Idol Idyll Continues
An Idol fan enthuses: "I suppose that was viable!" "bearable, I guess!" "competent!" But never twice for the same performer.
Brooke White "I'm A Believer": OK. Pleasant. Nice song. Well, not even OK. Look, lady, you're not a rocker, and please shut up with the "whoos." Meh.
David Archuleta "Sweet Caroline": Wooden at the start; arranged as a power ballad, which it isn't; and he trots along inconsequentially in the chorus. Didn't find his way to the song at all.
David Cook "I'm Alive": Singing deep in his throat, the growl works, but the voice gets shredded when he presses; he doesn't kick this forward.
Jason Castro "Forever In Blue Jeans": He's comfortable and even strong in the verse, goes weak and sketchy in the upper register, a viable performance (unlike last week's).
Syesha Mercado "Hello Again": She hits her marks but there's nothing there, no one home.
Intermission. Obviously I didn't watch this in real time, but some "half-way" thoughts: I'm at the point where I'm no longer wondering "Will they do something I care about?" but more like "Will they get through it?" Brooke is talented but learns nothing from her mistakes (hmmm, everyone hated my being up-tempo on "Here Comes The Sun," so I'll do it again), Syesha just doesn't have it as a singer (though she seems the sanest of the bunch), David C. can occasionally knock something out of the park but I don't see where he's really anything but a pretty good growly rocker, Jason's hit or miss but that's at least in character and I actually think the judges are missing the point with him, and David A. is also hit or miss and behind his sweetness he keeps his own counsel so I don't get it.
Round one. Bad: David A., Syesha, Brooke. Not so bad: David C. Mediocre but halfway pleasant: Jason.
An editorial: Brooke I'm rooting for, so it can be difficult seeing her suffer from nerves all the time, but in the long run she'll likely do OK as a human being, and maybe even as a recording artist, because not only does she have actual talent, she's appealing in her failures. David Archuleta is a cypher though he undoubtedly suffers from nerves too. I also suffer from nerves, and so what. Paula Abdul, on the other hand, is a human being disintegrating, or so it seems. It's not funny, at this point it's not interesting to observe, we can sympathize with her, but that doesn't mean we should have to watch it.
Brooke White "I Am, I Said": Finally, a good song choice. She rushes the chorus, she oversings a bit, the strings get in the way, but she's warm and she's herself. Finally.
David Archuleta "America": He forgoes his usual attempts at sweetness, tries to be rousing instead, and to my surprise he kind of succeeds. I'm hardly in love with it, but it's professional and even a bit moving.
David Cook "All I Really Need Is You." David, why did you not sing "Solitary Man"? The song is made for you! In any event, this is roughly "sensitive" at the start in a tradition that goes back at least to Ray Charles, if not Wallace Beery. Goes strong in the power part. Competent, would like it more if this were the sort of thing I liked. (The judges' praise for this is ridiculous, however.)
Jason Castro "September Morn": Again, viable, nice in the lower register. I actually like this, though would like it more if I liked the song more. Randy calls this an "OK, whatever," performance, but that's who Jason is.
Syesha Mercado "Thank The Lord For The Night Time": I like the song a lot, Neil poised between garage rock and soul, and this is right for Syesha's style. Not that this performance doesn't suffer from her basic emotive nothingness, but I rocked along with it.
Round two. Not bad: Syesha. OK: David C. Pleasant: Jason. Pretty good: David A. Good, Mostly: Brooke.
On the bubble: Syesha, Jason, or Brooke could get voted off, though my guess is that Jason is safe because he's a babe.
Brooke White "I'm A Believer": OK. Pleasant. Nice song. Well, not even OK. Look, lady, you're not a rocker, and please shut up with the "whoos." Meh.
David Archuleta "Sweet Caroline": Wooden at the start; arranged as a power ballad, which it isn't; and he trots along inconsequentially in the chorus. Didn't find his way to the song at all.
David Cook "I'm Alive": Singing deep in his throat, the growl works, but the voice gets shredded when he presses; he doesn't kick this forward.
Jason Castro "Forever In Blue Jeans": He's comfortable and even strong in the verse, goes weak and sketchy in the upper register, a viable performance (unlike last week's).
Syesha Mercado "Hello Again": She hits her marks but there's nothing there, no one home.
Intermission. Obviously I didn't watch this in real time, but some "half-way" thoughts: I'm at the point where I'm no longer wondering "Will they do something I care about?" but more like "Will they get through it?" Brooke is talented but learns nothing from her mistakes (hmmm, everyone hated my being up-tempo on "Here Comes The Sun," so I'll do it again), Syesha just doesn't have it as a singer (though she seems the sanest of the bunch), David C. can occasionally knock something out of the park but I don't see where he's really anything but a pretty good growly rocker, Jason's hit or miss but that's at least in character and I actually think the judges are missing the point with him, and David A. is also hit or miss and behind his sweetness he keeps his own counsel so I don't get it.
Round one. Bad: David A., Syesha, Brooke. Not so bad: David C. Mediocre but halfway pleasant: Jason.
An editorial: Brooke I'm rooting for, so it can be difficult seeing her suffer from nerves all the time, but in the long run she'll likely do OK as a human being, and maybe even as a recording artist, because not only does she have actual talent, she's appealing in her failures. David Archuleta is a cypher though he undoubtedly suffers from nerves too. I also suffer from nerves, and so what. Paula Abdul, on the other hand, is a human being disintegrating, or so it seems. It's not funny, at this point it's not interesting to observe, we can sympathize with her, but that doesn't mean we should have to watch it.
Brooke White "I Am, I Said": Finally, a good song choice. She rushes the chorus, she oversings a bit, the strings get in the way, but she's warm and she's herself. Finally.
David Archuleta "America": He forgoes his usual attempts at sweetness, tries to be rousing instead, and to my surprise he kind of succeeds. I'm hardly in love with it, but it's professional and even a bit moving.
David Cook "All I Really Need Is You." David, why did you not sing "Solitary Man"? The song is made for you! In any event, this is roughly "sensitive" at the start in a tradition that goes back at least to Ray Charles, if not Wallace Beery. Goes strong in the power part. Competent, would like it more if this were the sort of thing I liked. (The judges' praise for this is ridiculous, however.)
Jason Castro "September Morn": Again, viable, nice in the lower register. I actually like this, though would like it more if I liked the song more. Randy calls this an "OK, whatever," performance, but that's who Jason is.
Syesha Mercado "Thank The Lord For The Night Time": I like the song a lot, Neil poised between garage rock and soul, and this is right for Syesha's style. Not that this performance doesn't suffer from her basic emotive nothingness, but I rocked along with it.
Round two. Not bad: Syesha. OK: David C. Pleasant: Jason. Pretty good: David A. Good, Mostly: Brooke.
On the bubble: Syesha, Jason, or Brooke could get voted off, though my guess is that Jason is safe because he's a babe.