Big band night is ALWAYS the best night on Idol, ever since Season One, and tonight didn’t disappoint at all. Let’s go through the performances, shall we? (And this is basically my one in-depth-ish Idol post for the season and an excuse to talk about my favorites.)
Kris Allen: “The Way You Look Tonight”
It doesn’t hurt that Kris is totally attractive, but I find him to be one of two singers left where I a) look forward to hearing their album and b) look forward to checking out their full-length songs on iTunes. I appreciate his consistency in sound – it seems to be important to the judges that we get a sense of “who they are as an artist,” and you can totally tell what kind of album this guy is gonna put out when all is said and done, and he manages to use the all-important “artistry” each week to mold the theme week to his sound. Tonight was no exception. It was a solid performance, and it sounded very Kris. I hope he’s one of the two in the finals.
Allison Iraheta: “Someone To Watch Over Me”
Allison’s my other favorite. She’s a great singer, she’s got loads of sass and personality, and she’s another who’s consistently shown what kind of album she’d put out. And it’s an album I’d buy. I don’t understand all this business Simon keeps bringing up about her not feeling like she’s in it to win it. If she didn’t want to win it, she wouldn’t have auditioned in the first place, I say. It seems like a lame criticism and the only one they can level against the otherwise solid Allison in an attempt to knock her off the show to get to the preordained Adam/Danny finale. Her performance tonight was damn good – I don’t get why the judges can’t get behind her more resolutely. If she and/or Kris made it to the finals, I’d be pleased.
Matt Giraud: “My Funny Valentine”
At this point in the show we got to the “good, but past Idols have done it better” portion. With this song, Melinda Doolittle’s rendition was a hell of a lot better – whole other league:
And Matt’s always been a good-not-great performer. He’s a good singer, yes, but he’s in a competition with better people, in my opinion. My problem with him is that we already have Justin Timberlake and we already have a JT backup in Robin Thicke. If both of them go away, I suppose we could call on Matt, but for now, I think two are enough. Also working against him? I have an irrational issue with men who wear fedoras, vests with t-shirts, and scarves indoors. He’s done all of this and insists on continuing to do this.
Danny Gokey: “Come Rain Or Come Shine”
Here’s my beef with Gokey: guy sings really great karaoke. Really really great karaoke. But he’s got the Lil Rounds problem where he doesn’t do ANYTHING to a song, and I find that kinda flat. If he made an album of covers, the covers would all sound like the originals and they’d be competently sung, yes, but the whole thing would be kinda rote. Tonight he finally put a spin on a song and surprise surprise, he was about as good as he’s ever been on the show. For once he wasn’t singing a mildly uptempo song in the exact same style as the original, which is all the guy has done all season. Still wasn’t quite as good as Katharine McPhee’s version, though:
Adam Lambert: “Feelin’ Good”
Adam Adam Adam Adam Adam… Um, let’s break it down. He’s obviously talented. He’s obviously born to be on a stage performing. And that’s where I think my biggest problem with Glambert is. This is a singing competition to find a recording artist, and I just don’t think an album from him would be all that great. He’ll probably make a killing on Broadway when all of this is finished, but just listen to any of his performances with your eyes closed; while his voice is good, it’s not suited to being an album. Even his better performances like “Tracks Of My Tears” were just alright when you take away the emotion that he projects through his stage presence. And that’s why I think he’s a little bit in the wrong competition here. He’ll probably get to the finals, but I think he’d be better served by coming in third or fourth like Daughtry so he isn’t so tied to the Idol marketing juggernaut that the winner (and usually runner-up) gets cordoned off into.
And while we’re on a major Idol write-up, let’s address the judges:
–Randy is increasingly useless, though he generally tends to have coherent thoughts. He needs to stop saying “For me for you, dawg… [insert criticism here],” though. And most of his criticisms tend to either be “this is the best you’ve been, you’re in it to win it” or “wasn’t your best; pitchy.”
–Kara DioGuardi is actually doing just fine, I think, regardless of her being maligned by most. She’s generally on point and she usually has constructive things to say. I hope she’s around to hopefully improve next season and win people over.
–Paula is noticeably less loopy than she’s been in past seasons, but it still takes girlfriend forever to get out a sentence. I find her on the whole to be charming, though. We can’t have all the judges up there being professional and coherent and eloquent all the time, can we?
–Simon clearly wants out of his obligation to the show. He’s most likely to be gone next season, I think. I won’t be crying over it.
Basically, the show is clearly waning in its relevance and its success rate. This season definitely needs to produce a Kelly Clarkson or Carrie Underwood level star to remain successful. It’s the kind of show that I keep watching because it’s remained part of the zeitgeist and it’s still mildly entertaining, but as the show gets closer to its tenth cycle, it all becomes a little tiring and rote. Next year will hopefully feature a more exciting group of singers in the top 12. For now, we just have to wade out the season and hope the better singers continue on. Unfortunately, it’s looking like Allison’s days are numbered and Adam’s win is all but certain.
Lastly, can someone explain to me how the hell Alexis Grace isn’t on this show anymore? Or how Ricky Braddy didn’t make the Top 13? Voting public: you all suck.
