#29
Post
by astrnomr » Wed Apr 23, 2008 9:44 am
I knew very early in season one that Kelly Clarkson would win. No matter what genre they threw at the contestants (and the genre diversity was much wilder back then), she sounded great while other contestants floundered if they were out of their element. Even though musical theatre is not the future of most of these contestants, I think it's important to push them to do different things like ALW songs to see who can adapt and who sinks like a rock. Also, it seemed like ALW had a great grasp of what each contestant needed to do, although that advice was not always heeded. Some of the other "coaches" that they've had in the past (Mariah Carey, Gwen Stefani, etc.) are only there to pimp out their latest songs, and they add no value to the contestants.
Syesha - I often compare her to Whitney Houston... and I make no secret of my dislike of Whitney Houston. Syesha is a great technical singer, but everything sounds the same. Until last night, that is. For most of the season, I couldn't really see how she could be a successful recording artist after AI is over, but that was spectacular. First of all, she looks sooooo much better with her hair flattened out instead of the big frizzy afro. Second, she came to life, performing all over the stage, and finally displaying stage presence. It wasn't just singing, it was a performance. If I paid money to see her in concert, that is exactly what I'd want to see, not somebody standing in the middle of the stage singing song after song that sounds the same. Going first is always the cursed slot, but it would be a shame if she ended up in the bottom three after that.
Jason - The more he sings, the more I an convinced that he has no future as a recording artist. The song choice was a disaster, he has an extremely limited vocal range, and he's duller than dishwater. If you close your eyes and just listen to him, there is nothing special about him. If I had heard that on the car radio, I would have been changing stations as fast as possible. That was somewhere between boring and painful.
Brooke - She seems to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Last week, she was trembling noticeably throughout the song. Last night, when she stopped after a couple of notes, I thought she was going to get up, say she couldn't go on any longer, and walk off. I think it was better to stop and restart; otherwise, she never would have recovered. However, it still was one of the worst two performances of the night.
David A - The most important thing ALW told him was to keep his eyes open when he sings. So what does he do? He goes right into his "squinting like he's pooping" look. Other than that, I thought it was another dull performance. He's another singer who's technically good, but it's the same thing over and over and over. He seems incapable of doing anything different. He'll probably reach the finals, but I still don't know why, and I think his post-Idol success will be short-lived.
Carly - I actually liked this performance, and I think choosing JCS was much more suited for her strong vocals. The arrangement was a bit odd, but I thought it worked and made for a memorable performance. She still needs to figure out that her future is as a power rocker like Joan Jett or Lita Ford, not pop stuff like Heart. And look... she does own a shirt with sleeves!
David C - I was laughing my butt off when he was told to picture ALW as a 17-year-old girl. Overall, I thought it was good, and he hit some really strong notes. However, his voice sounded rounded and polished, not the usual rough, edgy sound that he has. Still, this is clearly not the genre he would be doing in his post-Idol career, and I thought he did a decent job with it anyway. Going last should help keep him out of the bottom three.
Bottom Three:
Jason - Incredibly dull, went early, and made a bad song choice.
Brooke - On the verge of a breakdown, and restarting didn't help.
David A - Syesha was the best of the night, and David C should easily be in the top three with that performance and by going last. That leaves it down to Carly and David A, and I thought Carly was memorable while David A was completely forgettable.
The Boot:
While eliminating Brooke might be a mercy killing at this point, I think it will be Jason. His vocal range runs the gamut from A to B, he has little to no stage presence, and almost all of his performances have been forgettable. If people would stop staring at his dreadlocks long enough to listen to him (attempt) singing, he'd have been gone weeks ago.
