American Idol - Week Three - 3/25/08

We’re down to the Top Ten already?

Where is the time going? It seemed like yesterday that the season just started, but here we are with the “tour” group. (I still say Amanda should have been in the Top Ten, not Kristy, but I digress). This week we were treated to songs chosen from the year each contestant was born. I hope the producers have learned their lesson to not repeat the theme next year. Last week produced very weak performances all around, with a couple of exceptions.

Over all, last night’s performances placed a few contestants higher on my “favorites” list, but a couple have moved lower. Much lower. (I’m looking at you Ramiele)
Some contestants blew me away (David C.), some gave me decent performances (Carly), and some gave me really good performances, but strange song choices. (David A.) All in all though, there are definitely some contestants who need to start worrying.

Enough of my rambling, let’s get to the performances:

1. RAMIELE MALUBAY – sung "Alone," by Heart – I will say first off, I am aware of the fact that Ramiele was sick. They made it a point to drive this fact home during the judges comments, but honestly, Ramiele has been losing steam consistantly since they moved into the Top Twelve. This was one of her better performances, but I found she shouted some parts of the song, and to borrow from Randy, was pitchy all over the place. I think Randy was right in his assessment of the performance. It wasn’t a horrible performance per se, but it still hasn’t blown me away. I’m worried for Ramiele, because by this point in the competition, she should have already had that “wow” performance which would pull her back from the deep end of the pool. I’m still waiting, and though I still like her, she has moved down my list of favorites. Though I’m willing to give her a reprieve this week because of her sickness, I don’t think America will be quite so forgiving, which makes her my first pick into my bottom three choices.

2. JASON CASTRO – sung "Fragile" by Sting – Jason has a weird personality, doesn’t he? Just an observation, but he needs to clean up his interview skills if he’s gonna be a celebrity. But enough of that, lets get to his performance. I think Simon said it best when he described it as “too laid back” and compared Jason’s performance to a guy in the subway, playing his guitar for change. Definitely not one of Jason’s best performances, and in my opinion, one of his weakest. Simon told him he needs to take the competition more seriously, but his reaction to those comments showed me he really isn’t. It’s almost as if he doesn’t care if he goes any further, and I hope that’s not true, because this guy is talented. It’d be a waste for him to just give up after he’s gotten to his point. Despite his disappointing performance, however, I think that Jason’s charm got him past this week, so he’s safe. (let’s see how long his “charm” lasts as the weeks go by though)

3. SYESHA MERCADO – sung "If I Were Your Woman" by Stephanie Mills – Finally, I see this contestant. I can’t believe I’m agreeing with Paula of all people, but she said it best when she described Syesha’s performance as “the moment Syesha turned it around”. This is what Ramiele should have done already, the “wow” performance. Hands down, one of the best of the evening, but still nothing compared to one contestant’s performance. (later on that) As one of the judges said, I can see star potential in Syesha, though I don’t think she has the capacity to win. She can, however, venture out on her own, and I can see her doing very well. After this performance, I can say for the first time, Syesha is safe.

4. CHIKEZIE – sung "If Only for One Night" by Luther Vandross – Chikezie should not do ballads if he’s not going to change them up too much. I found this performance dull and boring. Compared to the rest of the performances last night, his was one of the weakest because of the relative “safety” of his song choice. He did nothing different to the song, and it sounded like a copycat of the original. Chikezie’s vocals are good, his range is on par, but it just wasn’t exciting enough for him to stand out. To borrow a phrase from Simon, it was “forgetable”, and that’s what going to make Chikezie my second choice for my bottom three picks.

5. BROOKE WHITE - sung "Every Breath You Take" by The Police – I am growing to really love Brooke, week after week. Her whole “Carly Simon” vibe is great, and her vocals are tender and emotional. This week, Brooke corrected herself right at the start of the song, feeling she didn’t start the song right, so she started again. I tip my hat to her, making a bold choice, but the right one. The judges would have probably ripped her for it if she would have kept the same opening. I really enjoyed this piano version of this classic Police song. I found Randy and Simon’s comments rang completely true when they said the band should have stayed out of it. If Brooke would have kept just her and her piano, this performance would have been a fantastic performance. It was still good, but it could have been so much better. Without a doubt, Brooke is safe this week.

6. MICHAEL JOHNS – sung "We Will Rock You / We are the Champions" by Queen – Another contestant that finally gave me that “wow” performance. Michael was running below the radar for me since his Hollywood week performances, but finally I see the talent this guy has. A great song choice, great performance, and he truly looked like a rock star. Michael can easily get to the final four, but he needs to keep his performances on level with this one. There is no going backwards at this point, because a miss step would be putting him back to mediocre. He made Freddie Mercury proud with this performance, so I am glad to say he is definitely safe this week.

7. CARLY SMITHSON – sung "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler – I love, love the original so I was hoping Carly could pull off a great performance. At best, it was “okay”. I didn’t think she sung it that well, though her vocals were pretty good. I found her very pitchy at times. Maybe Randy was right when he said this wasn’t the right song for her. It seemed to me that her voice just didn’t suit the song. (In fact, I think she would have aced Ramiele’s choice “Alone” by Heart). The end result of Carly’s performance is an “okay” performance, which is a disappointment because she is much better. She wound up in the bottom three last week, so will this week’s performance get her there again? I’d like to think no, so I’m gonna call her safe.

8. DAVID ARCHULETA – sung "You're the Voice" - John Farnham – Call this kid cute. Call him a great singer, and an entertaining performer. Call his vocals spot on and his pitch on target. Call him all these things, but when it comes to song choice, this kid has got some very strange choices. This isn’t to say this was a bad performance. Far from it, it was great, but I need to question David’s choice. I have never heard of this song before, and if I had to wager a guess, I’m thinking that maybe David, Randy and maybe 5 other people in America knew what that song was. I’m sure David is safe, because it was still a good performance, but his song choice was downright strange. Of all the songs in the year 1990 (God, I feel old), why in the world would you perform a song that was a hit in Australia!? David, please make better song choices in the future, or your star is gonna start to fall. Safe this week, though I think it’s based on his current popularity.

9. KRISTY LEE COOK – sung "God Bless the USA" by Lee Greenwood – I will give this to Kristy, this was one of her better performances. For me, that is saying a lot, because I think Kristy should have been eliminated four weeks ago. I didn’t think it was as great as the judges made it out to be. It was an average performance at best. The song choice lended itself to a strong performance, mostly due to the fact that Kristy’s country tone suited it well. I disagree with the judges on Kristy. I don’t think she is safe this week. Week after week of bad performances leads me to believe her last minute save with this song wasn’t enough. I say she is my last pick for my bottom three choices.

10. DAVID COOK – sung "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson – Wow. I have nothing bad to say. This guy has not only blown me out of the water, he has proven without a shadow of a doubt, that he has the talent to move him right into the final two. Echoes of his “Hello” performance were apparent, but yet again, he made a Michael Jackson song a complete rock emo tune that could tear up the radio airwaves right now. Incredible performance, and most definitely safe this week. Heck, I’ll even go so far to say that if he keeps up these kind of performances, he’ll be safe for the next few weeks!

My Bottom Three Picks: Ramiele Malubay, Chikezie and Kristy Lee Cook.

My Pick to be Eliminated Tonight: I REALLY want it to be Kristy Lee Cook. But it won’t happen. The little praise that she got from the judges will edge her by this week. Ramiele needs to step up her game, but I think maybe her “she’s really sick” might get her some sympathy votes to get her through to next week. Which means I think it’s the end of road for Chikezie.

So what do you guys think? Agree? Disagree? Let’s chat it up!

American Idol - Week Two- 3/18/08

Much as I like The Beatles, I think it was a mistake to repeat the theme this week. It seemed to throw off all the contestants, and it showed particularly in some performances. Some were disconnected, some were unfocused, and some were just plainly going through the motions. I think the fact that Idol gave a different theme every week is what showed the diversity of each contestant. For some contestants, keeping the theme made their previous performances either look better or worse.

Regardless, it was a pretty hard night for all of the Top 11. (there was “a hard day’s night” joke in there somewhere, but I chose to let it go)
There were a few redeeming performances (I’m looking at you again David A.), but also some mediocre performances, compared to great performances last week. (Ah Brooke…)

Besides Randy annoyingly plugging Paula’s hit single every couple of minutes, the show progressed as usual. Although, I have to admit, this is one of the first shows this season that I found myself disagreeing with Simon most of the time. I don’t know what he was hearing last night, and although some of the performances weren’t good, they were not as bad as he made them out to be. I don’t know what put him in a foul mood, but I think he was a little off in his judgements last night.

So anyway, without further ado, let’s get to the performances:

1. AMANDA OVERMYER – sung “Back in the USSR” - I said it before, and I’ll say it again; I like Amanda. I like what she can bring to the competition. Saying that though, this is one of the times in the show that I agreed with Simon. It was a good performance, but it was not unexpected. I had conversations about Amanda with a friend of mine (Tom) and I agreed with him when he suggested that if Amanda didn’t start doing something different, she was going to start to become boring. Well, here it is, and that’s exactly what is happening. Was it a bad performance? No. Was it status quo for Amanda? Yes, and that’s what’s going to put her in danger tonight. I hate to say it, but her insistance on doing the same old standard thing this week has landed her a spot in my Bottom three picks.

2. KRISTY LEE COOK – sung “You've Got to Hide Your Love Away” – Well, I have to say, big improvement over last week’s horror show. But not much in the sense of standing out. Again, I found my myself agreeing with Simon in that though Kristy sung this better then last week, it made no impact. I personally like Simon’s description of Kristy as wallpaper, though it was cruel. It fit the way Kristy sung the song. There was no animation, no emotion, and nothing to make me remember her performance. That’s not to say she didn’t sing it well, it just wasn’t memorable. Add all this to the fact that Kristy has been in the bottom three for the past 2-3 weeks, (a fact pointed out in her pre-performance video) and you KNOW she cemented a place in my bottom three picks once again.

3. DAVID ARCHULETA – sung “The Long and Winding Road” – Ah, finally David is back on top. What a strong emotional performance, to what is one of my favorite Beatles songs. I have to admit, I’m starting to notice how big David’s ears are though. They are a bit distracting, especially with the earpiece in. Regardless though, he’s still adorable and likable. His humble nature and great performance last night will undoubtedly keep him safe. Keep it up, kid.

4. MICHAEL JOHNS – sung “A Day in the Life” – Michael was singing this song in memory of a friend, which I certainly can appreciate and sympathize with. However it was a mistake. Being forced to cut down ANY song that is 5 minutes long or more, to only a minute and half is a recipe for diaster. Add in that this was one of the classic Beatles tunes, and you get the substandard performance that Michael gave us last night. While his vocals were not a mess as the judges made it out to be, it was the arrangement which was the focal point of the spiraling badness of this performance. I was disappointed with Michael’s performance, and was expecting more from him. Friend or no friend, Michael, I would have chosen a different song on the basis of the length. Five minutes to one minute, 30 seconds? Not do-able! Still though, Michael’s cute accent and prior performances will let him squeeze by this week. For me, I think he’s safe.

5. BROOKE WHITE - sung “Here Comes the Sun” – Maybe it’s my growing affection for Brooke, but I really didn’t think her performance was that bad. I really needed to disagree with Simon on this one, because while this performance paled in comparison to last week’s amazing vocal, it was not nearly as bad as Simon made it out to be. Brooke pointed out that after giving her praise so many weeks in a row, she was bound to get a bad review sooner or later. I suppose she’s right, but something Simon said later in the night struck me as being correct. He mentioned during Syesha’s performance of “Yesterday”, that that was the song Brooke should have sung. I agree! If she would of chosen that song, I think she would have garnered praise for a 4th week in a row. Still though, Brooke is likable, and after 3 weeks of great performances, I doubt she’s in danger. I call her safe this week.

6. DAVID COOK – sung “Day Tripper” – I’m gonna borrow from Simon’s phrase book this week, and call David’s performance “a bit indulgent”. I think David is in danger of possibly creeping into the Amanda problem. I will give David this much though, his vocals were great in the beginning, and the middle really started well, but dammit, once he put in that awful harmonica, it all went down the drain. Simon told him he didn’t think it was half as good as David thought it was. I think I find myself agreeing. Even though I wouldn’t call David over confident, he did seem like he kind of had this song “in the bag” so to speak. Despite this though, David is safe.

7. CARLY SMITHSON – sung “Blackbird” – Maybe it’s just me, but I just don’t see the Kelly Clarkson comparison with this girl. Don’t get me wrong, she’s good, but I don’t think she is in the same league as Kelly. Her choice of “Blackbird” was bold, and different for her, and for the most part she sung it well. It was nice to hear her sing a ballady tune, and she proved she could hit the low notes. I definitely think she’s safe this week. As a side note, did anyone else notice her husband in the audience? WOW! Tattoos from head to toe…literally! He can definitely stand out in a crowd!

8. JASON CASTRO – sung “Michelle” – Jason had to learn some lyrics in a different language for this song (French). I will applaud him for the effort, because I would not be able to do that. That being said, this might have been a bad song choice for Jason. I’m really starting to like Jason, and though his vocals were pretty good, the way he was acting during his performance was so distracted and so disconnected, it made it bad. It was supposed to be a tender, heartfelt performance, but his ackward smile was not suiting the song. I think this was one of Jason’s weakest performances, and while it wasn’t all out bad, it was disappointing. Still though, as the judges pointed out, Jason is charming. VERY charming, and that alone will keep him safe this week.

9. SYESHA MERCADO – sung “Yesterday” – Simon called in on the nose when he said this was the song Brooke should have sung. While I do not agree with Simon’s other criticisms about Syesha’s performance, I will say that Syesha suffers from the same problem she’s had from the beginning. Noticeability. I found that she over sung the song, and I didn’t feel the emotion that should be the underlying layer to the vocals. While it was sung on tune, I found it forgetable, and that’s why I think Syesha might be securing the final spot in my bottom three picks once again.

10. CHIKEZIE – sung “I've Just Seen a Face” – Dammit, I wanted to hate this performance. I wanted to agree with Simon, but I found myself disagreeing. In a strange way, I liked this performance. I thought it was catchy, with a down-home country feel which worked really well. (I think Kristy might have really put on a great performance with this song.) I’m not crazy about Chikezie, but I will give him props for a good performance. It was a definitely a toe-tapper, despite what Simon said. Much as I want to say he’s not safe, I think he is.

11. RAMIELE MALUBAY – sung “I Should Have Known Better” – I really like Ramiele, but does anyone feel like we just keep waiting and waiting for this girl to wow us like she did in the beginning? I didn’t think it was a bad performance at all, it was actually quite good. But the fact is, by this point in the competition, I should be really starting to see this girl out-perform some of the other contestants. But she isn’t, and it’s getting down to the moment when it’s make it or break it time. Ramiele needs to step it up very soon, and though I don’t think she’s going home (though I was wrong about David Hernandez last week), I think she can go either way tonight. She can easily take Syesha’s place in my bottom three picks.

My Bottom Three Picks: Syesha Mercado or Ramiele Malubay, Amanda Overmyer and Kristy Lee Cook.

My Pick to be Eliminated Tonight: Kristy Lee Cook. Bad performance last week. Weak performance this week, on top of being compared to wallpaper by Simon will be Kristy’s ride out. Take note though, I was wrong last week, so it could easily be Amanda. I don’t think Syesha or Ramiele are going home. (sure, now watch me be wrong again! Argh!)

So what do you guys think? Agree? Disagree? Let’s chat it up!

American Idol - Week One - 3/11/08

Welcome back!

That’s right, if you’re reading this, then you know that American Idol is currently on the air with its Top 12 performers. I welcome back all my old readers, and hopefully some new ones. As every year, please feel free to pass on this review blog to friends, relatives etc. Or simply email me his/her email address and I will add them to the distribution group for this review.

All in all, I have to say I’m pretty satisfied with the Top 12. I think few people will argue that there were any surprises. (though I was a fan of A’siah over Kristy…I thought she was a better vocalist – but I digress)

I have my favorites so far, but I have to admit a few of the contestants have started to surprise me. The theme of the night were songs taken from the Lennon/McCartney songbook, and most of the contestants did well with them for the most part. Some big disappointments though. (I’m looking at you David A.)

So let’s jump in with eyes closed and get to the contestants’ performances:

1. SYESHA MERCADO – sung “Got to Get You Into My Life” – Poor Syesha. I like her style, and her voice is actually very good, but this was a bad performance. I don’t know if it was the song choice, or the way she sang it, butI don’t think this was her best performance by a long shot. More I think about it, the more I think it was her voice that didn’t suit the song. Plus starting off the night of the Top 12 on a brand new stage. It doesn’t look good for Syesha.

2. CHIKEZIE – sung “She’s a Woman” – Personally, there was something about Chikezie that I found irritating from the moment I first saw him perform. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but his performance tonight was rock solid. His “down home” take of the song at the beginning, then bringing back to rock in the middle really made the song stand out. Plus, he started owning the stage and looked comfortable doing it. Granted, Ryan’s urging of him bouncing around the stage afterwards was a bit much, but regardless, a great performance, and will be safe this week, considering he was thisclose to being eliminated last week.

3. RAMIELE MALUBAY – sung “In My Life” – I have to say I couldn’t disagree with the judges more this time. I usually agree with at least one (mostly Simon), but this time I think they were all a little off. I will say it was a bit safe, but if we remember what one of the judges said to Ramiele at one point, that her strong suit is ballads. Well, here she is with a great heartfelt rendition of “In My Life” and she gets pegged as “boring”. You can’t win. I really enjoyed Ramiele’s performance, and I did feel the emotion of her vocals come through. Her voice was spot on and most of all, her tenderness showed. Though I don’t think she did that badly, voting may land Ramiele as one of my bottom three choices.

4. JASON CASTRO – sung “If I Fell” – He’s growing on me. I hate to admit it, but this kid has got some strong vocal skills. I actually really enjoyed this song choice for him. I will admit, it didn’t have a “wow” factor, but just like Ramiele’s performance, it was heartfelt. You felt the emotion in his voice, and it came across the way he sang it. Plus his fan base is growing. He’s different, and I actually could see him going pretty far in the competition. Not his best performance, but definitely good enough to remain safe this week.

5. CARLY SMITHSON – sung “Come Together” – I wasn’t a big fan of Carly. I’m still kind of not, but I have to give the girl props for a great performance. Maybe it’s because she’s admittedly done the song many times in the bar where she worked. Whatever the reason, it was one of the best performances of the night. She is beginning to get better and better in my opinion, and she may even win me over as a complete fan before the season is over. She is most definitely safe this week.

6. DAVID COOK – sung “Eleanor Rigby” – Dammit, I want to not like David, but he’s winning me over week after week. He made me a fan last week by turning Lionel Ritchie’s dreary “Hello” into an emo rock ballad that most kids would actually dig. Now this week, he did a great rendition of this classic tune. I’m actually impressed at the fact he thought about the music and song, and acknowledged that the electric guitar would be overkill. Basically, that showed me he thinks about his song choices, and the history behind them. VERY impressive, and without a doubt, safe for this week.

7. BROOKE WHITE - sung “Let It Be” – I can’t help it, but I really love the whole “Carly Simon vibe” that Brooke seems to give off. Like the judges said, almost 3 weeks in a row she has given a great performance, and this one was no exception. She almost seemed to channel Carly Simon and made this very well-known and widely redone tune emotional once again. I may have said that Ramiele and Jason’s performances were heartfelt, but this one stood out of the three. And the end, when she teared up when Paula mentioned that Brooke dreamed of singing that very song on a big stage…that sealed it for me, because you can tell that it was the truth. I’m officially on the Brooke White bandwagon now, and I can guarantee she is safe.

8. DAVID HERNANDEZ – sung “I Saw Her Standing There” - Maybe he should go back to stripping? I couldn’t agree more with the judges on David’s performance. It was beyond corny and he completely out-performed the song. Way too over the top and, is it me, or did David seem “stiff” once again in his performance? The judges talked about how it reeked of “desperation”, and I tend to agree. It’s almost like David realized he isn’t as good as the other singers (he isn’t) and now he’ll do just about anything to stay in? Perhaps if he started stripping along with singing, it could have saved him. As it stands, he pretty much cemented the second spot in my bottom three picks.

9. AMANDA OVERMYER – sung “You Can’t Do That” - Amanda is an anomaly. There are some viewers who think she stinks, and can’t wait for her to be voted off. (Votefortheworst.com has nominated her to stay in). There are some viewers who really like her “rocker chick” vibe, and can see her going decently far. (albeit not win it however). That said, I have to say, I’m rooting for Amanda to stay in as long as possible. I like her look, and her sound. (that is, when you can understand what she’s saying). Yes, I too had trouble understanding her garbled lyrics last night, but I did think she gave a pretty solid performance. I can see her leading a rock band in the future, but not being the American Idol. I agree with Simon 100% when he said she is needed in the competition because she does bring something different. I’m on the fence about her performance, but I think it was just good enough to give her a pass to next week. I say safe.

10. MICHAEL JOHNS – sung “Across the Universe” – I talked about how several contestants last night gave an emotional and heartfelt performances, but I think Michael is the only one I felt truly connected to the song. Maybe because he mentioned in his taped segment how the song got him through a very rough period in his life. I don’t know the reason why, but I thought his performance was one of the best in the night. I didn’t find it boring and I I really think the audience connected with both Michael and the song. Michael is also growing on me (just like Jason), and as the weeks progress, it’s gonna prove what a truly talented singer this guy is. Stay tuned to see him next week, because I’m pretty sure he’s safe.

11. KRISTY LEE COOK – sung “8 Days a Week” – What. A. Mess. Simon was absolutely 110% right on this call. This was a disaster, and what possessed Kristy to take such a classic song and turn it country is beyond me. This was a complete failure as a country piece. The song sounded disjointed, and her voice was just not strong enough. It was like bad karaoke, but the karaoke player broke. Kristy cemented a place in my bottom three picks with that horrorshow of a song cover. Lennon and McCartney would not be amused.

12. DAVID ARCHULETA – sung “We Can Work It Out” – Finally we get to my David. Ah David, David David. What happened? That had to be the absolute worst performance from you since I first saw you. Was it nerves? Was song choice? Unfamiliarity with the song? All of the above? I think Paula and Randy were going too easy on you, and Simon was the one who told you straight out; “that was awful”. And it was. At this stage in the competition, forgetting the words to a song is a big no no. Lucky you got your many fans to keep you in the competition. I don’t think you’re in any danger despite how bad your performance was. I just hope you up your game, learn from your mistakes and make sure you blow people away again. Horrible performance, but safe nonetheless.

My Bottom Three Picks: Syesha Mercado, David Hernandez and Kristy Lee Cook.

My Pick to be Eliminated Tonight: Syesha Mercado. Why? Hernandez could go as well, but I think his exposure (albeit negative, but still exposure) will keep him in. Kristy will get by, I think because she is very pretty, and some votes are obviously based on that. (they shouldn’t, but they are) Mercado will go because even after weeks of being the competition she still one of the idols that is uknown.

So what do you guys think? Agree? Disagree? Let’s chat it up!