The American Idol Thread

[dws1982]

Taylor: Boring song choice, and he was flat right out of the gate. But the chorus was nice, until he went flat again and then his shrieky noises were flat. 5 out of 10.

Elliott: Probably the hardest song of the night. A few off notes, but they weren't very far off, and I can't imagine any of the other guys pulling this off as well. 9.

Ace: He doesn't have the voice to pull this off. He seemed to be struggling all over the place for the correct pitch until he apparently said "#### it" and screeched this awful falsetto note. Following Elliot couldn't have helped, but there wasn't much about this performance that worked. He can't be The Chosen One--the producers can't be that deaf. 3.

Gedeon: As much as I want to dislike him based on the way he beauty-pageants through his interviews, Gedeon's got serious talent. Pretty close to the original, but still...8.

Kevin: His voice isn't right for this song, and watching him bob around with his feet firmly planted made it clear that he is season five's answer to Janay Castine. His voice is good, and there's nothing aggressively awful about this performance (like there was with Ace's), but he should've tried this in three or four years after getting some real experience under his belt. 5.

Sway: Noticeably flat on the very first word. I don't think that more than half of the notes were on key. Bad notes "thunk" all over the place. Every would-be glory note is just far enoug off key to make your skin crawl. One of the worst performances in the history of the show. As in, "What About The Children?" bad. 1.

Will: How much do I hate this song? A lot. My dad burned a CD once with a few Kenny Rogers songs on it, and this was one of them, and he'd play it everytime I rode in a car with him, and I'd want to get out and walk. "She Believes In Me" is a much better Kenny Rogers song. That said, Will's got a terrific voice. The highest notes in the chorus weren't perfect, but he can hold pitch a lot better than Taylor or others. 7, although if I liked the song more, I might upgrade a bit.

Bucky: Garth Brooks is one of the first people to bring rock into country music, Bucky? Gram Parsons's charred corpse says "#### you". This song, being narrative driven (like a lot of country songs), doesn't make a lot of sense when excerpted. He was okay in his performance. He can't pull off glory notes very well. His enunciation needs work. More of the taking a #### poses. 5.

David: I was one of the few who enjoyed his performance last week. This wasn't as much fun. He had an attack of the runaway vibrato, which he kind of got control of in the middle. But then he didn't pull off the ending like he tried to. I think he has talent, but he needs to find his own thing instead of just trying to ape Michael Buble. 4.

Chris: His sideburns look like integral signs. It took me awhile, but after having done integration problems earlier toight, I finally made the connection. He may prove to be just as much of a one trick pony as David, but the difference is that he's honed his trick, whereas David still needs to work on his. This was the most professional, most confident, most enjoyable performance of the competition so far. 10.

1. Chris
2. Elliott
3. Gedeon
4. Will
5. Taylor/Kevin/Bucky
8. David
9. Ace
10. Sway

[anonymous1980]

A better show overall than the girls.

My rankings for this week:

01. Chris Daughtry - My younger brother played this song INCESSANTLY to the point where I had to yell at him for playing it again and again. Chris managed to make it sound fresh and engaging once more. Easily the best performance of the night. (A-)

02. Gedeon McKinney - Now, I hate this guy. He crosses that line between self-confidence and arrogance which I think will be his eventual downfall. Having said that, I thought he did great this week. Not enough to lock in that spot in the Top 12 though. (B+)

03. Will Makar - This is one of the few times where I disagreed with the judges. Yes, it's a "safe" performance and I honestly think Will has the potential to do better. But I think for what it is, it's terrific. (B+)

04. Elliott Yamin - He's still great but does not deserve a standing ovation. Still not enough to lock in that spot in the Top 12. He's very good but not great. (B)

05. Taylor Hicks - His performance last week was better but I can't help but be swept up by his obvious enthusiasm and joy for singing and music. (B)

06. Bucky Covington - Although far from a bad performance, he STILL strikes me as being absolutely nothing special. Only an inherently inferior xerox copy of Bo Bice. (B-)

07. Ace Young - Ah yes. His mediocrity is just starting to shine through his pretty face. I don't like him but that doesn't change the fact that he gave a less than appealing rendition of this song. (C+)

08. Kevin Covais - Oh, Kevin, Kevin. You should've stuck to ballads. How can Paula and Randy give a "meh" review to Will and applaud enthusiastically for this kid? Now, I like this kid. I genuinely think he's talented. I thought he was pretty good last week. But this one displays all of his flaws for all the world to see. ©

09. Jose "Sway" Penala - If you look up "mediocre" in the dictionary you would probably see a picture of his performance beside it. (C-)

10. David Radford - From day one, I have always had mixed feelings for this guy. He's a nice, talented kid but sorely lacks versatility. I think partial blame goes to the arrangement which does not suit him at all. (C-)

WHO'S OUT? I think Bucky, Sway and David are in danger. I'm going with Sway and Bucky.

[VanHelsing]

after 2 great performances back to back, ayla's my new favourite!

and referring to kaytodd's last comment, all 3 of them (ayla, melissa & kellie) look like grown-ups but ONLY kellie doesn't act like one. her grown-up look doesn't suit her childish antics and vice versa. and her voice isn't that great either. so i don't see why america should give her votes just because simon says that she's a 'nice girl'.

and back to ayla, if katharine mcphee's performance was any wee bit as good as ayla's, simon would have declared that katharine's the best singer of the night. ayla was so good, i don't see why the judges are sort of holding back their heartfelt praises for her. talking about the judges picking their own favourites. blah!

and what's up with the cameraman focusing on Katharine quite a no. of times? kinda reminds me of the exact same manner they 'honor' Carrie Underwood. it's disgusting!

[anonymous1980]

01. Mandisa - Byfar the best performance of the night. Not an outstanding one but compared to the train wrecks on this particular show, this one shines in comparison. (B+)

02. Melissa McGhee - Wow! I really, really dig her raspy, smoky voice. I really, really hope she stays. I'm starting to become a fan. (B+)

03. Ayla Brown - It's the first time I actually LIKED her performance though, yes, she has the tendency to try too hard. The fact that she's a bit of a tomboy kinda turned me on. (B)

04. Lisa Tucker - Not her best performance but still pretty good. Wrong song choice again. (B-)

05. Paris Bennett - VERY disappointing performance coming from her. After that great one last week (I downloaded the mp3 and listen to it constantly), this one pales in comparison. (B-)

06. Kellie Pickler - It wasn't a bad performance. It's an okay performance but her country girl schtick should really stop. It's sickening. (B-)

07. Katharine McPhee - A woefully forgettable performance. Again, like with Paris, her performance this week is a HUGE disappointment. (C+)

08. Kinnik Sky - Fun, entertaining performance but entirely inconsequential and forgettable. She's no Vonzell. (C+)

09. Brenna Gethers - "When I'm bad, I'm so, so bad". Oh those words have never sound so much true like they do in this situation. I love "Last Dance". She totally ruined it. (F)

10. Heather Cox - Oh God. Please make it stop! (F)

WHO'S OUT: If justice exist in this world, Brenna and Heather but I think there's a chance Kinnik might also go as well.

RE: KELLIE PICKLER - I have a feeling she'll be out fairly early in the competition. 10th or 11th place.

[kaytodd]

I see no reason to question to question Kellie Pickler's sincerity and I agree with Simon that she seems to really be "a nice girl." I just do not think she is a good enough singer to be in the top six girls. And I think she should be very concerned that her best performance was her initial audition.

Her are my choices for top six girls, so far:
1) Mandisa
2) Paris Bennett
3) Katherine McPhee
4) Lisa Tucker
5) Melissa McGhee
6) Ayla Brown

Of course, it is still early. A lot of time for the contestants to step up big or fall on their faces. I have a feeling Kellie will not be able to handle the pressure or she may not be smart enough (or have the instincts) to figure out what to do to improve her voice and overall performance skills. Among the gilrs like Kellie who are, IMO, on the bubble, my money is on someone like Melissa and Ayla to figure out how to get over the hump.

Fortunately, for me, I think all three of these women are very attractive. I personally prefer Ayla and Melissa, who look more like grown up women.

[OscarGuy]

The women were overall unforgettable. Even Paris wasn't that great. Mandisa was the ONLY performer who gave anything to her performance and was able to back it up with voice.

I think Kellie will eventually lose, we don't need another Carrie Deadwood winner.

[dws1982]

If Kellie Pickler wins American Idol, I will never watch the show again. Her bullshit "I'm just a country girl" act is even worse than Carrie Underwood's, and Carrie at least had a strong voice to back it up. (Carrie had a vapid personality, but I'll even take that to Kellie's total insincerity.)

HATE!

[VanHelsing]

i think it's a foregone conclusion that Ace WILL make it to the top 4. if he doesn't make it, i'll be in total shock but extremely satisfied.

as to whether he'll eventually become this season's champion, we'll see...

[OscarGuy]

I guess we'll see.

[anonymous1980]

The only charisma he has really is his good looks. He doesn't have that "underdog" quality that'll make me, the ordinary Joe on the streets, to root for him to win. He's a pretty boy who sings good. Moist vaginas can only get you so far in the competition.

[OscarGuy]

Not true. Everyone I know loves Ace. He may not be the best singer in the world, but charisma carriers more people into the Top 4 than talent has.

[anonymous1980]

Ace? Top 4? No way. Taylor is more likely.

Ace is too much of a pretty boy to make it that far. He lacks the Underdog quality to make it to the Top 4.

[OscarGuy]

The thing you have to realize is that Idol is hell bent on doing unusual seating charts and announcement rights. Don't take any position on the benches as an indication of strength of support.

I stand by my statement that both Ace and Chris will make the final four. I also think Mandisa will be in the final four and unless she really screws up, I think McPhee will be the fourth spot.

[VanHelsing]

actually if you noticed the way the ladies were asked to sit during the elimination night, i think the top row ladies will be the final 6 marching into the top 12... Mandisa, Kellie, Paris, Ayla, Lisa & Katherine will all move on to the top 12...

Paris, Lisa & Katherine are locks at this point while Kinnik might upset any of the other three ladies...

but of course all six still must bring it on next week...

for next week, if they continue to falter, Heather & Brenna will, or rather, should go home...

[OscarGuy]

Chris Daughtrey will be in the final 4.