American Idol -- Top 8 Guys
Okay, first, two things.
One: Last week, in the guys little "about me" segments, the question was "What would America be surprised to know about you?" Michael Johns said something like "I'm a bit of a jerk." And I sat there going, "Huh. How is he going to spin THAT into something funny?" Then they showed him playing tennis, and I realized he actually said "I'm a bit of a JOCK." Hee.
Second: This week the story that VFTW has been researching for quite a while now was confirmed. That story? That David Hernandez, MY David, was a stripper at a gay bar. Huh. (Apparently I like the gay boys best even when I don't know they're gay boys.) I went into tonights show wondering if the information will impact the voting. I sincerely hope not.
Okay, onward to tonights show:
Luke Menard sings "Wake Me Up (Before You Go Go)"
OH. MY. GOD. Okay, I was a huuuuuge Wham! fan when I was a teenager in the '80's. Like, saw them in concert (third row baby), had George & Andrew posters on my walls, played the tapes constantly. The first fanfic I ever wrote (not knowing that it was called fanfic at the time) was George/Andrew slash. Heh.
There is NOTHING about this performance that worked for me. If someone had taken a photo of me as I was watching Luke destroy this song, the resulting look of horror would rival anything from the scariest scary movie. His voice is way way way too high. He sped up the beat and then sang ahead of the music. The phrasing was wrong. There was no power to his voice. The entire thing seemed to be sung in the same key.
There are no words for the amount of hate I have for this.
David Archuleta sings "Another Day in Paradise"
I'm not sure this was the right move for him. He did such an amazing job with reinterpreting "Imagine" last week, so to choose another ballad and rearrange it just sort of felt repetitive. I thought the song needed a little more power in the beginning, but by the middle he was in good voice. Don't get me wrong, there's no doubt that David has a beautiful voice and lovely tone. I just think this wasn't the right song choice for him.
Danny Noriega sings "Tainted Love"
I WANT to love Danny. I love his attitude, his style, his charisma. But he still hasn't picked a song that shows off the amazing vocals that I know he has. This was kind of breathless and never had a moment where he could show his range. I think he's in danger of leaving before his time, and it's all because of song choice.
David Hernandez sings "It's All Coming Back To Me Now"
YES YES YES. My big fear was that David would give a marginal performance this week, and it might give the producers reason to get rid of him. (Not that I'm a proponent of conspiracy theories -- I firmly believe that the vote totals are accurate and that each week, the person with the lowest votes goes home. But if I ever was going to believe in conspiracies and backstage shenanigans, it would be now.)
Anyway, David delivers with a GREAT GREAT vocal. He shows off his amazing range, and he has great stage presence (though I wish he'd stop with the eyebrow arch thing.) YAY DAVID.
Michael Johns sings "(Don't You) Forget About Me"
That whole thing just felt off to me. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because there's such a disconnect between the onstage antics (the lifting of the mic stand, the bouncing, the Jim Morrison-esque dancing) and the actual lyrics of the song. The vocal was not a standout at all, very bland actually. I don't really 'get' this guy.
David Cook sings "Hello"
My initial reaction: that was... weird. But honestly, if you had never heard this song before you wouldn't even know that it was originally a schmaltzy Lionel Ritchie snoozer, so David really did what he set out to do: he made the song unique, reinterpreted it, and made it "his own". I do think the guitar was a bit of a distraction; it almost seemed to overpower him at times.
Jason Castro sings "Hallelujah"
THAT. THAT WAS BRILLIANT. Very subtle, very beautiful. Honestly, it's not about hitting every single note (no, it's really not) and it's not EVER about having a big belting voice. It's about connecting with the lyrics, giving a performance that is heartfelt and vulnerable and real. Jason Castro is everything that Michael Johns ISN'T, if that makes sense.
Chikezie sings "All The Woman I Need"
He's got such a lovely tone, and I can recognize that he's got a good voice while just feeling completely meh about his performance. I'm just biased against this kind of music, I think. It doesn't move me, so it's hard to be moved by the performance.
My Predictions
Aside from Luke who was a big pile of suck, I think all the guys have a good shot at getting votes this week. I'm going to pick Luke (of course) and... though I don't want to... I think maybe Danny might be in trouble.
One: Last week, in the guys little "about me" segments, the question was "What would America be surprised to know about you?" Michael Johns said something like "I'm a bit of a jerk." And I sat there going, "Huh. How is he going to spin THAT into something funny?" Then they showed him playing tennis, and I realized he actually said "I'm a bit of a JOCK." Hee.
Second: This week the story that VFTW has been researching for quite a while now was confirmed. That story? That David Hernandez, MY David, was a stripper at a gay bar. Huh. (Apparently I like the gay boys best even when I don't know they're gay boys.) I went into tonights show wondering if the information will impact the voting. I sincerely hope not.
Okay, onward to tonights show:
Luke Menard sings "Wake Me Up (Before You Go Go)"
OH. MY. GOD. Okay, I was a huuuuuge Wham! fan when I was a teenager in the '80's. Like, saw them in concert (third row baby), had George & Andrew posters on my walls, played the tapes constantly. The first fanfic I ever wrote (not knowing that it was called fanfic at the time) was George/Andrew slash. Heh.
There is NOTHING about this performance that worked for me. If someone had taken a photo of me as I was watching Luke destroy this song, the resulting look of horror would rival anything from the scariest scary movie. His voice is way way way too high. He sped up the beat and then sang ahead of the music. The phrasing was wrong. There was no power to his voice. The entire thing seemed to be sung in the same key.
There are no words for the amount of hate I have for this.
David Archuleta sings "Another Day in Paradise"
I'm not sure this was the right move for him. He did such an amazing job with reinterpreting "Imagine" last week, so to choose another ballad and rearrange it just sort of felt repetitive. I thought the song needed a little more power in the beginning, but by the middle he was in good voice. Don't get me wrong, there's no doubt that David has a beautiful voice and lovely tone. I just think this wasn't the right song choice for him.
Danny Noriega sings "Tainted Love"
I WANT to love Danny. I love his attitude, his style, his charisma. But he still hasn't picked a song that shows off the amazing vocals that I know he has. This was kind of breathless and never had a moment where he could show his range. I think he's in danger of leaving before his time, and it's all because of song choice.
David Hernandez sings "It's All Coming Back To Me Now"
YES YES YES. My big fear was that David would give a marginal performance this week, and it might give the producers reason to get rid of him. (Not that I'm a proponent of conspiracy theories -- I firmly believe that the vote totals are accurate and that each week, the person with the lowest votes goes home. But if I ever was going to believe in conspiracies and backstage shenanigans, it would be now.)
Anyway, David delivers with a GREAT GREAT vocal. He shows off his amazing range, and he has great stage presence (though I wish he'd stop with the eyebrow arch thing.) YAY DAVID.
Michael Johns sings "(Don't You) Forget About Me"
That whole thing just felt off to me. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because there's such a disconnect between the onstage antics (the lifting of the mic stand, the bouncing, the Jim Morrison-esque dancing) and the actual lyrics of the song. The vocal was not a standout at all, very bland actually. I don't really 'get' this guy.
David Cook sings "Hello"
My initial reaction: that was... weird. But honestly, if you had never heard this song before you wouldn't even know that it was originally a schmaltzy Lionel Ritchie snoozer, so David really did what he set out to do: he made the song unique, reinterpreted it, and made it "his own". I do think the guitar was a bit of a distraction; it almost seemed to overpower him at times.
Jason Castro sings "Hallelujah"
THAT. THAT WAS BRILLIANT. Very subtle, very beautiful. Honestly, it's not about hitting every single note (no, it's really not) and it's not EVER about having a big belting voice. It's about connecting with the lyrics, giving a performance that is heartfelt and vulnerable and real. Jason Castro is everything that Michael Johns ISN'T, if that makes sense.
Chikezie sings "All The Woman I Need"
He's got such a lovely tone, and I can recognize that he's got a good voice while just feeling completely meh about his performance. I'm just biased against this kind of music, I think. It doesn't move me, so it's hard to be moved by the performance.
My Predictions
Aside from Luke who was a big pile of suck, I think all the guys have a good shot at getting votes this week. I'm going to pick Luke (of course) and... though I don't want to... I think maybe Danny might be in trouble.