American Idol '07 [Archive] - Page 2 - Quarter To Three Forums

ducker

03-21-2007, 12:57 PM

Then how do 'splain Sanjaya's success?
I may be a troll, but idol is gay...you realize that don't you?
A guy watching it is like totally gay....super gay, like gay squared.

and I'm sure you're helping homeless single mothers find places to live during your evening free time.

Bottom 3. Phil, Gina, Lakisha

Yea it's kinda wishful thinking for me, I don't believe Lakisha or Doolittle have what it takes to take it all the way. I believe both of them lack enough character/charm to finish this out on top. Once the deadwood is gone (Phil, Sanjaya, Chris, and the boobilishious Ashley) you'll start to see even better performaces, and some of these "great singers" change to looking kinda meh.

As the rest of the contestants get better... those (top) two aren't really improving.

nixon66

03-21-2007, 01:22 PM

http://i14.tinypic.com/2ega8sn.jpg

You said it better than I would have replied Jerry. Thank you.

Joel

03-21-2007, 01:32 PM

I rather enjoyed Lulu. And Chris Sligh sucks hard. Anybody who thinks otherwise is fat or drewl.

drewl

03-21-2007, 01:42 PM

I wouldn't know, I don't watch.
But the show is gay....very very gay....

Troy S Goodfellow

03-21-2007, 01:44 PM

I wouldn't know, I don't watch.
But the show is gay....very very gay....

But you know enough to comment on Sanjaya...interesting.

Troy

nixon66

03-21-2007, 01:53 PM

I now have my first ever Ignore in my time here at Qt3. Yay.

txa1265

03-21-2007, 01:54 PM

But you know enough to comment on Sanjaya...interesting.

Troy

Is he always like this? Do I have to join nixon66 on the ignore bandwagon? It'd be my first as well ...

drewl

03-21-2007, 02:15 PM

I'm only trolling for a laugh...slow day at work.
The whole Sangria thing was on tv they mentioned the vote for the worst people and the Stern effect.

But if you actually care about the results you're either a 13yr old girl, or just very very gay.

nixon66

03-21-2007, 02:20 PM

Is he always like this? Do I have to join nixon66 on the ignore bandwagon? It'd be my first as well ...

I went and looked at his post history and it was mostly posts on the Politics board, which I am an infrequent visitor to, so I wouldn't be missing much. His ellipses don't go away there either. Sad though. I thought I was doing well by having no ignores. Can't everyone just get along.

drewl

03-21-2007, 02:23 PM

I'll go away now, but c'mon grown men discussing "Idol"?

Gary Whitta

03-21-2007, 02:31 PM

I'll go away now, but c'mon grown men discussing "Idol"?
And to think, you're one of them.

VegasRobb

03-21-2007, 02:42 PM

Hayley's outfit was neat, but I'm not understanding where all this talk about "bouncy" is coming from.

LesJarvis

03-21-2007, 02:46 PM

I think it came from the fact that she wasn't wearing a bra :-P

In honesty, though I mentioned her boobs in my post, it was her legs that really stood out. I mean goddam, that girl has legs to next Sunday. Good stuff.

Bob Cherub

03-21-2007, 02:46 PM

There is one plus for keeping Sanjaya in the competition.

Speaking of bounce.

http://gallery.upshizzle.com/albums/03.07/bouncey1.gif

Tyjenks

03-21-2007, 03:04 PM

I noticed that too Bob and slo-mo'd my TiVo. My wife called me a dork, shook her head, and we watched the rest of the show. Business as usual at my house.

Man, I wish Sanjaya's sister would have made it instead.

Justin Fletcher

03-22-2007, 06:19 AM

The British invasion was almost 50 years ago. Anyone involved would be in the 65-70 range now. Aside from McCartney or Jagger, who else would you want?
Pete Fucking Townshend. Endless Wire didn't come out that long ago, so he and Roger certainly have something to promote.

Justin Fletcher

03-22-2007, 06:22 AM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lulu_%28singer%29
Jesus, does she look bonkers in every picture taken of her?

Justin Fletcher

03-22-2007, 06:25 AM

Frank couldn't achieve multigenerational success.
Wrong (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duets_%28Frank_Sinatra_album%29).

VegasRobb

03-22-2007, 08:30 AM

That was a surprising result. Did anyone see it coming?

nixon66

03-22-2007, 09:13 AM

That was a surprising result. Did anyone see it coming?

A lot of people here seemed to think she'd be down in the bottom three. I was surprised myself. You could see Phil when Ryan was announcing his little group of three already think he was down at the bottom. My wife's jaw dropped when Sanjaya got to sit back down. She wondered who these ten year old girls were that were voting for this kid. "Don't they know he's gay? Do their parents not tell them?"

txa1265

03-22-2007, 09:17 AM

I was not surprised. I always thought of her as generic. Unfortunately it is the middle that falls out at this point. Thus Chris and her.

Tyjenks

03-22-2007, 09:24 AM

You need to distinguish yourself in some way, whether it be a great singer, hip beat-boxing guy, skank clothes, fat and funny, effiminate-hula-dancing-oddball, et.al.

She and Chris Richardson are simply decent singers, but otherwise unremarkable. People may like them, but not enough to pick up a phone. It is not like they are voted against, they just do not have anything that people particularly want to vote for.

drewl

03-22-2007, 10:30 AM

http://video.msn.com/v/us/v.htm?g=43F766A9-019E-40FB-A90B-3AB99091AE23&t=c152&f=06/64&p=hotvideo_celebrity&fg=&GT1=9145

Is anything on this show real?

Go Sanjaya.....we will bring this false "Idol" down....bwwaaahhahhhaaaa

http://votefortheworst.com/

Talisker

03-22-2007, 10:47 AM

Is anything on this show real?
Back in my college radio days, we'd put on one of those soothing ocean waves records in the background and claim we were broadcasting from the beach, even though it was cold and windy in late March. People who called in clearly believed it.

Justin Fletcher

03-23-2007, 01:14 PM

Somehow, I didn't need the Los Angeles Times to tell me that she wasn't sitting there by accident. I also suspect the cast of The Wedding Bells didn't luck into their seats.

Seriously, what's the big deal? Does this some how impugn the integrity of open seating policies around the world?

Justin Fletcher

03-23-2007, 01:16 PM

Oh, and PS, I usually like Olbermann, but him and his harpy beating up on a 13-year old girl on national television isn't cool.

Gary Whitta

03-27-2007, 08:41 PM

WTF SANJAYA

txa1265

03-28-2007, 01:29 AM

WTF SANJAYA

It is like Simon says, it really just doesn't matter what anyone says anymore ... oh, and I think Sligh's days are numbered.

fuzzyslug

03-28-2007, 05:44 AM

It is like Simon says, it really just doesn't matter what anyone says anymore ... oh, and I think Sligh's days are numbered.

I'm to the point that I wish they would just slam him and get it over with. It's hurts to hear him sing. I want him gone. The desperate pleas for attention will get him another week or three. He doesn't deserve it.

I agree with your Sligh comment. Some lines are being drawn. Chris and Haley are on the wrong side of it. I don't know where mohawk man is. I want to draw the line through him.

Notes about last night:

Melinda should win this. She's been adding a little more personality every week. She's got the most talent by far, polished to a sheen by the fact that she was already singing for a living. This really separates her from Lakisha (great voice, ok personality) and Perky McCurly Hair (very good voice, lots of personality).

I wonder where Blake fits in. His voice is good but not great. He's riding on style. I wonder how far that will take him.

I no longer care about Haley's singing. Damn, those legs are wonderful. Let's keep her around for the swimsuit competition.

Tyjenks

03-28-2007, 06:37 AM

Well the votes that are spread out among the "real" contenders will go somewhere othe than Sanjaya when others are voted out. I would think, Sanjaya will keep his core voters, but folks losing their faves will jump on someone else's ship other than freak boy. [fingers crossed]

I still like Blake. Paula said what I was thinking and was relatively aware of her surroundings for once when she said he brought a bit of originality and freshness to the competition. I would argue he is about the only one bringing those characteristics. Unless I missed it, he did the smart thing and left out the beatboxing in last night's song. Good decision.

I don't know what it is about Phil. He sings fine, he is not hideous, I just think there is no emotion behind a single note he utters. Zero stage charisma.

I am tired of Lakesha. It may be a bit of the charisma factor lacking with her too. I like Melinda more.

GIna is fine, but she'll be gone soon enough.

Haley...more boobs and ass...less clothing.

Chris SLigh just can't hang.

Chris Richardson is decent, too, but again, there is nothing that sets him apart, really.

I do like Jordin, but I think she is too young to bring off the dynamic performances each week required to win, but she could surprise me because she has been great on occasion.

So last night's theme was Gwen's songs and songs Gwen likes? Dumb.

Gwen is sooooo cute. I could just watch her talk all day.

Phil_Stein

03-28-2007, 07:19 AM

Gwen Stefani was the highlight of the show last night.

I know most of the females are probably better singer/performers, but none of them interest me too much. I can't see buying a CD by any of them. Not that I've bought too many Idol CDs (well, I have bought one), but this year in particular, most of the good contestants bore me.

I think Blake is the contestant with the most consistently interesting performances. I'd actually consider buying a CD by him (though it's pretty unlikely I'd follow through).

txa1265

03-28-2007, 07:24 AM

Gwen Stefani was the highlight of the show last night.

Hehe ... my kids kept saying how her speaking voice was very different than what they expected - I think they expected the attitude and look they see in videos ... so that was a nice reality check for them.

VegasRobb

03-28-2007, 12:19 PM

I was hoping someone would do "Trapped In A Box".

txa1265

03-28-2007, 12:25 PM

I was hoping someone would do "Trapped In A Box".

I was hoping Sanjaya would *be* trapped in a box ...

LesJarvis

03-28-2007, 12:41 PM

I've been waiting for Sanjaya to jump the shark, but the last thing I expected him to do was viciously sodomize it. I'm really not sure if that's a bad thing or not.

VegasRobb

03-28-2007, 09:33 PM

Hm ... how interesting.

Jerry Sizzler

03-29-2007, 05:22 AM

Welp... didn't see that one coming.

txa1265

03-29-2007, 05:27 AM

My guess for the bottom 3 was Chris, Chris and Haley. My wife said Sligh and Haley in the bottom 2 with Sligh going ... she has given up expecting Sanjaya to go (she has battled that one for weeks).

LesJarvis

03-29-2007, 06:17 AM

Needless to say, I am pleased with the results. See you later jackass.

SpoofyChop

03-29-2007, 07:33 AM

I'm finding that I'm not enjoying this season as much as some others. I wouldn't even watch if it wasn't for TiVo to be honest.

Anyway, as usual Lakisha and Melinda were great. Jordan was pretty good. I thought Gina was actually good enough to be in the real competition this week.

Jordin was still really good although I didn't like the song.

I really liked how Chris didn't hold hands with Haley like Phil Stacey did. They were firmly planted in his pockets.

Also, Ryan called Phil and Haley "Phil and Stacy" last night. Lol.

I won't miss Chris...he should console himself with having a hot petite wife for his big fat curly self :)

Troy S Goodfellow

03-29-2007, 07:50 AM

I'm finding that I'm not enjoying this season as much as some others.

Agreed, and for me it's because the talent is so iffy most of the time. There really isn't a lot to choose from in the bottom 6 or 7, so it's hard to care about who goes. Every week it's Melinda kicking-ass (which is great) and it has an air of inevitability about it that AI has avoided for the last few years.

If there is a surprise vote and one of the strong girls gets turfed, there might be some tension again. Or if one of the guys really steps up and shows that they've grown as a singer. But this is the weakest field yet, I think.

Troy

Tyjenks

03-29-2007, 08:05 AM

If it were not for Blake and Haley's fixed assets, I would probably opt out. AS spoof said, w/o TiVo, it would definitely be a no.

Is it me or is Haley taking some sort of hotness steroids where she gets more attractive with each appearance?

THe more I looked at Chris the more his curly hair and self referential treatment of his "chubbiness" grated on me. Again, as Spoofy mentioned, they flashed to his wife and I thought, "He be a'ight".

VegasRobb

03-29-2007, 08:57 AM

Sanjaya lives on. I like that Sanjaya has stopped looking like a deer in headlights during his performances. Seems like he's just riding the wave. He's even pushing back against the judges.

drewl

03-29-2007, 10:00 AM

The judges don't matter anymore. Sanjaya will win. As annoying as he is to real fans of the show that's not nearly as annoying as the other no talent so called winners are to the rest of us.

SpoofyChop

03-29-2007, 10:22 AM

The judges don't matter anymore. Sanjaya will win. As annoying as he is to real fans of the show that's not nearly as annoying as the other no talent so called winners are to the rest of us.

Dude find another thread to troll ok? It's not P&R.

Gladguy

03-29-2007, 12:34 PM

I find the whole Sanjaya/votefortheworst.com thing very interesting.

On the one hand, it proves the credibility of the show and the producers: even though the guy sucks, vote integrity is still important and if the voting public can be manipulated, contestants can be kept on the show for much longer than they rightly should.

On the other hand, it shows how the US has become a Griefer Nation: a mean-spirited website has the power to manipulate voting results in a negative fashion, thereby undermining the credibility of the show as a "singing competition."

No doubt, next year will see a change in the voting mechanism. Perhaps the judges will have more influence, or the public vote will only account for a percentage of the total vote. That's usually what happens everywhere when Griefers ruin things. The rules have to change to protect the purity of intent.

Oh, and Haley is hawt.

Gary Whitta

03-29-2007, 12:44 PM

On the other hand, it shows how the US has become a Griefer Nation: a mean-spirited website has the power to manipulate voting results in a negative fashion, thereby undermining the credibility of the show as a "singing competition."
I agree and I don't like it either. As fun as some people obviously think it is to fuck with the show, the contestants up there are legitimately trying their best and their dreams are on the line. If an actually talented performer gets booted in favor of a clown just so that some griefers can get their oh-so-ironic yuks, I think that's a shame.

Phil_Stein

03-29-2007, 12:45 PM

There have been mediocre singers sustained well into the competition in previous years, and AFAIK, the voting process is largely the same.

There is a brief not at the end of the show (flashed in small text at the bottom), that the producers reserve the right to discard 'bulk votes' or something like that (i.e. perhaps if they detect widespread use of bulk dialers).

I doubt Sanjaya is a product of votefortheworst - I have a hard time believing that site can be too much of a factor.

Sanjaya is different, and many of the early singers, while slightly better singers than him, all feel the same. It's not how many people dislike your singing, it's how many like you (or at least notice you) enough to vote for you.

With 12 singers, an average singer will attract only 8.5% of the votes (and numbers 11 and 12 are probably well below that), so it doesn't take a big slice of voters to get you through. When it gets down to 6 or so, you need many more votes, and that's where I think Sanjaya will lose.

Bob Cherub

03-29-2007, 02:03 PM

This isn't the first time there has been a Sanjaya. And votefortheworst has little impact if any.

Last year, it was Kevin Covais. Sure he's better than Sanjaya but not much. Did he have a chance in hell of winning talent-wise? No way. But he made it pretty darn far... why? Cause of the tweeny vote. The tweens latch onto their own (a guy that is) and vote him pretty far. Covais made it much farther than he should have. The problem with this year, though, is that Sanjaya appears to have the Hawaii vote as well. He's going to make it much farther than ppl think.

Phil Stein is right.. I think Sanjaya could make it around the final 6, leaving Melinda, Lakisha, Blake, Jordin, and either Gina/Chris R. along with Sanjaya.

VegasRobb

03-29-2007, 02:06 PM

Question:

Has there been a "Sanjaya" every season?

Bob mentioned Covais from last season.

Any others from the previous seasons?

LesJarvis

03-29-2007, 02:12 PM

John Stevens (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Stevens_%28singer%29), from Season 3, is probably the most notorious "Sanjaya" the show has had. He made the top 6. Kevin Covais made the finals, but was the second person to get kicked off in the top 12. Other people who got bitched about for being not talented enough to make it however far they made it:

Nikki McKibbin (Season 1, top 3)
Carmen Rasmusen (Season 2, top 6)
Scott Savol (Season 4, top 5)

Others too, no doubt, but those are the big offenders that leap to mind.

Gary Whitta

03-29-2007, 02:22 PM

Hell, I'd add Diana DeGarmo to that list. And she made the final.

txa1265

03-29-2007, 03:02 PM

Yeah, but compared to Sanjaya, Corvais was like a vocal god.

nixon66

03-29-2007, 03:37 PM

Hell, I'd add Diana DeGarmo to that list. And she made the final.

Her making the final made me want to swear off the show if she won.

drewl

03-29-2007, 06:02 PM

How can you judge who is truly "best"?
It's all subjective. To real musicians the show is a joke, so why not a Sanjaya?
And if "vote" or The Stern factor have little or no relevance why are they recieving so much credit?
Hell O'Reilly 's even having a program on it.
But I agree the powers that be will not let him win...hence the disclaimer.

Gary Whitta

03-29-2007, 06:10 PM

It's all subjective. To real musicians the show is a joke
How true is this? Why is it a joke? Say what you like about them but Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson have come out of that show and gone on to become totally credible artists in their fields. The show introduces a couple of new artists into the industry a year, and then they stand or fall based on their merits same as anyone else. What's wrong with that?

Angrycoder

03-29-2007, 06:28 PM

No doubt, next year will see a change in the voting mechanism. Perhaps the judges will have more influence, or the public vote will only account for a percentage of the total vote. That's usually what happens everywhere when Griefers ruin things. The rules have to change to protect the purity of intent.

Oh, and Haley is hawt.

The thing is, the judges don't need any more influence. They control who gets on the show period. If they didn't want Sinjamalamdingdong to have a chance of winning, why did they put him in the top 24 and even let the public vote on him?

drewl

03-29-2007, 06:37 PM

How true is this? Why is it a joke? Say what you like about them but Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson have come out of that show and gone on to become totally credible artists in their fields. The show introduces a couple of new artists into the industry a year, and then they stand or fall based on their merits same as anyone else. What's wrong with that?
Credible? Artists?
oh now you're just yanking my chain.

Hanacker

03-29-2007, 06:48 PM

Bob Cherub

03-29-2007, 10:58 PM

Ah yeah I guess I didn't realize Covais went out as soon as he did.

My point still stands, tweens are keeping Sanjaya alive, not votefortheworst. If votefortheworst had an impact, Antoslutta and Sundance woulda made the top 12.

extarbags

03-29-2007, 11:04 PM

Jesus, none of the others mentioned were even close to as bad as Sanjaya is.

Hanacker

03-30-2007, 01:39 AM

How can you judge who is truly "best"?
It's all subjective. To real musicians the show is a joke, so why not a Sanjaya?

What's a "real musician"?

Phil_Stein

03-30-2007, 07:17 AM

What's a "real musician"?

You know - the opposite of a fake musician.

'Cause music is easy, right?

txa1265

04-04-2007, 05:14 AM

Couple of general thoughts:
- It turned my stomach hearing Seacrest refer to Tony Bennet as 'the king of swing' ... just gimme a frickin' break! If he is the king of swing, then David Cassidy was the 70's rock god and Debbie Gibson was Queen of the Punk / New Wave revolution!
- This season is totally uninteresting. At dinner last night we were talking about that, how there is nobody to get behind like there was last year. My older son said that while he hates Sanjaya, at least he is *interesting* to speculate about!
- Further to that, we've not voted since the very first call-in show. Last year my younger son sat at the coffee table rating each performance and taking numbers and then bugging us to call. This year he is on the couch watching the commercials and talking over the performances.
- I really hated the way that the criticism was handled. I have often thought it would be better to mix it up the way they do the performance order. Have Randy go first on performance one, then Paula on performance two, then Simon go first for the third person, and so on. As it stands now, Randy gets to critique openly, Paula does ... whatever it is she does, then Simon gets two words which are refuted immediately by Paula and the music starts.

Blake - I saw Sarah Vaughan do this live ~25 years ago and she brought such a range of emotions to it that I finally 'got it' about the meaning of the song ... Blake let me hear the words

Melinda - I really, Really, REALLY *hated* that pretentious over-singing 'big-finish' ending. The song is great and a true classic - it is better than you, not the other way around.

Phil Stacey - It was his biggest voice night, IMO, but it was just flat in terms of impact.

Jordin - she was a kid singing an old pop song she has no clue about. Singing it well technically, but still ...

Gina - yeah, sure, whatever. I can't really remember much about it.

Sanjaya - he may well be the only thing keeping people tuning it - he completely sucks, but is a draw.

Haley - we were joking about how with each trip to the bottom 3 she has worn fewer clothes, and that is she ended up in the bottom 3 again this week she might need to come out in a bikini next week to get the vote count! Her crappiness was proved out tonight.

Chris Richardson - I thought he got way too much credit from the judges ... again.

Lakisha - I am totally done with her - technically good, but ... whatever.

Our predicted bottom 3 - Phil, Haley, Chris.

Going home - Nosferatu.

SpoofyChop

04-04-2007, 06:58 PM

Not a shocking week. Whatever. I'm rapidly losing interest. We TiVo both shows then watch them back to back in about 45 minutes now.

Why is Michael Boublet famous?

txa1265

04-05-2007, 04:42 AM

Blake not in the top 3 worried me also ...

We hadn't predicted Gina in the bottom 3, but it wasn't too surprising to see her there - she has been inconsistent from week to week, and apparently there were too few people voting *for* her.

But I have to say that her leaving, while not surprising, takes the 'watchability' down another notch ... I mean, look at the top 3 - sure they are good singers but not only wouldn't I *buy* something from them, I wouldn't stop to listen on the radio if I was flipping stations because my iPod ran out of juice (which never happens anymore since I got a car adapter for Christmas, but still ...).

The middle three - Chris Richardson I predicted would be safe but in the bottom three, I obviously underestimated the 'Justin Timberlake' factor. Sanjaya ... well ... he is still the only really interesting thing in an otherwise dreadfully boring year, made no better by the weekly specials.

On the bottom three, I knew Haley would be there but wouldn't go home ... yet. She is the T&A factor. Nosferatu I expected to go because he was a middling singer and a middling performer ... but someone voted for him, obviously.

Did they actually say that the theme of next week has them with Jennifer Lopez?!? Please tell me I heard wrong ...

Tyjenks

04-05-2007, 06:08 AM

One more week of short-shorts, cleavage and skirts...HOORAY! Wa it just me or did her legs look as if they belonged to a Greek goddess. She is not drop dead gorgeous, but DAAAAAAAAAAAMN!

And Haley, quit rolling your eyes and/or visibly sighing when someone compliments your looks. You know it, the judges know it, and the viewers know that you are making it on your talents, but not your vocal ones. So cut the shit.

I like Blake.

Why is wannabe ratpacker famous??

I don't get it either. Lack of competition in the genre, maybe? I mean, he is trying the cool-guy thing, but, to me, he comes off as a cocky, preening ass.

Gary Whitta

04-05-2007, 09:34 AM

txa1265

04-05-2007, 09:47 AM

I am no fan of LaKisha but I liked her "fuck you" to TB at the end of her song, where she added the little tag at the end that he had expressly told her to get rid of.

Yeah, but that part *sucked* and was the worst part of the song, and out of place, thereby proving TB was right - he told people to choose their creativity, not mess with stuff for the sake of it. AI rewards the 'rock guitarist' mentality - show off with big chops, like the last quarter of Melinda's song, where she show-boated ... and Simon liked it ...

VegasRobb

04-05-2007, 10:20 AM

I thought it was funny seeing Sanjaya's Dad high-fiving the audience. I agree with Randy's comments about him. Sanjaya has transformed into a performer instead of a pop idol.

I'm curious to see if Gina can get something going now that she's no longer on the show.

It was hilarious to have one group of three consisting of Melinda, Lakisha, and Jordan. Yeah that group is going home.

If Jennifer Lopez is on next week then it's going to be another "featured artist + influences" night. I wonder if someone will perform Michael Anthony songs? Although, it would be interesting to have the contestants attempt spanish language songs.

Gary Whitta

04-05-2007, 10:24 AM

What J-Lo songs are even worth covering?

txa1265

04-05-2007, 10:36 AM

What J-Lo songs are even worth covering?

I dunno - she is a crappy actor and singer ... who's next, Paris Hilton? She can teach Haley to be an even bigger skank ...

VegasRobb

04-05-2007, 10:39 AM

She's actually a pretty good actress.

Jeff Green

04-05-2007, 11:00 AM

I thought it was amusing how Tony Bennett came off as somewhat curmudgeonly and in his practice session with each contestant basically told them not to try anything creative or different with the song but sing it precisely as originally written and arranged. What an old fart. His advice sucked because he apparently doesn't know that singing the paint-by-numbers version of an old standard is often death on AI - you've got to try to do something different.

I am no fan of LaKisha but I liked her "fuck you" to TB at the end of her song, where she added the little tag at the end that he had expressly told her to get rid of.

I wonder if Bennett really did have flu or if he just cried off because he wasn't that into it. Buble's choice of song ("Call me unreliable..." etc) seemed a bit too ironic to be a coincidence and struck me as another fuck-you from the Idol producers. Or maybe it's just me desperately trying to inject some drama in this snoozer of a season.

except that he was TOTALLY right on in what he said to Haley in terms of not messing with "Aint Misbehavin'". (And btw this is the first time ever that I've seen this show, so I have now offically lowered myself to the cretinous levels of you lot). The fact that she was adding in all those ridiculous, flirty "...and you! ...and you!" lines to every dude in the room after "...savin' all my love for you" showed, as Bennett said, that she was totally missing the point of the entire song.

Those are some amazing legs though. Damn.

fuzzyslug

04-05-2007, 01:14 PM

(And btw this is the first time ever that I've seen this show, so I have now offically lowered myself to the cretinous levels of you lot

I think you meant to say, "I've accepted who I really am." It's basically the same thing.

Gary Whitta

04-05-2007, 01:21 PM

Trust an old geezer like Green to side with Tony Bennett.

LesJarvis

04-05-2007, 01:22 PM

except that he was TOTALLY right on in what he said to Haley in terms of not messing with "Aint Misbehavin'". (And btw this is the first time ever that I've seen this show, so I have now offically lowered myself to the cretinous levels of you lot). The fact that she was adding in all those ridiculous, flirty "...and you! ...and you!" lines to every dude in the room after "...savin' all my love for you" showed, as Bennett said, that she was totally missing the point of the entire song.

Those are some amazing legs though. Damn.

In her defense, the only reason Haley is still on the show is because she got smart (at least in a playing the game sense) and decided to play up the hussy factor, and her "you and you and you" thing just played into that. Successfully, I might add, given that Gina got the boot and not Haley.

Jeff Green

04-05-2007, 01:58 PM

In her defense, the only reason Haley is still on the show is because she got smart (at least in a playing the game sense) and decided to play up the hussy factor, and her "you and you and you" thing just played into that. Successfully, I might add, given that Gina got the boot and not Haley.

Yeah, sure, I get all that. She can play up the hussy factor all she wants, because I'm a letch and will enjoy it as much as the next guy. By all means, America, don't vote her off yet!

But, yeah, the geezer in me felt the need to come to Tony Bennett's defense against Whitta, if only because THOSE DAMN KIDS were butchering those old classics left and right (and none worse than Haley) by showing they had no understanding or appreciation of what they were even singing. (Except for the ginormous woman at the end, whatever her name is). The lyrics might as well have been in Chinese for most of them.

Still, Haley, if you read Quarter to Three: Come talk to me about an internship at my magazine!

fuzzyslug

04-05-2007, 02:01 PM

Haley sings?

Cyrano

04-05-2007, 02:19 PM

I hated LaKisha for that run at the end. She's an OK singer with a big set of pipes, but nowhere near good enough to be giving a big "fuck you" to Tony Bennett on national TV. If Tony Bennett advised her to play her song on a kazoo, she should have done it.

J. Matthew Zoss

04-05-2007, 03:14 PM

You know - the opposite of a fake musician.

'Cause music is easy, right?The American Idol alumni seem no more or less authentic to me than half the "real" pop stars out there today. The careers of Beyonce, Jessica Simpson, Britney, and the like are no less engineered by stylists and managers, and various creepy old men.

Gary Whitta

04-05-2007, 03:16 PM

Idol gay scandal!
http://defamer.com/assets/resources/2007/04/blake-chris-idol.jpg

Crisis averted, photoshop to blame:
http://cache.gettyimages.com/xc/73684342.jpg?v=1&c=NewsMaker&k=2&d=17A4AD9FDB9CF1935B3684F2B7A07BEB5EC602F0A61812F7

Jerry Sizzler

04-10-2007, 07:00 PM

Wow, Sanjaya wasn't terrible, and I've got to respect the kid for actually singing in Spanish.

I normally love Jordin, but her vibrato these past two weeks has been out of fucking control.

Justin Fletcher

04-10-2007, 07:23 PM

God DAMN do I hate Miami Sound Machine.

VegasRobb

04-10-2007, 09:00 PM

If there's a week for Lakisha or Melinda to go out, it's this week. Seems like Haley might be the one to head out tho.

Sanjaya continues evolving as an entertainer. He rolled tonight.

J Lo's heels were smoking.

Machfive

04-10-2007, 09:02 PM

I thought the Robb Thomas wannabe blew bigger goats than usual. Even Sanjaya was better than his pitchy "Smooth," which is really pathetic.

Gary Whitta

04-10-2007, 09:29 PM

Yeah, Sanjaya actually wasn't bad. He'll survive another week.

Blake pwned it though by picking the best song of the night and blowing it out pretty good. Of them all he's the only one I can legitimately see in the charts. I hope he wins, he's my front-runner at this point.

txa1265

04-11-2007, 04:24 AM

Couple of general thoughts:
- So Jennifer Lopez, huh ... apparently there is a secondary competition around the worst theme / celebrity. This has my vote ...
- This season continues to be totally uninteresting. If it weren't a fun weekly family thing I wouldn't watch.

Melinda - so there were no easy soul-singer target songs this week, and we see Melinda's limitations shine through.

Lakisha - since she is second-fiddle to Melinda, she falls the same way.

Chris Richardson - he was OK, but nothing

Haley - Simon had the obvious comment about her tactic of wearing as little clothing as possible.

Phil Stacey - more 'acceptable' stuff, nothing impressive.

Jordin - she came across to me as 'too much time with a vocal coach, not enough time figuring out how to work a song'

Blake - best one of the night, IMO.

Sanjaya - he was surprising that he didn't completely suck, but absence of suckage doesn't equal quality. His voice is thin and he has no range, but he remains safe.

I don't know what to predict ... perhaps Phil, Haley and Lakisha in the bottom three ... and I'm sticking with Phil leaving before Haley.

Justin Fletcher

04-11-2007, 04:35 AM

It seems like Chris could go up there and bray like a mule for three minutes, and the judges would still say "Brilliant!" I just don't understand why they don't call him on his terrible performances.

I agree that Blake made the best song choice (I had just said "Where's the Marc Anthony?" to those watching with me when he announced his number), but I didn't think he pulled it off. I actually agreed with J Lo: he didn't connect to the passion of the song, so it fell flat. Simon should have given him the same criticism that he gave Phil.

Sanjaya finally had the opportunity to sing a song that played to his strength: whispy vocals. And he may have played to the camera, but nobody beats the King of the Annoyingly Fake Smoulder, Constantine Maroulis.

SpoofyChop

04-11-2007, 05:05 AM

I watched this while playing WoW in a different room.

Hey Gary can you cast Sanjaya in your movie? That would be awesome.

LesJarvis

04-11-2007, 06:54 AM

I watched this while playing WoW in a different room.

Heh, I did the exact same thing.

If we hadn't hit the mid-season duldrums before, we've certainly hit them now. The performers are utterly familiar, everyone has their favorites, and now it's just a waiting game to see who ends up on the business end of the "surprise" eliminations, and then to see who wins. Unfortunately, this seemingly simple matter is going to take another 7 weeks. In seasons past I've generally stopped watching altogether by this point, only to have my interested rekindled in the top 3 or 4, but for whatever reason I'm soldiering on.

In general last night's show was just sort of "meh." The good ones were good, the bad ones were bad, and Sanjaya wasn't quite as bad as usual. No one was exceptional, though. I'm half chalking it up to a stupid theme and a stupid mentor (seriously, who cares about J-Lo any more?) but as much as that it's just AI fatigue.

Phil_Stein

04-11-2007, 07:44 AM

Justin Fletcher - you're 0 for 2...

#1 - Miami Sound Machine/Gloria Estefan had some great songs. What this A.I. episode makes clear is that Gloria Estefan is a great singer performer and this crowd, for the most part, can't keep up. (No, I'm not a fanboi for MSM/GE - I don't think I own any of their music, but they did have some great songs in tha' day).

#2 - Chris is one of the few interesting entertainers on this show. Admittedly, he doesn't hold up to the better male singers from the last couple years, but it's gotten to the point where the only 2 performances that slow my Tivo fingers down to any significant extent are Chris's and Blake's.

Phil_Stein

04-11-2007, 08:00 AM

It seems to me this year there are very few in the top 8 who would have been competitive (at least for the top 3-4 slots) in years past.

My theory:

A.I. has roughly a 12-year age band for contestants (16-28, I think).

I doubt there were very many top notch singers in that age band this year who hadn't already tried out last year or in previous years. So the pool of eligible contestants is basically the also-rans from previous years.

In theory you could say the same thing about last year, relative to two years ago, and so on, but I don't think that holds up as much. Since A.I. began, I think the pool of contestants who could compete has steadily expanded in 2 ways:

First, the age band itself has expanded. It was originally 16-24. When they boosted the range for season 4, a bunch of older contestants were eligible for the first time, and I think the contestants for seasons 4 and 5 were the strongest batches overall, for the show.

Second, the stylistic range has expanded. In the first couple years, the show focus seemed to be classic pop/ballads, and I suspect a lot of good rock, country and blues singers stayed away. But over time, those singers realized that they could succeed on A.I. too, and so we saw Daughtry, Hicks, Underwood and Bice be the dominant performers for seasons 4 and 5.

But at this point, there are no new pools of untapped talent for the show, and I think the quality is suffering for it.

One thing that might be interesting would be to do an all-star series with a pre-selected group of 8-12 of the top performers from smaller countries - the Norwegian Idol or whatnot - to give them a chance to break through in America, and to collect the best talent from around the world...

Patrick

04-11-2007, 09:12 AM

Is it just me, or is it the even more obvious that the judges are trying to dictate to the viewers who should go home. They tried for a couple of weeks to get Sanjaya sent home (they failed). Now they have moved on to Haley. I'm not saying they don't deserve to be voted off, but the judges should be telling us what was wrong with the performance and what they can do to improve. Instead we get, "It was not good" and "the only thing you have going for you is your leggs."

It seems like they have thier minds made up before the show who is going to be good and who is not. Phil or Haley will probably be gone this week. Lakisha could be Vulnerable.

"Simon Cow" Was great though.

Machfive

04-11-2007, 09:54 AM

Phil was pitchy and his voice strained about 2 or 3 times in his song, but Chris Richardson was off through the whole song. I've heard better renditions of "Smooth" from tone-deaf drunkards in a karaoke bar.

I'd be disappointed if anyone but Chris goes home tonite.

drewl

04-11-2007, 10:11 AM

txa1265

04-11-2007, 11:06 AM

I'm not saying they don't deserve to be voted off, but the judges should be telling us what was wrong with the performance and what they can do to improve. Instead we get, "It was not good" and "the only thing you have going for you is your leggs."
The moment anything resembling criticism starts the whole audience breaks out in boos ... that makes constructive criticism very difficult.

Justin Fletcher

04-11-2007, 08:50 PM

#1 - Miami Sound Machine/Gloria Estefan had some great songs. What this A.I. episode makes clear is that Gloria Estefan is a great singer performer and this crowd, for the most part, can't keep up. (No, I'm not a fanboi for MSM/GE - I don't think I own any of their music, but they did have some great songs in tha' day).
Actually, I agree with you. Well, on the second part, anyway. There's no denying Gloria Estefan is a talented vocalist even if I usually hate the songs she's singing. Haley didn't have a prayer of pulling off the verbal somersaults of a song like "Turn The Beat Around."

#2 - Chris is one of the few interesting entertainers on this show. Admittedly, he doesn't hold up to the better male singers from the last couple years, but it's gotten to the point where the only 2 performances that slow my Tivo fingers down to any significant extent are Chris's and Blake's.
You lost me here. Chris's vocals are chronically sub-par. Not on Sanjaya's level, of course, but still wretched. And his charisma-free personality doesn't help. The way he stares blankly into the camera reminds of that creepy dummy from Magic.

VegasRobb

04-11-2007, 10:31 PM

Melinda and Lakisha survive subpar outings.

After reading about Michael Anthony's tax issues, it sorta makes sense why one of his songs showed up on the show last night. :)

J Lo's a star. Very magnetic.

Tyjenks

04-12-2007, 11:09 AM

Yeah, J Lo impressed me as well. Seemed relatively "normal" also. SHe is an incredible performer and then just stops, smiles, and chit chats like she and Ryan ran into each other on the street.

By Haley's legs. You will be sorely missed.

Phil now makes me want to vomit. I cannot put my finger on why, but he does.

Blake, a 5th place finisher at best if in last year's competition and not even close to who I would want to win in 2006, seems like he may have a shot and I am actually rooting for him. I wonder how many thought he was gonna be just The Beatbox Guy and now find themselves going, "Damn, he ain't bad after all."

Gary Whitta

04-12-2007, 11:17 AM

Haley had to go but it's a shame that there's no longer any eye-candy left on the show unless you're a woman or gay. Which I secretly am for Blake.

SHAKE 'N' BLAKE, BABY!

Also, has Sanjaya been in the bottom three even once yet? I'd love to know where he is really landing in the votes overall. I wonder if the producers are getting nervous yet. If they allowed him to win it would be a massive gutshot to the show's credibility.

Machfive

04-12-2007, 11:24 AM

If they allowed him to win it would be a massive gutshot to the show's credibility.

This presumes the show had any credibility to begin with. As far as I'm concerned, it lost all credibility the moment I found out how rigged the audition stage of the game was. It should be blatantly obvious simply because a talentless hack like Sanjaya was able to make it into the top 24. You mean to tell me he was in the top 12 of the DOZENS of other men sent to Hollywood? Bullshit.

The show is rigged up until the audience participation section to ensure it's entertaining, not so that it's fair or weighted towards those with talent.

SpoofyChop

04-12-2007, 11:40 AM

I had a dream last night where Haley was using her beautiful, beautiful, beautiful legs to choke, choke, choke the people that are voting for Sanjaya.

Yeah. They're *that* long.

fuzzyslug

04-12-2007, 11:43 AM

I had a dream last night where Haley was using her beautiful, beautiful, beautiful legs to choke, choke, choke the people that are voting for Sanjaya.

Yeah. They're *that* long.

I want to have a dream like that.

Gladguy

04-12-2007, 01:10 PM

Wake me up when Haley does her inevitable Playboy spread.

Reldan

04-12-2007, 01:50 PM

Haley had to go but it's a shame that there's no longer any eye-candy left on the show unless you're a woman or gay. Which I secretly am for Blake.

SHAKE 'N' BLAKE, BABY!

I daresay that if that last comment was some sort of crazy underlined blue text Whitta-link my head would have imploded.

Dirt

04-12-2007, 02:00 PM

I think Sanjaya winning would be a natural progression of the recording industry. Can Jennifer Lopez sing? No. Can Britney Spears sing? No. Can Madonna sing? No. Can Paula Abdul sing? No. Sanjaya is all about image and he's impressed each and every time he's been on. He deserves to be an American Idol.

What I find truly laughable is how Randy and Simon are trying to make American Idol all about talent instead of about finding someone you can market.

nixon66

04-12-2007, 02:18 PM

Wake me up when Haley does her inevitable Playboy spread.

My wife suggested the exact same thing. When she gets done with the Idols tour this summer she can give Heff a call, and get herself in.

Dirt

04-12-2007, 02:26 PM

Haley is a born-again christian. I'm guessing the Playboy spread isn't going to happen.

Gary Whitta

04-12-2007, 02:27 PM

Maxim then.

Gladguy

04-12-2007, 02:29 PM

or FHM, or UMM, or Blender, or....

Born-again or not, she slutted it up pretty good the past couple weeks. And those legs are outstanding. Show her enough green, and she'll spread 'em, I'm sure.

ducker

04-12-2007, 02:34 PM

or FHM, or UMM, or Blender, or....

Born-again or not, she slutted it up pretty good the past couple weeks. And those legs are outstanding. Show her enough green, and she'll spread 'em, I'm sure.

they aren't THAT great... if you tivo'ed the performance there's a scene where the camera panned from a wide angle shot from the floor up.

It showed some very cottage cheesy back thighs. The cameramen where kind to her prior to that shot.

Troy S Goodfellow

04-12-2007, 02:42 PM

It showed some very cottage cheesy back thighs. The cameramen where kind to her prior to that shot.

As if Carmen Electra has never been airbrushed...

Haley's good enough for the lad's mags.

Troy

fuzzyslug

04-12-2007, 02:46 PM

As if Carmen Electra has never been airbrushed...

Haley's good enough for the lad's mags.

Troy

Seconded.

Gary Whitta

04-14-2007, 03:42 PM

Next week is country themed, Martina McBride guest coach.

DennyA

04-14-2007, 10:53 PM

Next week is country themed, Martina McBride guest coach.
Ugh. That's one where I'll be thanking the Tivo gods for the skip-30-second hack.

txa1265

04-18-2007, 04:16 AM

Couple of general thoughts:
- After the last couple of weeks, I thought this one went off much better than I expected - I don't like country music.
- The whole show felt so completely choreographed right down to the Simon vs. Ryan moments - we all know it is fully staged, but the seams don't generally show so noticeably.
- We still haven't voted yet.

Phil Stacey - I thought that he was pretty loose tonight - it seemed that he assumed he'd go rather than Haley, so it is all gravy for him at this point.

Jordin - I thought she was very good this week, much better than recent weeks.

Sanjaya - he just sucks, and the way in which the show is playing him up has gotten old ...

Lakisha - I thought it started OK but turned lousy really quickly.

Chris Richardson - OK, so nasally is a singing style, but so is crappy. You win both!

Melinda - I thought it was technically proficient but not overly enjoyable. I liked Simon telling her to stop with the surprised act when everyone tells her she's a good singer.

Blake - pretty good, I figured he'd play it too cool but he fit it in pretty well.

My prediction ... probably Phil, Chris and Lakisha in the bottom three ... and I'm sticking with Phil leaving once again.

Joel

04-18-2007, 05:31 AM

Chris lost his nerve last night. That was a shame to see.

I'm starting to think Jordin can go all the way, too.

Jerry Sizzler

04-18-2007, 07:55 AM

I read somewhere else that Chris made a comment about the VT shooting and Simon responded rudely, but I somehow managed to miss both while watching. Can someone fill me in on what happened?

Angrycoder

04-18-2007, 08:22 AM

I read somewhere else that Chris made a comment about the VT shooting and Simon responded rudely, but I somehow managed to miss both while watching. Can someone fill me in on what happened?

Simon blasted Chris's singing and it really got Chris rattled. After Chris made his retort to Simon, he cut off Ryan and blurted out something about his heart being with the students of Virgina Tech and he has friends there. The camera was still on Simon and showed him rolling his eyes.

Now, you could easily make a 2 second clip of this event and it looks like Simon is being unsympathetic to what happened with the shootings. It was pretty clear to me though that Simon was rolling his eyes at the fact that Chris just gave a shitty performance, got some very harsh criticism, then blurted out something unrelated to the competition which would get him a big sympathy vote. It was really an uncomfortable moment. At the end of the show, Simon and the others made a statement that it has been a very tough week for all the contestants because of what happened at the college.

I am not disputing that Chris may have friends on the campus is and some how directly or indirectly suffering because of it, but when you are in competition and you drop a bomb like that, it definitely gives you an unfair advantage. It would be akin to Sanjaya going up there every week and shouting Free Tibet or Save Darfur.

Patrick

04-18-2007, 08:39 AM

I decided to grade the performances this week, so...

A Jordan.................(Great)
B Melinda................(Pretty Good)
C Chris, Blake, Phil....(Ok could have been worse)
D Lakisha................(Disapointed)
F Sanjaya...............(He makes my ears bleed)

LesJarvis

04-18-2007, 08:40 AM

Dialidol predictions (http://www.dialidol.com/asp/predictions/Predictions.asp), bizarro world edition. OK, not that bizarre, but Phil ahead of everyone is is pretty weird. I'd just sort of been assuming he'd go tonight regardless of the quality of his performance.

Of the remaining contestants I'd say Jordin has the best shot at winning right now. I'm not really a fan because of the whole fundamentalist christian thing, but she's damn talented in her own right, and I think she's got the goods to make it happen.

Reldan

04-18-2007, 09:04 AM

I probably enjoyed Phil's performance more than anyone else's this week. I really haven't liked him in the past, but he simply pulled it off last night.

I typically like Melinda's performances more than anyone else's by far, but even though I thought Melinda was her normal excellence, I still liked Nosphilratu more.

Strange.

Jerry Sizzler

04-18-2007, 09:11 AM

Simon blasted Chris's singing and it really got Chris rattled. After Chris made his retort to Simon, he cut off Ryan and blurted out something about his heart being with the students of Virgina Tech and he has friends there. The camera was still on Simon and showed him rolling his eyes.

OK, thanks. I guess after he said NASALLY IS A FORM OF SINGING my brain temporarily shut down. I do agree that dropping a bomb like that is uncalled for, but I guess it's fundamentally no different than LaKisha dropping the single mother card as often as possible and Phil constantly blathering on about his wife and kids.

txa1265

04-18-2007, 09:30 AM

OK, thanks. I guess after he said NASALLY IS A FORM OF SINGING my brain temporarily shut down. I do agree that dropping a bomb like that is uncalled for, but I guess it's fundamentally no different than LaKisha dropping the single mother card as often as possible and Phil constantly blathering on about his wife and kids.

I disagree - one speaks to who they are as people, the other is like pulling the race card ...

Angrycoder

04-18-2007, 10:00 AM

OK, thanks. I guess after he said NASALLY IS A FORM OF SINGING my brain temporarily shut down. I do agree that dropping a bomb like that is uncalled for, but I guess it's fundamentally no different than LaKisha dropping the single mother card as often as possible and Phil constantly blathering on about his wife and kids.

Actually, there is a pretty big difference between mentioning your wife/kid and piggybacking onto a nation tragedy. Not that that was Chris's intent, but in the context of the situation it was very awkward.

Angrycoder

04-18-2007, 10:07 AM

Dialidol predictions (http://www.dialidol.com/asp/predictions/Predictions.asp), bizarro world edition. OK, not that bizarre, but Phil ahead of everyone is is pretty weird. I'd just sort of been assuming he'd go tonight regardless of the quality of his performance.

You greatly underestimate the popularity of country music. Regardless of what you think of his singing, Phil definately gave the best country performance last night.

LesJarvis

04-18-2007, 10:16 AM

You greatly underestimate the popularity of country music. Regardless of what you think of his singing, Phil definately gave the best country performance last night.

I don't think I'm underestimating the appeal or popularity of country at all. Hello, Carrie Underwood? She won the whole thing two years ago in case you hadn't heard, and she's a country singer. What I apparently did underestimate is the appeal of Phil. He may have given the best country performance of the night, but I maintain that he is creepy and unattractive. Certainly didn't expect to see him in first.

Angrycoder

04-18-2007, 11:09 AM

I don't think I'm underestimating the appeal or popularity of country at all. Hello, Carrie Underwood? She won the whole thing two years ago in case you hadn't heard, and she's a country singer. What I apparently did underestimate is the appeal of Phil. He may have given the best country performance of the night, but I maintain that he is creepy and unattractive. Certainly didn't expect to see him in first.

Sorry, I didn't realize that your confusion stemed from the fact that the person that gave the best performance for that genre is in first place, makes perfect sense.

Gary Whitta

04-18-2007, 11:57 AM

Chris was definitely rattled, he's used to doing pretty well with the judges and is not accustomed to Simon steaming into him like that. The whole "nasally is a form of singing, I don't know if you know that or not" comment was really ungracious and uncomfortable, and then to drop the VT bomb right after felt very cynical and cloying.

I think Sanjaya might actually be in the bottom three tonight. He was so SO bad, and Simon hit the nail on the head when he said that it's been funny up to now but the joke is wearing thin.

sluggo

04-18-2007, 12:08 PM

Phil: easily the big winner last night. Up until now, he'd been limping along, but last night he went from soon-to-be-Idol footnote to a guy who will absolutely get a crack at a country career. Six months from now, when you see him hawking a CD on various talk shows, he'll say that last night's performance was the moment his career started.

Chris: the "nasally is a style, too" comment was pretty dumb, and the abrupt comment about the VT thing was weird and awkward. With a different personality, he could win the whole thing, but as it stands, he's just too distant to stick around much longer. He could be gone tonight.

Melinda: has a problem. She hits home runs almost every week, and yet she's so easily forgettable. Simon alluded to it: she needs to stop looking so shocked at the compliments each week and start owning the crowd as well as the songs. In another week or two, she's going to be at risk of being knocked out by Jordan, who's an inferior singer but has a little more personality.

Sanjaya won't be around much longer. Chris and Phil might go first, but unless Blake has a meltdown, there won't be room for Sanjaya in the final 3 or 4.

LesJarvis

04-18-2007, 12:09 PM

Sorry, I didn't realize that your confusion stemed from the fact that the person that gave the best performance for that genre is in first place, makes perfect sense.

If you don't follow American Idol, sure. This is not a setting where the results consistently reflect the quality of the performances.

Gary Whitta

04-18-2007, 09:57 PM

FINALLY REASON AND JUSTICE PREVAIL

Gary Whitta

04-18-2007, 10:00 PM

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f346/Saoh/burnsangina.jpg

VegasRobb

04-18-2007, 10:01 PM

Should be interesting now. I wonder if Lakisha will be able to rebound from a bad week.

Gary Whitta

04-18-2007, 10:03 PM

Blake in the bottom three makes me sad.

Gary Whitta

04-25-2007, 12:25 AM

So, bit of a flat night - not even my secret gay crush Blake was able to blow me away. Best of the night? Probably Chris largely thanks to his song choice and (shock horror) Phil who was actually very good for the second week in a row.

If you want to know just how much Jordin's You'll Never Walk Alone was NOT a show-stopper, go listen to Elvis's version for how it is supposed to be done.

Kinda looking forward to tomorrow night's Bon-fuelled charidee extravaganza...

Talisker

04-25-2007, 12:33 AM

Gary Whitta

04-25-2007, 03:09 AM

And yet, dialidol is showing Jordan at #1
I can only assume that's because as Simon pointed out it's a pretty old song and probably the majority of Idol voters have no baseline against which to judge her performance. It's such a great song that any semi-decent singer should be able to rouse people with it, but if you've ever heard it done by a true talent then you'd know how shrill and hollow Jordin's rendition was.

Also, to be fair, it's not a song that does well in the Idol-truncated version. Like Imagine, it needs its full length to breathe properly.

txa1265

04-25-2007, 03:19 AM

I hope Lakisha goes home ... or Chris ... they are both pretty crappy.

Jordin was better than most, despite what Whitta said being true.

Gary Whitta

04-25-2007, 03:59 AM

At the end of the day, this season has been dull.

I still want to know why this guy didn't make it through:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=PydnNhYla3Y

txa1265

04-25-2007, 05:04 AM

At the end of the day, this season has been dull.

I think putting it that way is giving it the 'Paula treatment' :D

Stroker Ace

04-25-2007, 05:36 AM

My MIL forced us to watch this last night. I don't know any of the contestants but I'd put the two dudes at the bottom. The Garth Brooks cover was just bad, and the John Lennon cover left a lot to be desired even if it was merely boring.

fuzzyslug

04-25-2007, 05:43 AM

I didn't really like Jordon's performance. I thought it was off-key quite a bit, possibly a symptom of some tears creeping through.

I did like Blake's performance. It was clean, an important quality when the song is quiet and simple. If he had screwed it up, it would have been incredibly painful to make it through the performance. He's really showing the benefit of Idol's vocal coaching.

Andrew is right that Chris is bland. I think it is his turn to go home.

Lakisha needs to be told to turn down the volume a notch. I thought the first part of the song was excellent. Once it got cranked up, however, she started shouting. She showed some chops by controlling that big voice in the beginning, only to waste it away in what should be her strength.

Phil really needed to be born earlier. He would have been awesome in the 80's. Last night, I thought he was ok. It might have been that Garth Brooks is a great performer and Phil, well, isn't quite yet.

Melinda remains my favorite. What a great voice. The Idol judges spend a lot of time talking about folks being in the same league as a Whitney or Celine. Melinda is the closest I've seen. My question for my country music loving wife last night was, "Does Faith sing it that well?"

JeffL

04-25-2007, 06:07 AM

I can't recall a season when all of the judges, especially Simon, were so openly blown away every week by a contestant the way they are by Melinda. Each week they tell her how she should already be recording or how she's already pro level, etc.

I think she is clearly head and shoulders above everyone else and has been for most of the show. But I also think, the way the voting works, that Blake might give her a close race, just because of the teen girl voters.

LesJarvis

04-25-2007, 06:16 AM

Man, the producers were laying on the Jordin pimping thick last night. I think she's going to win even more now, because they're going to promote her relentlessly over everyone else, including the more talented Melinda.

Phil_Stein

04-25-2007, 07:30 AM

Last night I watched the Chris performance part-way through, then fast forwarded to judges' comments, then just started fast forwarding and skipping through the whole show. Stopped on Phil and one or two of the others for about 15 seconds each, then hunted around on Tivo for Blake's performance but only watched about 30 seconds of that.

I just can't get excited about these singers, especially compared to the last 2 seasons.

JeffL

04-25-2007, 05:10 PM

OK - flippin' through the channels and Ryan Seacrest said they will have the most shocking result in the history of American Idol tonight.

The only thing that could qualify as that would be Melinda voted off. Which is what it would obviously be (and would result in my not watching another episode this season) - except that at the end of the show last night he said to stay tuned tomorrow night for the biggest shock in American Idol history.

Not surprise, but shock. So what could it be? Since he announced it last night, it can't be Melinda being voted off. The only guess I can come up with would be someone from earlier in the season being brought back - something like they did a miscount, and mistakenly took someone off who shouldn't be?

Any other guesses? How about a contest - who can get "the most shocking results in American Idol history?"

LesJarvis

04-25-2007, 05:34 PM

Recall that Idol Gives Back, i.e. the nonsense I fast-forwarded through as I watched AI on my DVR last night, was hyped as a "major announcement." 5:1 odds says it's something completely stupid.

JeffL

04-25-2007, 06:37 PM

Yeah, I can see a big announcement, but not "the most shocking result"

Gladguy

04-25-2007, 06:40 PM

Ok... was that an Elvis impersonator on stage with Celine? My wife was insisting it was Elvis himself, somehow projected. I dunno... looked pretty 3D to me.

Anyone?

LesJarvis

04-25-2007, 06:49 PM

I think they just cropped him out of some existing footage and then pasted him in in post production, and filmed using the same or very similar camera angles of the original. They may have used a stand in for the rest of the performers to play off of as well, though I'm not sure.

LesJarvis

04-25-2007, 07:06 PM

Well, that was lame, but not in a way I had anticipated, so I guess that counts as shocking for American Idol.

txa1265

04-25-2007, 07:25 PM

Now the math figures that whomever was the bottom 2 with 70 million votes has to hit the top 2 in a 35 million vote week to survive ... so I'm still with Lakisha and Chris going.

Oh - and JEFF FUCKING BECK!!!!

Talisker

04-25-2007, 08:49 PM

So did Bono actually perform at the end? The show went a few minutes long, and clipped the final performance just as it was getting started. (My wife is a HUGE fan, and was very upset. My laughing didn't exactly help :)

Stroker Ace

04-25-2007, 09:18 PM

My wife was thinking maybe Celine wasn't live either - do the whole Celine thing in a studio so you can have multiple takes and massage it to look just so with the Elvis video, then have the kids in the back singing along to an empty center stage. Thoughts?

sluggo

04-25-2007, 11:04 PM

I'm calling shenanigans on the "shocking ending." There wasn't even an explanation for it -- it was just some random twist the producers threw in.

The Elvis performance was mind-boggling to watch. It never occurred to me that Celine might not have been live, either, but that would make some sense -- it would make it a lot easier to piece together.

Gary Whitta

04-25-2007, 11:11 PM

I'm pretty sure that whole piece was pre-packaged and the audience was watching it on the jumbotron. I don't think you can do that kind of compositing live.

txa1265

04-26-2007, 12:41 AM

I'm pretty sure that whole piece was pre-packaged and the audience was watching it on the jumbotron. I don't think you can do that kind of compositing live.

Definitely - and it was all well done until that harsh end-cut.

Gladguy

04-26-2007, 04:06 AM

I'm pretty sure that whole piece was pre-packaged and the audience was watching it on the jumbotron. I don't think you can do that kind of compositing live.
Well, if anyone reads anything as to how they did that, I'd love a link. I would have wagered a paycheque that we were watching a really good impersonator.

fuzzyslug

04-26-2007, 05:28 AM

I'm pretty sure that whole piece was pre-packaged and the audience was watching it on the jumbotron. I don't think you can do that kind of compositing live.

Yeah, it was pretty obvious isn't wasn't live. Right after the performance, they went to Ryan, who was next to a crowd of people sitting down. A moment before, they were cheering for Celine and dead Elvis.

Phil_Stein

04-26-2007, 07:14 AM

Yeah, it was pretty obvious isn't wasn't live. Right after the performance, they went to Ryan, who was next to a crowd of people sitting down. A moment before, they were cheering for Celine and dead Elvis.

I think the whole show was split between two locations - the main AI stage in some indoor theater somewhere, and the Disney Hall (where Ellen DeGeneres was). So your point isn't necessarily incompatible with Celine performing live.

LesJarvis

04-26-2007, 07:33 AM

It was obviously not live. The video quality changed substantially during the segment, it was completely incongruous with the rest of the show, the cuts were blatant, etc. It was not live.

PeterGinsberg

04-26-2007, 07:34 AM

Deeply creepy (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpH7BlYsdGI).

fuzzyslug

04-26-2007, 07:50 AM

I think the whole show was split between two locations - the main AI stage in some indoor theater somewhere, and the Disney Hall (where Ellen DeGeneres was). So your point isn't necessarily incompatible with Celine performing live.

The two locations looked completely different, however. Elvis was on the Idol stage.

VegasRobb

04-26-2007, 08:33 AM

txa1265

04-26-2007, 08:42 AM

I like how they announced that Bono was going to be there on Tuesday, but he didn't show up till the last 5 minutes on Wednesday. I was really hoping that he was going to be an Idol Mentor.
They even called him 'mentor', whereas he was only there for the charity (not that it is a bad thing).

Poor Jordan. If anyone should have been left hanging, it should have been Lakisha.

I felt for her - she deserves to be around for a while, as one of the two people left with some personality ...

sluggo

04-26-2007, 09:20 AM

I was under the impression that the people who were "safe" first received the most votes, with the implication being that Jordan and Chris received the fewest this week.

J. Matthew Zoss

04-26-2007, 09:52 AM

Gary Whitta

04-26-2007, 09:53 AM

Well, if anyone reads anything as to how they did that, I'd love a link. I would have wagered a paycheque that we were watching a really good impersonator.
What's so hard to figure out? They pre-taped a segment in front of an Idol audience (probably using a stand-in for Elvis) and then composited the "real" Elvis over it, post-processed the image to look like an old Elvis special, etc. Then during the live show they ran the taped segment on the big screen and the live theater audience watched it along with the TV audience.

As fuzzyslug said, you could tell it was taped when they cut from the end of the piece back to Seacrest and there was a big disconnect between the Elvis audience reaction and what the "live" audience was doing.

VegasRobb

04-26-2007, 10:48 AM

Two people are leaving next week.

PeterGinsberg

04-26-2007, 10:50 AM

What's so hard to figure out? They pre-taped a segment in front of an Idol audience (probably using a stand-in for Elvis) and then composited the "real" Elvis over it, post-processed the image to look like an old Elvis special, etc. Then during the live show they ran the taped segment on the big screen and the live theater audience watched it along with the TV audience.

As fuzzyslug said, you could tell it was taped when they cut from the end of the piece back to Seacrest and there was a big disconnect between the Elvis audience reaction and what the "live" audience was doing.

Someone metafilter posted this to add more detail:
I'll give you all a little insight into how this was accomplished. The performance was not "live" like some people believe, but a pre-recorded performance between Celine and a gentleman named Ryan Pelton, who performs as Elvis nightly at Legends In Concert in Myrtle Beach, SC. Ryan was a stand-in for Elvis's body and portions of the video released from the Elvis Estate were used to replace Pelton's face. There is a statement on ryanpelton(dot)com about his experience on Idol.

Gary Whitta

05-01-2007, 09:16 PM

HOLY SHIT BLAKE JUST TOTALLY OWNED UP THE ENTIRE JOINT

vote
vote
vote
vote
vote
vote
vote
vote
vote
vote
vote

spence

05-01-2007, 10:23 PM

Is that the beatbox guy? If so, he was pretty bad ass.

Angrycoder

05-01-2007, 10:38 PM

If someone had told me a few months ago that the combination of beat box and fucking bon jovi = teh awsome, I would have they were crazier than Koontz.

gg blake.

Lurb

05-02-2007, 03:36 AM

So how did W do?

fuzzyslug

05-02-2007, 05:57 AM

Last night was far better than I expected, particular after I found out they would all do Bon Jovi songs only.

Jordon was pretty bad, almost as bad as when she tried Beyonce. The rocker thing just isn't her thing. At least she admitted to it.

Phil was decent but his performance didn't really stick with me. Technically, good. In reality, ok.

Lakisha seems to sing the same song every week. This week was good but it always disappoints me when you hear the same old stuff come out of a week with a unique style.

Chris needs to go home. He's stretched his R&B style and his voice to the limits. It was a mistake to do Dead or Alive. The best version is still Daugtry's from last year. Daughtry's album isn't too shabby, btw.

Blake was awesome. He chose an interesting week to bring out his true style (this matches the one youtube video I've seen of him). It was a very cool performance of a song I really liked. Outside of his additions, I thought he carried the chorus really well, which was probably the most impressive part of the whole thing.

Melinda was solid. Can she do a Tina Turner song before this thing is over?

Prediction: Chris and Lakisha go home.

nixon66

05-02-2007, 07:32 AM

Chris and Lakisha are in my bottom two predicitons, but Jordan did the worst last night. Fun note - Did you catch the look on Bon Jovi's face after she started talking about how much her mom loved him. Owch.

I too was impressed by Blake's song. Jeez, I was worried too after what Bon Jovi said. Usually when a "mentor" says something like that it sets up a trainwreck, but damn if Blake didn't pull through!

I expected Melinda to crash and burn, but she pulled it out, even if I didn't like it too much.

Kunikos

05-02-2007, 10:02 AM

I get the impression that Blake changed the song because he really dislikes Bon Jovi, which I can totally understand since his improvisations were the only good parts of that song. ;)

Best performances were probably Blake, Chris, and Phil. Although I dislike Chris' voice, it's just in a tonally flat, higher range that he never snaps out of, and Phil being such a big phony.

Worst performances were probably Jordin and Melinda. The former just couldn't land the song at all, and the latter was not only off-tempo but the song itself just plain sucked (there's a reason why it's not a well-known song!). Lakisha wasn't bad, but she wasn't singing rock at all-- it was the same big Whitney Houston style singing she does every single week.

I expect Phil and Lakisha to go home. (But hell, last year they picked that big jerkoff for the winner so who knows)

fuzzyslug

05-02-2007, 10:39 AM

I too was impressed by Blake's song. Jeez, I was worried too after what Bon Jovi said. Usually when a "mentor" says something like that it sets up a trainwreck, but damn if Blake didn't pull through!

Did you notice he didn't sound very good in the rehersal? Maybe that's what Bon Jovi was worried about.

Midnight Son

05-02-2007, 10:53 AM

Bon Jovi is so NOT a rocker. He was bubblegum then and he's bubblegum now.

Gary Whitta

05-02-2007, 11:04 AM

This show was the best of the season but it made me feel a bit old. The realization that most of these contestants only knew of Bon Jovi because their parents liked them... ouch.

Also, while I loved Blake's little opening bit where he mimed putting a record on the turntable, I wonder how many of the kids in the audience had no idea what he was doing as they're probably never seen a piece of vinyl in their lives.

amiller320

05-02-2007, 08:42 PM

At what point did Jon Bon Jovi turn into John Melloncamp?

Gary Whitta

05-02-2007, 10:00 PM

Man I'm kinda sad to see Chris go...

SpoofyChop

05-03-2007, 05:29 AM

Yeah Chris was cool. I would have preferred to see Lakisha get the boot. At this point I'm honestly rooting for Blake. I don't think there's any chance he's gonna get kicked off next week but I'm not really convinced that he can win.

My prediction is Blake and Melinda in the final with Melinda winning and then, despite how "amazing" she is, Blake kicking the crap out of her in album sales.

fuzzyslug

05-03-2007, 05:54 AM

I expected Chris to leave but, at this point, I'm almost voting against Lakisha. I'd like Melinda to win and I'm worried she's splitting some votes with Lakisha (and probably Jordon) at this point due to them having relatively similar styles.

My prediction is that Jordon and Melinda make it to the final. Jordon is young and there's some history there of young folks making it farther than you expect. Blake, on the other hand, appeals to folks like me, i.e. people that are much less likely to vote. That could hurt him.

txa1265

05-03-2007, 06:01 AM

The fact that there are enough votes to sustain both Lakisha and Melinda bothers me ... I find that Melinda makes Lakisha completely superfluous. I feel like the producers have been priming Melinda to win all season long, and she has certainly got the pipes, even if her 'wide-eyed' thing has really started to grate on me.

I had really hoped for Lakisha to go - Nosferatu has really grown on me recently. There was a point several weeks ago when he was in the last two and you could tell he was assuming he would go. Since then he has been loose and fun and personable. Last night Chris was the typical finishing performance, but Phil really integrated with loads of people in a nice way while showing how much his family means to him.

But then, it makes sense, he feeds off their necks and all.

JeffL

05-03-2007, 06:22 AM

The final should be Blake and Melinda. Blake was kind of a novelty to me in the beginning, but he has really demonstrated some superior depth of talent. After his outrageously courageous version of the Bon Jovi song, you heard Chris just doing a straight cover and it sounded so blah - not because he sang it poorly, just in contrast to what Blake did.

Melinda: good gracious, where does it come from? I thought there was no way she could rock, and then she came out like Tina Turner (my comment to my wife halfway through her performance) and her voice, performance, it was what you would expect from a top ten Billboard performer at the Grammy's. She's just consistently in a category above the other women.

They should have a real "biggest shock in American Idol history!" and give two winner awards this year: a male and female. Blake and Melinda are both a level above everyone, and different enough it's tough to call one "better" than the other.

txa1265

05-03-2007, 06:25 AM

Chris just doing a straight cover and it sounded so blah
The thing that got me with Chris was that it looked like he was constantly fighting the urge to 'boy band' it ... and occasionally some of the 'moves' slipped in.

SpoofyChop

05-03-2007, 06:50 AM

They should have a real "biggest shock in American Idol history!" and give two winner awards this year: a male and female. Blake and Melinda are both a level above everyone, and different enough it's tough to call one "better" than the other.

That would be awesome but I doubt they have the balls for it.

Mike O'Malley

05-03-2007, 07:22 AM

My prediction is Blake and Melinda in the final with Melinda winning and then, despite how "amazing" she is, Blake kicking the crap out of her in album sales.

Did Bo Bice beat whats-her-name in album sales? Because I think he kicked her ass in performance.

SpoofyChop

05-03-2007, 09:11 AM

Did Bo Bice beat whats-her-name in album sales? Because I think he kicked her ass in performance.

His first album sold 667,000 units in the US.

Hers sold 5,333,937.

Reldan

05-03-2007, 09:26 AM

I was so praying KIKI would get her fat ass booted last night. There's no way I can see Phil winning, but he's been consistently getting his groove on the last few weeks, and I think he at least brings something entertaining to his performances.

I think he got totally hosed by the double week vote double elimination. After Jordin's horrendous Bon Jovi performance, I think it was mainly the ton of votes she got the week prior that kept her around.

JeffL

05-03-2007, 06:50 PM

His first album sold 667,000 units in the US.

Hers sold 5,333,937.

Well, the apparent route to commercial success from American Idol is to go the country route.

Phil_Stein

05-04-2007, 06:10 AM

Bucky just put out an album recently, and I think I saw that it launched well - no details on numbers though.

Also, isn't Josh Grobin ex-A.I.? He's done very well...

So yes, country seems to be a good style for A.I. albums.

txa1265

05-04-2007, 06:17 AM

Also, isn't Josh Grobin ex-A.I.? He's done very well...

No ... the first I saw of him was on Ally McBeal ...

SpoofyChop

05-04-2007, 07:04 AM

Gary Whitta

05-04-2007, 08:40 AM

Also, isn't Josh Grobin ex-A.I.? He's done very well...
You're thinking of Josh Gracin.

Phil_Stein

05-04-2007, 06:35 PM

You're thinking of Josh Gracin.

Yes, you're right.

But he's still not too bad. According to Wikipedia, Gracin's debut went gold (perhaps 'country' gold is a lesser standard, or perhaps not - I don't know), and he had 3 top 5 singles on the country charts.

Re: Bucky - also per Wikipedia, his CD came out April 17, so it's quite new. It debuted #4 overall, #1 country. Not too shabby...

No, I'm not particularly a fan of either of them - just pointing out that the country charts seems to be pretty receptive to A.I. non-winners...

DennyA

05-05-2007, 12:19 AM

Though Melinda is probably the best singer, of the remaining contestants, Blake seems to be the one who actually has any star quality, and could actually sell albums.

VegasRobb

05-09-2007, 08:37 AM

So ... how was Bee Gees' night? I missed the whole show.

txa1265

05-09-2007, 09:05 AM

So ... how was Bee Gees' night? I missed the whole show.

I think Barry Gibb writes some really nice melodies and songs ... I've just never been a fan of their stuff. I like a couple of the non-disco-era ballads a bit.

So how did they do?
- Melinda - sang very well, but I didn't like her. She messed with both songs and really killed any meaning in 'How can you mend a broken heart' and turned it into a over-singing session.
- Blake - showed he has the most style but weakest basic singing chops of the four. Overdid the beatboxing a bit, but I think that he was much better than the judges gave him credit for.
- Lakisha - once again sang the same songs the same way ... even tried to turn 'Stayin' Alive' into a power ballad ...
- Jordin - back in solid form. Messed around with the songs a bit and did the 'big finish oversing' that every song *must have* (for some reason) ... but nowhere NEAR as bad as what Melinda did.

Bottom line, I felt that the judges wanted Blake to go, but I expect Lakisha gone. I think they know that as well, but want Melinda to win overall and don't want anything to mess with that.

Patrick

05-09-2007, 10:14 AM

I think Barry Gibb writes some really nice melodies and songs ... I've just never been a fan of their stuff. I like a couple of the non-disco-era ballads a bit.

So how did they do?
- Melinda - sang very well, but I didn't like her. She messed with both songs and really killed any meaning in 'How can you mend a broken heart' and turned it into a over-singing session.
- Blake - showed he has the most style but weakest basic singing chops of the four. Overdid the beatboxing a bit, but I think that he was much better than the judges gave him credit for.
- Lakisha - once again sang the same songs the same way ... even tried to turn 'Stayin' Alive' into a power ballad ...
- Jordin - back in solid form. Messed around with the songs a bit and did the 'big finish oversing' that every song *must have* (for some reason) ... but nowhere NEAR as bad as what Melinda did.

Bottom line, I felt that the judges wanted Blake to go, but I expect Lakisha gone. I think they know that as well, but want Melinda to win overall and don't want anything to mess with that.

I have to agree.

Melinda was good.
Blake was ok. Atleast he tries to be different.
Lakisha sings every song the same way and its getting boring.
Jordon was the best last night but still wasn't great.

Gary Whitta

05-09-2007, 10:21 AM

Last night was really dull. What was up with the lame song choices?

Lakisha will go tonight. I predict a Jordin/Blake final.

txa1265

05-09-2007, 11:53 AM

I predict a Jordin/Blake final.

I have said before that I *hope* for that outcome, but it seems that the whole season has been set up around a Melinda win ...

Patrick

05-09-2007, 12:24 PM

I have said before that I *hope* for that outcome, but it seems that the whole season has been set up around a Melinda win ...

True but the judges rarely get what they want.

sluggo

05-09-2007, 12:40 PM

As the last guy standing, Blake should really be able to coast to the finals -- he'll basically have the teenybopper vote all to himself while the other 3 girls fight over the same slice of the pie. But I think Blake put himself in real jeopardy last night. He was horrid.

Last night was dull, agreed.

fuzzyslug

05-09-2007, 08:21 PM

Last night was dull, agreed.

Not as dull as Barry Gibb last night. Wounded squirrel.

hido

05-09-2007, 08:55 PM

As a BIG fan of Gram Parsons' version of "To Love Somebody", I though Mr. Gibb did a damn fine job tonight.

VegasRobb

05-09-2007, 09:58 PM

Finally. Melinda is next.

Gary Whitta

05-09-2007, 10:05 PM

WOOT BLAKE!

sluggo

05-15-2007, 11:53 PM

Interesting vote coming Wednesday. I'd rank the performances Melinda / Blake / Jordin, but general popularity Blake / Jordin / Melinda, so it's hard to guess how the votes will break out.

Patrick

05-16-2007, 08:24 AM

Interesting vote coming Wednesday. I'd rank the performances Melinda / Blake / Jordin, but general popularity Blake / Jordin / Melinda, so it's hard to guess how the votes will break out.

It sounds like you bought what the judges were selling. They praise Melinda like she is the next coming. She is good, but she doesn't have the stage presence of the other two. I really think she will be the next to go.

Angrycoder

05-16-2007, 08:32 AM

I really hope Curly McSasquatch goes home this week. Go Blake!

txa1265

05-16-2007, 08:40 AM

She is good, but she doesn't have the stage presence of the other two.
That is what I was thinking last night - she actually has a fairly limited performance range despite having a really good voice. Blake is weakest vocally but is the one I would choose to watch. And Jordin I really like how she does thing more than Melinda ... I think Simon is looking for her to be some Britney-esque pop-tart, and she just isn't. Sure, Melinda carries off the 'no you di-int' type neck bob thing best of all, but that is about it.

Tyjenks

05-16-2007, 08:54 AM

We'll see. I would prefer Blake and Jordin also. Does Simon's christening of Melinda get her in? Survey says........

Gary Whitta

05-16-2007, 09:09 AM

Blake is the only one of the three with anything resembling an original sound, and the only one who you can imagining filling an album with music that people today would actually listen to. The other two are accomplished singers, but what do they bring to the musical landscape? Nothing, we already have plenty of belt-it-out power divas, thanks.

txa1265

05-16-2007, 09:11 AM

We'll see. I would prefer Blake and Jordin also. Does Simon's christening of Melinda get her in? Survey says........

I think that the judges, Randy & Simon specifically, are out there with a 30+ million viewer audience each week defining what a 'good performance' is. And I don't go for their definition. It doesn't include subtlety or nuance, much preferring to hear these women with big pipes belt things out week after week with overdramatic finishes ... yuk.

sluggo

05-16-2007, 09:15 AM

It sounds like you bought what the judges were selling. They praise Melinda like she is the next coming.
Melinda is by far the best *singer* left. It's not even close. And from a technical perspective, she had the best three performances last night. If that's how this contest was being judged, she'd win.

But it's not, so she's got problems: (a) she never comes across as contemporary; (b) she has no real presence once the song's over. She's great and yet forgettable. Jordin seems to have a more charisma, and Blake is more of a character and his arrangements make him worth watching every week, which makes tonight's results interesting.

fuzzyslug

05-16-2007, 09:57 AM

Melinda remains my personal favorite basically because she's very polished and very good. I really do think she'd give some of the current divas out there a run for their money. If she looked like Beyonce, she'd sell a turdload of records.

Blake is next on my list and has the best chance of me actually purchasing an album from him. Put out a Maroon 5 type album. Please.

Jordon's very talented for her age and might have crushed this competition in a couple of years. For now, the other two are more enjoyable to watch.

I have mixed feelings about the final. I think that a Melinda/Blake finale wouldn't be particularly interesting. With the goofy songs the show picks for the last show, Melinda should crush Blake. She's a much better singer. He's unlikely to add anything good to "I'm a Super Duper Person with a Super Duper Dream." Melinda/Jordon would be more interesting. Jordon would give her a better run.

txa1265

05-16-2007, 10:04 AM

And from a technical perspective, she had the best three performances last night.
Really?
#1 - she failed to get close to Whitney, having to tone down in spots to keep it in check.
#2 - strutted around doing a workmanlike job on that craptastic Turner song.
#3 - basically the way she sings everything that is supposed to have any attitude. This was very good, but was shooting fish in a barrel for her.

I still think that Jordin had a better night with 2 good performances to Melinda's 1 (Jordin was weak on 'She works hard...')

But we shall see.

Talisker

05-16-2007, 11:28 AM

My wife thinks Jordin's going to get voted off this week; when I disagreed, she made a wager -- if she's right, I take her out to one of her favorite restaurants. If I'm right, I get to buy a bottle of good scotch.

At worst, I get a kickass dinner, at best, I get to gloat as I tip back some Laphroaig 15-year :)

LesJarvis

05-16-2007, 12:11 PM

I think Blake's going tonight.

JeffL

05-16-2007, 05:15 PM

I'd bet that Jordin and Melinda split votes, while Blake has a tennybopper girl chunk that will carry him through to the finals.

Personally, I think Melinda is big step above Jordin - I could see her bringing the house down at the Grammys. And Blake is probably the most overall talented, when you look at his performances and arrangements. Melinda and Blake should be in the final two, but this is American Idol.

txa1265

05-16-2007, 07:06 PM

Blake & Jordin - I'm quite pleased and a bit surprised. Now it can go either way and I will be happy for the winner.

Talisker

05-16-2007, 07:08 PM

Woooooot! I've never been this happy about an Idol vote before. Hooray for wagering!

txa1265

05-16-2007, 07:15 PM

Woooooot! I've never been this happy about an Idol vote before. Hooray for wagering!
Have a drink for us!

VegasRobb

05-16-2007, 10:15 PM

Elliot looked good. If he looked like that last year, he would have won.

Anyway, this was a repeat of last season's final three. The best singer was also the least appealing.

Melinda's performances were fine, but her wardrobe was horrid. It really detracted from her performances.

Congrats Jordin, the next American Idol!

Gary Whitta

05-16-2007, 10:20 PM

I think Blake's going tonight.
WRONG, MOTHER FUCKER!

*jig*

sluggo

05-16-2007, 11:02 PM

I don't think Jordin has a chance next week. If Blake does anything remotely interesting, he'll cruise to a win.

fuzzyslug

05-17-2007, 05:17 AM

Given the goofy, melodic, supposedly inspiring song choices they use for the finals, I'd given Jordon the advantage. I'd much rather see Blake win, though, mostly because I'd like to see someone different in the winner's circle and slightly because it would hurt to see a lesser singer than Melinda win it all (it's much easier to compare her and Jordon than her and Blake).

LesJarvis

05-17-2007, 06:09 AM

LAME.

Oh well.

Rock8man

05-17-2007, 06:14 AM

I have to admit, I'm really disappointed. I really think Melinda should have sang "Have a Nice Day" from Bon Jovi week as her song of choice. That's the song they always show when they advertise the tour, and the song that best showcased her awesome talents, I thought. She really rocked out. Her song choices on Tuesday were all too boring. I partially blame Randy Jackson for this, he had to go and pick the most boring Whitney Houston song in the world, just to have her prove something to him in his head. Idiot.

Tyjenks

05-17-2007, 06:19 AM

WOOT! I just got tired of Melinda. SHe always seemed like she was putting on a show rather than just being herself. Not that the others aren't doing the same thing, they just seem more natural doing it. And earlier with all that, "Who me?" "Oh, I am good?", "Really". It was cute and humble the first 10 times she did it, but at some point I wanted to smack her.

SpoofyChop

05-17-2007, 06:39 AM

I'm glad to see Melinda go. Does anybody have any level of confidence that she could possibly have created a hit album like Daughtry, Underwood, or Clarckson?

No way. She's another Fantasia, destined to be completely underwhelming as a "pop star" and end up on broadway for a few years wearing a fake neck and then fading into obscurity. Either that or she'll end up as a background singer for Blake or Jordin or something. HA!

GO BLAKE!

SpoofyChop

05-17-2007, 06:44 AM

Jerry Sizzler

05-17-2007, 06:53 AM

Simon's song choice for Jordin was a Rose Royce song. Jordin's joke was that Simon had just told her that her song choice and performance was too "old," yet he had chosen a 70's song for her to sing. She didn't pull it off well, but it did make sense.

txa1265

05-17-2007, 06:53 AM

Hey. Incidentally, did anybody catch Jordin's very bizarre and creepy attempt at some sort of odd joke after the end of her third performance?

Simon had just said her song choice and style were too old and then all of a sudden it looked to me like she was "pretending" to hear something in her ear (like a disembodied voice or something) and then started saying something about a Rolls Royce from the 70s.

I was really weirded out. I don't know if she was trying to make a joke or just appear as crazy as possible to get the lunatic vote.

Maybe trying to weed out clueless people, looks like she succeeded ;)

Seriously - the song from Simon was originally by 'Rose Royce', a group that had hits in the 70's (wiki-link (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Royce)).

She was properly retorting Simon's repeated complaints about her choosing old songs by stating that he picked a song from someone in the 70's for her.

Get it now?

txa1265

05-17-2007, 06:54 AM

She didn't pull it off well, but it did make sense.

Chris Sligh she ain't ...

SpoofyChop

05-17-2007, 07:13 AM

She's like the Dennis Miller of American Idol.

Patrick

05-17-2007, 08:17 AM

Did anyone else notice Ryan gave away who was going home right after Elliot sang? As they were going to commercial he said something like "We'll be right back with more emotion and Melinda goes home"

VegasRobb

05-17-2007, 08:21 AM

She's like the Dennis Miller of American Idol.

Not quite. No reason to be snippy because you didn't know the song or who did it.

Also, have you checked out Fantasia's album sales? The comment you made in another post indicates that you have.

amiller320

05-17-2007, 09:45 AM

Elliot looked good. If he looked like that last year, he would have won.

Really? While the teeth were a definite improvement, I thought he looked a bit too much like Adam Sandler in The Wedding Singer.

Melinda's performances were fine, but her wardrobe was horrid. It really detracted from her performances.

Yeah, what was up with the "DEATH CHEATER" dress?

Gary Whitta

05-17-2007, 09:48 AM

Did anyone else notice Ryan gave away who was going home right after Elliot sang? As they were going to commercial he said something like "We'll be right back with more emotion and Melinda goes home"
What? Did this really happen?

SpoofyChop

05-17-2007, 10:01 AM

Not quite. No reason to be snippy because you didn't know the song or who did it.

Snippy? She just reminded me of Dennis Miller for a second...sort of a weird obscure joke reference. I also tend to watch the show on FF so I have no idea what's said other than the places I slow down to watch.

Also, have you checked out Fantasia's album sales? The comment you made in another post indicates that you have.

I never actually looked at Fantasia's album sales. As you imply, I did take a look at the album sales of several other Idol contestants.

I have to say I'm actually stunned at how well Fantasia's stuff sold. Looks like her album went double platinum. Everything I had ever heard in the media would suggested that she had not met with anything other than second rate success. Regardless of sales, she certainly doesn't seem to be even close to being as high-profile as Kelly Clarkson, Daughtry, or Carrie Underwood.

fuzzyslug

05-17-2007, 10:01 AM

What? Did this really happen?

Yes it did. My wife made me rewind the DVR to see the shocked look on Melinda's face. I quickly wrote it off as a description of her field trip, at least until the last couple of minutes.

JeffL

05-17-2007, 10:04 AM

Melinda is simply a better singer and performer than Jordin. So that was really disappointing to me. But I'm glad to see Blake make it through.

I was watching another show and just flipping back to Idol to make sure I caught the results (no need to watch the first 58 minutes when they're only sending one person home) but as I saw the guy from Maroon 5 performing, I was struck by the thought that Blake could take the mic from that guy and do at least as well. I really hope he wins it all - he is by far the most overall talented. Certainly now. ;)