American Idol 9: Discussion & Poll (FM Theme Night?)

[skcin]

^For once, we agree.

I would switch out Haeley & Paige though. Haeley's adorable, but all over the place & very screechy at times. I like Paige alot. I agree about Katie - I actually think she can sing, but I'm not a fan of the tone of her voice or her in general.

[TrueFaith77]

Originally Posted by skcin

I agree about Katie - I actually think she can sing, but I'm not a fan of the tone of her voice or her in general.

What's with that? I remember seeing youtube clips of her in pre-Idol research. And she sounded good. But for some reason on this show, even though she's on pitch, the TONE of her voice is profoundly unpleasant to me. Like I cringe. And that's even when I'm not looking at her cheesy facial expressions.

[DefDumbandBlond]

Rhiannon killed tonight

[TrueFaith77]

^^^by killed, I assume you mean that the singer killed all the meaning in the song? LEAVE STEVIE ALONE, IDOL! LEAVE HER ALONE!!!

[Travis]

A girl sang Rhiannon last night? That'll be something of interest to see when I get home. I decided to set the DVR for last night's Idol mainly because it's so weird to see Ellen totally out of her element. Watching Ellen on Idol (with the few clips that I have seen) is so uncomfortable. I’m not invested in this season at all, in fact, I’ve only set the DVR twice for Idol just out of curiosity, I haven’t even watched the performances, except for Casey and Tim Urban – I find myself forwarding thru them just to hear the judges comments and to watch Simon at how visibly annoyed he is having Ellen there. They hired a comedian and now have a comedy show, unintentionally.

[TrueFaith77]

Siobhan Magnus - She turned "House of the Rising Sun" into an vocal exercise (complete with a capella intro) and, thus, dramatized its Oedipal challenge (note the homonymn "Sun/Son")--making sonic beauty out of her father's musical influence and other hereditary burdens.


Crystal Bowersox - She gets my first "smiley" because, really, this isn't my sorta thing, but I can't deny that it was a catchy and professional and personal take on a proven catchy song. Still, I'd dare her to show the range (of genres) of Siobhan.


Lacey Brown - Pretty voice, but not even close to the revelation of Alex last week.
Katelyn Epperly - At first, I thought this was the first ever Idol suicide--a cry for help. Instead, it was just a major mistep from one of my favorite voices and contestants.
Didi Benami - Stevie Nicks'/Fleetwood Mac's "Rhiannon" is about a desire and longing that threatens to sweep you away: a powerful moral Romantic vision. She reduced the song's meaning to a platform for her puny talent. Consider: she and Siobhan should have switched songs!
Lilly Scott - And, now, Lilly has become a parody of herself.


Paige Miles - From Charlie Chaplin to Michael Jackson, this is a song whose beneficence must be EARNED by the performer--thus the song's vocal and melodic difficulty.
Katie Stevens - She has the most unpleasant voice I think I've ever heard.

[Dodfather]

I LOVED Crystal Bowesox! Tracy Chapman meets a young Melissa Etheridge...
Lily Scott was really good too. Giver her some credit for being different, people. How many 20yo's would sing Patsy Cline? Good on her for beiong different and mixing it up. Remember she also did Fixing A Hole and A Change Is Gonna Come. I like the scope of her musical influences. It;s much better than hearing another young pop wannabe singing Miley Cyrus or Jason Mraz (I liked I'm Yours until everyone started doing it..)

[TrueFaith77]

Here's how I now rank the field:

1. Siobhan Magnus
2. Tim Urban
3. Alex Lambert
4. Aaron Kelly
5. Crystal Bowersox
6. Katlyn Epperly

I don't really care about any of the others. Of those 6 that I like, I predict 4 will make the top 12--which is an unusually high ratio in Idol.

As for last night:

HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Tim Urban - Finally liberating Leonard Cohen from Jeff Buckley's now-ubiquitous porno rendition! The most moving performance of the season--and the year's best male performance. ALSO the year's best guitar picking! Riveting performance--brand new inflections; each one right and touching. Catapulted to the top of the men's heap. And that's why he's going home. The h8ters always win out in Idol season.


Alex Lambert - While I'm watching and listening to it, it's beautiful (that tone!) but aftewards, unlike last week, it was forgettable.
Aaron Kelly - His power vocals are always rousing.


Michael Lynche - IT'S A KATE BUSH SONG!!! KATE BUSH --->KATE BUSH<--- KATE BUSH Who da f*** is Maxwell? (As for the performance, arguably second most consistent vocal of the night--Alex being best--but Michael is all affectation while Tim Urban is the real deal.)
Lee DeWyze - Every other note is a bum one.
Casey James - I was gonna rank him higher because there was nothing really awful about his vocal, but I relistened to the original hit song by Keith Urban and . . . Casey "sucked the life" out of it. And Tim Urban outshined his guitar playing.
Todrick Hall - The verses were dead in the water, but the gospelized melisma wasn't too out of tune.


Andrew Garcia - A new impossible low in the history of the show. Awful vocal in every way, plus the constant reiteration to "rub me the right way" nearly made me puke. The only performance I couldn't watch a second time.

[HejiraNYC]

Originally Posted by TrueFaith77

Here's how I now rank the field:

1. Siobhan Magnus
2. Tim Urban
3. Alex Lambert
4. Aaron Kelly
5. Crystal Bowersox
6. Katlyn Epperly

I don't really care about any of the others. Of those 6 that I like, I predict 4 will make the top 12--which is an unusually high ratio in Idol.

As for last night:

HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Tim Urban - Finally liberating Leonard Cohen from Jeff Buckley's now-ubiquitous porno rendition! The most moving performance of the season--and the year's best male performance. ALSO the year's best guitar picking! Riveting performance--brand new inflections; each one right and touching. Catapulted to the top of the men's heap. And that's why he's going home. The h8ters always win out in Idol season.


Alex Lambert - While I'm watching and listening to it, it's beautiful (that tone!) but aftewards, unlike last week, it was forgettable.
Aaron Kelly - His power vocals are always rousing.


Michael Lynche - IT'S A KATE BUSH SONG!!! KATE BUSH --->KATE BUSH<--- KATE BUSH Who da f*** is Maxwell? (As for the performance, arguably second most consistent vocal of the night--Alex being best--but Michael is all affectation while Tim Urban is the real deal.)
Lee DeWyze - Every other note is a bum one.
Casey James - I was gonna rank him higher because there was nothing really awful about his vocal, but I relistened to the original hit song by Keith Urban and . . . Casey "sucked the life" out of it. And Tim Urban outshined his guitar playing.
Todrick Hall - The verses were dead in the water, but the gospelized melisma wasn't too out of tune.


Andrew Garcia - A new impossible low in the history of the show. Awful vocal in every way, plus the constant reiteration to "rub me the right way" nearly made me puke. The only performance I couldn't watch a second time.

It finally dawned on me why I thought Aaron Kelly looked so familiar to me:

[Lee]

Originally Posted by Dodfather

I LOVED Crystal Bowesox! Tracy Chapman meets a young Melissa Etheridge...
Lily Scott was really good too. Giver her some credit for being different, people. How many 20yo's would sing Patsy Cline? Good on her for beiong different and mixing it up. Remember she also did Fixing A Hole and A Change Is Gonna Come. I like the scope of her musical influences. It;s much better than hearing another young pop wannabe singing Miley Cyrus or Jason Mraz (I liked I'm Yours until everyone started doing it..)

I like Crystal, too. She's the best out of the girls/women. JMO but I think Lilly, Lacey & sometimes Didi sound alike. I don't if it's just me or not. And I'm not sure why there seems to be a Fleetwood Mac song sung every week, but I think they just need to stop.

As for the guys, I like Big Mike right now. I don't know why; I think because maybe he reminds me of Reuben. Mike didn't bring me to tears though. And Casey is a close second to me. I used to like Andy Garcia, but if he keeps taking a woman's song & singing it slow, he's going to lose me. Do something different. Alex is slowing starting to grow on me. Just hope he doesn't get sick.

Lee

[skcin]

^ Didi & Lacey do sound very similar sometimes, it's not just you.

I was shocked at how much I liked Didi's Rhiannon. I really, really loved it. Lacey did a fantastic job on The Story too (one of my favorite tunes by one of my favorite artists, Brandi Carlisle.) Crystal is amazing & Siobhan gave a great performance.

Any of the rest can go. I like Katelyn, but she was dull & cheesy this week. I think Katie & Paige will go.


Boys? Nobody impressed me that much this week. But I didn't hate Todrick's "Somebody To Love," and I was sure I would. Same for Tim's "Hallelujiah." Casey was solid but boring. Aaron was so painfully off key at the start I couldn't bear it.

I think Aaron will go, and maybe Alex.

[TrueFaith77]

Awww poor Alex. Oh well, at least my beloved Siobhan and Tim made it. THAT NEVER HAPPENS. My early faves have never made the top 12 in the history of Idol!

[Lee]

Well, I shouldn't be, but I was. Lilly & Alex gone? That shocked me. I thought they were both gaining popularity. I always read the Idol boards for reaction & most people were shocked. They think Crystal was either mad or sick or maybe both. I watched her reaction, too. I think she was just sad, but I think they all were. Elimination night is not a pleasant night. Ryan's comment about Big Mike fitting on a stool was uncalled for, JMO.


Lee

[bluefox4000]

Ryan should be electro-shocked for his own good. intolerable

Anyway I was so shocked about Alex and Lily. Loved them both

Mick

[HejiraNYC]

Poor Alex. There was something refreshingly "off" but sincere about him. I suspect that there is a bit of "slow adult"-ness going on there (and it's not only because he is a 19-year-old high school student). You could see it in his eyes and mannerisms- there definitely seems to be nothing going on at home except for a floor lamp on a timer. And the fact that he could sing as well as he could seemed almost like an idiot-savant move a la Susan Boyle- it's just pure raw talent. And you can't hate a guy who can rock a bowl haircut and a mullet at the same time!