American Idol Season 8

[MJ4H]

1. Adam (wow that was so much better)
2. Danny (judges were on crack to think that wasn't great)
3. Allison (wife thought this was best of the night. The end was particularly sweet I thought)

rest = ho hum to bad

[Crim]

Originally Posted by sabotai

Not only should Michael be kicked off the show, he should be thrown in jail for raping the corpse of David Ruffin on national TV.

lol

[Crim]

1 Adam - best performance so far for him. First time he's sung a song without trying to prove that he can communicate with dolphins.

2 Matt - Has real musical talent, if not the raw voice talent of Danny or Adam

3 Danny - That was entertaining. I agree with Kara for once, not his best, but he's proven to be the most consistently good performer of them all.


Bottom 3 (in no particular order):
Scott - enough already!!!!
Michael - this genre should have been in his wheelhouse, but he LOVES picking the wrong song. If wrong songs were milkshakes, he'd DRINK THEM UP!
Scott - because appearing only once on a list of bottom three doesn't do justice to how overmatched he is. Never should have made it past Hollywood week, and it's gratifying that at least the judges are finally starting to turn on him.

Honorable mention to someone else who might be in danger: Megan.

[Crim]

Originally Posted by EagleFan

I guess we learned that math is not Kara's strong suit.

"I have six words for you.... One of the best performances of the night..." (by my math that's 8)

Haw! When she said that I told my wife, "I have three words for Kara - You Can't Count!"

[Solecismic]

Fifty years ago, Detroit was one of America's major cities, basking in the reflected glow of an automobile industry that put out extremely mediocre cars, secure in the knowledge that when they broke - and break they would very quickly - people would have to go out and buy another.

Today, Detroit isn't such a major city, but it puts out better cars. Unfortunately, so do the rivals created by one of the best examples of manufacturing arrogance ever exhibited in America.

Detroit was also known for its music, most notably for a little studio on Grand River Avenue. If you've ever traveled Grand River, it stretches for at least a couple of hundred miles, from Detroit to Grand Rapids. It's perhaps Michigan's best-known road, going back before the interstate highway system. Today, I can reach Grand River in about five minutes, and see renowned American sights like Starbucks, Meijer's, Target and Corky's Car Clinic, which is the place to go for the yearly tuneup, because they're honest and they know what they're doing.

Bob (I don't know if there actually is a Corky) knows his cars. He doesn't sing, however. I wouldn't ask him to. I don't know if he watches American Idol, either.

Tonight was the round of ten, and the kids sang Motown. It was definitely a mix of haves and have nots. Somehow, the ten songs lasted two full hours, infused with more commercials than CBS will squeeze into the last two minutes of the Duke/Villanova NCAA tournament game this Saturday. The Geneva Convention seemingly bars the use of this many previews of bad reality shows. Yet the abuse lingers. I might be a little delayed next week, as I think it's time to switch to TiVo on this show.

On to the Solecismic Ratings for American Idol:

1. Allison Iraheta: I'm growing to like her voice more and more. For the first time, she didn't sound straight from rocker chick central. She had a diva quality about her, but was very controlled and nailed her notes well. I think she's improving more than anyone else in this competition. Score of 91.

2. Adam Lambert: Unlike Allison, Adam has been consistent all season long. The only differences are in whether his performances are pure entertainment, or indulgent and quirky. He stayed in his higher range and in falsetto for an "unplugged" version of a Smokey Robinson song. He definitely stood out from the other singers tonight, and was quite effective. Score of 88.

3. Danny Gokey. Danny has a tendency, like Taylor Hicks, to want to get out and dance and motivate the audience. Like Taylor, he shouldn't be dancing. He gets a little breathy and steps on his pacing. Unlike Taylor, he can actually sing. He's so popular that it doesn't matter that the producers really screwed up and showed a clip of him agreeing to advice from Smokey Robinson, then ignoring it during the actual performance. Score of 80.

4. Matt Giraud. As usual, Matt had a little trouble with pacing and his performance was a bit disjoint. He pauses at odd times and evaluating him is more summing up quality pieces than looking at a cohesive work. He's got a lot going for him, but he needs to think of his songs as full performances rather than extended riffing. Score of 79.

5. Anoop Desai. I like toned-down Anoop, who we've seen more the last couple of weeks, than earlier versions. He doesn't have quite the voice he thinks he has, though. He has a tendency to sound like a teen-age girl. Which is ironic, because the only teen-age girl remaining on American Idol sounds like a 30-year-old who has smoked a pack a day for the last 17 years. Score of 73.

6. Lil Rounds. Lil was loud and missed more than her share of notes. She has a poor lower range and screamed far too much. Unlike Allison, who gets better each week, Lil just gets louder and more off-key. She's one favorite that may well disappoint. Score of 67.

7. Kris Allen. I know he sang this week, because I wrote his name down. Notes like "precocious" and "affected." He needed a richer voice to take on Marvin Gaye. He wore a guitar, but I don't remember him playing it. Why do the judges continue to rave about this non-entity? Score of 64.

8. Scott MacIntyre. You can't hurry love, nor can you apparently hurry to the phones fast enough to vote this guy home. When he was singing alone, his strange choices in phrasing and volume are all that separate his noise from Muzak. And when the backup singers were piped in, they drowned him out. He's starting to annoy me. Score of 47.

9. Megan J. Corkrey. Hey, if she can change her name every week, I can change it, too. I was impressed that she found a dress that not only matched her extensive sleeve tattoo, but made her look as hot as ever. I was not impressed with her singing tonight. I've liked her a lot this season, but she really amped up the number of bum notes, and picked a song that went far too fast for her singing style. It was leaps and bounds worse than anything she's done this year. Score of 45.

10. Michael Sarver. You know you suck when Smokey Robinson doesn't rave about you. Smokey would rave about Sanjaya singing a duet with Mikaylah Gordon. Smokey would rave about the Detroit Lions defense. Smokey would rave about Simon Cowell's ability to draw a mustache on Paula's face. Smokey did not like Michael one bit. Michael was frenetic and entirely tuneless, easily winning tonight's bad karaoke award. Score of 42.

Expected Bottom Three: M.J. Corkrey, Trapper Scott MacIntyre, Michael Sarver.

Who Should Go: Michael.

Who Will Go: Michael.

[GrantDawg]

Jim, you were on fire this week.

[Ksyrup]

About Jim's only mistake is that Duke/Villanova is tonight, not Saturday.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Solecismic

He's so popular that it doesn't matter that the producers really screwed up and showed a clip of him agreeing to advice from Smokey Robinson, then ignoring it during the actual performance.

This absolutely floored me. I'm assuming it was a last minute change on his part, so I don't fault the producers, but that was very awkward. I was waiting to hear him do it and immediately - like everyone else, I assume - realized that he just dissed Smokey Robinson's advice. Not that it really hurt him, but still.

[Ksyrup]

I thought Anoop got a bit screwed by the background singers who - once again - managed to make the main vocalist sound like ass on the harmony parts. Particularly when Anoop was doing falsetto and they were waking my dogs with their pitch problems.

[JPhillips]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

This absolutely floored me. I'm assuming it was a last minute change on his part, so I don't fault the producers, but that was very awkward. I was waiting to hear him do it and immediately - like everyone else, I assume - realized that he just dissed Smokey Robinson's advice. Not that it really hurt him, but still.

I just thought Danny didn't realize the backup singers would cover that. I'm surprised that the clip aired, but I didn't see it as any dissing of Smokey. It seemed like Smokey thought that those parts would just be silent unless Danny sang them.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Crim

Haw! When she said that I told my wife, "I have three words for Kara - You Can't Count!"

C'mon, you could have done better than that. Should have been "I have five words for Kara - You Can't Count!"

[lordscarlet]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

C'mon, you could have done better than that. Should have been "I have five words for Kara - You Can't Count!"

I was thinking the same thing.

I am surprised that I Actually think this may be the best top 10 yet. Michael, Scott and Megan (unfortunately) need to go. Outside of that, there are some real talents. I am glad Adam finally decided to pull it back a little bit, but I wish he would have done it last week instead of making a mockery of Johnny Cash. My main comment would be that there were a few moments when it seemed he would break into a lower register for a bar or two and just as I thought he would do it he pulled it back up. I think that would have made the song even better.

It's hard to say my favorites for the night, particularly a day later. Probably Matt, Adam and Allison. Oh, and I forgot -- Lil needs to go as well. I can't think of a more overhyped idol contestant. Allison is the only girl that deserves to be on the show at this point.

[Crim]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

C'mon, you could have done better than that. Should have been "I have five words for Kara - You Can't Count!"

That's funny, I did think to myself afterward that I'd missed an opportunity. Good catch.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

I just thought Danny didn't realize the backup singers would cover that. I'm surprised that the clip aired, but I didn't see it as any dissing of Smokey. It seemed like Smokey thought that those parts would just be silent unless Danny sang them.

No, Smokey said something to the effect of, "You left a space open for the background singers to sing the end of the verses, and I think you need to sing that." And of course, Danny said he would take Smokey's advice - which he didn't, for whatever reason.

[JPhillips]

Well I missed that. Right around that time I was struggling with one of many RTEs in DDS College Basketball.

[IrishHand]

Originally Posted by EagleFan

Oh, what was with the "Megan Joy" thing? They stopped using her last name?

My wife told me that Megan's divorce was final a couple of weeks ago, so they (Idol) dropped the "Corkrey" at Megan's request.

[Mustang]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

And of course, Danny said he would take Smokey's advice - which he didn't, for whatever reason.

I read that Danny left the space open in the song to symbolize the empty space in his life from his wife passing away.


Ok.. not really, but seems like everything he does people are trying to find alternate meaning. Possible he was in dress rehearsal, tried it both ways and one felt more right.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Mustang

Possible he was in dress rehearsal, tried it both ways and one felt more right.

That's probably what happened, but he should have figured that out long before the day of the performance so they wouldn't run film that makes him look kinda bad. At best, it was a WTF moment. But like I said, it didn't really take away or add anything to the performance - the only reason anyone would comment about it is solely because that was the focus of the clip they showed.

[Mustang]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

That's probably what happened, but he should have figured that out long before the day of the performance so they wouldn't run film that makes him look kinda bad. At best, it was a WTF moment. But like I said, it didn't really take away or add anything to the performance - the only reason anyone would comment about it is solely because that was the focus of the clip they showed.

I got the impression that they were talking to Smokey the morning of the show just because Smokey said tonight a few times. So they probably filmed it, ran to production with it and the group went to rehearsals. Producer probably saw that and said 'Hey, if he uses his advice it looks good.. if he doesn't, it is something to talk about"

[Ksyrup]

Could be. I never thought about timing issues like that. I guess they worked out the arrangements in advance and Smokey heard them at the last minute. I wonder if Danny went back to the band and they thought it was a bad idea, instead of it being his idea to do it like he originally had it? Those background singers suck, too - have I mentioned that yet?

[Thomkal]

Well no big surprise over who went home. No way would the judges save him. What was surprising was that Megan was yet again not in the Bottom 3, especially when she deserved to be this week more than ever. I think she must be the "Vote For the Worse" poster child this season.

[Scoobz0202]

Over Scott?

[Thomkal]

Originally Posted by Scoobz0202

Over Scott?

Scott has a lot of people pulling for him because of his story, so I'm not surprised to see him still around. Megan's style is just plain odd, and I can't believe there's that many fans of hers out there compared to Scott.

[Scoobz0202]

I was one of those that wanted Megan around a few rounds back because her style was interesting. I wanted to see it more before she left in case maybe she was something special. I wouldn't mind seeing her go now. She isn't terrible, but she is nothing special.

Scott has the story.

Megan has the looks.

Not surprisingly, they stick around.

[Easy Mac]

I'm pretty sure they always put up the bottom 2, then throw in someone safe to ramp up the tension. If dialidol is to be believed, there's no way Matt was in the bottom 3, let alone 2.

And I'm glad they stopped Scott halfway...

I also like how they gave up on pretending not to lip sync at the end of the group sing.

[Ksyrup]

Totally agree. I think they fudged and kept Megan out of the bottom 3, maybe because they like her or possibly because they already have too few women and don't want people losing faith in her and having her leave too early because no one's voting for her. No way Matt was in the bottom 3.

The sing for your life thing is simply ridiculous. It's almost insulting (to us) for them to suggest they were considering saving Sarver and think we would buy into it for some manufactured drama. Like we discussed earlier in this thread, they continue to destroy any goodwill they have built up with the audience by adding all of these fake elements to the show, and instead of putting up some semblance of believability, they are just taunting us with this crap and don't give a damn how insincere it comes across to us.

On the group sing, correct me if I'm wrong, but it appeared that not only did they lip synch, but I believe that was a pre-recorded section of the show and not performed live. They were all on the benches 10 seconds earlier, and the camera never showed the crowd and when it ended, they went straight to commercial. If that's the case, I don't understand why they need to lip synch, since they can just edit any imperfections away.

[Eaglesfan27]

Mrs. E and I are also convinced that the group performances are now pre-recorded. They never showed any crowd and we also noticed the awkward transition from them being on the benches to being in stride for the performance as it was.

[Mustang]

The 'save' will be used in week 7 no matter who is voted off.

[rowech]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Mrs. E and I are also convinced that the group performances are now pre-recorded. They never showed any crowd and we also noticed the awkward transition from them being on the benches to being in stride for the performance as it was.

They admitted this two days ago.

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by rowech

They admitted this two days ago.

No they didn't. They admitted to using backing vocal tracks because it's hard to hear the contestants over the screaming crowds.

[Ksyrup]

Maybe this was the first one I paid attention to, but that group sing was the first one that looked pre-recorded. They've definitely been lip-synching these, but they still looked live during the show. Last night, I'm almost positive that was recorded before the show - and lip-synched.

[Solecismic]

Originally Posted by Mustang

The 'save' will be used in week 7 no matter who is voted off.

I heard Obama was demanding they switch to using a playoff system.

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Totally agree. I think they fudged and kept Megan out of the bottom 3, maybe because they like her or possibly because they already have too few women and don't want people losing faith in her and having her leave too early because no one's voting for her. No way Matt was in the bottom 3.

But wouldn't being in the bottom 3, and not being voted out, be some sort of advantage - a signal to fans that she is in serious danger?

All face time is good. She probably wasn't in the bottom 3 solely because Simon's comment that she was in danger spurred her fans.

On the other hand, I wouldn't put it past the producers to fudge, saying "bottom 3" doesn't necessarily mean what we think it means.

[Arles]

IMO, they move a "danger" favorite into the bottom 3 to not only add drama/fear, but improve their voting the next week. IIRC, Alison, Lil and Matt have all been bottom 3 (and maybe even Adam?).

It's basically their way to protect the lowest "favorite" vote getter and ensure they get a boost the following week.

[Mustang]

Megan is the vote for the worst poster child this season. Usually their pick hangs around until week 6 based on past results - John Stevens, Sanjaya, Scott Savol, Kristy Lee Cook...

So, I look for Megan to be around a bit.

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by Arles

IMO, they move a "danger" favorite into the bottom 3 to not only add drama/fear, but improve their voting the next week. IIRC, Alison, Lil and Matt have all been bottom 3 (and maybe even Adam?).

It's basically their way to protect the lowest "favorite" vote getter and ensure they get a boost the following week.

My unofficial research based on dialidol phone rankings:

10 to 9 week

Actual bottom
Michael (went home)
Matt
Scott

Dial Idol bottom (best to worst)
Scott
Megan
Michael
*Matt was 5, but his range did not fall into the bottom 3*


11 to 10 week

Actual bottom
Allison
Michael
Alexis (went home)

Dial Idol bottom (best to worst)
Megan
Allison
Alexis
*Michael was 7, but his range did fall into the bottom 3*


13 to 11 week

Actual bottom
Jasmine (went home)
Anoop
Jorge (went home)
Megan
*bottom 4*

Dial Idol bottom (best to worst)
Kris
Jasmine
Allison
Jorge
*only Danny, Adam and Lil's ranges were outside the bottom 4*

[Drake]

I don't have a comment on last night's results, just want to toss in my annual appreciation for Jim's summaries of the AI performance shows. The first thing I do after watching AI is check this thread to see Jim's evaluation...and even when I disagree, they're always a fun and enlightening read.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on a weekly basis, Jim.

[Danny]

Originally Posted by Drake

I don't have a comment on last night's results, just want to toss in my annual appreciation for Jim's summaries of the AI performance shows. The first thing I do after watching AI is check this thread to see Jim's evaluation...and even when I disagree, they're always a fun and enlightening read.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on a weekly basis, Jim.

Definitely agree

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Solecismic

I heard Obama was demanding they switch to using a playoff system.



But wouldn't being in the bottom 3, and not being voted out, be some sort of advantage - a signal to fans that she is in serious danger?

All face time is good. She probably wasn't in the bottom 3 solely because Simon's comment that she was in danger spurred her fans.

On the other hand, I wouldn't put it past the producers to fudge, saying "bottom 3" doesn't necessarily mean what we think it means.

Depends on what AI wants out of it. If it's someone they want to be a real contender, then shocking that person's fans into voting by putting them in the bottom 3 might be an option. If it's someone they want to stick around but don't want/think will be a factor at the end, then it's better to use the shock value for someone they like and let that other person skate along before getting voted out in weeks 6-9. I think that's where Megan stands right now. They like Matt way more than Megan, so even if they want her to stick around for a couple of weeks, they don't really care if she stays much beyond that (and given her performances, they probably don't want her around too much longer, either).

[lordscarlet]

Originally Posted by Drake

I don't have a comment on last night's results, just want to toss in my annual appreciation for Jim's summaries of the AI performance shows. The first thing I do after watching AI is check this thread to see Jim's evaluation...and even when I disagree, they're always a fun and enlightening read.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on a weekly basis, Jim.

+1

[Poli]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Maybe this was the first one I paid attention to, but that group sing was the first one that looked pre-recorded. They've definitely been lip-synching these, but they still looked live during the show. Last night, I'm almost positive that was recorded before the show - and lip-synched.

I'm almost certain they turned to the screen to intro the clip. I mean, how else are they going to get Scott moved from the side stage to the main, and then over to the other side so quickly?

[Ksyrup]

Hallelujah!

Fox has expanded Tuesday night’s performance episode of “American Idol” to an hour and 25 minutes, bleeding heavily into the hour that was to have served as the launch pad for “Osbournes: Reloaded.”

I'm glad AI finally came to its senses and expanded the top 9 episode. It made no sense to me why they would go from 2 hours to 1 hour the week of the top 9, forcing Seacrest, the contestants, and the judges to fly through the ep like the Fed Ex fast-talker guy. Especially when shows like DWTS do 90 minute episodes fairly regularly.

Anyway, just a heads up that the show will be 85 minutes tonight.

[lordscarlet]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Hallelujah!





I'm glad AI finally came to its senses and expanded the top 9 episode. It made no sense to me why they would go from 2 hours to 1 hour the week of the top 9, forcing Seacrest, the contestants, and the judges to fly through the ep like the Fed Ex fast-talker guy. Especially when shows like DWTS do 90 minute episodes fairly regularly.

Anyway, just a heads up that the show will be 85 minutes tonight.

I wish they would cut the top 12 to an hour or 1.5 hours.

[Ksyrup]

Eh, top 12 probably needs 2 hours - both for performances and intro of the contestants (particularly those who got no pre-top 12 face time). Last week, though, easily could have been done in 1.5 hours. That's what I never got - why go from 2 hours to 1 hour, and force the cast to speed through performances and all the rest unnecessarily? Tonight will allow a reasonable pace, even with the extra judge.

[lordscarlet]

Get rid of Kara and Paula and we could do it in 45 minutes.

[Solecismic]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

Get rid of Kara and Paula and we could do it in 45 minutes.

Get rid of Kara, Paula, Randy, Simon and Ryan, add Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory, and you could have quite an entertaining half hour and still get in all the singing.

[lordscarlet]

I don't think this is a spoiler, but just in case I will put it in the tag (it has to do with a contestant's life outside the show)

Spoiler

Apparently Danny's grandmother died this weekend. The last thing he needs is for the show to play it up too hard. I think people are on the edge of his sob story being too much, and they've finally stopped talking about his wife.

[Landshark44]

anybody know what the theme is?

[sabotai]

Originally Posted by Landshark44

anybody know what the theme is?

Looking over a few blogs, it seems like it's "Top Downloads" or "#1 Downloads"....whatever the hell that means...

[Easy Mac]

this whole night was a horrible mess

[EagleFan]

Originally Posted by Easy Mac

this whole night was a horrible mess

Danny, Adam and Chris did a decent job. The rest really sucked.