It’s Disco Night on Idol and expectations are high for some (Adam and Lil) and not so high for others (Matt and Kris). Over all, I was underwhelmed with tonight’s show. The more I think about it, perhaps they should do away with theme nights all together. Make Idol a free for all – give it your best shot – sing your best stuff and who ever gets the most votes wins. I dunno. There are strengths for every person and singing something like disco really makes for a skewed show. I suppose that is to expose the artists as something other than one dimensional which is I guess the point but I digress… On to the performances….Lil Rounds – I’m Every Woman : WHO is voting for this girl?? Tell me. I’d really like to know. If the numbers over at dialidol.com are to be believed, Lil should be safe tomorrow. Of course as of this writing, only the East, Central and Mountain time zones are voting but she’s ahead of Gokey? Seriously!? The problem I have with her singing this song was not the song. The song was a good one. It was how she sang it. I felt like the back up singers were out singing her. They took over the chorus leaving Lil to ooh and aah and try to keep up. I was majorly bummed about her. She’s been disappointing week in and week out. I just think it’s her time…let her go. She’s not getting the advice. She is talking back to the judges and sounding more and more like a whiner. Drives me nuts.Kris Allen – She Works Hard For The Money : Wow. I was not expecting this. Actually, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I think of disco and I think polyester and dancing. This song choice was very unexpected. The arrangement was totally different so it fit Kris’ style. It totally worked. Kris gets it. Danny Gokey – September : I never knew what the heck Earth Wind and Fire were saying when they sang this song. Now I know. 
Yes, Danny’s performance skills are green when compared to the schooled and experienced Adam. But there is no denying that his vocals are strong. His voice lends to the contemporary music that was once made popular by Michael Bolton. There are some that will cringe because of that but hate him or not, Bolton was hot some years ago (his music, folks) and Danny really could have a future singing that kind of stuff. He’s certainly trying when it comes to performing. He can rest easy with his vocal ability but he really needs to step it up when it comes to performing the song and he needs to find a wow song. It’s now or never.Allison Iraheta – Hot Stuff : I didn’t like this song. It was way too slow. I kept waiting for it to get going and it never did. Allison’s vocals were great but they far out matched the quality of the song and it let it so disjointed for me. I wasn’t impressed by it at all but think that Allison is one of the two (the other is Kris) who understands the criticism from the judges and are authentic to who they are (well, so is Adam…). Adam Lambert – If I Can’t Have You : I really liked this performance. It was shaping up to be one of my favorite Adam performances until he screamed in the middle. I didn’t like that. I wish he held back just a bit. It’s getting kinda cliche and predictable for him. I am also not sure if I am supposed to be impressed when a person acts out the emotion of the song. Is that part of this competition? I thought it was about the singing but I guess not. I am thinking that theatrics are playing a key role here but folks, this is about getting a record deal and hearing yourself on the radio. You can’t see Adam in your radio – again, another performance best appreciated being viewed and heard and not just heard.Matt Giraud – Staying Alive : This wasn’t good. I can’t think of a song that would have worked for Matt and so I think this week was just the prolonging of the inevitable for Matt. He’s not going to survive it. This really was not a good night to showcase the vocals. No matter how much Randy says how talented the singers are this year, there are limits and Matt has reached his.Anoop Desai – Dim All the Lights : Yeesh! That was painful to listen to this week. Anoop knew he was in trouble the minute he blew that last note and he had several in this droning awful performance. The song was yuck. The slow then fast arrangement was yuck. His look was yuck. This week’s bottom three will be a repeat of last week. Anoop, Matt and Lil…the question is can Lil put off her demise another week? That remains to be seen. Tomorrow night… looking forward to David Archuleta!! That will be the highlight of the show.
I unfortunately, was not able to watch AI last night. But luckily TiVo exists so I didn’t miss a thing..to all the morons out there who don’t know how to use TiVo…you CAN set up your recordings to start early and end later. That way you won’t miss your precious shows. I wish Idol will quit changing things to accommodate people who can’t figure out these things. They should stick to things that work…such as three judges…Kara? Not needed. I couldn’t care less for what Paula says but who does? We watch her because she’s unpredictable and most of the time high and let’s get real, we like it when Paula is high. What is up with Randy’s wardrobe? I don’t get the Indian love beads/friendship necklace thing he’s wearing week in and week out and those stupid wall clocks he wears on his wrist are HUGE! Randy’s not a small guy so for a watch to be big on him, it’s gotta be huge. His sweater last night looked like it was patched together from naval flags. Simon? I can’t bemoan the things that Simon says when it comes to his critique of the music. I generally agree with him most of the time. However, he and the other judges are beyond rude to each other. I think the show could shave off a lot of that wasted time if the judges would just shut up with their insults and get to the task at hand and that is critiquing the performers. The show has veered from being about the performers to being about the judges. Lame. Now for the performers…Allison Iraheta — Don’t Want To Miss A Thing: This was a good song choice for Allison although I felt like she held back when she should have really given more. The hook of the song was much better than the beginning verses and I think she should have put a little more emotion into the beginning. That said, however, this was pretty good and should keep her around (hopefully).Anoop Desai — Everything I Do: I dunno..I wasn’t sure about this but Anoop ended up working it out by the end of the song. He started off kinda shaky but it really ended up being a controlled and pretty vocal which was arguably one of his best yet. He could really be a good vocalist as he’s got the voice for commercial music. His look however hasn’t evolved from that geeky college kid and it’s kinda annoying. He’s not like David Archuleta who in his youth can rest on the tween vote and admiration. Age wise he’s not in between being a boy and a man so his dressing like “boy” isn’t very realistic. Anoop needs to man up.Adam Lambert — Born to Be Wild: What can I say? This performance was predictable Adam. He didn’t hold back and it was enjoyable to watch. The only part that was weird for me was the chorus. It almost seemed like Adam didn’t know what to do here so he did whatever. When he got away from the chorus is when he shined the most. I totally think he should have sung Welcome to the Jungle by Guns and Roses. Still, I am not sensing commercial radio appeal here. I had a chance to hear his performance on the radio last week and it just didn’t translate. In order to truly appreciate Adam the singer, you need to see Adam the performer and that is why his successes will be on the stage but not necessarily in the arena of music sales. That is why I compare him to Taylor Hicks…vocally they are worlds apart but stage presence wise, they are the same. You need to SEE them to appreciate them. American Idol? No. Broadway Idol? YES.Danny Gokey — Endless Love: I am seriously sick of people dissing Danny about his deceased wife. I read the boards prior to watching the show and all they said were that he got the “pimp spot” with Ryan on the chairs prior to his performance and how sorry we’re supposed to feel because of his dead wife. Um, folks…dead wife not mentioned. Danny bought a guitar and has no intention of using on the show. That was gist. Then they were ticked that Simon brought up the dead wife. Again…dead wife not mentioned…”song means a lot to you” yes..that was said. “You’re very emotional”..yep, that was said, too. Dead wife? No. Is the song emotional? Sure. You’re singing about love..not just puppy love..but deep abiding love. Wouldn’t that translate better with emotion? We aren’t in Danny’s head! We don’t know what he was thinking about. Maybe he was missing his glasses and the song was about that. Whatever! People suck. The song was corny now as it was back then when Lionel Richie and Diana Ross sang it. But Danny did right by it. I am not sure how he could have changed it up like David Cook did to his version of Lionel Richie’s “Hello”…I mean, David Cook is a rocker and can play guitar. Danny is a vocalist. I think he did what he could. He made it sound masculine. It was good. Was it WOW “great?” Nah…but it was very good. Matt Giraud — Have You Ever Loved a Woman: I don’t think Matt’s performance was nearly as bad as Kara and Randy said it was. However, I did think it was kind of a yawner. Wouldn’t it have been cool if he sang Great Balls of Fire?? He could have done his dueling piano thing – standing up and banging on the keys with his feet or something. He needs to inject a little Adam into his performances. He is in danger tonight.Kris Allen — Falling Slowly: I have never heard this song. Kris gave a sweet vulnerable performance but half the lyrics I couldn’t understand what he was saying..he either barely said the words or slurred them..it was weird. I was turned off because I wasn’t sure what he was singing. I was like MEH!! Disappointing…He could be looking at bottom 3 for this one.. 
Lil Rounds — The Rose: Blech!!!! Seriously…Lil should shut up. I can’t stand them talking back to the judges. Simon keeps telling her what she needs to do and she keeps ignoring his advice. She doesn’t get it! He WANTS her to do well. If I didn’t know better, I think he wants her to win but knows she’s got no chance now. She seriously stands in danger of being eliminated tonight because she can’t get it through her thick skull that she is picking the worst songs ever to sing. She needs to engage the audience and pull us in and all she manages to do is sound like a pretty imitation of the original. It doesn’t matter that she puts a little R&B and gospel spin to the music. All we care about is if you’re going to get in our face and sing as if you’re life depended on it. You’re turning into a bathroom break kinda singer, Lil! That sucks cuz you have such potential to be really great but you’re boring the heck out of me. Why you’re still there is a mystery. Fire whoever is consulting you!Who’s going home? Well, it will be between Matt, Kris and either Anoop or Lil. I think it could be Anoop although judging by his performance vs. Lil’s he should stay. Lil should go. But she will probably hang on much to our chagrin. Finally, Quintin Tarintino? He kinda creeps me out..he reminds me of that big guy with the silver teeth who played Jaws in James Bond.. I don’t really get why he was mentoring singers. I get the whole directing the stage performance thing but I dunno..I thought it was weird..
Danny Gokey – Stand By Me: Danny is like a comfortable shoe. He’s dependable. I can usually count on him to give a solid performance. I like his voice. He’s got a good look. He can appeal to different people. He’s what you call commercial. His voice is something you could hear on a radio – adult contemporary/easy listening, etc. But since Hollywood he hasn’t given the WOW yet. To his credit, he has been consistent. To his benefit, the others (with the exception of Adam) haven’t been at his level of ability. Danny shouldn’t get too comfortable. Although he has pretty much got a spot in the final 2 nailed down, he’s skidding by the same ol’ same ol’. And that can still work for him but I think he’s got to have one moment where he knocks everyone on their butt. This performance wasn’t it for me. Although I did like how the song evolved going from a very slow beginning building to an up tempo number. Kris Allen – All She Wants To Do Is Dance: Kris is my pick to ruin everything for Danny and Adam. He has been consistently upping his game…until this week. I just did not like this version of the song. Of all the songs he could have chosen, why this? Simon was right. It was forgettable and boring. He’s in danger of losing everything he has spent the last few weeks building. Dialidol.com at this hour has him losing to Scott (!!!) and going home tomorrow. I hope that doesn’t happen because if it does, the others may as well join him and we should have the finale next week because, what’s the point of the next month?Lil Rounds – What’s Love Got To Do With It: This was so predictable. I just don’t know what else to say. Like Danny, Lil has been consistent but not in a good way. She’s been consistent with terrible outfits and consistent with crappola song choices. Lil’ Rounds certainly could have performed this Tina Turner song well and she did “okay” but she mimicked everything about the original and frankly, I couldn’t stand the original when it was originally released. I wondered then what the big deal was and it wasn’t until later that I found out that Tina Turner was 100 years old and rocking out. Oh, so that’s why! Sheesh. Lil just can’t get it together and it’s so frustrating because she was given such a broad category for the past two weeks and has picked the wrong thing both times. It’s just …well, she gives no hope for the female contestants this year. They’re done for.Anoop Desai – True Colors: Anoop singing Cindy Lauper? !(^(@^!(@^%!(@! Doggonit..he should have just sang Girls Just Want to Have Fun. Now THAT would have been a moment. Was it vocally “good”..I suppose but blech..I dunno. I just didn’t like it. Scott MacIntyre — The Search is Over: This song was one of my favorites when it was originally released by Survivor. It was sung so manly and it said all the right things that you wanted to hear a guy say to a girl. And then you get a blind guy singing about looking into your eyes and seeing forever and all you want to say is “Dude, you’re looking into my ear and you can’t see jack!” I know that’s mean and I like Scott…his personality is cute but c’mon…if he hadn’t been blind, he wouldn’t be on the show. This isn’t a Miss Congeniality contest!! The man certainly has musical talent but it’s not as a singer. Let’s call it good and put us out of our misery, ok?Allison Iraheta — I Can’t Make You Love Me: Allison listened to the judges and slowed it down – waaaay down with this Bonnie Rait (sp) song. I don’t think you could get any slower. She really did nail it. It was quite good. But Allison just isn’t connecting with people. It’s that divisive hair and ugly clothes. Seriously. Also, the lyrics to this song were WAY too sophisticated for her. She’s not grown up enough to be singing this type of song. She should be ok because talent wise she deserves to stay. On a side note…isn’t the title to the song kinda ironic. Maybe Adam should have sung this instead.Matt Giraud – Part-Time Lover: I cringed when I heard that Matt would sing this. I am sick of Stevie Wonder. Why not rename this the American Idol (but only if you can sing Stevie Wonder)? But… Matt did ok. It wasn’t as horrible as I thought it would be. His stupid hat covered the awkward portion of his head. So it was ok. I don’t think it will catapult him into the top spot over Adam but he should be okay…maybe. What do I know?Adam Lambert – Mad World: Sigh… Well, first…Adam looked like a boy tonight. Points for effort there. I appreciated it. I also appreciated the restraint he gave in the song. I think he only squealed once and I was grateful. I was hoping he’d sing Soft Cell’s Tainted Love. 1982 was a while back…I was 10 but I could remember stuff from that year…but I just could not remember this song. Half way through I was like what IS this song? What the heck is he singing? I thought he was singing that one song from a couple weeks ago again – it sounded the same to me. The only difference was he was on the stage alone and they had him in blue light the whole time. This week a betting website listed him the odds on favorite to win this year. In fact, if you bet on him, you won’t make much because it’s that certain he’ll win. Well, ok. Let’s reign in the hype and call it a day. The competition is over. Not so fast… Was the performance good? Yes. It was good. Did it deserve the ever rare (if not first time EVER) standing ovation from Simon? No way. I mean, is it leaps and bounds over Bo Bice’s acapella number from Season 5 or Fantasia’s show stopping emotional number or David Cook’s performance of Billie Jean? No. It was not. It ranked among them but c’mon! Adam is very theatrical. Nothing he does is done without calculating movements, emotion and vocal projection. Adam certainly is well trained in the art of being on stage. But I think his whole schtick misses the point of the show. Although he could very well win this whole thing, how likely will it be for his album to mirror the commercial success of Kelly Clarkson or Carrie Underwood or Chris Daughtry? I don’t think it could. His just isn’t a voice I would turn the radio on for. The lateness of the show was an embarrassing blunder for the producers. They let Kara speak too much to the other contestants and really did nobody any favors by handing the miniscule moment for Simon to respond. And standing O??? Seriously? Adam may have wicked range. He may keep you guessing week to week on what he’ll sing. But there’s a manipulative stench in the air this year that stinks stinks STINKS. And it’s seated at a table at the foot of the Idol stage.Who’s going home? My guess for Bottom Three would be Scott, Anoop and Kris. I certainly hope Kris isn’t there but his song choice was poor. I am bored with Anoop. I feel sorry for Scott. I wish both would stop talking back to the judges. Maybe we should just send them both home.
