Thursday, April 7, 2011

American Idol 10: Top 9

Has this ever happened outside the Top 5? I mean, everyone performing perfectly fine and no absolute trainwreck? This is insane!

I have to be honest, this was hard to rank as everyone was very evenly matched this year. Across the board, I think every single one of them gave a good performance this week and the only way to separate them from each other was to nitpick their performances. Haha. This is actually a pleasant change though after Tim Urban snagged most of the cougar/tween votes at this stage year, despite being terrible half of the time.

As for the judges? I don't get them. One day they're super critical and then the next week, they're completely useless. Why so nice? I have nothing against it - it’s actually fine to be nice - but there needs to be constructive criticism and honesty. Sometimes it hurts, but it needs to be said. Sigh.

Oh well, let's go with the rankings, shall we?

DISCLAIMER: I am no expert, but this is my opinion - to each his own - and yours will be in the comments below! Haha. 

09. Jacob Lusk
Man In The Mirror
"If I'm in the Bottom 3, it won't be because I was bad or because I sang the song bad. It'd be because America wasn't ready to look at themselves in the mirror." Yeah, that statement right there will win you fans, b*tch! Seriously. If you're in the Bottom 3, it's because not many people cared enough to vote for you. Simple as that. Way to alienate your audience, Jacob. Your performance wasn't even all that. Sure, it was more restrained than usual and it was mostly on key, but that comment just left a bad taste on my mouth. I just can't get past his conceited remark - rude almost. Blech. Oh, and I believe that some people should JUST NOT perform pelvic thrusting while on television. Enough said. 6.5/10 (Personality: -5/10)

08. Stefano Langone
When A Man Loves A Woman
So, Stefano has really veered into the cheesy train after such a promising start no? Haha. To be honest, he still sounded oddly karaoke in this and his vocals were almost uneven. His falsetto was weak, his second-half modulation was outside of his range and he went flat twice at the end of his last note. But somehow, it wasn't as hopelessly generic as his past two performances, which to me was a good thing. I guess there's nothing much to say, it's the same every week. Haha. 7/10

07. Lauren Alaina
Natural Woman
Don't get wrong, I thought she did a decent job vocally with the song, but she seemed not herself in this performance. She held back so much that everything became a little lifeless and too tame for the song. Plus, it felt like it didn't really peak. Personally, if she sped up the tempo a tad, this would've been so much better. I loved the glory note at the end though. 7.5/10

06. Scotty McCreery
That's Alright Mama
Wow. Scotty really came off as even more likable on this performance, as if that wasn't possible. Haha. I have to admit, he's more versatile than I thought he was and this was probably one of his better performances. He showed some stage presence, his vocals were pretty spot on and I could tell that he had so much fun. I'm just glad he did something different in terms of the tempo. I'm not a fan of his strange mic technique though, but whatever. 7.5/10

05. Casey Abrams
Have You Ever Seen The Rain
I thought this was a good song choice and I thought the jazzy arrangement was smart, but as he went further through the song, the werewolf in him was trying to come out with those unnecessary grunts and growls. I'm nitpicking though as I thought Casey managed to showcase his vocals better here than most of his previous song choices. The vocals weren't as good as I'd hope for, but there were obviously some good moments in there. Plus, I love that he broke out with the stand up bass. 7.5/10

04. James Durbin
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Somehow, it sounded like James was trying to pull an Adam Lambert Mad World moment, but slightly missed the mark. I loved that he poured so much emotion into the performance, but the vocals were uneven. His lower register was really weak, his was pitchy in some parts and the scream at the end kind of ruined the whole thing. Plus, I think a quieter arrangement would have worked well in his favor. I appreciated the fact that he toned it down though. It was a pleasant change. 8/10

03. Paul McDonald
Folsom Prison Blues
Oh dear God. I actually liked Paul. This was weirdly good! Haha. Sure, the performance was a bit frantic, but I was thoroughly entertained. I also kind of liked him vocally for the first time, which was kind of scary. Haha. I thought it was lively, infectious and, yes, he sounded good. Paul had a guitar, so that's one sign of a good performance, I guess. 8/10

02. Haley Reinhart
Piece Of My Heart
Pretty solid. Not Haley's best performance, but I thought she nailed this one. You'd think that she was overdoing all the grunting and whatnot, but I thought it was just about right for the song. She performed with such star power and energy, it's not even funny anymore. Haha. There were some vocal choices that seemed a little strange to me - especially at the first half of the song - but it was still a strong vocal performance. This actually reminded me of an Allison Iraheta type of performance. Good job! 8.5/10

01. Pia Toscano
River Deep, Mountain High
Gwen Stefani, do you have anything against Pia Toscano? Why did you let her wear that hideous jumpsuit on stage? Haha. Ok. Say what you want to say, but this was yet another stunning vocal delivered by Pia, and I’m glad I get to rank her so high yet again. Granted, she still seemed very guarded and aware - too aware even of how she presents herself - and she needed to loosen up especially with this song, but let's not forget that Lee DeWyze was more awkward on stage and he won. Heck, even Carrie Underwood back in her season was tagged as mechanical and robotic - we know what happened to her after American Idol right? All I'm saying is, Pia was fierce, deal with it! Haha. But seriously, her vocals - though less precise - were on fire that she doesn’t have to do anything. I loved the that she added some flair to her vocals and there was a little bit of extra grit in her tone, which was surprising. I guess, this will end up as Pia's growth arc on the show. Great! 8.5/10

9 comments:

Dindin V said...

Hi,

I was having a headache so I wasn't really in the mood today but your comment about the "pelvic thrust" really made me laugh really hard. I hope that conceited dude gets voted out.

Thank you once again for a great idol 10 review :)

DAM THE NATION said...

Dindin: But he was really thrusting during is performance. HAHA. :))

Carlos Jude Laron said...

PIA IS STILL THAT WALL, GIRL DONT HAVE MOVES ON STAGE. HALEY KILLED IT. STEFANO LAN-GONE!

Sendo said...

pati ako nalilito kung sino maki-kick out, nyaha. and for the first time since top 13, nagustuhan ko yung kinanta ni Paul. groovy rin kasi. at sa wakas, pia explored the stage pero kulang pa rin moves niya. and i must agree, sa boses niya, pwede siyang magperform na nakahiga ha! ok na un harhar. and haley...weeee..i lab hayley .hihi......top 3 ko si pia haley at paul this week...di ako sigurado sa bottom 3, pero sa tingin ko si stefano yung aalis bwahaha. tuloy gusto ko sana si robbie rosen na lang yung nasa pwesto niya.

Sendo said...

natawa rin ako sa pelvic thrusts...haha..kahit anong gawin ni jacob lusk, he won't win my vote :P bwahaha.

DAM THE NATION said...

Carlos:I agree about Pia, but Carrie was like that before. So, let's see.

DAM THE NATION said...

Sendo: It's getting tough na every week no?

Nicole said...

Pia didn't deserve to be out. She's a diva! God. Puro kasi hot guys tulad ni Paul and Stefano binoboto!
Dapat kunin mga cp ng mga teen girls sa US. Ugh.

Anonymous said...

I'm glad Pia is out... she's so boring!

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