American Idol 8 / Finals 4
I see that the show is down from 2 hours to 1 hour, 25 minutes. I hope this doesn’t mean that TiVo somehow missed the last 5 minutes. If so, I may be pissed.
We find out the theme, and it’s … American Top 40? Or is it number-one songs from American Top 40? I’m confused. All I know is, Seacrest has a way better DJ setup than anything I’ve ever worked with. The technology has come far in the last 10 years.
1. Anoop Desai: “Caught Up” by Usher. He has a herd of backup singers, who sound good. Then Anoop’s solo, and … is this a terrible song? Or is he performing it terribly? The melody sucks, the music sucks. Even Anoop’s jacket sucks. Randy tells him the vocals are really good, and he’s picked up his swagger. Kara accuses him of playing it safe. Paula loved seeing his playful side, but wants more stage presence. Simon thought it was a complete and utter mess, and that he came over as a wannabe. Yay! Go, Simon!
2. Megan Joy: “Turn Your Lights Down Low” by Bob Marley / Lauryn Hill. She looooves the song, and the judges are supposed to “feel” her this time. And as always, she’s singing terribly, and her outfit is atrocious. What else can I say that I haven’t said before? She’s a bleating goat with horrible twitching moves. Kara really likes her, but thinks she’s in trouble. Paula babbles nonsense, but seems to agree that her movements are distracting. Simon brings out the words boring, monotonous, and indulgent. Randy says it’s like watching paint dry.
3. Danny Gokey: “What Hurts the Most” by Rascal Flatts (I think I spelled that right). He has a violin lady onstage with him. It’s not a song I’d listen to, but I think he’s doing a good job with it. He’s totally into it emotionally. And as usual, he puts the notes in all the right places. I don’t think I can stand to listen to the judges’ comments anymore, so I’m going to just fast-forward to the next contestant. Danny = safe.
4. Allison Iraheta: “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt. She’s busting out the guitar. She’s also redone her hair in a slightly lighter superbright red. Her outfit is terrible. Who’s dressing these kids? The worst part is her hair, a sort of punk mullet with a big bow stuck in it. Without the bow, it’d be hair like Jareth in Labyrinth. Did I miss her playing the guitar while I was staring at her hair? For at least the last half, she has it slung to her side. Did she just play those few notes at the beginning? Weird.
5. Scott MacIntyre: “Just the Way You Are” by Billy Joel. Oh dear. His piano playing is excellent as always, but his reedy, nasal voice is totally wrong for the song. He also has a shiny new haircut, straight out of 1985. I’m going to say this is another song that just shouldn’t be touched. Although on the plus side, he seems to be emoting his face off. Perhaps to make more of a connection with the audience. After his bottom-three experience last week, will America rally behind him?
6. Matt Giraud: “You Found Me” by The Fray. He’s playing a keyboard, sitting on some precarious little platform out in the audience. The song starts off way too low, and all of his notes are totally lost. He’s really into this song, and it’s clear that he loves it. But it’s just not all that good. He has a little quavering in his voice, though it’s not as goaty as Megan. And the song ends in a flaccid fade-out. Very meh.
7. Lil Rounds: “I Surrender” by Celine Dion. She talks about her poor song choices in the package. How can a Celine Dion song be the right choice for her? She’s wearing another bad wig, an ill-fitting dress, and the usual dead-eyed expression on her face. Some of her power notes are off, and she really has problems during a key change in the middle of the song. Overall, it’s weird and still a wrong song choice.
8. Adam Lambert: “Play That Funky Music” by Wild Cherry. Interesting choice. What will he do with it? He’s sticking with the slicked-back greaser look. It’s weirdly slow, like he’s singing at half-speed, until he hits the chorus and it gets much faster. I appreciate that he’s trying to give a different spin to the song, but it’s not my cup of tea. Still, like with “Ring of Fire”, it’s interesting to watch and listen to, and in this he also hits some great high notes. Hmm.
9. Kris Allen: “Ain’t No Sunshine” by Bill Withers. Will he sing all 147 “I know”s? He’s out there with the electric keyboard and a string quartet. Nice mix. He sounds pretty good, and he’s done some interesting things with the arrangement. Even the “I know”s sound nice. I have to give the kid credit — this was a decent performance.
Recaps: Anoop was weird. Megan ARG UGH BLEAH. Danny got into it. Allison was just OK. Scott doesn’t want clever conversation. Matt stuck the microphone all up in his mouth. Lil was wigged and sleepy. Adam played that funky music. And Kris may have won the night.
For my bottom three, I have to go with permanent choice Megan. I’ll add in Anoop and Matt, although I also worry about Allison. As with previous weeks, I have to choose Megan for elimination.
