American Idol: The Ladies Outperform the Fellas

It’s been quite the interesting week with the boys swapping nights with the girls at the last possible minute and the threat of a contestant’s possible elimination due to hospitilization , but Idol came out okay in the end and were actually the better for it. Why? Because most contestants performed at least decently, if not well. What a relief after last week’s horror show.

When questioned by Ryan, Simon still stuck by his guns, naming the girls the frontrunners but only “by a smidge,” and now I can see what the panel was talking about. The girls knocked it out of the park in comparison to the boys’ second outing; let’s get to how they all fared in order of personal preference.

TOP 10 BOYS
10. Jermaine Sellers should have been asking himself “What’s Going On” instead of singing it. The kid acts like he is literally God’s gift to music when all he has proven is that he may have the least amount of musical acuity and talent of the bunch. Not to mention, he made a beloved oldie, that was updated in 2001 by some celebrity All-Stars with Artist Against AIDS Worldwide, sound even older than the original. No judge really liked the performance, though Ellen enjoyed his librarian fashion sense, and Simon called his performance cabaret. I tuned out when he attempted to steal the show by asking the judges to pick a song for him to sing next week, but I like Simon’s way of thinking that he shouldn’t bet on that since he may not be here any longer. Please make this come true.

9. & 8. John Park and Todrick Hall are pretty interchangeable at this point in my mind. I’m ambivalent to whether they move forward but want to see them achieve what I felt was within their reach after the auditions. John attempted “Gravity” while Todrick took on “What’s Love Got To Do With It”. Neither is an easy songs as both require a lot of emotion and vocal control. “Gravity” needs a lot of restraint, but the latter calls for some diva, show-stopping moments. John has the vocal power for the song but lacked charisma. He’s just plain boring, and while Todrick can be entertaining, even if over the top at times, his vocals were all over the place. I wish I could meld them together, creating one performer because what one lacks, the other has. The judges noted that both performers did better this week, but who couldn’t raise the bar after it was set so low a mere seven days prior? Simon said to John, “I think Purple Haze may get their lead singer back.” But to Todrick (or as Simon called him – Tondrick), he said “move but don’t sing.” Ouch!

7. Casey James, last week, staked his position as a true singer, and this week it was all about showing he’s a damn good axeman too. I think “I Don’t Want To Be” is a great song with a catchy hook, but it didn’t show off his vocal ability. “Heaven” played nicely with his vibrato. Here, it made the dominant, vocal characteristic annoying. He also believed that he did something different, but the arraignment was almost exactly the same except for some sweet guitar riffs. Kara started off by proclaiming that we all know that ::eye roll:: “the cougar is a fan,” but she hit it on the nail that he didn’t focus on the singing. Simon said, Casey missed the grit the song required and was “more like sand.” And of course, Kara had to jump in and kiss Simon’s butt by likening it to be “more like dirt.”

6. Tim Urban shouldn’t be in the competition, but he is, and I think he did a great job of putting on a brave face and doing the best he can. It surely helps that the face is so darn cute. Did you hear those girly screams from the audience?  While he picked a better song for his voice, he didn’t attempt to change anything. This would be okay with me (because “Come On Get Higher” is an easy, feel-good song), but he also ended up sounding like the original down to the same inflections. None of the judges liked it, except Simon. Shocker! Simon thought he picked a better song and stacked up even better compared to some of the fuddy-duddy performances from the night and believed his positive attitude goes a long way.

5. Aaron Kelly was very Jonas Brothers-ey in his rendition of “My Girl”, without the talent to play a musical instrument and without their swagger. The fact that he has a nice voice is undeniable, and he looked way more confident on stage, but I wasn’t a fan of all the vibrato in his voice. Seriously, Aaron’s voice is usually a lot smoother. Kara thought it was great; I thought it was grating. Randy thought it was much better even though the second half blew. (He hit a horrible sharp high note and a flat finishing note.) Ellen thought he chose a forgettable song, and Simon thought the arraignment was too old-fashioned and boring (truth!) and that Aaron needed to channel more musically-defined Justin Bieber and pick something that shows the type of artist he wants to be.

4. Andrew Garcia has been a bit of a disappointment sure, but he’s still consistently miles ahead of all the other contestants. Remember Lil Rounds last season? She had frontrunner written on her forehead and a lot of hype following her from the Hollywood auditions and early rounds, but the judges were so hard on her because she had wowed them so much from the start. Maybe Andrew is being smart, realizing that he may need poor, early performances just to push that bar down lower. And if so, it was really smart to pick “You Give Me Something”. When did Idol become the James Morrison cover show? (Love him, but please don’t butcher him from here to the finale.) Honesty, it wasn’t bad, but it also wasn’t the best song choice for the tone of Andrew’s voice. As Randy pointed out he has soul, but he’s not a soul singer. Also though everyone has to put down their instrument at some point, without it this week, he was stiff and boring. Show me some emotion man! You have a wife and kid to draw on. In all her ramblings, Ellen wisely pointed out that he set the bar so high that it’s going to be extremely hard to top it, but he has to try.

3. I really missed the Lee Dewyze train in the beginning, but I am so on board now. Very few artist could make “Lips Of An Angel” an appealing song, and he did. Never the master technician, there were a few bum notes, but he has such a distinct, rocker voice and cool, laid-back vibe and always conveys the emotion behind the lyrics he’s singing. I couldn’t ask for much more. Simon claimed him to be the best singer on the boys side which is a tall order I’m not sure I’m ready to get behind. But Top 10 material? Most definitely.

2. Last week, Michael Lynche was that really cool friend you always begged to give an impromptu performance at 1am right before the party started to wind down. This week I saw less basement and more big stage star potential. Another contestant that I was never a huge fan of, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever see anything more than a ham, but this week he displayed a completely different (and stronger) side to his voice. “It’s A Man’s, Man’s, Man’s World” was originally done by James Brown, a music king who had both showmanship and a voice. Yet, Michael managed to lose the guitar, up the vocals and keep the song contemporary. (Save some smarmy moves which I can forgive.) Simon noted that he went from “being a pussycat to a lion in one week.” And Kara said, “I didn’t not get it…until tonight.” Me too, girl!

1. Alex Lambert is the most improved contestant so far.  His version of “Everybody Knows” was beautiful and touching, minus that final squeaker note. Kara was right when she said that it’s impossible not to root for him, especially seeing his progress in one short week. (The girl was, dare I say, on, in terms of her judging.) He’s awkward but oh-so adorable and looked way more comfortable with himself…most of the time. (Hey, baby steps!) If I had to choose someone, from this season’s boys, to listen to on repeat, it would be this kid. He has the talent and just needs some cultivation and some mullet chopping. Plus, it’s endearing to see someone get so far who’s performed in front of a crowd maybe three times in his life. It gives a lot of shy people some evidence that not only outgoing, over-the-top people become superstars and that there are reality TV celebs who aren’t clamoring to sell their first born for 15 minutes of fame.

WHAT YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT…
Casey didn’t have a TV set growing up after his dad broke it, a tradition that continued into adulthood so he’s never seen an episode of Idol. Alex throws up before football games and performing. Andrews is a mean breakdancer. Tim comes from a 10-kid family. Lee went to an alternative school, and now I’m more intrigued than ever about all the “trouble” he got into. Todrick should go back to dancing because from the clips we saw, he was pretty good.

TOP 10 GIRLS
10. Lacey Brown learned a hard lesson this week. Don’t listen to the judges. Her “Kiss Me” started out like a nice, near imitation of the original but unraveled as the song went on. The judges tried to avoid addressing that it was an awful suggestion. The song was one of those fluke, teen-inspired hits. (I know every word.) But it certainly doesn’t showcase  her voice or tell me who she wants to be. Simon was, obviously, the only one who saw things clearly, voicing that it wasn’t a memorable song choice or performance.

9. Haeley Vaughn definitely improved on her “nasaly” tone with “The Climb,” but it’s always the most emotional moments where you lose control. I didn’t think it was as bad as the judges felt it was. There were pitchy spots, but it sat more naturally with her than last week. I also hate that they keep telling her she’s not ready after putting her through over someone else who, I assume, was. Why not tell her to come back after some training and pick some one like Angela Martin? Don’t waste my time judges!

8. Michelle Delamour didn’t beat around the bush after getting the judge’s critques of predictability last week and picked Creed’s “Arms Wide Open.” The cahones automatically got her mega points in my book even though it was part disaster, part genius. She looked great and started off the song strong and confident, but I was waiting for that swelling moment to hit me, and it never did. She basically got my hopes up to let me down. My thoughts were more in line with Randy, but overall the judges loved her risk taking and felt she got it mostly right.

7. Didi Benami totally surprised me this week by picking “Lean On Me” because her voice is the antithesis of soulful and growly. It’s whimsical and lilted, and as Kara said, she lost that unique quality in her voice. Though her critiques were no harsher than anyone else‘s, she took it much harder than any criticized contestant since the audition rounds, bringing herself to tears. It was so uncomfortable you could hear a pin drop in the room. I don’t like when my favorite TV programs make me feel aaaaawwkward.

6. Katie Stevens channeled my recent musical desires. I’ve been blasting “Put Your Records On” on my way home from work for the last three days. Too bad she couldn’t convince me to pay $1.29 to add her version to my collection. Though she took the judges critiques and picked a more youthful song, Kara rightly stated that it’s a difficult one to perform live even though it’s fun to sing-along to. I still enjoy her voice. She’s has a great alto register and a beautiful falsetto in a sweet, peppy girl’s body, but I couldn’t tell you what type of music would suit her best, and Simon also felt that was her biggest problem.

5. Siobhan Magnus took a a step back this week. I could see “Think” covered back during the early Idol days, but recent seasons have been hipper and more contemporary. She definitely slam dunked the money shot, the crazy high note, but I felt she screeched a lot of it and it was too big a song for her. Randy, Ellen and Kara were all in awe, but Simon saw it more as a hit and miss performance. But she’s definitely becoming more and more likeable the more time she’s grilled on stage.

4. Paige Miles dared to take on “Walk Away” from the original American Idol. So far, I’m still choosing Kelly every time. Though now, I see what Simon felt when he said she had one of the best voices. Besides a few bad notes, her voice was powerful, on pitch and nice on the ears drums, but she wasn’t connecting to the song. And Kara, being one of the writers, picked up on that. Kelly is a pop rock princess with edge, and Paige was too bubbly.

3. Lilly Scott is one of my favorite‘s this season, and I‘m telling you that says a lot because I don‘t have many. I usually feel that Sam Cooke is untouchable, but if you’re going to attempt “A Change Is Gonna Come” you have to throw caution to the wind and do it your way, and Lilly did. All the judges loved that she came to the stage an ready-made artist much like Crystal. She may improve as she continues the Idol journey, but she will leave the same muscian as she entered while others struggle to find themselves. It puts me at ease. (As noted earlier with #7, a very good thing.) While all the other judges continued to gush though, I agreed with Simon that she oversang parts.

2. Crystal Bowersox ‘s illness caused an unexpected shakeup, but I wouldn’t have known if I had only tuned in for her performance. Each time she takes the stage, I like her more and more. Never do I feel like I’m watching someone try to be something, Crystal just is. With ”Long As I See The Light,” she solidified that she’s no Alanis Morrisette sound-a-like, with a gospel-inspired arrangement and turned in her best vocal to date. How Michael got Randy to stand and this didn’t kills me.

1. Katelynn Epperly continued to shake things up Boggle -tyle. She slowed down an already turtle-paced “The Scientist,” and I knew some people would snooze a bit, but I can’t lie. I was completely captivated. She showed emotion that I’d never seen and definitely wasn’t expecting from her. The judges were hard on her about the tempo which didn’t allow them to fully absorb that not only had she never sounded better, but she is also one of the best and most interesting voices in the bunch.

WHAT YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT…
Haeley cleared up much confusion by finally giving us the big clue as to why she probably sleeps with those headbands. She makes them herself. Crystal has a twin brother named Carl. Lacey likes to brag about how great she is at refurbishing furniture. Didi was her middle school mascot before becoming a cheerleader. Katelyn is pretty and smart. She went to school for recording engineering.

PARTING SHOTS
“When I fail, Simon is thrilled.” – Ryan
“And I’m constantly thrilled.” – Simon

“I’m a God-fearing person … I know God,” – Jermaine
“Then don’t even bother with the phone line,” Simon responded.

“It’s a really bad atmosphere in here.” – Simon

“I liked that you were playing guitar. Aaaah, you weren’t playing guitar. You were playing piano. Remember that time where you were playing the guitar?” – Ellen

“Once again, you’re such a strange person, and I mean that as a compliment.” - Simon to Sibhan