Season 9 Begins

It is Rolling Stones night on Idol, and I finally feel like we are going to see what this top 12 is made of. The pressure is on with the big stage and the 450 fans, so let’s break this down, shall we?


Michael Lynche ('Miss You').
I love Michael; he has that great personality that comes over well in his film. He actually is pretty successful bringing an R & B feel to this tune, and his falsetto is flawless. The dancing, however, looked pretty goofy to me. At moments it felt like a hoe down, but if I closed my eyes (because I really wanted him to stop those silly dance moves) he had a great vocal that didn’t fall off at any point in the performance. Randy thought it was a great way to start the show. Ellen asked “what is not to love about that”? Kara was thrilled that he came out with swagger. Simon thought he sounded good and was glad he has confidence but that the dancing was a little desperate. At this point Ryan questions Simon about what he would like to see Michael do, and Simon asks “do you want me to talk to you or to Michael”? Then we began an uncomfortable exchange between Ryan and Simon that got up close and personal. Let the American Idol filler begin.
Didi Benami ('Play with Fire').
I have been a Didi fan from day one, and she did nothing tonight to disappoint me. Her vocal showed all of the interesting qualities about her voice, but with this song choice she was able to portray a different side to her personality. There were one or two moments when she dropped a word and I got nervous that she was going to lose the lyrics, but she picked it instantly back up both times. Randy told her that she was on fire tonight. Ellen brought up that she got lost but found her way and thought it was great. Kara liked the darkness of the song and the intensity she brought to it. Simon is beginning to see where she is going as an artist but tells her she still has a few things to work out.
Casey James ('It's All Over Now').
Now I am getting excited because we have had three good vocals in a row. We have got us a competition here! This is the kind of music Casey should be singing, songs with a touch of the blues. These kinds of performances make his voice sound its very best. The vocal was solid and I enjoyed his performance, but in the same way I enjoy hearing a really good band at the neighborhood blues bar. I am not sure that Casey is an American Idol. He isn’t a big enough risk taker. He also hasn’t proven to me that he has something unique to offer. I really enjoyed him tonight, and he should be just fine, but I don’t know that he has staying power once some of the weaker competitors are eliminated. Randy thought he brought the old Casey back. Ellen thought it was fantastic. Kara thought he was a Rock Star, but Simon wasn’t sold. He thought Casey needed to push himself to a better use of that big stage and a more memorable performance. Kara told him to swing the amp around next time.
Lacey Brown ('Ruby Tuesday').
Lacey’s film was really endearing, and her dad’s pride brought a tear to my eye. The song is the perfect choice to showcase that haunting tone of her voice. I am not sure if it was the strings that threw her off pitch, but she hit some notes that were bordering on painful. The arrangement was interesting, although Gary liked the rushing of the verse much better than I did. Lacey does have something about her that draws you in. It is probably those gorgeous eyes. She just is really inconsistent with the vocal, and it is singing competition. I would be pretty disappointed to pay for a concert of someone who sang half the songs off key. Randy was pleasantly surprised. Ellen didn’t understand her decision to sit down as the song was building in drama. Kara said it was 50/50 for her and Simon thought it was all too acted out and she needed to let go.
Andrew Garcia ('Gimmee Shelter').
The funniest part of Andrew’s film was the fact that his dad thought he was going to be a custodian when he grew up because he had a key collection. The entire time his dad was being interviewed, Andrew’s mother was staring at her own nose. This song was much stronger on the verse than on the refrain, where it seemed to be overpowered by the background singers. He also seemed to have issues staying on key on the refrain, but he did have better intensity than the last couple of performances. Poor Andrew needs to break free of the Straight Up performance and do something unique and do it quick. I did like his voice at times in this number, but he has to find a way to capture the audience again. Randy said it wasn’t great. Ellen thought it was his best performance yet. Kara thought he lacked a connection and an understanding that the lyrics were about war. Simon asked Kara if she thought he should have brought a tank onstage with him, and accused her of being too literal. Simon thought he gave it 100% and hoped he survived another week.
Katie Stevens ('Wild Horses').
This song started off so great, with an intensity and commitment that I hadn’t seen in Katie yet. She stayed on key and she finally seemed like she had found herself in this particular piece of music. Unfortunately the arrangement choices as the song progressed were not my favorite. They chose to repeat the refrain WAY TOO MANY TIMES instead of going into another verse, but she did have a couple of really nice Idol moments with big notes. There was growth there, finally. Randy thought she had a strong performance. Ellen had the opposite opinion that I did and thought she started pitchy but ended it amazingly well. Kara said she is never technically perfect but thought she was going in the right direction. Simon thought she 100% chose the right song and that it was a job well done.
Tim Urban ('Under My Thumb').
Oh Tim. I found myself watching the film and really pulling for him, he is a completely likable guy. The vocal was fine, he actually sounded pretty strong and comfortable, but it was the Reggae beat that I couldn’t quite figure out. People will like or hate that one, and I have a feeling the predominant feeling will be the latter. Randy didn’t like it. Ellen felt like she was at a resort. Kara applauded him for doing something incredibly different, but Simon told him that it just didn’t work. I think we will be forced to hear that version one more time.
Siobhan Magnus ('Paint it Black').
As this competition goes on, Siobhan appears to get more comfortable, more focused and I think she might be a whole lot smarter than she comes off sometimes in her film clips. She looked absolutely stunning, and while delivering an intensely dramatic vocal, she seemed to have a perfect understanding of where the cameras were at all times. It was a star performance. Randy said it was HOT. Ellen loved it. Kara was flashing back to Adam from last season and said it was the best interpretation of the music yet. Simon said it was a standout performance that would get people talking, which was a good position to be in.
Lee DeWyze ('Beast of Burden').
If Lee can let the nerves go, he could possibly end up in the top three in this competition. He made this song sound better than the original, and I thought his vocal was almost perfect. Randy thought it was one of his better performances and Ellen thought it sounded great. Kara saw tremendous growth, but Simon thought it was a safe song. He told him with that incredibly good voice, he needed to come on the stage, choose a song that would give him a moment and make his mark on the competition. I think that was Simon’s way of saying he really liked it too.
Paige Miles ('Honky Tonk Woman').
I am just not a huge Paige fan, although in this song she did manage to hit the big notes. It was so much better than “Smile” last week, so I am thinking if she survived that song she will for sure survive this one. It was just not that memorable of a song. Randy thought she did alright but wished her energy was stronger. Ellen thought she sounded amazing, especially if you considered that she had laryngitis all week. Kara applauded her since she barely had rehearsal and had such a strong performance. Simon thought the performance was very old fashioned, but he was glad to hear the big voice again. He didn’t feel a connection, so overall it was not the best critique.
Aaron Kelly ('Angie').
This was really beautiful. I was surprised after last week, that he had this kind of performance in him. Everything about it worked, even thought the words to the song are intended for someone older, and I was worried that Kara would bring that up. Randy thought he was hot (how many times have we heard that tonight?). Ellen thought it was beautiful. Kara reminded him that she beat him up pretty bad last week, but he came back and showed her. Simon told him that he chose the right song and that it was his strongest performance to date.
Crystal Bowersox ('You Can't Always Get What You Want').
Poor Crystal, there is so much anticipation and hype that precedes the girl coming on stage each week. Who could ever live up to it all of the time? Her natural talent was on auto-pilot this time around, and while vocally it was still miles better than a lot of the other singers, it wasn’t able to top some of the other songs she had already performed. Randy said it was awesome, but not his favorite. Ellen told her to let herself have fun with the song. Kara agreed with Ellen, and said she has the singing down, but the performance could be more engaging. Crystal confessed that her head wasn’t where it should have been when she came out there. She has a lot on her mind. Simon told her that it was the first time she was ever beaten on that stage, and that she was second to Siobhan tonight. He offered it as a warning that she can't think she has the competition won, to which she replied, "I have never thought that...but thank you for saying it".
My bottom three singers this week are Paige, Tim, and Andrew with Tim making his exit. Of course this will start getting harder to call as we go along. Tune in tonight…..