The Top 8 contestants vying to be the next American Idol, took to the stage last night to perform songs from the year they were born.With the theme, once again, featuring a wide range of songs, this too should have been another strikingly easy week for the contestants, but in many cases, proved to be the exact opposite.
Danny Gokey - "Stand By Me"
Danny has pretty much proven that the magic that lays within his voice is just raw and rich, and that it doesn't really matter what song he chooses, because he's going to sing it great regardless. My only problem with Danny is that I still can't see him making a splash on the music scene, like past Idol winners David Cook or Carrie Underwood, but more along the lines of Taylor Hicks, who ultimately ended up being dropped from the label that represents American Idol winners.
Kris Allen - "All She Wants To Do Is Dance"
As Paula pointed out, Kris is definitely one of the most likable contestants on the show and, unlike Danny, I can see him joining the ranks of past successful Idols. That said, despite him singing it well, song choice counts for a lot and to put it simply, his choice sucked.
Lil' Rounds - "What's Love Got To Do With It"
Watching Lil' Rounds' performance of, "What's Love Got To Do With It", made me feel like I was watching Angela Basset in the movie of the same titled. Everything about the performance from the arrangement, her walk, facial expressions, and even her outfit were the very essence of the original Tina Turner version. She is a great singer, but she's really struggling to make the transition from good singer to viable artist, and unfortunately she's running out of chances.
Anoop Desai - "True Colors"
Like I said last week, ballads are what allow Anoop's voice to truly shine and this performance single handily proved that. His vocals were tender and his emotional delivery helped sell the song.
Scott MacIntyre - "The Search Is Over"
Let me start by giving Scott praise for stepping away from the piano, because although it proved he's best behind the piano, it was a much needed and welcomed change. That said, the problem was that the song was way too big for his flaccid voice, it was screechy and the song along with the vocals were never completely in sync. Like Randy said, everything about Scott is just okay and he never succeeds in serving up anything that screams 'WOW'.
Allison Iraheta - "Can't Make You Love Me"
I can't say I liked this performance and let me tell you why, because although vocally this performance was just magnificent, it was also extremely old-fashioned and that's where the problem comes in. Her old habits make it extremely hard for her target audience to be able to relate to her, which is why she's often found herself in the bottom three. I'm all for knowing who you are as an artist, but at the same time, you have to establish that connection that will turn you into a viable artist that can move units, and that's currently the piece of the puzzle that Allison is missing.
Matt Giraud - "Part-Time Lovers"
Despite garnishing praise from the judges, Matt's performance was not nearly as endearing as they made it seem. He suffered pitch problems and for the first time his soulful riffs and falsetto seemed extremely forced. Lastly, once again he is bouncing back and forth from what he wants, what the judges want, and not paying nearly enough attention to what America wants. (Note: During Motown week, the judges like it and he was in the bottom three, while last week, the judges didn't like it and he wasn't. Just a thought.)
Adam Lambert - "Mad World"
I've been really hard on Adam, mainly because he's just so damn strange, but this performance was just sheer brilliance, or as close as an American Idol performance can get to it. From his haunting falsetto to his dreamy full voice, this performance along with Motown week, have shown that the laid back performances are his most compelling. It seemed effortless and got a standing ovation for every single judge including Simon.
PREDICTIONS:
Bottom 3: This is a tough week for predictions, but ultimately, I think Lil' Rounds, Matt Giraud, and Scott MacIntyre will camp it out amongst the lowest vote-getters. Still, there are other factors that could influence a change, such as, Allison's old-fashioned ways or Anoop's bland showing, could result in them battling it out for Matt's spot.
Who's Going Home: Scott MacIntyre has been deserving the boot for a few weeks now, but America has given Lil a few too many chances, so either or.
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