Hannah Montana Was A Great Mentor Choice When The Theme Was Teen Idols...Top 11

If only we could go back a year...Last year's Top 11 week, Kris Allen and Anoop Desai stepped out with amazing performances of "To Make You Feel My Love" and "Always On My Mind", respectively.  We also got to witness the crazy brilliance of Adam Lambert's "Ring Of Fire."

And then we have this year.  What a trainwreck last night was.  Any of them could go home and I really wouldn't care.  Last season was the only season I cared to go to the tour. There is no way I'm spending $70 to see any of these people.  Even Bowersox...

Lee Dewyze "The Letter"
This was definitely Lee's best performance, so far.  He's still so nervous, it makes me nervous.  I'm constantly afraid he's going to let leash one of his attrociously flat notes.  I'll bet he's a completely different guy off camera.  In fact, I'll bet he'll be the performer to just let loose on tour and everyone will change their mind about him.

Paige Miles "Against All Odds"
Wow, this single-handedly could be the worst vocals ever in the finals.  She murdered this song...not in a good way.  And it's not even a good song to begin with.  Since they didn't release a list of songs that were cleared on Itunes this week, we have no idea what they could have chosen from, but why would you choose this.  The most over-sung song in Idol history.  It was done Season 2 (Corey Clarke, bottom 2), Season 3 (George Huff), Season 4 (Jessica Sierra, Scott Savol), Season 5 (Kat McPhee).

Tim Urban "Crazy Little Thing Called Love"
He's really enjoying this heartthrob status he has.  I feel like he's pulling a Sanjaya, and knows that he's becoming a hated contestant.  The teeny bopper girls sure love him though. While this performance wasn't as terrible as Paige's, it was still pretty bad.  The vocals were just plain boring.

Aaron Kelly "Don't Wanna Miss A Thing"
Oh, he's so in love with Miley Cyrus...it's cute.  You could tell this was painful for him to sing.  It wasn't bad, but I felt for him having to sing through tonsillitis.

Crystal Bowesox "Me and Bobby McGee"
The most predictable song choice, ever.  She has a beautiful voice, but she bores me.

Michael Lynche "When A Man Loves A Woman"
Same with Michael, beautiful voice, this week, he was boring.

Andrew Garcia "I Heard It Through The Grapevine"
To be honest, I talked through most of this.  But Andrew is not good.

Katie Stevens "Big Girls Don't Cry"
Every song she picks, seems a good idea in theory.  She's just not as good of a singer as 1) they hyped her up to be, and 2) she thinks she is.  She is consistently flat.  She doesn't have her muscles developed enough yet to keep notes in tune.  I'm not even sure she has developed her ear enough yet to know she's flat.

Casey James "Power of Love"
Is he Huey Lewis' son, because vocally, he sounds identical.  I actually like this performance.  Casey is getting better every week.  I liked that he picked something out of the box.  He's playing to his fans.  There is no way he's not getting picked up by a Nashville label when this is all over.

Didi Benami "You're No Good"
Didi is playing a character, and it's not one that suits her well.  Is she trying to seduce Ryan, cuz it seems that way?  Miley may like her vibrato, but I can't stand it.

Siobhan Magnus "Superstition"
The screeches have to stop.  When Adam went for those wails, he did it with a musicality and attention to pitch.  Siobhan just lets out a scream.  Give her the 8 years Adam has on her, and she might understand the point of it.  Right now, they are just annoying.

I'm so bored with this show...this is definitely shaping up to be the worst season of Idol...

It's Finally the Finals!!! Rolling Stones Week Top 12

OK, I know I said RIP Idol last week...I guess I didn't really mean I'd stop watching.  An intervention may be needed for me to really quit Idol.  But I still feel the show is winding down. I heard they are in negotiations for three more seasons, but that will probably be it.

OK, Rolling Stones week.  I was a little uninspired when I heard they were doing the Rolling Stones.  I checked out the Itunes list, and was shocked by how few Stones songs I actually know.  I feel like when they limit the contestants to one artist, it turns out very karaoke.

Also from now on, since I've never been able to audition, I'll put what song I would've chosen to sing. :)
My pick: Paint It Black


Michael Lynche "Miss You"
I'm soooo glad he didn't get disqualified like was rumored earlier.  He's really good.  He's the first legitimate R&B contender in a long time.  His falsetto riffs were gorgeous.  He really felt the song, too.  He's gone from boring in legitimate contender fast!

Wow! Awkward exchange between Ryan and Simon!  Not sure what's going on between these two this season, but it feels tense...

Didi Benami "Play With Fire"
Sexy, slinky Didi...I'm not buying it.  The angry faces were ugly.  This song was too slow.  It just kinda went nowhere.  Her big belted note was just out of her reach.  It was really pinched and shrill.  It was better on the second, lower glory note.  She really got into it, though...

Casey James "It's All Over Now"
Casey is a crazy good guitar player.  I think he might enjoy playing guitar more than singing...He didn't get into the song as much as he should have.  His rapid vibrato bugs me.  When someone has a vibrato like that, it ruins the quality of their tone.  I'm sure he'll have a successful country career after Idol, though...I mean if Bucky Covington can...

Lacey Brown "Ruby Tuesday"
Ugh, she's one of those singers that smiles every time she performs, doesn't matter what the song is about.  Her voice is so vulnerable, but not something I really want to hear.  She's very forgettable.  Her breathing is shallow and can't support even a short phrase.  It keeps her just under pitch, too.

Andrew Garcia "Gimme Shelter"
Andrew really connected to this song.  Vocally he did amazing things with this.  He shaped his phrases, pulled back the vocals to some nice quiet, unexpected notes.  His big glasses cover up too much of his face and he looked kinda lost on that big stage.  He was clinging to the mike stand for dear life.

Katie Stevens "Wild Horses"
Katie is always just a little under pitch.  I can't get into her.  That felt like the talent portion of a pageant.  Her dress and her hair.  She doesn't have it yet. Every time she reaches for that big note, her voice cracks. Give her about 10 years and she'll be good.

Tim Urban "Under My Thumb"
Tim's family is scary...Wow, why would you pick that song?!!!  This whole performance was just weird. The reggae beat didn't bother me so much as what he was actually singing.  Not a good way to promote yourself, by singing a song about being a mysogynistic abuser. Unfortunately it was probably his best vocal yet.  That said, I like Tim's attitude.

Siobhan Magnus "Paint It Black"
"Paint It Black", the closest we'll ever see to how Adam Lambert would have sung it...That was incredibly musical theatre.  I'm a little mixed on it.  Her high note on the end was a literal screech. She doesn't know the boundaries of her voice yet.  The rest was really cool, though.  She has a cool tone to her voice and really feels what she is singing.

Lee Dewyze "Beast Of Burden"
He's so MidWestern. :)  This was a cool version.  My mom says he reminds her a little of Bruce Springsteen. It was definitely his best vocal of the season.  That is not a forgettable performance.  Women's hearts melted with that sweet song.

Paige Miles "Honky Tonk Woman"
Hard to believe she's sick.  Her voice is very strong, but she's still boring.  There's no spark with her.  That said, it's much easier to belt as song like that when you are sick, than sing a sweet, quiet song.

Aaron Kelly "Angie"
This is definitely Aaron's best performance. I still don't think he deserves to be there over Alex, but it was good.  He sounded a lot like Keith Urban on this one.  He doesn't have a huge voice, so he needs to pick songs like this.

Crystal Bowersox "Can't Always Get What You Want"
Crystal is good.  Her voice is amazing.  All of her performances are kind of samey samey.  If she played them as a set list, it would be boring.  I want her to do something out of the box, put down the guitar, and either rock it out, or sing a beautiful ballad.

I predict that Lacey Brown is gone, but this season has been all about surprises, so who really knows who will go tonight...

Biggest Night of Their Life? Top 8 Girls

I'm sick, I had to work during the show last night, so I'll blog it as I watch it...

Katie Stevens "Breakaway"

Wow, no intro packages.  Mmmm, that was not good.  She was just under pitch, a little behind the tempo, and her phrasing was atrocious.  There was no phrasing really.  It was Gokey phrasing 101.  Plus, her outfit made her look like a 35 year old soccer mom trying to dress trendy.  It was all very tired.

Siobhan Magnus "House of the Rising Sun"

I can't believe they put Siobhan second!  Someone doesn't want her in the Top 12...I love how she started this off acapella. It was absolutely gorgeous.  It also proves how well she really sings.  This was just beautiful.

Lacey Brown "The Story"

It bothers me how hyper-aware of the cameras she is.  This was nice.  I'm not running to buy it...It was definitely her best performance so far.  

Katelyn Epperly "I Feel the Earth Move"

Am I at a wedding?  She's good, but that was not amazing.  She really sounded like a wedding singer.  Why is this season so boring?  She's this season's Matt Giraud, I think.  She has good song choices about half the time, talented, but I feel she's gonna struggle with song choice and connection to the song.

Didi Benami "Rhiannon"

That is the first performance this season I've actually considered downloading.  Perfect song choice.  She's fighting.  She just reminded us of why she is in the semi-finals.  I don't see her winning the whole thing, but she'll definitely make the tour.  The flirting between her and Ryan is hilarious!

Paige Miles "Smile"

Holy goat vibrato! Are we in a piano lounge?  Her pitch was off, the arrangement was weird, and it wasn't in the right key for her.  She doesn't have a nice head voice, she needs to stay in her belt.  She has to be glad the  Worsters are voting for her, cuz otherwise she'd be gone.

Crystal Bowersox "Give Me One Reason"

I know she's the current front runner, and she's good, don't get me wrong.  But until she proves to me she's more modern than my 1996 CD collection, I'll give her more respect as a current recording artist.  I'm not sure where she would be placed on the radio.  Maybe she needs a jam band behind her, cuz I'm not buying the Indigo Girls' music anymore...

Lilly Scott "I Fall To Pieces"

I like the rockabilly vibe she put to this.  Vocally, Lilly is not as strong as Crystal.  She needs to stay away from her lower register, it's just not that controlled.  But, as a musician, she's just as strong, if not stronger than  Crystal.  She's also more modern than Crystal.  I'm not sure where Lilly would be played on the radio, college stations definitely, but she's gonna have a hard time getting spins on more commercial radio.  

Here We Go!! Top 12 Girls...

What an unimpressive night...why do the girls always disappoint on this show? (Not looking at you Kelly Clarkson or Allison Iraheta :) )  Nerves and anxiety totally got the better of all 12 of these girls.  Alright, here we go...

Paige Miles "All Right Now"
It's hard to do a song justice that's already been done on the show.  This song was David Cook's second week song, the one that established him as the resident rocker.  Paige did a'ight as Randy would say.  I like her tone.  We've barely gotten to hear her sing up until this point, so I think she did herself justice, given she was nervous as hell. She got a little shouty, but showed off her big voice.  I think she's safe.


Ashley Rodriguez "Happy"
Ugh I do not like this song.  There are much better Leona Lewis songs if she wants to be labeled a wannabe...I don't get anything original off of her.  She hit some really bunky notes.  If she sticks around she definitely needs to follow the judges advice and figure out a way to stand out.


Janell Wheeler "What About Love"
This song was way too big for her.  All of these skinny blondes look and sound alike. I don't see how they won't cancel each other out, unless they have a stand apart performance.  This was not that, at all.


Lilly Scott "Fixing A Hole"
I was a little worried when she picked a Beatles song, but this was a good choice.  It's not a crazy famous Beatles song, so she could make it her own...and she did.  I like her voice. I think she stands out from the other blondes with guitars.  She needs to watch her lower range.  She doesn't feel comfortable down there.


Katelyn Epperly "Oh, Darling"
Holy too much make-up, Batman!  She looks terrible!  Is she going for the rock n roll flapper look?  I don't get it?  I liked the song.  I like her voice.  We haven't gotten to hear much from her, so I think this was a good first effort on the big stage.  I wish she could've pulled out her A Fine Frenzy cover and play the piano...


Haeley Vaughn "I Wanna Hold Your Hand"
Oh, Haeley...you're so cute....and you can't sing...poor thing...Simon says they want to find a Taylor Swift this season? Well, I think they found her.  And I think she's not gonna make it past this week.  That was a mess.  An off-pitch, shrill, breathy mess.



Lacey Brown "Landslide"
Oh, my! Another hot mess!  And I liked Lacey in Hollywood.  Her voice is so unique.  She needed a jazzy song to stand out, not Stevie Nicks. I see how they made her have a sing-off with Megan Joy last year.  They are very similar. I have a feeling it's bye, bye Lacey...



Michelle Delamor "Fallen"
Girl totally showed up Ashely Rodriguez tonight.  She has a much better tone and control.  I thought she did the song justice.  I mean, no one can sing Alicia Keys like Alicia Keys, so....but, how skinny is this girl.  Eat a sandwich, please!



Didi Benami "The Way I Am"
Seriously a copycat performance.  If I closed my eyes, I wouldn't know this wasn't Ingrid Michaelson.  Or Janell Wheeler (other than the fact that Didi can stay in key much better than Janell).  Boring.



Siobhan Magnus "Wicked Game"
What the hell was that?!  So they obviously did have the rights to this for Adam, and he never used them, so instead we get this?  She has find to herself, or she's gone.  Seriously a strange little girl.  She has a good voice, and a big voice, of which they are lacking this season. Her range is giant.  And to the stylists, this was the best you could do?



Crystal Bowersox "Hand In My Pocket"
Not a most original choice, but she handled it well.  Simon's right with the coffee house analogy...she needs to project bigger.  And thank God for teeth whiteners!  She's just a cool chick. She really sounds like the love child of Janis Joplin and Melissa Etheridge.



Katie Stevens, "Feeling Good"
I love Adam Lambert's cover of this.  I jam out to it all the time.  It's so theatrical, and has a driving beat...I know it's a cover of the Muse version, which I also love, so it's different from what Katie did.  But what's most different is that he sang it well.  Katie, did not.  She was sharp, and pageanty. It started out very throaty.  Nope, didn't like it.  She's blown her frontrunner status, now hasn't she?


Ok, boys, you better bring it tonight, or this season is just, well...sigh