I thought they brought so much personality, talent and individuality to tonight's episode that I hate to see most of them go home tomorrow. What I like about them is the fact that they have great stage presence - something we didn't get previously. I mean, even Rachel Zevita who I thought would fizzle out on that big stage brought the sassy part of her personality. To be honest, take Scotty, James, Casey and Jacob and fill out the rest with girls for the Top 12 and it would be fine with me. Haha.
Now, as for the judges, they also improved from yesterday. Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler actually gave some good constructive criticisms - they need to be less than forgiving though. Randy Jackson, on the other hand, was playing the mean judge card - but without much wit. But if I'm being honest, he's been more accurate than the two. Who knew?
Oh, and I hope the show will do something about the overly reverb-ed sound mix. It's getting kind of sh*tty. I don't know.
Anyway, here we go!
DISCLAIMER: I am no expert, but this is my opinion - to each his own - and yours will be in the comments below! Haha.
Such a shame! I pegged her as a possible upset coming into the semifinals, but she blew it. This was a stupid song choice! Seriously. Didn't she get the message to NEVER sing a Kelly Clarkson song, especially if you can't do the original half the justice? Lisa Tucker anyone? Haha. I really like Julie from Hollywood week, but this was not good. Yes, I did notice that she tried switching the song up instead of singing it straight karaoke style, but I'm afraid it wasn't enough. Her voice sounded thin and flat and the back up singers were underwhelming her vocals. Oh, and don't get me started with that high school prom look. Ha! But seriously, why couldn't she just do a stripped down version of the song? Hey! That's an idea! 4/10
Wow. Is this a first? I mean, someone covering Rihanna on American Idol? Well, unlike Jordan Dorsey - who completely bombed with a current song - I actually thought that she pulled a bold song choice. No, it wasn't outstanding, but it was a passable version of the song. Oh, and I have to say that her stage presence was so fierce that I barely noticed that she was occasionally off-key. Too bad, she's obviously a fodder. 5/10
Rachel had the attitude that came with the song - I'll give her that - but the singing was just sub-par. I don't know. She started to fall apart in the middle when she was running around the stage. It was definitely rough in parts. That said, I was pretty shocked with her great stage presence. I mean, I had her pegged as someone shaky on stage, but I totally felt she was giving a Broadway vibe, which is a compliment. I was also a little intrigued by the arrangement of this Fiona Apple song. Yes, I would've liked it if she just stuck with the original version - it would've been more haunting, something that will sit well with her husky voice - but it is what it is now. She's better than this though, I think. 5.5/10
Oh no. This is possibly one of the most treacly, awful songs of the past twenty years! I'm sorry. I absolutely hate this song thanks to American Idol. I never EVER want to hear a contestant sing Hero, Against All Odds, Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me or I Have Nothing ever again. That's unfortunate because while I appreciated her idea of switching it up by adding a little Spanish into the performance, the song choice almost made me want to stop listening - although she made the song a little palatable to me. As for the vocals, I thought it was good if a little predictable. To be honest, I would have had higher praise for her if she didn't sing this god-awful song. 6.5/10
She was good, if a little cliched. Not sure about the song choice, but there's something about her that I really like. Maybe the diva attitude - in a good way, of course. Haha. Vocally, she has a ton of potential if she hits the right song. As of now, I can only see the "potential" and nothing else. A lot of the girls were really good, and it's frustrating that her song choice made her kind of forgettable. 6.5/10
Haley is a bit tricky for me. I mean, I honestly can’t figure out what I think about her. Sure, there were moments in her performance that I really thought she had this very interesting voice, but then there were also moments where in it's actually driving me nuts. No doubt, she can sing and she has got a sweet, husky tone to her voice, but the incessant growling needs to stop stat! Actually, she reminds me a bit of Camille Velasco, only a little more constipated. Oh, and she's giving Paul McDonald a run for his money for the strangest performance skills this season. Haha. 6.5/10
Wow. Who knew? I liked Kendra's performance despite the fact that I honestly think she's going to get the shaft tomorrow. I thought she was a little dull and not entirely a captivating performer, but her performance was nothing short of good and she had some stage presence to go along with her voice. She was a little shaky in the middle part of her performance though and I'm afraid no one's going to remember her with a quite forgettable song choice. Sad. 7/10
Naima reminds me of a Na'vi from Avatar. Haha. Ok. Kidding aside, I thought she did well. No, it wasn't nearly as great as Fantasia's sultry version, but I honestly think that the comparison of Naima's rendition to that don't hold up anymore than trying to compare Jason Castro's Somewhere Over The Rainbow to Katharine McPhee's would have. And while this was a bit flawed vocally, I actually enjoyed it. 7/10
Asian represent! Haha. This was really impressive! I have to say, she got major points for starting a capella - it's pretty tough to stay on pitch when the piano comes in. Plus, her vocal control was just astounding. I'm seriously not a fan coming into the semifinals as I find her terribly robotic - she can work on that - but she obviously has the talent to carry her far in this competition. The vocals weren't flawless as she went a bit flat in some of her notes, but she definitely caught my attention more than most of the girls who performed before her and she made this song pretty dynamic and relevant. 8.5/10
Lauren Turner started off slow, but when she got into it half way through, she never looked back! This was amazing! She has a supple voice with power and although the arrangement was a little too cheesy for my taste, the energy she exuded during that performance was shocking. Now, what I really love about Lauren is that she has a lot of potential to grow. I'm actually smelling a dark horse right here! Good job. 8.5/10
This was insane!! Last night, it was James Durbin who totally surprised me. Now, another person I find absolutely annoying did really well: Lauren Alaina!! I hate to say this but she slightly won me over tonight. I thought her vocals were effortless, the delivery was entertaining, she seemed fairly comfortable on stage and her connection with the song was surprising. I kind of got the Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood comparison, but both were humble - and I never got that from Lauren AT ALL. Oh, and the constant pimping got a little ridiculous tonight. Anyway, I still can't stand her personality, but I know when to recognize a good performance, and this was amazing. 8.5/10
Thank God for Pia! So nuanced, so flawless. I loved how restrained her verses were and then just went all the way towards the end. Lovely phrasing. Impressive control. Great range. Gorgeous girl. What's more to ask? A little personality maybe? But that criticism of not having a strong personality was the same thing that has often been said about Carrie Underwood. So, it doesn't matter that much, I guess. 9/10
