American Idol

[adorefaith]

my heavens this night was so intense

i'm sick of writing my comments in white so please...if you havent seen the show yet...this is a SPOILER!!!!!

okay....here i go..

syesha....she was fabulous...i personally dont relate to her voice but ive felt all along that she belongs on broadway and tonight just proved that even more for me...she should be proud of herself, she was great and she didnt overdo it, which i was afraid of....oh, and she looked fantastic in that dress

jason i dont care what anyone else says, i thought it was BEAUTIFUL. he made the most of his voice and this genre and he chose to do what he does best: strip it down, sit on a stool and EMOTE. he tells such a beautiful story through his songs and tonight was no exception....he has a very limited range but he works with what he has beautifully....i find his singing so emotional, and for me that's what it's all about

brooke ok maybe it's that after everyone's comments here i was expecting something really depressingly bad but i didnt think she was terrible at all. the lyric slip at the beginning was a shame but i thought she recovered well and as professionally as she could, and actually i agree that she took andrew lloyd weber's advice and really focused on the lyric and the story of the song - it was the first time she wasn't all 'smiley' and 'happy' which proved to me that she was really connecting with the truth of the song and trying to sing with clear purpose and intention. i find her tone beautiful, and as i say each week, she is so genuine + emotional when she sings, you hear all the heartache and struggle in her voice. i adore her....i am going to hope and pray that she doesnt go home because i feel like 'big voices' always win in this competition and i'm tired of that.!

david archuleta - completely hilarious, faith, that you liked him this week, because it was the first week i really didn't feel it. he made the song far too 'pop' and didnt respect the genre or the original arrangement...his voice will always be beautiful, you cant fault him on that, but this was nothing different and there was nothing even remotely musical theatre about it....i feel as though it was one of his least emotional and 'connected' performances.

carly - sorry, but i'm ready for carly to go home...she seems like such a sweet girl, but all she does these days is rely on her big voice to carry her through, i think. i dont get any sense of originality or emotion with her, and i hated this song for her...it was too big, and she didnt have any grit....it was just bad, imo, sorry....i know i'm alone on this one because everyone seems to have loved this performance, but i didnt get it at all. i dont know who she is as an artist and i dont know what she has to offer other than a sweet personality and strong vocals. there's just no sense of self with her....nothing that says 'carly' every week...she just morphs into someone new each time.

david cook i was ready to get very frustrated if he chose to dream up an entirely new arrangement for such a classic and incredible andrew lloyd weber song, but as soon as he opened his mouth and showed some restraint by not turning this into a rock song, can i just say i could have kissed him!!!! he was subtle, his range was beautiful, he had light and shade, he knew when to belt it and when to pull back....he was connected and sincere, and his vocal sounded flawless. his best performance to date, imo, and i really really respect that he stayed true to the original and found a way to make it his own without turning the song inside out. fabulous fabulous fabulous

i personally wish syesha or carly would leave tomorrow night, but if it's brooke i'm going to be heartbroken

 

[KhaoticKharma]

I really, really, really don't get all the Brooke White love. Sorry, but I PERSONALLY feel that she is far too emotional for this type of competitions, and David Hernandez, Chikizie, and even little ole Danny Noreiga have better voices than she does.

 

[IncurableLunatic]

ok WARNING: this review might seem like a newspaper article but bear with me -or skip it- ....evidently, this is made by a die hard Andrew Lloyd Webber fan and someone who has worked on theatre



Syesha – the most successfully theatrical of the night, as far as showtime is concerned. But as far as getting into the theatre is concerned, I didn’t feel it from her. theatricality isn't even all of it, because Fantasia was theatrical too and her voice sucked. I think she really put the showtime touch to her song, giving it flavor. She was very entertaining and refreshing. it was a Syesha we'd never seen before. But she was still screechy, and her voice still isn't as mind-blowing as Carly's or pure as Brooke's.



Carly - Great song choice, but she got drowned out by the band. You couldn't understand what she was singing (shouting) in some parts. But she did bring energy to the stage. Actually, there isn't anything much more to say. It was enjoyable. Entertaining. Hip. But it really might have sounded better had David Cook sang it ---a male rocker with this big, deep, gritty voice. The song is supposed to challenge Jesus in a playful way.





David Cook - He was alright, he sang it well. He was actually dreamy and romantic. He sang it wonderfully as a love song, in fact. But not as the love song as The Phantom would have sung it to Christine. I bet every single girl in America would say yes to David Cook if he sang that. But no, the romantic quality Cook delivered there wasn't, it really just wasn't the romantic quality of The Music of the Night as it should be and really is.That said, David Cook still did well. He was good as far as American Idol is concerned. But not as far as the Phantom is.




Jason - first, why did he choose that song? Not only did a cat sing that song. that song was also sung by a very old and dying, rejected, misunderstood former "glamourpuss" as ALW put it. There was no hope for Jason, really. First, it wasn't his genre. Then, it wasn't his song. Hopeless. Irreparable. People have got to understand that songs from the musical theatre aren't singles. Their magic resides in their context, in the context of the story you find them in. That's why American Idol is horribly wrong too. They actually should not have probably done this theme.




David Archuleta - Okay. I understand the need to bring ALW's music to a contemporary audience. But then again, it would be quite different for an ordinary AI viewer watching this episode than it would be for an ALW diehard like me. However, this night only underscores how much the judges just hype Archuleta up. Blake Lewis from last season gave a number of standards a beatbox spin, and they berated him for not "leaving the classics as classics." (Frank Sinatra) So why the love for Archuleta? Fine, Think of Me is a pseudo-operatic piece. It would not have been right for the show to sing it as it was. But... please don't murder the music of the man Simon Cowell calls “a national treasure”. What did Beatles diehards say when Kristy Lee Cook sang Eight Days A Week? The exact same thing that this diehard Phantom fan will always say about Archuleta's Think of Me. I swear, a chandelier --no, three chandeliers-- must have fallen from the Paris Opera House ceilings as Archuleta sang that.



Brooke - It's definitely not going to help her that this is the second time she's bungled the beginning of a performance. This is American Idol. You're supposed to be at your best every single moment. You're supposed to prove that you're a great performer as well as a singer. Brooke should have kept her head and not choked like that. Simon and Randy said that stopping and starting over was the right thing and the brave thing to do. For that situation, I agree. It's better than blundering forward. However, the sad point here is that she shouldn't have reached the situation in which she should have stopped and started all over in the first place. That said, I understand why pre-show write-ups quoted Lloyd Webber as saying that Brooke was impressive. I understand why he said he got something out of her; why she moved him. Brooke was in character, or, at least, made the most effort out of all the other contestants to be in character. She was the only one who seemed to have treated this evening not just as an evening of singing songs, but as an evening of singing songs that tell stories. Remember: unlike most pop, country, jazz, r&b and folk singles--- things which these AI contestants and audiences are more used to--- songs from the musical theatre aren't just songs. Their words and melodies never stand alone. They are always pieces of this bigger musical tapestry. To truly get into songs such as ALW's, you've got to be able to get into the skin of a song, into the whole play to which it belongs, and then come out bringing the story of that play out. Brooke, I think, was the one who came closest to doing that. She didn't just sing the song, she played a part. I wonder what would have happened had she not stumbled, and, as Randy alleged, gotten thrown off. Of course, it is quite ironic that she sang that song. In the song, Evita was clutching at straws, desperate, hanging on for dear life. No wonder Brooke was able to channel that emotion. After this night (or last night now), there really isn't any hope for her unless voters do what she begs them to do: "You must love me."





bottom three prediction: Carly, Jason, Brooke (most likely Brooke going home) ....but if trust the pattern, Jason will go home.






sorry for the extensive review/rant guys

 

[adorefaith]

thanks for all your thoughts ^ it was great reading... i am so nervous thinking about tonight's show

 

[yogini108]

i just think its so hard every week, especially since EVERYONE is so great and EVERYONE has established an identity (well, except for carly )
and so even if someone has a horrible week, i just feel like friends with the contestants so its hard to see anyone go!

 

[KhaoticKharma]

I am officially not watching for the rest of the season, period.

Brooke. White. Needs. To. Get. The. F@#$. Out. Right. Now.

 

[IncurableLunatic]

omg i hope it's not one of Seacrest's gimmicks.....

 

[IncurableLunatic]

i can't believe Carly went home

 

[TheGlassAngel]

I don't understand how Syesha was in the bottom 2

I thought she was amazing and Brooke was much worse!

 

[IncurableLunatic]

Syesha has a small fanbase. i believe her on the bottom two is not based on her performance....

 

[Faith Akiyama]

 

[adorefaith]

believe me when i say i'm really sad to watch any of them leave at this point...having said that, this is the result i personally felt was right after the last few weeks....the person who went was not pulling out anything new and not establishing him/herself as an artist, and you cannot just rely on having a good voice imo. i'm really sad to watch people go but i think america got it right, actually.

 

[yogini108]

i agree with america getting it right in ONE sense. but on the other hand, (white) the performances of brooke and jason were bottom two performances (and jason is one of my favorites!) I'm just surpised that THIS was the week that carly left. although i do agree that she had sort of plateau'd.

 

[Danish]

WHAT!? Carly left?

 

[IncurableLunatic]

^yes

i've been a vocal supporter of Brooke but i was ready for her to leave after that blunder. i thought that she and Jason would be the bottom 2 (see earlier review^) with Carly with them on the bottom 3 (based on lack of progress) but i was still "" when it was Carly who got booted out.


.....though i'm still glad the singer/songwriters are still in competition

 

[jewelbox]

^ I agree with you completely. I've loved Brooke since the competition started, but I don't think it was fair for her to pull of a performance like she did and not even be voted into the bottom two - Basically, I don't think Carly should have gone home.

 

[Danish]

I hate America now

 

[IncurableLunatic]

next week's mentor is Neil Diamond. i have a feeling Brooke would pull through on this one as long as she sticks to the guitar like her earlier performances and stop blundering. i think Syesha or Jason will have a problem, and even if David Archuleta has a problem, the kid obviously have a large fanbase that would save him

 

[adorefaith]

i'm really excited for neil diamond week...i agree that this will probably be a really strong week for brooke but i would think so for jason too. and the 2 davids can usually pull off anything.....so i think syesha might struggle, even though the girl can sing her way through anything....the fact that she seems to have a smaller fan base and hasnt really developed a strong identity for herself combined with the fact that she was in the bottom 2 this week means she really needs to pull out something fabulous imo

i think, though, that at this stage of the competition it's very much a popularity contest, and she is going to be vulnerable no matter how well she sings....i dont know if it's just me but nothing about her speaks to me - people dont seem to connect with her the way they do with brooke or david a. my suspicion is that it has a lot to do with her 'image' and her lack of originality....whereas people will vote and vote for brooke because she's the genuine, pretty, singer songwriter, or david a. because he's the sweet, young, cute guy with the shmaltzy ballads, syesha is left in image nowheresville.... for some reason there is no sense of novelty or personality with her, even though she's had her cute, funny moments like everyone else.....there's just something missing imo

 

[yogini108]

i COMPLETELY agree about syesha. its similar to the situation that carly was in...just because she had a great range and she could really belt it in no way means that she's going to be the reason because I couldn't even imagine what type of genre she would fit into. Like, alternative, rockish, bluesy, spicy, bland pop rock. haha
Syesha definitely has a different sound from the rest of the competitors, but just something different isnt near enough to set her apart this late in the competition.
Its funny how the judges seemed so surprised that it was a popularity contest this week--of course it is! I know I voted for jason..probably a hundred times. I thought he was guaranteed a spot in the bottom but I wanted brooke to go home. obviously my plan didnt work.

ALSO, I wanted to comment on how simon mentioned that his compliments to a performance are the kiss of death. And im sure he was joking, but i realized its totally true! Since he complimented carly and syesha...everyone in america assumed they were safe and all the fan bases for jason and brooke panicked and called in extra votes to make sure their favorite didnt leave. i know i was one of the people who assumed that carly and syesha were safe. i didnt vote for either even once!
and simons negative criticisms make people panic and vote or push way harder for the worst of the group.

...i hope that all made sense!