What becomes of the broken hearted? They get kicked off of American Idol, that's what.
Tristi wins and Rob loses. (But I like to think I won a moral victory, and moral victories are worth one million points.)
We both picked Tim. I picked Katie, and Tristi picked Didi. And then Didi got the boot. So, two points for me and five points for Tristi.
Dang it.
Once again, blogging before I read Rob's comments ...
This was a tough, tough night.
To start with, the outfits confused me a little. Was that a dog or an elephant on Randy's sweater? And Siobhan ... my dear girl ... we must talk.
Okay, on to performances.
We got started with Siobhan, and for the first time since she very first stepped onto the Idol stage, she was pitchy. I was shocked. This girl sings every note absolutely true, but tonight ... she did not. I didn't like the song for her, she seemed really out of sync, and I don't know what I think, to be honest. Safe on the merit of her previous performances? I sure hope so, but if we were judging her just for tonight, not so much. The thing with her is, she's never been ripped by the judges before. It hit her hard tonight because she didn't know how to take it. I think tonight will be good for her in terms of learning to accept criticism.
Casey was awesome. He was pretty much in his groove tonight, and I have no doubt he's safe.
Mike - solid, sensitive, and safe.
I've made it no secret that I have a beef with Didi. I'm sure she's a very nice girl, I'm sorry that her best friend died, and I know she's got a lot of emotion tied up in that. But from week to week, we're supposed to be seeing the contestants grow, and Didi is not growing. I think she's doing the show to try to move past what happened, but every week, she's wallowing in it, singing songs that remind her of all her emotions and not letting go of the past and looking toward her future. Tonight she was pitchy, the little key changes throughout the song did her no good at all, and it was just plain terrible. I believe she's in the bottom three tonight. If she's not, she should be.
Tim. Tim, Tim, Tim. First of all, where are your eyebrows? Why can't we ever see them? Are you ashamed of them? Do you have girl eyebrows? Second, why that song? That song is best done by a true artist. There are unusual notes throughout that must be mastered. You can't just take that song and sing it - you've got to get from your low notes to your high notes and back again without effort. Tim, my dear boy with shameful eyebrows, you didn't do it. Bottom three.
I am sort of going back and forth on Andrew. He did a lot better than he has for a while. But I was pretty much aching for the song to end. I didn't like the song. At all. And not only that, but it's a sensual song about taking a girl to ecstasy, and he just wasn't selling it. He doesn't have the look for a song like that. Maybe if he were a little taller. I don't know. So while the judges liked it, I can only say he improved.
Katie is an interesting person. Her performance was solid, but her clothes were strange. She needs to listen to herself a little more. Katie is not a rock 'n roll chick. She likes to dress a little more classically, not quite preppy, but maybe 2010's version of preppy. This thing with the hair and the too many necklaces and the dress-thing that looked like tin foil - was not her. I don't know who dressed her, but it's adding to the confusion of who she is and what kind of artist she wants to be.
Lee did a very good job tonight, mostly in his confidence. He's totally safe this week.
Crystal is a star. She can sing any song, play any instrument, wear anything - rug or no rug - she's awesome.
Aaron was a pitchy boy tonight and he didn't pull off his power notes like he usually does. That middle section, where Usher was telling him to pour on the emotion ... was emotionless. Darn it. It was just a lukewarm performance. Simon says he's safe, but I don't know.
As far as my prediction goes, it's a hard call. It was easy for me to pull Didi and Tim out of the mix. I'm a little worried for Siobhan. I don't think she'd get voted off, but I wonder if she's in the three. Then I don't know if Aaron pulled it off. Hmmm. Hmmm. Okay, drumroll ... I choose Didi, Tim, and Aaron. And I predict that Didi will go home. I think she needs to get to a better place in her life, really heal from her past, and then concentrate on moving forward. She's not growing here.
Now to go read Rob's blog and see what he thinks. And if I disagree, to make snarky comments in his comment trail ...
Tonight was the first night this season where I didn't Tivo the episode, so I had to watch the whole stupid thing. I don't know if that will affect my predictions, but I do know that I enjoyed it less.
I also am having a much harder time making predictions overall. Fortunately, the guy who will get the boot (Tim) was obvious, but I'm stymied otherwise.
Siobhan went first and sucked. She also screamed again, which is more disappointing. She's been good the last two weeks, and you'd think that one poor performance wouldn't kill her. But the scream... Now she's just "that girl that screams". This does not bode well.
And then Casey sang. I was not initially a big fan of his, but I think he's proving himself to be better every week. He's still not top teir, but he's good.
I keep expecting Michael to fall into the bottom three, but then he keeps stepping up his performance. Very good again today, and not even boring. HOWEVER, he was one of the early singers in a very long show, and even though I liked him when he sang, he's not proving very memorable. So, I don't know, dawg.
Didi. Didi, Didi, Didi. Here's the problem: she's still decent and she still has the Hot Girl vote, and she's still genuinely talented. But, she performed very poorly. So, will her past fans help her through? Or are they fickle enough to toss her after one bad performance? My guess: the fact that Ryan so horribly and stupidly embarrassed her will earn her some pity votes. So, she's safe.
Tim! Hooray for one I don't have to think about! He's lousy and he's leaving.
Andrew! Again, another who was mediocre in the past but who did great. Crap. He and Michael are making this a very hard week to predict.
Katie was good and decent, but not awesome, and she was in the bottom three last week. So, the question is this: did her presence in the bottom three last week spur people to vote for her--did they say "Holy crap! Katie doesn't deserve to go!"--or does her presence in the bottom three mean she didn't have that many fans to begin with?
Lee has been boring for the past two weeks, and I've always wondered why he has staunch fans. But, he justified his survival tonight.
And Crystal was awesome, as usual. She left the busking-pothead look and instead chose a busking-pothead-playing-the-piano look. And she was awesome.
And then Aaron slaughtered one of my very favorite songs, and I hate him. Simon said that he's safe, and I agree (because Tim will leave), but Aaron may very well be in the bottom three.
So, if we went solely on tonight's performances the bottom three would be Tim, Siobhan and Aaron. But, I don't think that's the case. Siobhan probably still has fans. Maybe Aaron does, too.
Dang it. This one's hard.
Okay. Tim is in the bottom three, and he'll get the boot. And... I'm going to say Katie is back in the bottom three. And, for the last spot... crap... I'm going to say Aaron. That's more of a personal preference, though. It could very easily be Michael. Or Didi. But, the official is: Tim, Katie, Aaron, with Tim leaving.
I'm totally going to lose this week. (Well, I'll do poorly. Tristi will still lose.)
The important thing to note here is that I'm right and Tristi is wrong.
We both predicted Paige and Andrew, and we were both right about Paige and wrong about Andrew. However, we differed on the third choice: Tristi said Didi (and was horribly, embarrassingly wrong), while I said Tim (and was horribly, embarrassingly right).
And then we were both right that Paige got the boot. So, the score:
Tristi: Four points
Rob: Five points
But: Katie? What the heck, America? Did you hit your head as a child?
It's so tempting to read Rob's blog before posting my own ... but I won't. In the immortal words of Audrey Hepburn in her role of Eliza Doolittle, "I'm a good girl, I am."
The first thing I would like to critique tonight ... Miley Cyrus's outfit. I'm one of those who believes that if your shirt is longer than your shorts, get longer shorts. It's a little strange to see a girl running around in what appears to be just a shirt and boots. Oh, wait, what was that? I do believe I caught a glimpse of shorts there somewhere.
Moving on ...
Lee His performance showed more personality this week, but the song choice ... I don't know. It wasn't really him. I think he's safe, but I think it's more on the merit of his other performances and his already established fan base.
Paige She's my first choice for bottom three. Her voice has a nice tone to it, when she manages to use it correctly. But I haven't seen her use it correctly for a long time. Tonight she was pitchy and nervous.
Tim I really don't know what to say here. I think it was better than his other performances, which doesn't necessarily mean that it was good, but he's got a solid fan base. Pre-teen girls are all over this guy.
Aaron I wasn't blown away by Aaron, but I have to say, tonight was the first night I started to understand why he's in the competition. He really does have some talent in there. He's also got the pre-teen demographic, so he should be safe.
Crystal This girl is amazing. It really doesn't matter if you like her kind of music or not - she's so good at it, that even if you don't care for the song, you have to admire the artistry. Lily had the same kind of thing going, but Lily always sounded the same. Crystal brings variety to her sound, even though it's definitely her each and every time. In my notes on the performances, I wrote merely, "She just is." She's rock solid.
Mike Unlike Rob, I did watch American Idol all the way from auditions, and I fell in love with Mike from the start. Watching him coax his wife through labor via phone during Hollywood Week ... how could you not have a soft spot for the guy? He's got awesome vocals, a great personality ... tonight might not have been his best, but it was pretty dang good. He's safe.
Andrew I think Simon was right when he said they overrated Andrew's performance of "Straight Up." Andrew has not hit that level since then, and he hit a new low tonight. He's another choice for the bottom three.
Katie She did listen to the judges, but I have to say this ... I think the judges are steering her wrong. She has an older sound to her voice. She has moments where she sounds like a young female Buble, and they're trying to make her into a young, bubbly pop star. She is an old soul, and her voice shines when she sings the older songs. Would she make a million dollars? Probably not. But she'd be showcasing herself to the best of her ability. I think they need to leave her alone. Verdict: I think she's safe, but I don't think she did as well as the judges say she did.
Casey Rob compared Casey to Bucky Covington, but I have to say, oh, that's so not the case. Bucky was a hillbilly from the hilliest part of all hillbilly-dom, but Casey is hot. Casey is to the older woman what Tim and Aaron are to the younger girls. Casey is not going anywhere for a while. Despite what the judges said, I thought tonight he had a perfect song choice. He does have a little bit of that Huey Lewis sound - I didn't notice that until tonight, and I'm a huge Huey fan. Anyway, Casey is safe.
Didi Didi is my third choice for the bottom three. I just don't feel this girl's vibe. She has a nice sound, for one song. If I were to listen to a whole album of her, I'd go nuts. I sort of felt the same way about Lacy. I could handle one song, and then I'd want something else.
Siobhan I do understand that this girl has her own style, but I can't go any further without first saying ... the hair? Hello, girl, what are you doing? Okay, moving on ... I didn't really like the song choice, but she sang it well. She has an awesome voice and I think she could sing anything. She's definitely safe.
So, for my three bottom, I have Paige, Andrew, and Didi. To leave us tomorrow night ... Paige.
And there you have it - a critique on American Idol without having to watch Simon and Kara flirt shamelessly with each other in front of ten million people even though she's married and he's engaged. What's up with that?
So, this week the bottom three seems so obvious that I feel bad not picking an upset. I want to choose a surprise loser just to show that I can pick up on hidden insights, but... no. I'll choose the obvious ones tonight.
Anyway, the details are this:
Lee sang and he did well and no one cared and he was boring. I'm currently predicting him to last until the final four or five, and then his boring quality will no longer carry him.
Paige was absolutely terrible. As was Tim. Man, I hate Tim.
Aaron was David Archuleta, and I don't mean that in a good way.
Crystal was awesome. She still is very much the homeless pot smoker busking by the subway, but she's the best dang busking homeless pot smoker I've ever heard.
I thought that Michael was much better than the judges gave him credit for. Still, he's safe.
Andrew was bad, but not as bad as the judges made him out to be. Still, he suffers from both mediocrity and boringness, and that's the kiss of death. That's what killed Lacey last week.
Katie was better than she's been, although she was pitchy, dawg. Pitchy to the max.
Casey was very good--very good--but the song sounded almost exactly like Huey Lewis, with no variation. Yo, he didn't make it his own, dawg.
While I agree with the judges that Didi seemed a little too much "in character", she also was much better this week than last week. I can see her surviving for several more weeks.
And then there was Siobhan, whose only real problem was that she screamed again (albeit very well) and it would be a shame if she became "that girl who screams". She's better than that.
Anyway, the predictions are thus and obvious: Paige, Tim and Andrew will be in the bottom three. The loser will almost assuredly be Paige. If there's a party crasher in any of this, it will be Michael.
Honestly, I was not trying to hold up the party. I've been trying quite anxiously for two days to watch American Idol. But there's a little back story here ...
I am the mother of four children, three of whom are rambunctious little boys who become even more so (rambunctious - not little boys. I'm not sure how you would become more of a little boy) when they see television. We have a Netflix subscription (love it) and they see shows we already know don't make them act like monkeys on cocaine, but we've found that for us, the best way to control the situation is to do without television.
Hence, I watch my shows online, and the website I watch American Idol on has been down.
I promise, it's not my intention to be derelict in my duties as American Idol blogger. Nay, I take it most seriously. If I am unable to watch the show again this next week, I shall surrender unconditionally to Rob.
Hmmmm ... I wonder if Rob was sneaking around my Comcast box in the middle of the night with a pair of pliers ...
Well, the winner is me, because Tristi decided the best way to begin was to not begin at all. (Perhaps she was giving me headstart?)
I got two of the bottom three correct (Tim and Lacey), and I correctly guessed the winner. This gives me a total of five points, as well as the title: King of Awesomeness.
Tristi gets the title: Queen of Not Making Any Predictions, and she has a total of zero points.
My esteemed colleague did get us off to a good start. Good start, esteemed colleague. I did want to make one clarification to his introductory post - we were simultaneously blogging about American Idol, but Rob had taken it to a whole new level. He has meters and graphs and studies the astrological charts of all the contestants and feeds it all into this amazing machine called the Rob-o-Predictor and is all scientific about it. Me? I'm more of a, "I like that." Or, "I didn't like that." But then two years ago (or was it longer ... it's all a blur) Rob challenged me to a duel, a mighty bloggers' duel (not too unlike a wizards' duel, with the same rule about the pink dragons) and asked me to start predicting. Thus it all began.
We are now at the beginning of a new era. No longer do we blog separately and all alone, but now, we blog side by side, nose to nose, toe to toe ... do you know how hard it is to type when nose to nose with someone? It's hard.
Join us every week as we bring you our thoughts - some scientific, some not - about America's favorite reality show. And who knows - we might be right once in a while.
Hooray for American Idol! I haven't paid it any attention all season, so all of these singers are new to me. Below are my thoughts about each, in the order of their performances:
I kinda think it would be fun to do the math for each contestant and show how much older the songs are. But, too much trouble. Suffice it to say that the Rolling Stones are much much older than these contestants. For example, Aaron is a mere sixteen years old, which means he was born in 1994, which is 32 years after the Rolling Stones were formed. Kids these days...
Michael was the first of the night, and he did fairly well. He sang "Miss You", which, for whatever reason, always reminds me of "Mr. Big Stuff", which in turn always reminds me of an old commercial for Double Stuf Oreos. So, that's what I was thinking about during his performance. Sorry.
Then we had Didi, and I don't like her at all. Her banter with Ryan Seacrest is annoying, the montage of her family was annoying, and her interaction with the judges was annoying. However, she's a decent singer and is a fairly cute blond, which generally means she'll survive for a few more rounds.
Then we had Casey, and I have to admit that this show didn't seem like your standard Final 12 show: they were all doing too well for that. Even this guy, who is a slightly less inbred version of Bucky Covington.
Oh wait. Here's where the standard Final 12 crappiness shows up. Lacey was off pitch through and through, and boring to boot. But... the judges said that "there's nothing wrong with your vocals." Really? Were we watching the same show?
And then they called Andrew "pitchy"? Were the judges even listening to Lacey?
Katie has a good voice and she chose one of the best Stones songs, but overall it was kinda blah.
Tim sucked, and I was glad to see that the judges agreed with me. It wasn't even one of the best Rolling Stones songs--not one that I really care about--but his interpretation was offensively terrible and I wanted to slap him for it. If all American Idol viewers were at least semi-cultured and intelligent then Tim would be in the bottom three. However, Jason Castro made it to the top four in Season Seven, and we have to assume that those viewers are still watching this year. (Unless they were arrested for smoking weed.)
Siobhan was awesome, and I loved the scream. I disagree with the judges that she was best of the night, but she was very very good. And, she was singing my all-time favorite Stones song (Paint It Black), which only helped.
Lee was boring. Boring enough that he'll almost certainly be in the bottom three.
Paige blew my nose and then she blew my mind, as it were. (Well, not really.) She was good. I was going to say that she was weak and lousy when she started, but she got better as she went. But, when it was revealed that she had laryngitis, I suppose I can forgive her.
Aaron was surprisingly good for being a sixteen-year-old David Archuleta lookalike. I think the song choice was good, and he's going to be the heartthrob for the teenage girl viewers. He's mucho safe.
I think that Crystal was the best of the evening. She started out sounding a lot like the college kids who sat in the commons area and played guitar and didn't go to class, but once she got into it she was really amazing. So, even though the judges gave the crown to Siobhan, I'm giving it to Crystal.
Predictions:
Bottom Three: Lee, Lacey and Tim. There's an off chance of Paige or Andrew, but Lee, Lacey and Tim are my official guesses.
Gone: Lacey. Tim should go, because he was really terrible, but I think that Lacey is going to be the most forgettable (and lousy).
This is our blog for Season Nine of American Idol.
I've been blogging about AI since Season Three. Several years ago I discovered that Tristi was also blogging about it, and I made it my goal in life to out-guess her. (Guessing the results is the main reason that I watch the show.) While I don't have stats to back me up, I tend to think that my guesses are better than hers.
Also, if you're wondering why we're just now getting around to blogging after the season is half-over: despite the fact that I'm a rabid fan who blogs about it, I never watch the show until it gets down to the final twelve. I'm interested in the competition and the voting, not the music or the auditions.
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