It’s Tuesday so it must be American Idol time. Yay. My world is set to right again after last week’s No Idol Tuesday.
Here in the Triangle Area we have had our 3rd snow storm, which is three more than we usually have. So it’s been a cold, miserable day of melting ice and getting boots (and tires) stuck in the mud.
Hopefully the sun in Calee-forn-yay is shining as bright as the AI stage tonight. The remaining 12 contestants that make up Group 3 nervously await their turn in the spotlight as Ryan goes on and on about how these folks have given up absolutely EVERYTHING to be here tonight. Good news for three of this group but for the other nine, not so much.
One of our early favorites, Lil Rounds, will be performing tonight; I can not wait to see how she does. So far she has been every level of awesome that exists, so we have high hopes. It is nice to know that she’ll be getting the coveted “pimp spot” tonight; last is where they put the front-runners, as we all know.
Ryan does the obligatory chat with the judges, and yes Kara is still there despite the alleged feud between her and Paula. Simon complains about song choice so much that when ribbed about His Highness choosing songs for everyone, he volunteers to do just that. I’ll buy that action; sounds like a good plan to me.
The spot of doom belongs to Von Smith tonight, he of the Heat Miser hair and over-the-top voice. He promises to dial it down a couple of notches, but we have heard that before. My Hubby likes Von and thinks that with the right training he could be fabulous. Surprisingly, tonight Von does a good job on Marvin Gaye’s “You’re All I Need to Get By.” So far he’s the only person going first in the group rounds who has been a keeper. The judges agree that he has started the evening off the right way – by not being cannon fodder. Simon plays the Clay Aiken comparison card and Von’s red sweater is okay with that.
Next up is tall teenager Taylor Vaifanua who is stunningly beautiful tonight. She seems like a more sophisticated Jordin Sparks on the Alicia Keys song “If I Ain’t Got You,” which I think she sang during Hollywood Week. Taylor does a decent job but loses her notes in some places. We expect the judges to shout “She’s just 17! SEVENTEEN!” but they hold back on doing that, thankfully. The lady judges do go on a bit about how they didn’t get to “know” Taylor, which leads to a conversation about shopping somehow and then things get weird. Taylor just stands there with tears and it’s sad. She seems aware that with this new voting format she’s likely a goner.
My Kid’s favorite nerdy guy, Alex Wagner-Trugman is up next to the stage. He and Ryan chat a bit about going to the gym and it looks like they are also wearing the same shirt, which is cool. Unfortunately, Alex does not do justice to the old Elton John tune “I Guess that’s Why They Call it the Blues.” Of course I do not mention this to My Kid, lest I get frogged. But even she has to admit that he seems like a little kid getting up after dinner and performing for company. Although Alex swears that knocking over the mic stand was not a Taylor Hicks trick (it was an accident) the judges scold him and put him in time out.
We learn that Arianna Afsar will be singing an ABBA song, but it’s probably because she heard it in the recent movie Mama Mia. Hopefully, she will sing “The Winner Takes it All” better than Meryl Streep but then, ugh she kinda doesn’t. Yikes. We like this teenager a lot because of her Adopt-a-Grandparent Program, but this was not a good song choice for her. The judges are unanimous in their critique and apologize for calling her “cute as a button,” which seemed to lead Arianna to this disastrous song choice. Although they usually tell singers to make songs their own, this time they say she should have stayed with the melody.
It must be Repeat Your Best Hollywood Moment tonight because Ju’Not Joyner sang “Hey There Delilah” already. I remember it because a) My Kid loathes that overplayed song and b) I really liked Ju’Not’s soulful version of it. Tonight he does not disappoint. He turns an annoying ditty into a meaningful, understated R&B ballad. Plain White T’s should be nervous because Ju’Not has KILT their song. In a good way. Gladly, the judges agree that he did a great job but want him to bust it out full blast next time. Everything is going well until Joyner goes into TMI territory about his cortisone shot. (Less is more, JJ.)
One of my favorite songs from the early 90s was “Give Me One Reason” by Tracy Chapman. It will be given the Kristen McNamara treatment tonight. Although not one of my picks of the season so far, the former two-toned singer does a pretty good job. She looks lovely and her voice is bluesy and fabulous. I hope we get to see more of her. Kara mistakenly tells her she should be doing a Kelly Clarkson song; I can not STAND it when current contestants perform songs from past winners, just rubs me the wrong way. For the most part, they all liked her performance even though she gets the karaoke card.
Self-admitted Drama Queen Nathaniel Marshall is up next and I’m sorry, but barf. There is nothing even remotely attractive about his outfit or his appearance. His voice is passably pleasant on the Meat Loaf song “I Would Do Anything For Love” but he “won’t do that,” not even for Culture Club. (We STILL do not know the mystery of what the secretive “that” is and at this point we don’t want to know.) Simon tries really hard not to let his revulsion show, but too late – the cat is out of the bag. The other judges try to cover and we are so GLAAD, lest the fire is flamed (pardon the pun.) Gawd, moving on please.
The next gal to hit the stage tonight is Felicia Barton, who talks about getting the fateful call that she was back on the show after not making the first cut of 36. (There’s no mention of Joanna Pacitti.) According to what I’ve read, Felicia and her husband are heavily involved in music at their church. Tonight she looks like a young Joan Jett; she is a gorgeous young woman with good stage presence. Another Alicia song is featured and although “No One” can do it justice the way Ms. Keys can, it’s not too bad. Felicia loses a couple of notes but for the most part does excellent. The judges call her on the big song choice but don’t beat her up too badly.
Scott MacIntyre is next and he is doing “Mandolin Rain” by Bruce Hornsby. He seems somewhat at a loss of what to do without the piano but his vocals are great. He has an amazing talent that stands on its own accord and merit, so hopefully his blindness will not even be mentioned tonight. As Simon says “if I’m being honest,” three out of four judges overcompensate with the praise. Kara confuses everybody by saying the vocal does not matter, because we all know that it emphatically does. Simon likes Scott and predicts that he’ll make Top 12 tomorrow night. Ryan and Scott high-5 for real and it’s a sweet thing to watch.
Because we always have to have a Kellie Pickler or Kristy Lee Cook in the mix, tonight’s token country girl is Kendall Beard. At least this little gal can sing her heart out. She does not do perfect on “This One’s for the Girls” but let’s face it – only Martina McBride can do Martina McBride. Kendall seems to have a carefree, fun, joyful spirit and we like her. For the most part, the judges think she’s okay and she’ll probably get the county vote, but they don’t have high hopes that she will make it beyond tonight. Poor Kendall has to hear Simon say that he couldn’t wait for it to end. (I feel kinda the same way about all country music so can relate.)
Another Elton John song is next, with Jorge Nunez performing “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.” When I hear this song these days, I think of David Archuleta and how he became a Real Live Boy after singing it last year. Although I don’t expect to go crazy over Jorge’s version, it’s surprisingly very good. His voice is practically perfect in a stylized, professional way. Not my favorite type of male voice, but he’s got mad skills and the judges agree. Since they told him in Puerto Rico to work on losing the accent, now they are telling him that he should get it back. And Jorge? Run! Paula wants to squeeze you.
The lady that we’ve waited all night for is next – Ms. Lil Rounds. Here at Aunt Pearl’s house, we love everything about this gal, from her accent to her attitude. Oh yeah, and she can sing her hiney off! Lil does the Mary J. song that Paris Bennett did a couple years ago, “Be Without You.” Other than an awkward pause where a cuss word usually lives, Lil does an A #1 perfect job! She is my favorite of this entire season so far but I won’t say that too loud lest I jinx her. Thankfully the judges agree and Lil gets called good things like “brilliant” and “powerhouse.” Paula even makes a funny pun all by herself. Awww.
So tonight’s show beat last week’s by a country mile. Then again it would not have taken much. Only Arianna and Alex truly blew it this evening which is sad because they are both very likable kids. At least they have something cool to talk about when they get back to school.
Tonight’s Best Quotes:
Ryan: “Shopping, Simon. It’s where you go to get shirts from this decade.”
Paula (to Nate): “You're the guy I would want to go to karaoke with!”
Jorge: “When I get so emotional, I can barely think in English.”
Paula: “I expect to see many more 'Lil' rounds.”
My predictions for top 3 this week include (of course) Lil Rounds. Who cares about the other two? For the guy, it will probably be Scott but for the wrong reasons. Ju’Not and Jorge also did great tonight. Kristen and Felicia did above average. It’s almost anyone’s game at this point.
Five bucks says that Lil will be placed in the “last two standing” with Nathaniel tomorrow night. It’s easy money because that’s the kind of tricks those sneaky Idiots in Charge have pulled on us lowly viewers. But don’t hate the playa, hate the game, right?
Until tomorrow night, when six will become nine.
No comments:
Post a Comment