarver and Scott MacIntyre joined him in the Bottom Three, I was floored again to learn that the one Ryan sent to safety wasn’t Matt. Instead Scott returned to the sofas with the other seven leaving Matt and Michael to sweat it out.

As much as I like Michael, I was not ready to see Matt hit the road. So I actually had my fingers crossed in hopes that if it came down to it, the judges would play their save card. In the end, intervention by the judges was not needed and Michael was sent home.

I get that American Idol is trying to pay tribute to Motown, but the constant flashes of Hitsville throughout the opening group number was distracting. Or maybe producers were just trying to distract viewers from the recently released fact that the Top 10 are lip synching to a pre-recorded version of Motown medley.

I know that several people have mentioned in the comment section of this column over the last few weeks that they thought the group numbers were lip synched. (Congrats to you for catching it.) I honestly hadn’t paid that close of attention before. But tonight, probably because I’d read the story about it earlier, I couldn’t see anything but the lip-synching.

But after the group number, I eagerly welcomed the Ford music video to “Pocketful of Sunshine.” Unfortunately, the video of the contestants putting together a life size puzzle that they would drive later drive their hybrids through didn’t wow me either.

Next up Season 2 winner Ruben Studdard returned to the Idol stage to sing “Together.” He didn’t sound bad, but his music isn’t really my thing.

Now the duet of “You’re the One for Me” between Smokey Robinson and Joss Stone was more my speed. What a pretty song! And those of you that like Joss, you can see her in her television acting debut next month in Showtime’s “The Tudors” where she will be King Henry’s fourth wife, Anne of Cleaves.

And although I’d have preferred to hear a single song by Stevie Wonder, I have to say he rocked his Motown medley. He is an amazingly talented man and the music of Motown is wonderful. However, I could have done without his plug for Obama.

Overall, one of the better results shows, in my opinion.

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17 Comments | American Idol, Pop Culture, Reality, Television | Tagged: Adam Lambert, Allison Iraheta, American Idol, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, entertainment, Fox, Kara DioGuardi, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraurd, Megan Joy Corkrey, Michael Sarver, Music, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, reality show, Ryan Seacrest, Scott MacIntyre, Season 8, Simon Cowell, Television, Top 10, tv | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Idol Guys Put a New Twist on Motown

March 26, 2009

American Idol this week might have been a tribute to the 50^th anniversary of Motown, but for the contestants it was a chance to show what they could do with great music. And the guys really stepped up to the challenge this week with the some great, original performances.

This week the Top 10 perform Motown hits.

I don’t know if they got inspiration from their visit to Hitsville, the home of Motown, or from their mentor, the great Smokey Robinson, but creativity was in the air among the contestants this week.

I have to wonder how many women wanted to get it on with Matt Giraud after listening to his rendition of Marvin Gaye’s classic “Let’s Get it On.” Personally, I think he did a great job with the song and was glad to see him change it up by only playing the piano during the beginning of the song. Now that’s how you lead off the show!

Marvin Gaye was really working for the guys tonight. Kris Allen had a sweet performance of Gaye’s hit “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You).” He put his own spin on it by slowing it down in the beginning and the end, but picking up the tempo throughout the rest of the song. And I liked that Kris had his guitar out again. There’s just something about Kris with the guitar that says fun.

But the most original performance had to go to Adam Lambert this week. The thing about Adam is that you never know what to expect from him. Love him or hate him, you have to admit that he’s always got something original in store. Tonight, he not only brought a new sound, but a completely new look with a suit and slicked back hair. We saw the softer side of Adam with his unplugged performance of Smokey Robinson & the Miracles’ “The Tracks of My Tears.” I think this was by far one of his best performances. And I loved learning from Smokey why he wrote the song.

But the night didn’t go entirely to the guys. Allison Iraheta proved tonight that she is the girl to watch in this competition. She performed a rousing rendition of “Papa was a Rollin’ Stone” by The Temptations that marks her as a real contender. The song was perfect for Allison’s voice and she maximized on it. This performance was definitely her best.

Scott MacIntyre also did a fabulous job of updating a Motown song. Even though the vocals might not have been the greatest, I really liked the way he slowed down the beginning of Diana Ross’ “You Can’t Hurry Love” before jazzing up the middle. I’m glad that Scott didn’t take Paula’s advice and stuck with piano. He’s a real artist with the piano and as he said it’s a part of who he was. And I loved the way the background singers surrounded the piano while he played.

On the other hand, Anoop Desai came out with a nice soulful version of “Ooh Baby Baby” by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles. But I’m having a hard time taking him seriously when he dresses like a college student. Someone please give this boy some wardrobe help. I think a nice slick suit – or at the very least a blazer – would have helped him continue the emotion he was trying to project with the song.

But Motown didn’t work for everyone. I like Danny Gokey best when he’s not doing sappy songs. But his version of “Get Ready” by The Temptations was a little rushed and awkward at points. The other guys have really stepped up their game and Danny’s going to have to work a lot harder if he wants to remain a contender.

My biggest disappointment of the night was Lil Rounds. Motown week should have been her time to shine and I’ve been waiting all week to see what she’d come out with. Unfortunately, her version of “(Love is Like a) Heat Wave” by Martha Reeves & the Vandellas didn’t offer anything new. Don’t get me wrong, Lil sounded great. But here was her chance to really show what she could do and all she did was sound like the original.

Every time I see Michael Sarver perform, I want to smile. He’s just got such a great personality; you can’t help but love him. But tonight I had to smile because he just looked like he was having so much fun singing “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” by the Temptations. Sure Michael doesn’t have the strongest vocal, he never has, but I enjoy listening to him and watching him perform. I’m hoping he’ll get some sympathy votes since he had the flu this week.

Megan Joy Cockrey’s has a particular distinctness to her voice that I’ve been struggling for weeks now to describe and tonight Smokey Robinson finally put into words (or a word) what I’ve been wanting to say – cabaret. See I can totally see Megan Joy performing in a cabaret show. What I can’t see is her singing a Stevie Wonder song. However, I don’t think her performance of “For Once in My Life” was nearly as bad as the judges made out.

The boys definitely took the night with Matt, Kris and Adam leading the pack, and Allison had the best performance of the girls. My bottom three would have to be Lil, Michael and Megan. I’m hoping that Michael is going to make a career out of constantly surviving the bottom three. So my pick for going home is Megan Joy. She just can’t seem to pick the right songs to showcase the uniqueness of her voice.

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March 19, 2009

To round out the full hour American Idol needs to give us the one name of the person being eliminated this week, we were treated to performances by three Grand Ole Opry members – Brad Paisley and a duet by Idol’s own Carrie Underwood and guest mentor Randy Travis. But the performances would be overshadowed by the shocking news of who was to go home.

Carrie Underwood performed a duet with guest mentor Randy Travis tonight

It wasn’t long before we learned that Allison Iraheta, Michael Sarver and Alexis Grace were in the bottom three. In short order, Ryan let Allison know that she was safe, leaving Michael and Alexis to sweat it out until the end.

And it probably didn’t help their nerves to know that the judges said they were willing to consider using the Judges Save for one of them – that someone turned out to be Alexis.

When Michael was declared safe, the judges told Alexis that her encore performance would determine the judges’ vote for her safety. Unfortunately, as Simon said, her performance was good, but not good enough.

Does this exit disprove the alleged rumors that Idol producers have already determined the Top 4? Alexis’ name was leaked to be among the final four.

I don’t know about the producers, but these results definitely through a wrench in who I thought would be in the final four.

The rest of the show was your typical filler.

After learning that 31 million votes were cast, being reminded of the new Judges Save rule and seeing a review of Tuesday night’s performance, we finally got to hear from our Top 11.

Unfortunately, after the group performance of Travis Tritt’s “T-R-O-U-B-L-E,” I kind of wished they had kept quiet. Normally, I’m one of the minority that actually like the group numbers – that is until tonight. It sounded horrible like 11 different people were singing separately instead of together in harmony.

And my mood didn’t improve when I saw this week’s Ford video. “Here It Goes Again” featured a water balloon fight between the Top 11. Normally, these videos are one of my favorite fluff pieces, but I’m just not feeling it this season.

Luckily the guest performers were at least entertaining. Brad Paisley debuted his new single “Then.” And then recently inducted Grand Ole Opry member Carrie Underwood teamed up with the man who issued her invitation to The Opry, Randy Travis, for their first live duet of “I Told You So.”

Finally, the identity of the Top 10 – Kris Allen, Anoop Desai, Matt Giraurd, Danny Gokey, Allison Iraheta, Megan Joy Corkrey, Adam Lambert, Scott MacIntyre, Lil Rounds, and Michael Sarver – have been identified for those of you waiting to purchase your Idol on Tour tickets.

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17 Comments | American Idol, Pop Culture, Reality, Television | Tagged: Adam Lambert, Alexis Grace, Allison Iraheta, American Idol, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, entertainment, Fox, Kara DioGuardi, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraurd, Megan Joy Corkrey, Michael Sarver, Music, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, reality show, Ryan Seacrest, Scott MacIntyre, Season 8, Simon Cowell, Television, Top 11, tv | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Randy Travis helps Idol’s Top 11 Find Their County Side

March 18, 2009

It’s Grand Ole Opry Night on American Idol and that means Simon is going to be extra hard to please. We all know how little the Brit likes country music so it’s a real test to see which of the Top 11 can impress him tonight.

This week the Top 11 honor The Grand Ole Opry. Recently guest mentor Randy Travis invited former Idol winner Carrie Underwood to become a member of The Opry. Tomorrow the two will perform a duet.

Who knew that it was going to be Anoop Desai who would shine the most? Last week, he stood next to Jorge Nunez and wondered if he would be back again. This week, he blew us away with a beautiful, heartfelt performance of a classic – Willie Nelson’s “Always on My Mind.” My only complaint is that you don’t sing a song like that in a hoody. Anoop stepped up his vocal game this week; now he needs to dress the part.

Also doing a full 180 was Megan Joy Corkrey. Megan Joy was also fighting for survival last week and despite having the flu tonight, she turned in a pretty nice performance of Patsy Cline’s “Walking After Midnight.” I’m still not a full out Megan Joy fan, but I’m starting to see what others like about her. Now if she’d just get rid of that funky twist/dance thing. And unlike Simon, I liked tonight’s look much better than her quirky look.

Now normally when we get to country music we have several fall flat on their face, but honestly, I can’t say that there were any real bad performances – one a bit on the weird side, but no train wrecks. In fact, I’m having trouble picking my favorite and judging from the clips of the contestants with guest mentor Randy Travis, he did too.

Among those impressing me tonight was Kris Allen. Kris sang “To Make You Feel My Love” which is not one of my favorite Garth Brook songs. But Kris made it sound beautiful. Randy Travis called him a great ballad singer and I have to say I agree. I kind of wish he would have sang it with the guitar, but without it he took a chance, showed his vulnerable side and it worked.

Just a note to Kara, who said that she didn’t even know that Kris’ performance was Opryland material. Opryland was a country-themed amusement park, no longer in existence. The Opry is the longest running radio show that Idol was honoring tonight

Matt Giraud also blew me away. Both he and Danny Gokey chose Carrie Underwood songs. First, let me tell you I find it a little weird when male singers pick songs by female artists, especially when they do it consistently like Danny. I’m all in favor of guys getting in touch with their feminine side, but when they keep picking these songs, I have to wonder what they are trying to accomplish.

Tonight Matt showed us what he was trying to accomplish. I was totally wowed! I liked his version “So Small” better than the original. And let me tell you that this guy can really play the piano too.

Unfortunately, Danny’s performance just didn’t compare. He didn’t really change much for his rendition of “Jesus Take the Wheel.” He struggled with the verses, but came out soulful and big on the chorus. However, it sounded like every other song Danny does.

On the other hand, Alexis Grace changed up her performance tonight. The judges thought her performance of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” lacked the “dirty” she’s had the last couple of weeks. Personally, I liked seeing Alexis’ softer side. Sure, she didn’t try anything different with the song, but it still came across simple and pretty.

However, pretty wouldn’t be how I’d describe Adam Lambert’s performance. I grew up in a family that regarded Johnny Cash as a legend and you don’t mess with a legend. So you can see where I would approach Adam’s Middle Eastern arrangement of “Ring of Fire” with trepidation. Now, I can’t say that I think Cash would have loved it, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought it’d be – just weird.

I think Adam would have had more success if he’d tried a rock version of the song. But even funnier that Kara trying to evaluate Adam’s performance was Randy Travis’ reaction to Adam in general. Talk about clash of cultures.

But fun was the name of the game for Michael Sarver. He might not have the strongest vocals, but Michael is definitely a down-to-earth likeable guy. During the critique about his performance of “Ain’t Going Down (Til the Sun Comes Up)” by Garth Brooks, he said “country music is about having some fun.”

And Michael sure looked like he was having fun when he was singing that mouthful of words that make up that song. While I like that performance, I agree that it had a couple rough spots were it sounded like he mumbled the words a little. But when Simon rated Michael’s performance as a 1.2 (on a scale of 10), the personable Michael replied with a smile, at least it wasn’t a zero.

Another performance that I think got overshadow tonight was Scott MacIntyre. His version of Martina McBride’s “Wild Angels” started out very pretty and I liked it even more after he picked up the tempo. But unfortunately, while the arrangement is beautiful, the vocals just didn’t wow me.

We learned tonight that Scott spends an incredible amount of time on the arrangements each week – and it shows – and he hasn’t always gotten his first choice in songs, but he still needs to kick up the vocals a notch if he wants to stay in the game. And I totally disagree with Paula, I don’t think the piano inhibits his performances at all – it enhances them.

Poor Lil Rounds just suffered from the wrong genre this week. Lil was clearly unfamiliar with country music, but I think she made a fair stand with her version of Martina McBride’s “Independence Day.” It wasn’t her best performance, but it was still solid. Unfortunately, compared to the others she just paled. But no matter how she performed, Simon really needs to learn her name by now. He insisted on calling her Little throughout her critique.

While Lil struggled with the genre, Allison Iraheta missed an opportunity. She chose “Blame It On Your Heart” by Patty Loveless and she put in a decent performance. But given the bluesy/rock sound of her voice, Allison could have change that performance more to suit her voice and really stolen the night. If she’d have experimented a little more, she would have been much more memorable.

I’m really struggling with my bottom three this week because as I said earlier no one just crashed and burned. I think the bottom would have to include Allison and Lil. The third spot could go to either Scott or Michael. And I think Allison should be the one to go home.

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20 Comments | American Idol, Pop Culture, Reality, Television | Tagged: Adam Lambert, Alexis Grace, Allison Iraheta, American Idol, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, entertainment, Fox, Kara DioGuardi, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraurd, Megan Joy Corkrey, Michael Sarver, Music, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, reality show, Ryan Seacrest, Scott MacIntyre, Season 8, Simon Cowell, Television, Top 11, tv | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

New Idol Rule Couldn’t Save Jorge, Jasmine from Elimination

March 12, 2009

The first elimination of American Idol’s Top 13 saw the birth of a new rule and sent two hopefuls home after nearly 33 million votes. Now the field has narrowed to the traditional 11 contenders and the judges still have a save card they can play.

Kelly Clarkson courtesy of American Idol

The biggest news of the night was the new Judges Save rule. Up until the Top 5, the judges can save one person from elimination. They can use this save just once and the decision must be unanimous. That week no one will be eliminated, but the next week two will be eliminated (so in theory, the save could just be temporary).

The reasoning is that if the judges had this rule before they could have saved the likes of Michael Johns, Jennifer Hudson or Chris Daughtry from leaving the competition too early. But you have to wonder, if they’d stayed another week would any of these contenders gone on to win the contest or would they have just lived to be eliminated another day?

I wasn’t watching back when Hudson or Daughtry were eliminated so I can’t really comment on them, but I don’t think a reprieve would have led to a Johns’ victory in Season 7. But it would have been nice to look at him a little longer.

Personally, I think if they are going to change the rules, they should have let everyone know at the beginning of the season. However, it’ll be interesting to see if this rule has any real impact.

It’s no surprise that the judges didn’t use their one save of the season tonight, so early in the game. And I think it’s going to have to be a pretty strong contender for all four judges to agree.

While on whom and when the save will be used is still a mystery, the roster for the bottom four was no surprise to anyone watching Tuesday’s show – Jasmine Murray, Megan Joy Corkrey, Anoop Desai and Jorge Nunez.

Three of these four were added during the Wild Card round which doesn’t say much for the quality of contestants we got during that round. But in the end the Js were sent packing. However, I would be surprised if we didn’t see Jasmine or Jorge again next season.

The evening led off with a medley of Jackson 5 hits performed by the Top 13. Let me just say that I have high praise for Scott MacIntyre for even attempting the group number choreography. We’ve see even those with all their senses intact struggle with the footwork before. Didn’t someone even run into a camera last year?

But as much as I’m impressed with Scott for stepping up to the challenge, I am equally awed by the other contestants’ willingness to help him find his spacing and direction during this numbers. I’m so glad that they can put their competitiveness aside; it makes for a better group number.

We were also treated to performances by Grammy winner Kayne West who say his hit single “Heartless” and by first season Idol winner Kelly Clarkson who sang her new single “My Life Would Suck Without You.”

Kayne’s performance didn’t do anything for me, but it’s just not my taste in music. On the other hand, I usually like Kelly’s work, but this song just didn’t strike a chord with me either. What did you think of her song

The rest of the night was filled with the standard filler, a review of the previous night performances, encore performances by those exiting and the first Ford Video of the season to Queen’s “We will Rock You.” Normally I like these videos (mostly just because it’s less time we have to listen Ryan talk), but this was nothing special, just singing heads on buildings while a car drove by. Ford has definitely had better videos with Idol contestants.

We also got a peek into the finalists’ new digs. And all I can say is wow!! What a mansion! When will they have time to rehearse with distractions like pool, steam room, Jacuzzi, basketball court, bowling alley, and home theater? After seeing this place, I’m thinking about auditioning just so I can stay there, but the fact that I can’t sing a lick will probably axe any chance I have of taking up residence in this mansion.

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20 Comments | American Idol, Pop Culture, Reality, Television | Tagged: Adam Lambert, Alexis Grace, Allison Iraheta, American Idol, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, entertainment, Fox, Jasmine Murray, Jorge Nunez, Kara DioGuardi, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraurd, Megan Joy Corkrey, Michael Sarver, Music, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, reality show, Ryan Seacrest, Scott MacIntyre, Season 8, Simon Cowell, Television, Top 13, tv | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

No Surprises in American Idol’s Second 12 Results

February 27, 2009

Why it takes American Idol an hour to give us three names, I’ll never understand. The results of the second 12 group were predictable and boring. The fact that I have correctly guessed the three survivors for two weeks in a row has little to do with my prediction abilities and more to do with the limited talent pool in Season 8.

Of course the hour had the standard filler. We learned that 25 million votes came in Wednesday night. Then we got the “how they got here” clip followed by the group number to “Closer” by Ne-Yo. And, of course, we got another look at the highlights from Wednesday before we even got to the results.

But the repeat of the Idol retrospective to “What a Wonderful World” was a new low in filler. Let’s just cut the results show back to half hour. Please, I’m begging you!

And if you thought the results themselves would pull you from the dullness of the fluff, you were wrong. No matter how Ryan tried to spin it, there just wasn’t any suspense in the announcement of the three contestants that will be moving through to the Final 12.

It was absolutely no suprise that Allison Iraheta, Kris Allen and Adam Lambert were the top picks. Their encore performances all showed why they were chosen.

The highlight of the evening was the return of Season 7 finalist Brooke White who sang her first single “Hold Up My Heart,” which she cowrote.

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12 Comments | American Idol, Pop Culture, Reality, Television | Tagged: Adam Lambert, Allison Iraheta, American Idol, entertainment, Fox, Hollywood, Jasmine Murray, Jeanine Vailes, Jesse Langseth, Kai Kalama, Kara DioGuardi, Kris Allen, Matt Breitzke, Matt Giraud, Megan Joy Corkrey, Mishavonna Henson, Music, Nick Mitchell, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, reality show, Ryan Seacrest, Season 8, Simon Cowell, Television, Top 36, tv | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Allison Iraheta Rocks Idol’s Second 12

February 26, 2009

After a rocky start, Allison Iraheta proved that the second group of the Top 36 wasn’t without some talent as American Idol vets its second 12.

This little girl has a big voice

But before we get to the performances, let’s talk about the changes this week from last week. First, they got rid of the uncomfortable parent interviews following the performances. Like what else are parents going to say but that they thought their son/daughter did a great job?

The judges also had some changes. First, they sat in opposite order. Secondly, they alternated who critiqued the contestant first. I actually liked this format better. You get a different perspective each time. My only complaint is when Paula goes first. She still doesn’t make much sense.

As for the contestants, several of them we have heard very little from going into the night so it was a little hard to predict what we’d see. Unfortunately, too many of the performances were forgettable.

The Best

I was beginning to wonder if we were going to have anyone stand out tonight. But then came Allison Iraheta. This girl might only be 16, but she can rock. We haven’t seen Allison since her audition so I wasn’t sure what to expect when she said she’d be singing “Alone” by Heart, but I have to say I’m impressed. The beginning was a little shaky, but we can chalk that up to the stage fright Kara mentioned. But once Allison found her grove, she proved that she’s a contender.

Also impressive was Kris Allen’s version of “Man in the Mirror.” I’m not a big fan of contestants doing Michael Jackson, but I thought Kris did a really good job. He was personable, entertaining and the vocals were great. Kara said the performance didn’t measure to those he did in Hollywood, but since we didn’t get to see most of them I can’t comment on the comparison.

While this episode might have had a rough start, it definitely had a solid ending. Adam Lambert took on The Rolling Stone and I have to say that his version of “Satisfaction” was very satisfying. Sure it might have been, as Randy said, a little manic, but hey it’s the Stones. I definitely think that Adam has improved since his audition.

The Clown

But as good as the above three were, the most memorable performance goes to Nick Mitchell, aka Norman Gentle. Unfortunately, as entertaining as Nick’s version of “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going” from Dreamgirls was, he vocals just didn’t shine tonight.

I think it’s about time for Nick and Idol to part. But I really hope this guy gets some kind of gig out of this experience, because he really is funny.

The Rest

The other eight performances were average. I don’t think anyone totally bombed it, but overall the performances were forgettable.

Jasmine Murray led off the night with “Love Song” Sara Bareilles. It was a nice fun song with a little spunk, but it just didn’t do anything for me and I’m a fan of Jasmine. She had a rough beginning and just never really recovered.

The dueling piano player has dueling song personalities. Matt Giraud wants to sing pop songs like Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida”. But I – and the judges – like him better when he’s singing the blues. I also like seeing him behind the keyboard better.

Overenthusiasm got better Jeanine Vailes. She wanted to get noticed. Instead she just overdid “This Love” by Maroon 5. She just tried too hard.

But enthusiasm worked for Megan Joy Corkrey. The judges really liked her version of Corinne Bailey Rae’s “Put Your Records On.” I think she’s got an interesting voice, but the weird dancing thing was just distracting.

And when will the contestants learn to pick the right song? Even after the judges told him it was the wrong song, Matt Breitzke said he would have still picked “If You Could Only See” by Tonic. I really like this guy’s voice, but I have to agree with Simon that the performance was boring.

Jesse Langseth also picked her favorite song – Kim Carnes’ “Bette Davis Eyes.” But her performance just didn’t measure up to the original. I think she sounded better than in the sing off from Hollywood Week, but it just wasn’t memorable.

Standing out was also an issue for Kai Kalama who’s version of “What Becomes of the Broken Hearted” by Jimmy Ruffin was a little old fashion for Kara. This guy definitely needs to find something more hip to sing if he wants to avoid comparisons to a wedding singer.

Mishavonna Henson also came across as much older than her 18 years. While I like Train’s “Drops of Jupiter,” Mishavonna’s performance just fell flat for me. I think Kara nailed it when she told Mishavonna to loosen up.

My picks for those who will be returning are Allison, Kris and Adam. We will find out on Thursday who makes it.

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