AI5 - Round of 10
The first rule of Fight Club is that you don’t talk about Fight Club.
The first rule of American Idol is that you don’t choose a song because you like it. You choose a song because it’ll show off your voice.
And just about every contestant violated the first rule of American Idol last night. It’s the fifth season of this show. Haven’t they learned anything yet? I think every last one of the video packages leading into the song included the contestant looking earnestly into the camera with a smile and saying, “I picked this song because I flat out like it.” (I think that was Bucky’s exact phrasing, actually.)
In almost every case, it was their downfall. I’m not sure there was a crash and burn amongst the group, but very few did anything different or outstanding.
The second rule of American Idol is that the big long loud note at the end isn’t enough to save the performance anymore. It used to work in the first season and maybe partway into the second, but then everyone caught onto it. It also hurts when you’re hoping that note saves the day, but then you don’t nail it. Numerous people fell into that trap last night, too.
It was just a lot of karaoke in the show, and I’m surprised Simon didn’t use the word more often.
Lisa began with original American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson’s “Because of You.” It was, to put it mildly, a risky choice. Simon might even have called it “ballsy” on another week. But he was also right in saying the song was bigger than her voice and that there’s not much you can do with it. I thought she sounded clean and clear, but it was just a bad song choice. Hey, it was a song she liked, I’m sure.
The part that all the judges missed that impressed me is that she really sold the emotion of the song. She wasn’t smiling through a song about breaking up and hating the guy for it and everything he’s done to her. She emoted throughout the performance. It’s something Barry Manilow harped on a lot last week. And it’s likely something her previous Broadway training helped her with this week.
She did, however, warble a bit on the big last night.
I think she’s in big trouble again this week, though. She’s already a constant in the bottom three, and then she went first with a forgettable performance.
Kellie went with “Suds in the Bucket,” back to her country roots. Hey, it’s a song she likes! Kellie’s biggest problem is that she sleep walks through her performances. I saw almost no emotion in her face. It was a blank stare as she sang the whole thing. The heavy makeup job didn’t help, either. Her eyes looked Asian. (She might also want to reconsider the peek at the bare mid-riff. . . )
The last note was a bit pitchy (see a pattern developing yet?), and the song was completely uninspiring. I’m afraid Pickler might start bleeding fans soon. She saved herself a little with her fanbase through her cute apologies to the judges, but I know a lot of people will be turned off even by that. I don’t think it’s an act, though. I just think there are a lot of bitter and cynical people who’ve been manipulated by the mass media too much throughout their lives to believe that there are more innocent people in the world who haven’t been.
Ace did one of his favoritest songs ever! Ohmigod! “Drops of Jupiter” by Train, though, is practically a novelty song. It works because its singer has a crazy voice that suits the song. Doing a karaoke cover of it means either imitating every inflection of Pat Monahan (I think that’s how you spell it — and I can’t believe I remember his name off the top of my head), or taking it someplace completely new. Ace did neither.
He saved himself by ripping the top of his shirt open to bare his chest– er, show a scar. I could feel the humidity in the studio rise from the drool of all the fangirls.
Ace is also in denial, though, believing he picked a song he really felt. I want him to be in the bottom three just for that little bit of hubris.
Taylor went with “Trouble,” a song I wasn’t familiar with, but is perfectly suited to his singing style. The problem with it is that it never got out of second gear. It tried near the end to really ramp up, but otherwise just stayed in the middle. He’s right in that it was a nice choice to show off his vocals, rather than his dancing. But the end effect is a “so close but yet so far” feeling.
Simon compared his styling to that of Clay Aiken. (I’m guessing he’s thinking bank to the Grease week.) He’s not that far off. The jacket needed a collar, and I think they cut his hair a little shorter than normal. He looked awkward like that — either an adult dressing as a kid in a size too small, or a big kid trying to dress cool but failing. Hopefully, he can go back to being the crazy guy we all know and love next week.
Mandisa went with a song of praise she loves so much that is one of her favorites. “Wanna Praise You” is, as Simon pointed out, “self-indulgent.” There’s no real vocal in there for her to sing. The first 45 seconds were atrocious, and the rest of the song involved her warbling around the melody, but never on it. It was all over the place. There were moments where it worked, but the general feel of it was just too wild.
Chris went with a Creed song, “What If?” Funny that we go from one worship song to a song sung by Scott Stapp, whose religious yearnings are a matter of public record. And while he might have sung it well — I’m not such a fan of music that loud, so I’m not one to judge it too well — I think Simon is right in that Chris crossed the line. His fans will love that he didn’t sell out. And I know the Belgian Idol was a rocker more prone to Nirvana. And I know Beau Bice set the stage for someone like Chris to go far this season. I just think this one was a little too much, too.
Katharine chose a Christina Aguilera song. I could have told you it was a Xtina song even if she hadn’t mentioned it. The song is unmistakably Xtina. It’s all over the place, ranging high and low, loud and runny, soft and slutty. It’s called “The Voice Within,” and I think Katharine used it to show her range. I’m not so sure I agree with Randy that it shows the kind of album she’d make. At least, I hope this isn’t.
She didn’t miss notes, though, and she transitioned strongly between the various parts of the song. I’ll say it again — she’s got the best voice of the competition, even when I disagree with the song choices.
She also was carefully styled to show that she ISN’T pregnant. Finally, we saw her wearing something that proves that.
Bucky sang a song he flat out liked, “Real Good Man.” He looked like he was playing dress up at a Tim McGraw Fan Convention, and proceeded to play good karaoke. He’s just not believable on stage. His “moves” look choreographed and planned, not natural. He never looks like he’s that much into the song. He tries, but I’m not buying it. He’s coasting. I still want him out.
Boy, it’s getting easier and easier as the weeks go by to pick favorites and see who’s going to go far in this competition and who isn’t. My Top 12 is going to be more wrong this year than ever, I think.
Paris gets caught in a conundrum. Simon asks her to go younger. So she does. Then Simons tells her she looks like a girl playing dress up. Simon wants it both ways.
Her performance of “Work It Out” (Beyonce, right?) wasn’t quite “Bootylicious,” but did make me a little uncomfortable. She’s, what, 16 years old? Maybe I do agree with Simon on this one. . .
Randy is also right, though, that she was fearless to pull that song off. In the end, it will do her well. The vocals were strong. The performance and dancing was memorable. She was crazy, and I think it’ll pay off on a night when everyone else is doing karaoke of their recent favorites.
Elliott wraps up the night with “I Don’t Wanna Be.” He did the right thing in going with a more soulful arrangement of the song, which I really liked. He’s just still so difficult to watch. He looked like Eminem, complete with the hand motions and bouncing/dancing. I’m sure George Huff was proud of him last night. His vocal wasn’t as strong as it could have been or as much as the judges fawned over it, but I think the performance will be memorable enough to carry him through.
He did have one over-the-top silly hand gesture though. There’s a lyric line about “looking around.” He put his hand up to his forehead as if to shield the sun from his eyes, and peered out into the audience. The choreography on this show is getting sillier and sillier. It’s all so very literal. People grab their long hair when the song mentions a person’s locks. They incessantly point to the camera on “you.” A stray finger runs down their cheek for “tear” or “cry.” And Ace shows his scar on “scar.” Insanity!
As Paula said to Elliot, “You’re one funky white boy.” I just thought he was trying to be a boy band member, or an R&B singer. Whatever floats your boat.
The trick with Elliott is to listen to him and not look at him. He still missed a couple of notes, but at least he did something with his song choice.
How do I rank the Top 10 this week? There’s a large chunk of mediocrity in there.
Paris, Elliott, and Katharine have to rank at the top. I think Katharine was my favorite. Taylor is a close fourth, just ahead of Chris. (It was self-indulgent, but not bad. We’ll see if it costs him votes from lesser fans of “rock.”) Lisa would come next, just ahead of Mandisa. Kellie, Bucky, and Ace are my bottom three, and tough to choose between for worst of the night. They were uninspired, but not awful for what they sang. Nah, I think Ace was the worst of the night. And it was a bad night for country fans looking for anything new.
Who will America put in the bottom three? Lisa, no doubt. I think Ace is in trouble. And Mandisa will round it out. I’m sure someone’s about to make the argument for Middle America voting for the religious song in droves, but I don’t think it’s true, or that it would be enough. I’m most curious to see if Chris’ extreme descent in loud rock hurts him, though.
Lisa is done tonight.
March 29th, 2006 at 8:50 am
Augie, “Beau” Bice?
Q: How do you know when you’ve seen a really bad A.I. night?
A: When Buck arguably gave the best performance.
I really didn’t like anybody, including Katharine. If that’s the way Christina Aguilera sounds on that song (I hadn’t heard it before), I never want to hear it again. And Chris finally got called right by Simon: monotonous headbanger.
Lisa broke the A.I. Cardinal Rule: When you’re doing your specialty (in her case, ballads), you have to be good. She wasn’t, and she’s going tonight. Call your bookies.
March 29th, 2006 at 8:51 am
Um, I meant Bucky, not Buck.
March 29th, 2006 at 9:11 am
The third rule (last night anyway) was that they pick songs from the 21st Century.
Daughtry’s song was from 2000, the last year the 20th century. He should be sent home.
March 29th, 2006 at 10:01 am
Anyone who has read my comments knows that I am a huge Chris fan. I thought he did a good job with the song, and it is nice to see someone who will go out and do something different. I think sometimes the AI contestants get too much into this shell of pop, so I like seeing someone stretch this a bit.
There is too much debate over when centuries begin and end to make a comment about Chris’s song. Many feel that 2000 was the last year of the 20th century, while others feel it is the first of the 21st. An example of this debate: http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/20002001.htm
As for my pick, I thought Lisa crashed big time on that song. Combined with her going first, she is going home.
March 29th, 2006 at 10:19 am
I forgot to mention that in my writeup — during the Coca-Cola moment, Chris and Ryan made sure to clear up the LIVE controversy: Yes, he did their rendition of that song last week, basically.
bluuzman — thanks, I’ll go fix it. I didn’t have time to really proofread this post this morning. . . Keep the error checking coming.
Rob — I’m not getting into the debate over semantics on the years of songs that should be valid. I had that argument at the “millennium” and I’m over it now. =)
March 29th, 2006 at 10:27 am
Y’know, Paula’s antics used to be funny, now they’re just sad.
It seems she makes a point to disagree with anything Simon says…and Randy is pretty damn useless, if Arsenio hall hadn’t provided his dialogue, he’d have nothing to say.
March 29th, 2006 at 12:30 pm
Yo yo yo. Rough night on AI. One of the worst I’ve seen in awhile I think. Soon as I saw Lisa picked Because of You, I knew she was done. I saw this as a week where she could’ve saved herself but instead she tanked - badly I thought. And as much as I want Bucky gone, I think he managed to save himself last night.
The Bottom 3 tonight should be the first three who went with Lisa getting booted. That’s one of my Top 5 gone. Ouch.
March 29th, 2006 at 1:28 pm
I found myself in the weird place of agreeing 100% with Paula last night (I know!) when she said it was nice to see Taylor just stand there and sing.
I thought Chris and Mandisa both probably went a little too far with what they were trying to do though I’d be shocked if either pays the price for it.
Katharine’s vocal gymnastics were better than that song but that thinking may be just because I didn’t particularly care for the song.
They’ve yet to settle on a style for Elliot and they need to. Beard, goatee, shades, tie, jacket, whatever. Anything that makes him easier to *watch* would be good.
March 29th, 2006 at 1:48 pm
do not understand all of the fuss about Katherine other then her beauty. She has absolutely no depth to her voice. In fact at times she almost sounds squeeky. I suppose they feel she could be very marketable, not for recordings but perhaps movies t.v. theatre etc. I would like to see Paris sing a ballad, as I think she has the voice. I want to hear Chris’s actuall voice singing a ballad. Not the best season. Elliot has a good voice but nothing unusual such as Kelly, Clay or Kimberly.
March 29th, 2006 at 2:18 pm
it was katherine’s weakest performance so far. but i think she will be in the final three along with taylor and paris. paris may have the best voice but who wants another fantasia? she has no appeal at all. and i hate her thank kew’s too! mandisa? scary! someone should tell her to dress right and hide her (huge) imperfections. and yes, goodbye lisa. i hope kelly or bucky goes to.
March 29th, 2006 at 2:28 pm
I thought it was a bad night… my bottom 3 are Lisa, Ace, and Bucky. I know Mandisa lost me a bit with her song, and katherine…. WHAT WAS SHE THINKING? It amazes me that i seem to think the ups and downs inher songs are not good, as they make it hard to listen and follow a song, but Simon LOVES her…. UG!!!
Ok and get this… Last week Chris was complimented for the fact that he never compromises his stylings.. This week tho, hes told to change it up!?!?! whats that? I mean i have noticed that EACH YEAR one or two of the singers are told this very thing. Now ive noticed that when they do follow Simons advice and change it up, they fail… i wonder if Simon does it just to see how much power he has over the singers…
I also dont think chris will change himself up too much…. maybe soften a bit, but definately not change his rocker edge! ok so i made my predictions… well for bottom 3 at least… i do think Lisa is out tonight. well see!
March 29th, 2006 at 2:30 pm
Sorry i am at work and forgot to add my name to the previous post…
March 29th, 2006 at 2:55 pm
Jenni, I’ve also noticed the judges playing those games with contestants. If they stick to one song style or delivery, they are told to try something different. But if they don’t do “different” very well, they are chastised for not sticking with their strength. To make the judges happy, you have to do everything well, like Kelly Clarkson did.
And I have to agree with kitty about this not being the best season. A few weeks ago I thought it would be, but the more styles the contestants have to perform in, the more their weaknesses show. Last year, I also thought early on that it would be the best season yet, and then it wasn’t.
March 29th, 2006 at 3:28 pm
I have to agree. The judges swinging on what they say irks me. The worst is when they tell someone to be unique, so then the person goes and does something different and then they say, that was too different, stick to what you do best. Yeah, whatever!
March 29th, 2006 at 4:26 pm
I’m afraid that the song selections for AI last night (Mar. 28) only confirmed what I have felt for some time….there is not much good music being written in the 21st century in the pop genre. I like all kinds of music if there is a melody somewhere and has some entertainment value. Its also nice when it is performed as if the person performing it is enjoying what he is doing and can communicate that to the audience. I’m afraid there was a shortage of most of that on Tuesday night in nearly all of the performances.
March 29th, 2006 at 7:31 pm
The contestants may have been at a disadvantage last night with the theme. Many current artist don’t want their stuff being performed, especially with the format of this show. Think about it…if you had a song on the charts would you want people to “hear it for the first time” by someone possibly screwing it up? There may not have been a lot of good songs to choose from.
March 29th, 2006 at 8:57 pm
Terrible night. Not a single performance I’d want to see again. Just goes to prove something I’ve noticed for the past couple of years: A.I. contestants don’t really know anything about music.
Disagree with Kitty about Katharine. Her strength *is* the depth of her voice (though not so much this week). Like Elliot, she’s one of the few Idol contestants in the whole history of the show who can hit every note of a song, and not just the “money” notes.
If Simon was given more time, I’m sure he could resolve the contradictions between his comments from week to week. Yes, Paris should dress and act like a grown-up, but that doesn’t include acting like your typical music video ‘ho (which isn’t my idea of a grown-up). As for Chris, he *should* be praised for “staying true to his sound,” as he was last week, but Simon seems to be learning what I learned long ago, which is that most of the modern rock that Chris likes all sounds the same after a while. It’s possible to be a “true rocker,” and still diversify. Ask any rock star who’s been popular for more than three or four years.
March 30th, 2006 at 8:31 am
Noel, didn’t get the reference to Paris and a “video ho” at all. She is 17, which in my book is still young, not grown up as you put it (hell, she can’t even buy liquor yet).
Overall, I’d have to say this season so far has been one big joke, I’ve gotten more laughs from this season than any other!
March 30th, 2006 at 1:09 pm
I’m not saying Paris *is* a grown up, only that I agree with Simon that she shouldn’t act like a little girl playing dress-up. Also, I’m disturbed that so many teenagers get their cues on acting like “adults” from the sexual gyrations of pop stars. Fantasia wasn’t much older than Paris, and she was able to sing Billie Holliday like she meant it. At this point, I can’t imagine Paris having much credibility pulling a similar move (though she did reasonably well with “Fever”).
I love her voice, but he stage presence thus far has been mostly awful.
March 30th, 2006 at 1:39 pm
Okay, I see where you are coming from.
Personally, I’d rather Paris get a little more serious with her stage presence, but I don’t think it will happen anytime soon and mainly because of her age. Fantasia although young too had a more mature stage presence (probably because of her life experiences).
Paris is really gifted, but I feel there is still more growing to do as I feel with most of the younger singers under 20 (Diana, Jasmine, etc.). The bubble gum crowd just isn’t for me and that’s what I see when I look at Paris.
April 3rd, 2006 at 7:32 pm
I, for one, was soooo glad that Mandisa sang “Shackles”, a very popular urban Gospel song. I get very irritated with the way that AI seems to blatantly ignore Gospel music. There are a ton of high profile music celebrities that began their careers in Gospel music and in many ways, it’s just as “American” as rock ‘n’ roll and jazz.
There’s no reason why they can’t do one show with a Gospel theme. None whatsoever.
And every single contestant was able to choose which song that they wanted to sing. Why single out Mandisa and Chris for being “self-indulgent” because they chose a song that they liked? Makes no sense to me.
April 4th, 2006 at 5:50 am
Chris: Mandisa and Chris were singled out for “shouting” their songs with no variation, not because they were self-indulgent.
April 5th, 2006 at 1:32 am
bluuzman: Watch it again. Simon said that both of their performances were self indulgent. Simon even said that Chris may have went too far.
April 5th, 2006 at 9:32 am
Simon’s words were “self-indulgent,” but I believe part of that went to the screaming. It wasn’t that Chris picked a song he liked too much, but that he picked one that was TOO “rock.” Mandisa didn’t just pick a gospel song that she loved, but she picked one she had to scream through too much without any real melodic content.
It’s a bit of both, though I suppose it’s open to interpretation.
April 5th, 2006 at 3:47 pm
Chris and Augie: I forgot Simon had used that term, but I guess I took it to mean that he was criticizing them for shouting their songs. I don’t like the term “self-indulgent” — by itself, it’s unclear to me. I would rather hear more specifically what someone doesn’t like about something. That way, I don’t read my own thoughts and feelings into it (as I did with Chris and Mandisa).