On the heels of another snowstorm (at least here in my humble corner of the world), I bring to you the latest American Idol review provided by me. And as opposed to the last few weeks, this review is immediately after the show! What a treat for all of my blog readers out there (yet I am sure there are some people whose eyes completely glaze over when they see my American Idol blogs - LOL. Don't worry; I realize not everyone is a fan of this show). This week's theme is inspirational songs, seeing that it's also the week for Idol Gives Back. Yes, they did it the exact same way last year, although I don't think we'll see this week's votes carry over to next week's like the previous year. At least I'm hoping not. How anticlimactic. On with the review!
Michael Johns - singing "Dream On" by Aerosmith. Does Michael know how to pick songs or what!? I can tell he enjoys some of the greatest rock bands of all-time and I can't say he picked the wrong song this week. I absolutely love this song and it really has a great message with it and it's quite nostalgic for me, too. I don't really understand why the judges did not love it. I felt he had a such a tremendous connection with the song and he was really passionate singing it. I didn't notice any pitch problems myself but if there was, the performance overall was what made this great. True, he may be better with songs that are more soulful and blue-sy, but you cannot discount Michael's taste for rock. I thought he hit a homerun with this one.
Syesha Mercado - singing "I Believe" by Fantasia Barrino. During the commerical break prior to Syesha's performance, I suddenly remembered when Lakisha Jones sang this song last year, which was when she began to lose her edge in the competition. I've never liked it when current Idols' pick songs from an Idol champion of the past, but you could tell Syesha really knew this song to heart. I thought it started off kind of boring at first and as the background singers were added, they tended to drown out Syesha. They proved to be quite overpowering! But then she really connected with the song towards the end and made it worth listening to. She again had to endure complaints by the judges about choosing a song in which previous artists blew it out of the water, but she did her thing with it. I don't think it will be enough to save her from the bottom three, however.
Jason Castro - singing "Over the Rainbow" by Israel Kamakawiwo. I guess I'll have to listen to this performance again, because I was not as blown away by it as other people were. I will say this, though. I am SO glad he chose a different style and arrangement to it than let's say, Katharine McPhee's version in season five. If he would've done it that way, it might've been rather cheesy and could've spelled doom for him. But he showed originality and really mixed things up this week. I did think it sounded like that Country Time lemonade commercial that airs every summer; not that that's a bad thing, mind you. It made me think of summer, at least. Yes, he has a very distinctive voice and style to his performances, but I actually enjoyed last week's performance more than this weeks. Sorry, I guess I'm the odd man out on that opinion this week. I guess I will have to listen to it again; then maybe I'll change my tune on Jason this week.
Kristy Lee Cook - singing "Anyway" by Martina McBride. I do feel bad for Kristy because it appears she is improving week after week and is still not getting a lot of support from the fans. She is definitely not this season's Sanjaya; not by a long shot. Actually, I don't even think you can compare any of this season's contestants with Sanjaya because everyone's in a different league than him. Kristy was great tonight; in fact, it's her best performance so far in the competition. It reminded me a lot of her "God Bless the USA" performance minus the pitchy-ness. She definitely sang it well, confidentally and it showed she's strong with the country genre. I still don't think it will keep her out of this week's bottom three, however. Once again, she lacks the large fanbase like the David's or Brooke.
David Cook - singing "Innocent" by Our Lady Peace. Now I am familiar with the band Our Lady Peace from their 2002 song "Somewhere Out There," which is a spectacular song. But that is about the only song I am familiar with by that group. I was kind of interested to see how David was going to change things up this week - but it didn't look all that original to me. It sounded awkward in the beginning of the song and I think this song in particular may be questioned as to why he chose it. It may be inspirational to him, but many other people might not think so. I just wasn't into this performance like I've been with some of his previous stints on stage. He can definitely do better and not all of the contestants can have stellar performances week after week.
Carly Smithson - singing "The Show Must Go On" by Queen. Wow, this year we've been seeing a lot of Queen on American Idol; more than ever before. This was one of Queen's lesser-known songs and I thought she did okay with it. I wasn't blown away with it by no means. I thoroughly enjoyed the use of the orchestra in the background of the song and vocally I thought it was quite good (yes, there were a few pitch problems here and there). I will agree with the judges in that she seemed disconnected on stage and it probably wasn't the best song to pick to be inspirational. She might have done a lot better singing a ballad this week. She's another candidate that could wind up in this week's bottom three - but I'm doubting it.
David Archuleta - singing "Angels" by Robbie Williams. David is a very smart guy and for those that have been following David all season long on his American Idol journey, you'll know that there's a couple of videos posted on YouTube of David singing this song at school functions. He knows the song extremely well which proved to be a huge advantage for him. I thought at first it could be a huge risk for him to play this song on the piano, but I got to thinking that he's probably played this song on the piano at home time and time again. It was another awesome performance by David, but probably not quite as good as it could've been, especially considering how well he knows the song. I feel that during his performances (not just tonigh), he has difficulty singing the lower notes in his songs; and the lower notes mainly comprised the first part of this song. But once he reached the chorus, he did an amazing job. One of the better performances of the night.
Brooke White - singing "You've Got a Friend" by James Taylor/Carole King. I can't help but think of Brooke as everyone's big sister (even though she's a year younger than me). She just has that persona about her. Just as David used a piano in his performance, Brooke did as well, although she did not play on it and instead took center stage in front of the mic. It started off a little rough for me and it was good at times. Other times it appeared she was disconnected from the song and her performance really suffered because of it. She seemed very emotionally attached to the song; almost TOO attached and it appeared she had a difficult time trying to keep her emotions in check. It certainly wasn't her best performance, but you have to give her props for it being very heartfelt and emotional.
Overall, I didn't think this week's "Inspirational Songs" were as good as last week's Dolly Parton collection. I'd rate tonight's show a seven out of ten. I will say this, I love it when a contestant show's their vocal range, like many of the male contestants have been doing. When they use their falsetto range, it just shows how versatile of performers they are. But it has it's limit and it cannot be overdone. I think the contestants know when to use it and to bring it out during special occasions. I had to laugh at the end of David Archuleta's performance and I saw the sign that read "Lick Those Lips." Once again, if you're a follower of David since the very beginning, you'll know that he's often licked his lips during many of his performances. I can't really say that he's done so during tonight's and last week's songs, however. I'll have to watch back just to be absolutely sure. Maybe he's following someone's friendly advice to use chapstick from here on out. Anyways, with those random comments out of the way, here is how I rate the performers on tonight's show:
#1: David Archuleta
#2: Michael Johns (eliminated - BIG SHOCKER!! - 4/10/08)
#3: Jason Castro
#4: Kristy Lee Cook - bottom three
#5: David Cook
#6: Syesha Mercado - eliminated (actual bottom three - 4/10/08)
#7: Carly Smithson (actual bottom three - 4/10/08)
#8: Brooke White - bottom three
Again, at this stage of the competition, it's getting very difficult to choose who will be going home week after week. I really believe after tonight's strong performance, Kristy Lee will avoid elimination once again. Syesha's performance was good, but not great. And she tends to lack a connection with fans and she has a very small fan base. It just might cost her Thursday. Brooke just might make it into the bottom three for the second week in a row but she'll be pulled back to safety quickly. But one wildcard I'll throw into the mix: Carly. She also has a chance to be in this week's bottom three. Don't be surprised if she lands there. We'll all find out who ends up eliminated after Thursday's results show. Can't wait!
No comments:
Post a Comment