First off tonight, Ryan announces the last minute change in plans. The guys will perform tonight and the girls tomorrow because Crystal had to go to the hospital with an undisclosed sickness. This does give the guys one less day to rehearse... but Ryan did say "the guys agreed to switch".
Speaking of switching... Ellen switched seats this week. I wonder why that is? Did other people think that Ellen on the far end was as awkward as I thought it was?
Let's get to the performances!
Michael Lynche- "This Is A Man's World" : Michael shares with us about his musical theatre background. He had to do double duty with football and musical theatre. Sounds like the story line straight out of Glee! :-) Michael talks about last week's judges comments and how he agreed with them and they are "here to help us". He said he is choosing this song to show Simon how he has improved over last week. I don't think it was a very effective choice. A lot of the song is just speak-singing. It didn't allow him to really shine. It's really choppy and just didn't show a lot of power. I'm afraid, especially with it being the beginning of the show, that this performance might be forgotten by the time voting opens. I do have to say that Big Mike's look in the all black was good. It was definitely a step up from last week. I'm surprised with the judges comments. I felt like the comments were already scripted before he performed. Was that performance really worth all that praise? I personally don't think so... and that is coming from someone who has been a big fan of Big Mike so far.
OK... I really like John, and he really needs to shine this week. Last week was not good at all! We learn a bit about his background... that English is his second language. He also mentions his acapella group Purple Haze at Northwestern University. He talks about how hard it was to take the harsh judges comments last week. Well then John... let's knock this out of the park and get some good comments!!! First of all, as I said about Big Mike, the look is MUCH better this week. I think the casual jeans and white tshirt is good on him. I think that Shania would have told him he had a "good bottom end" in those jeans! LOL! Ok... I'll stop... and get on to the performance. It was better than last week, for sure, but still not a homerun like he needed. The song choice was more contemporary, but it almost showed how much more awkward he is. I'm wondering what genre he would go with as a musical artist. I don't think that John Mayer is it... but what is? The judges were pretty much in agreement that it was "better" but not great. Simon says that the performance is not authentic or special. He says that Purple Haze is going to get thier lead singer back this week.
We learn that Casey hasn't watched American Idol before, but has got the chance to go back and look at some previous performances of the song he's performing tonight. You all know I am not a fan of performing songs that been performed multiple times on Idol before... so if he does this Gavin DeGraw song, it better be good. Then, they show some clips showing Casey's "pre-show ritual"... where he's looking in some cardboard box. What's in the box? He said he will tell us if he makes the top 10. LAME. If that is a ploy to get people to vote for you, then you need to think of something better. So... the performance. I LOVED the electric guitar. He definitely has skills with that, and I really hope he continues to includge guitar in his future performances. I also liked his bluesy, acoustic guitar from Hollywood Week. The singing was good... but nothing too special. I think past performers (Elliot Yamin & especially Chris Richardson) have done better jobs with this song. Gavin DeGraw really puts some power into the original version, and I think he wasn't pushing the song enough. It was almost too easy for him I think. I agree with Simon and Kara's comments when they said he took two steps back tonight. Simon really hit it on the head when he said he didn't have the "grit" needed for the song. The "grit" is what I meant by not pushing the song with his power. There is no way Casey would go home this week... but I think it could habe been better.
Alex, Alex Alex... I know Ellen made a comment about it last week, but what is up with the mullet??!? Speaking of WTF moments, Alex tells us that he has his own made up language? Ummm, exsqueeze me? How does that help you? Weird. Then Alex talks about how nervous he gets being on stage because he hasn't performed much before. He is happy to be playing with his guitar this time around because it makes him feel more comfortable. So the performance? Call me crazy, but I actually really liked it this week! His voice definitely has a distinct quality about it, and finally he picked a song that was able to show that off. The song choice... the guitar... the acoustic-vibe... it is ALL an improvement. Before tonight, I would have thought he would be going home this week... but he is moving way up in my rankings this week. Ellen has my favorite comment of the night "Under that mullet is a Sam Cooke voice"! LOL. I also agree with Kara that its hard to not root for him. He's really likable and sweet... and I think if he would get rid of the mullet, he'd be much cuter and would get a lot more of the girl votes (away from Tim Urban... PLEASE!). I know there have only been four performances, but as of right now, this is the performance of the night.
OK... I don't know if the stylists were all sick last week... but so far all of the guys look MUCH better this week, including Todrick. The silver jacket and tie can't be pulled off my many people, but it works for him. We learn that Todrick was the first black Fritz to ever be in the Nutcracker at his performing arts school, and that has given him the confidence to know that he can do anything. I really think that is great... He talks about his dancing background, and that many good pop artists out there today sing and dance, and he's hoping he can infuse his talents to fall in line. I agree with him. But this is a singing competition... so you gotta have the chops. Again, I think Todrick's performance this week is a great improvement over last week's Kelly Clarkson mess. For being a dancer, his vocals were very much in key. When I heard he was going to be singing Tina Turner I was a bit worried, but I think he did pretty decent overall. He toned it down, and sang it well. I think its interesting that Randy told him to stop changing the arrangements of the songs. If he didn't, he would just fall back into obscurity like other contestants. Ellen encourages him to use his dance skills when he sings for future performances. Kara says she missed the Todrick she saw at his very first audition. Simon tells him he's getting it "completely and utterly wrong" and he should just stick to dancing. Hmmm... well I'm not ready to give up on him just yet. I still have confidence that he can be an entertaining part of this cast. He has no chance to win the whole thing though.... He could be in trouble.
I still am shocked that Jermaine made it through last week. We learn that Jermaine "rocks his onesie"... lol... pretty ridiculous... but he shows the one-peice pajama outfit that he wears because his dad keeps the house cold to lower the heat bills. LOL. I guess I give him credit for revealing such an embarassing part of his life. He talks about last week's judges comments and that he thinks Simon was way too harsh. Sorry Jermaine... but he wasn't. That performance of "Get Here" left me asking, what's going on? And... unsurprisingly, this weeks performance has me asking the same question. What's going on with him being cast in the top 12 guys? I think that the
other Jermaine (Jermaine Purifoy) should have made it through in his place. The notes are all over the place. He's trying to add rifts in to make it more exciting but it makes it more of a mess. He makes weird facial expressions (especially awkward during an iconic song like Whats Goin' On). I agree with the judges that he tries way too hard and that its forced. What I disliked more than his performance was his attitude. "I know God" he says.... OK... well does God have IDOLS-06 on speed dial? 'Cuz you're gonna need it.
Andrew Garcia- "You Give Me Somthing": Andrew breakdances? Wow. Some of these "things you may not know about me" are often predictable, but I didn't see him being a breakdancer! His moves were actually pretty good! He talks about his mis-step last week with "Sugar, You're Going Down". He's hoping to take the judges reccommendations and put them into this week's performance. Well... after hearing him sing, I hope he goes back to his old self and forgets what the judges tell him... because I really didn't like him much tonight. It's weird to not see Andrew without his guitar! Him taking unexpected songs and switching them with his acoustic guitar is his strong suit. I agree with the judges that he peaked with "Straight Up" during Hollywood Week. How can he get that spark back? He needs to stat! He really is good... and was easily one of the front runners... but did he peak too early? People say Adam Lambert peaked too early last year (he was his best around top 8/7/6) and that may have been what lost it for him last year. But to peak during Hollywood Week? We haven't seen that before. I highly doubt he'll go home... but he really needs to get his stuff together.
Aaron's "betcha-didn't-know" is that he loves photography. Wow. Shocker. This dorky, closeted kid loves photography? OK... I'll stop and be nice. He also talks about how Simon gave him a confidence booster last week? Would it show on stage? Well... I do have to admit that he came out looking a little more confident this week. He was deifnitely confident in his riffs and runs because EVERY NOTE was turned into TWENTY-SEVEN notes. It was a little annoying. He was trying wa-ay-ay-ay-aaaayyy toooo-ooo-oooo h-h-h-aaaaarrrrdddd. His voice definitely has a Rascally-Flattsish vibe to it, so I think maybe he needs to go more in the country direction with every song he sings. If he was smart, he would go in that direction, because country is really the only genre that engages Idol finalists that finish lower than 3rd or 4th (Bucky Covington, Kellie Pickler, etc....). Simon suggests that Aaron try to be more like Justin Beiber. That was weird. They are nothing alike. Then... Ryan has to put Aaron on the spot and ask him if he likes Justin Beiber. Really Ryan? Wasn't
Tim's surprise fact is that he has a big family? C'mon... really? There is nothing more exciting about you? Jermaine can't sing worth a damn, but he at least supplied us something fun with the whole onesie thing. Tim also relives Simon's slam last week telling him he shouldn't have made the top 12. Well... it was true because last week was a disaster. This week? Actually not a complete disaster. It's because he picked a much, much better song for his voice. I was actually surprised that it didn't have as many sour notes as I expected. Although it was better, it wasn't anything special. I was happy to see Ellen get a little more blunt with her commentary... telling him that singing is not his thing. I agree. He's cute... has a great smile... I think he should stick with modeling and maybe acting... but there's no way he's going to be a huge pop star. He's too Kris Allen-ish, without the Kris Allen vocals.
Lee DeWyze- "Lips of an Angel": I actually really liked Lee's video package this week. I enjoyed that he talked about the fact that he's made bad choices in the past. Even with those bad choices, he knows deep down he's a good person. He is really hoping to make an impact this week with no guitar... and with a changed up arrangement of this Hinder song. The song choice was pretty appropriate. I still think his voice just sounds a bit too underdeveloped. There is no way he'll be able to survive all the different theme weeks of the top 12 without sounding rough. I personally didn't really like it. The judges seem to think it was good though. In fact, Simon says he's the best singer out of the guys? REALLY SIMON? I haven't heard it! Does anyone else disagree?
Here are my
personal rankings for the guys this week:
1. Alex Lambert
2. Casey James
3. Andrew Garcia
4. Tim Urban
5. Lee Dewyze
6. Michael Lynce
7. John Park
8. Todrick Hall
9. Aaron Kelly
10. Jermaine Sellers
Predictions are tough... because tonight was pretty horrible for these guys. It really could be anybody (except Alex... and the people who were front runners before tonight like Andrew and Casey). I predict (and hope) that one of the two to go home is Jermaine. I'm over him, and surprised he lasted through last week. Unfortunately, I also think that tonight might be the last for John. I really like him and think he has potential... but he just hasn't made a strong impact just yet. I wouldn't be surprised if Todrick goes either... but I doubt that two African-American males would be eliminated in the same night. So my prediction for Thursday's evictions are
Jermaine Sellers and
John Park.
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