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Thursday, March 28, 2013

Motown quickie

OK....so I had a work function last night and so I just got done watching the show. The results have aired but I haven't seen them. I'm going to post a quick short review of last nights Motown show. Best of the night - Kree and Amber Close Third - Janelle, I loved her take on the song 4. Devin - His voice is flawless. I didn't love the falsettos although Nikki did. 5. Burnell - I LOVE him more and more every week. His mannerisms are a little distracting but I LOVE his voice 6. Candice - Good vocals but came off a bit old fashioned for me 7. Angela - She was out of her element and it showed 8. Lazaro - Better than last week, but still by far the worst America's bottom 3: Angela, Devin and Burnell Going Home: Devin (unfortunately), but I predict the judges will save him. Now....I'm going to watch the results and read Dr L and K's review!!!

The Tracks of My Tears (after my ears bled)


TOP EIGHT -- Motown night. A little trivia for movie fans -- Oz the Great and Powerful was filmed there (Detroit). How was that even possible? It's because Sam Raimi is from there. Go figure.

KOD spot -- Candice. This is almost like a lion stalking a wounded gazelle, if the gazelle is a great singer but too old and in a non-pop style and the lion is the Idol Powers that be who want a young pop singer to win.I think they're setting Candice up to fail so the big singers will drop out, and not overshadow TCO.

Not the best performance ever. Dr. L pointed out the direction, thus far, of this episode sucks. Sloppy camera work, Ryan blowing the intros to the package with Smokey, and then this kind of rambling bluesy forgettable performance.

Janelle -- and Kree! A duet. Interesting. This arrangement was kind of all over the place, but their voices sound nice together. Nice power note at the end. Nicki gives lots of love to Kree, and maybe she's right about her outshining Janelle. That's the danger when two Idols go on at the same time.Funny how they cut them slack when they f up a lyric on these duets, AND they want a girl to win, and then they'll cut their throat when they want to at other times.

Lazaro -- this kid reminds me of Samuel L Jackson from Unbreakable -- one good blow from the REAL record Industry, and he would shatter. He looks better this week, and sounds far more confident. Its fun to see how Idol works with his "Frankie Valli"-ish look every week. Randy seems amused that this schtick is still going, headed for the inevitable fail. Note to Lazaro -- work on cooler costumes or something, your forehead looks like it's going to sweat away.

Side note -- how did they color-coordinate Nicki and Mariah tonight? It's like pumpkin red. I do like Keith's shirt. He always has some catchy saying. 

Janelle solo --  I don't know if I totally agree with Smokey on how to mod the song. It's like, it shows off her voice, but it kid of kills the melody of this great song. SHe sounds fine, but the song itself was kind of whatev. The judges give her the tongue bath, so they want her to stay on a few more weeks. Nicki praises her guitar work, but to me it was pretty weak. Randy bestows the In It To Win It so we KNOW Nigel wants her to make the top 4-5. 

Tin Tin (Devin) -- is Mariah answering a fucking text? God, the world is going to shit LOL. We are slaves to our damn phones. Back to the music: Smokey schools Devin on his timing. Performance -- hey he got the pumpkin red memo. His delivery -- it sounds like a generic faux-R&B performance from a kid his age. Lots of useless melisma, and very little soul. Technically, not bad, but so cookie-cutter IMHO.
Keith sort of calls him on his robotic performance,but soft-balls it. Of course, Nicki loves it, because she's only capable of inauthentic performances herself. 

BTW, how do you guys take the comments like Mariah made here, that she hopes we "get" it? I think we know what we like, and this isn't akin to understanding Abstract Expressionism. Just sing the songs, fools! We buy the music, so we're the experts LOL.

The Oreo Supremes: surprisingly good in moments. Candice of course excels here, and the harmonies were nice. If they work on this it could be really good on the tour. I like the buff & polish they put on Angie's leg's LOL.

Urkel (Burnell) -- Smokey tries to take him to school. He seems intimidated. On the night, nice outfit, but he looks stiff in it. Is that a skull tie thingy? Maybe a Jaguar hood ornament. God, I truly hate his weird phrasing. Nice voice, but this sounds like  a gimmick. Maybe his original music can make it work, but I'm so distracted by it I can never get taken away by the song. Nicki's faces when Keith speaks are worth it, though.

BTW-- Ryan's tie -- how long will the purple tie trend continue? It seems like it has been for a million years. 

TCO -- Angie. Holy crap, the session with Smokey and Jimmy sounded like ass. What a terrible arrangement. On the night -- she sounded better on the Supremes thing. This was a bad song choice, to me. An odd, forced painful performance. These are my favorite comments from Nicki all season thus far, however -- she totally spoke the truth. Angie could be in trouble.

Amber -- doing Stevie. They should seriously call this Wonder Idol, so many contestants return to this well. Oh Lord -- she's doing the Miss America version of this song. Is she ahead of the beat? She has a nice voice, but I think this song is too old for her. It kind of came alive towards the end, and maybe it's enough to save her. I don't know -- who is voting for her? They are seriously pimping her in the judging, so they want her to stay, but would they use the Save on her? I have a feeling one week they may have to. 

The boys trio -- Sugar Pie Honey Bun? HA, these dudes totally throw each other under the bus on the negative criticism. I think there was enough suck to go around, but Burnell and Devin wanted to make sure it wasn't THEM. 

Kree -- in the pimp spot. OK, maybe she's the real TCO. This damn show was so long I almost forgot who we had left to hear. Jimmy and Smokey love her. Doing Aretha -- Good God Almighty, finally a real, honest-to-goodness performance, no apologies needed. She can really sing. I felt like what Nicki said earlier, that a Pro had flown in to sing with the Idols, is really true. This is Kree's contest to lose, as far as ability, but does she have the votes? It's funny, the judges sort of give half-hearted praise, all but Nicki. How is it she is the voice of reason? 

Who is in the B3? If there was a God, it would be Angie, Devin and maybe Janelle.
But Amber is probably in trouble again,  and Candice? I don't know if the craptacular group performance will hurt Lazaro but there was an uncomfortable closeup on him when he APPEARED to forget his lyrics. Maybe he didn't but with all the bus-throwing, America might blame him. Still, I don't think he'll go home, and Candice will.



Thursday, March 21, 2013

Here Come Old Flat Top


Top 9 nite: The Idols sing the Beatles? John Lennon is spinning in his grave.

Glad to see Nikki made it tonite. Mariah's optical illusion dress isn't really working -- souldn't the sparkly circles get smaller as they go down? It's like a Bedazzler explosion.

The Idols look a little more polished. Then a Carly Rae Jepson/Coke ad? Isn't she just one random pop hit away from being as unknown as these fools on this show? 

Ooh! The Sing Off contest -- OMG, it's the freak kid! This has to be VFTW's work. Ha!!! Charley gets shot down again -- wow, Idol, that's especially cruel. Back the bus up and hit him again LOL.

OK, kicking it off with Kree. In the KOD spot, but Idol often puts the front runners in here to shake things up in the pimp spots. They're REALLY laying on the sob story here. Jimmy likes her. Aaannd the choir walks in. Her voice is nice, clear and strong, but this is a kind of lifeless performance. It's interesting to me, hearing Nikki say she doesn't sound like the original-- seems that now EVERY person who sings this song uses the Joe Cocker arrangement. 

Next up, Urkel. Burnell has a sweet family. But how does someone not know Let It Be? Holy shit. When they put the Plant in at number one, usually number 2 is the new KOD. His jacket made of pleather belts is unusual, though. Like a pleather mummy. He has a weird kind of delivery that people probably either love or hate. I happen to hate it. He can sing, but it's so quirky it throws me off. The crowd seems to love it though. And there's that god damned choir! All in all, he did well, considering he didn't know the song. Dr. L likes him, because he has that R & B vibe. Nikki liked it too. I didn't hear anything new or original from Kree or Burnell, but they want us to think we did.

Side note -- Keith Urban is too nice to be here. 

Amber -- wow, she grew up in the STICKS. Her family seems nice -- dad only asks her to WIN it, LOL. Jimmy schools her on trying the fancy shit, if she just sings it, she'll kill it. Wow, she comes out looking like a million bucks. She has a beautiful voice, but I wish she had more emotional connection to the song. That's age and inexperience, though. The audience responds like trained monkeys whenever somebody jumps up an octave. I guess vocal gymnastics is all it takes to impress people in this autotune age. Still, she was easily the best of the night so far. 

Lazaro -- from Naples FL? Cool. Jimmy's take on Lazaro's song choice, not so cool? Jimmy has problems with it. I love this song. Holy crap, this jacket is yellow.  Is he off key? His delivery often sounds mumbled to me. This was a big miss for me, kind of forgettable and warbly. The judges don't want to bash him, but he kind of knew it himself. He's sweaty and unsure. I think he's coasting on sympathy votes at this point anyway. Dr. L is very distracted by the metallic sink trap thing on Randy's jacket. 
Oh, now we hear they changed his song at the last minute--- Idol mind games!

Candice -- Love seeing all these small towns in the family packages.  Come together! I loved this song back in the day. Jimmy is trying to get her in the mindset to sing this song. She's a better natural performer, but this is an odd song to pick. Kind of a rock-ish song, not a lot of natural parts for a big vocalist to shine. She is Dr. L's favorite singer competing here, and maybe mine too. One thing you can say is that she actually stepped outside the box, unlike most of the others, and  maybe this worked well enough. A good performance. Still hoping to hear a great one tonight.

So funny, Ryan mugging for the camera an cut to Mr. Boring, Ryan. Ryan moved from a trailer to a prefab generic house on a treeless lot. Movin' up! Jimmy tries to help him be a little more natural. It must not have taken, because this is a pretty contrived performance. He's throwing some kind of Morrisey-esque oerwrought phrasing on some of these notes. It was again kind of detached, emotionless. And, he looks kind of orange. Mariah has wisdom when she says sing it like you wrote it -- so many of these singers only "live" for the BIG notes, and die on the soft ones. He got some tough love, but people are voting for "types" anyway. Is he the last great white hope for the tween girls to vote for?

Angie -- looking more like Miley Cyrus every show -- and that's not a good thing. Reveals she was a theater whore - THAT explains a lot. Jimmy is trying to school her on natural emotion. Yet when she gets onstage, she sings it like a robot. What's with the fake British accent? She has a great voice, but all these singers are just hitting marks. Maybe the Beatles catalog looms huge in my mind being of that generation, but to these kids it's like Frank Sinatra or something, from a million years ago. Not as if living human beings sang these songs. Judges love her, and pimp the shit out of her, because they really, really want her to go far. TCO, you think? They give her the most backhanded compliments of the night.
Side note -- we should take votes on how long her part takes to come over to a normal place on her head LOL. It's getting there, every week. Nikki says the truth, she will sing a Disney song in the future, mark her words.

Devin -- Tin Tin. Pimping his military background. Jimmy tries to wrangle a Adult Contemporary angle out of him on Long and Winding Road? Too much melisma for me, but it is a really good fit for his voice. Makes me remember something I thought earlier -- so many of these Idol picked songs that John Lennon sang, and this was one from Paul -- he was always the better singer. It was slightly boring, but compared with so many of the almost-rans of the Idols before him tonight, it is one of the better ones. I think the judges are echoing my refrain of the lack of emotional connection. Except Nikki, who actually says less connection is more, WTF? Then Randy earns his pay as Nigel's mouthpiece and says some of his catchphrases. Mariah just gets ignored LOL. This show is very schizophrenic tonight.

Janelle -- lest you fergit, she's the last dang legitimit hick left in this gosh durn competishun. I say this with love, because I'm from Tennessee, but god damn, those are some hick accents y'all. She dials it back on the song. It's more of a Dolly Parton pop crossover-country vibe. Very pretty arrangement, she looks great, had a couple of bum notes but for the most part very nice. It actually sounded like a song on a variety show from the early 70s, which is the highest praise I can muster for the night. So many seemed like competition performances it was kind of refreshing. 
Nigel must want her to stay, so the judges mouth his words. Are they pimping her to be FarmBot (Carrie Underwood) Number Two?

Who's in trouble? I guess Lazaro should worry the most.Maybe Burnell will be with him. If a girl winds up in the B3, I'm afraid Candice got the least pimpage. 

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Idols and the Beatles

First up - Kree. Little help from my friends. She has a much better contemporary look. And I like the contemporary take that she took on this standard Beatles tune. She definitely has the power and the pipes, but she's lacking in charisma and stage presence. Good performance though Burnell - Let it be....but Burnell doesn't know the song? Seriously? I LOVE his voice and I LOVE the fact that he is too cute for words....and I think he did good tonight despite looking a little nervous and uncomfortable. Amber - She's leaving home..... flawless vocal, but kind of a boring song. I'm not familiar with this song, but I really feel that the song did her a dis-service, despite the fact that she did an incredible job with it. I think she could be in trouble as a result. Lazaro - ooooo....this is bad. I like Lazaro, but at this point he is in over his head. People are going to vote for him because they like him and love his back story, but ultimately it IS about singing (well it wasn't for Taylor Hicks...so maybe I'm wrong). I thought that performance was absolutely horrendous. Wow...he is really struggling with this competition and he looks like he is crumbling. Nikki is right. Something is going on with him, he's cracking under pressure...but his vulnerability is going to keep him in for sure. Candice - Come Together - I thought the song was good to show off her stage presence, but I don't think it was great to showcase he voice...but we all know that she can sing, so she should be safe and the song DID show that she has more stage presence and charisma than at least two of the other front runners. Paul - All the lonely people. Paul seems to be getting better and better. I thought this was one of his better performances. He was subtle when he needed to be and powerful when he needed to be. Nikki called him safe and predictable. Wow...the judges really threw him under the bus tonight. Angela - yesterday- The makeover they have done on her is fantastic. She looks like a young Kelly Clarkson. Hmmmmm...is AI trying to subtley or not so subtlely send a message? Devin - He went to military school? Hmmmm...I cannot see him in military school...Don't ask/Don't tell I guess. The long and winding road. He has probably the best male voice in the competition. Technically a perfect performance. Stage presence however brings him down...he comes across a little boring. Janelle - I Will. She sounds a bit like a young Dolly Parton. This song made me wish that I could her Dolly do this song. Janelle played to he element and I think she did a great job with it. Rankings: Kree Burnell Candice Devin Janelle Angela Paul Amber Lazaro Tonight there was one singer that CLEARLY was not as good as the others, however Lazaro will NOT be going home. Rubbertoe's bottom 3: Paul, Amber and Lazaro. America's bottom 3 will be very different. America is going to put Paul, Devin and Burnell. Possibly Amber. Going home: Definitely Paul.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Dr. L & K's predictions

Here's out 3-point shot at the buzzer, trying to beat the results on the West Coast:
Our prediction of the Top 10 ten rundown for the rest of the season.

10. Curtis
9. Burnell
8. Paul
7.Lazaro
6. Candice
5. Devin
4. Janelle
3. Amber
2. Kree
1. Angela

Probably all wrong, but based on Vegas odds and feelings about how America will vote, not on who deserves to stay.

Idols Tread Water


I like the Top Ten montage where each Idol gets to say a sentence or two to recap themselves for us. I always try to see how Idol slants things in their favor LOL. It seems like the girls get the better quotes, but I could be wrong.

What happened to Nicki? Holy F'ing Shit, I can't believe she's playing the "stuck in LA traffic " card. That's about as unprofessional as it gets. Am I right that this has never happened on Idol before? As somebody who has driven across LA in all kinds of hellish traffic, you can get where you need to be when you have to, if you WANT to.

The Idol App commercial -- still gotta download it.

Jimmy Iovine -- can't believe he's dating scandal woman Liberty Ross. Whatever, maybe she's eager. 
Jimmy counsels Curtis -- he's singing Fantasia? Lord, I forgot how screechy she was. 
Nice psychedelic jacket dude. Dr. L says looking at it made her think he was taking us to a picnic. And this is Idol styling! He gets a choir? Isn't his a little early in the game for this shenanigans? He was off key and weak in the beginning, so maybe they're trying to save him. This is bad enough to send him home, though. The judges softball him. 

Ryan's nearly magenta hair color is distracting -- what's up with that? Weird "live" moment where Ryan goes to open the studio door. I guess Ryan will someday be the only Idol employee, he'll park the cars, run the camera, be the sole judge, etc.

Janelle in at Number 2 -- did this girl get 1000% more Kountry from last week to now? Jeez, I'm from the South, and she makes me sound like Laurence Olivier. 
Idol cannibalizing old Idols for these songs is getting old fast. She looks good, and is off to a better start than Curtis. I hate to admit it, though, but Scotty blows her off the stage here. She has no passion behind this song. 
OMG, Nicki looks like a damn freak. (postscript comment --  looks like she had no makeup on yet. Later she looked normal. Those DisneyLand sunglasses were throwing me off.) Randy speaks the truth about Janelle here, which is odd. Dr. l agreed with Mariah that Janelle came out with confidence, but it went nowhere from there. But I don't think she'll be "Gone" this week.

Devin. I can't get past the impression that he looks like TinTin -- check it out:

















Nice voice. Sings the song with feeling. Nice outfit. Showcases his voice, I'd say this is an OK choice, because I don't even like this song. But it was a little safe and forgettable. Wow -- Nicki is throwing the softballs and Randy has to be the cold reality guy? It is true -- these guys "made it" and they seem to have throttled back. 

Anybody watch FOX's The Following? I see the ads and it seems interesting… but not enough to watch.

Angie -- the Chosen One? Maybe TCO2. She has the weird flap of hair that is a little distracting. I feel like I'm watching Joe Dirt LOL. Iovine says she a pageant singer! Well, I have to say, here onstage her hair is a little better. The dress is borderline Dominatrix, but she wears it well. She has a pretty voice, and pretty good range. Dr. L was impressed. I have to say best of the night so far.  The judges fawn over her. Randy says In it to Win it, Can Sing Anything AND The Competition Begins Now!!! 

Paul -- Jimmy is laying the smackdown on all these guys! Says he oversings. This could be Jimmy's Backfire advice, though: sometimes he tells people to take it down or up a notch and sabotages them. Hot Fiddle Guy has been replaced with Fiddle MILF. This is kind of a boring rendition of this song. His voice sounds reedy and thin. Interesting jacket mashup with the pleather sleeves. I never liked this song, but Keith does. I didn't hear what he did tonight. 

Candice -- her hair looks nice, she looks lovely. Sweet story with her family. Jimmy loves her! I think he doesn't suffer fools easily, perhaps. And she clearly has tremendous talent. She has my favorite voice of the competition, I think. Dr. L says this was a million times better than when Jordin (Massive Tearful Carrot) sang this. She has life experience. I feel like she's already a pro, and will make it in the Biz no matter what idol holds for her. This is what the others should aspire to: wow us week after week.

Lazaro: Jimmy is taking it easy on this kid. Doing Breakaway. Wow, Kelly looks great in that clip. Can he pull it off? I hate to say this, but that outfit makes his ass look big LOL. Oh, Lazaro -- this is too much song for him. This was a big mess for me. Hard act to follow Candice, and he didn't do what he needed to. This was just not the right song. Who is voting for him? He is cuter than Devin, for the Latin American crowd, so maybe he'll stay.

Kree -- This might be The Chosen One. Singing a classic song, Crying, voters will know it -- smart -- or did Idol just set her up with a Win? She looks pretty tonight. This arrangement is very sleepy in the beginning. She does have a beautiful voice.  I got a KD Lang vibe off her tonight. From my perspective, we have three female contenders here, and no males that can compere with them. Nicki talks about waffles and Randy gets tingles all over. She'll probably be back, right? I also get a Pia Toscano vibe from her, too -- like she might get herself gone way earlier than she or we think.

Urkel (Burnell)-- doing Ruben's flying without wings? God, this song sucks. Oh, good, he ditches the goofy look for the song performance. But his vocal is kind of overwrought with melisma. He sort of runs out of gas on the big bombastic parts, and it shows this (crappy as it is) song is too big for him. What was up with the 1950s Do-Wop runs in the middle of this? Weird. This was almost VFTW-worthy. Keith says he has "eccentricity", that's one way of putting it. Nicki wants him to stay in spite of himself. Randy is back blowing smoke up our asses, so Nigel must want him to stay, too. I don't think he deserves to be this far up in the lineup tonight. 

Ryan working in a Pope joke! Ryan has to know this show is tres hokey with the smoke and mirrors.

Amber -- did anybody catch the Godfather theme when she met Jimmy? Funny. Wow, this song performance is not great, despite the wind machine effects. She's better than this song, but pulls off some nice notes at the end. Keith is my favorite this year, I love his smart-ass joke about the fan. When Nicki says the comments about "best performance of the night" an comparing her to Whitney, the audience isn't buying it. It's so much bullshit. She's good, but this was not that great.

I just realized this was the Pimp spot -- it was kind of anticlimactic. 

I say Curtis and Devin are in trouble. Paul should be, but maybe will get a break. Either way, a guy should go, I think. That's kind of a no-brainer, but never underestimate the American voters! Dr. L & I will post a prediction list before results tomorrow.








Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Idols sing the Idols

Curtis Finch - takes of Fantasia, I believe. It was a smart song choice for him, right in his element. However, I found it to pale horribly to Fantasia's version and at times it sounded like he was talking it rather than singing it. Also waaaaay too many runs. Janelle - Scotty McCreery "gone" , Another great song choice. She looks great tonight as well. Deven - "Temporary Home" Carrie Underwood. Hmmmm....not sure about this one. He's got an awesome voice....but I'm not sure that this song was great for him. It didn't really give him a chace to showcase who he is. Angela - "I Surrender" Celine Dion who Kelly Clarkson performed - Wow. Her makeover is perfect. She looks incredible. She worked the stage and camera like a pro. Absolutely in it to win it. Paul - also takes on Scotty McCreery - "Amazed". Jimmy told him not to oversing it. I think he went the opposite the song overpowered him. I felt he got swallowed up by the song...and it showed why he probably shouldn't be in the top 10. Candice - "I have nothing". Wow...Jordin slayed this song in season 6. It will be interesting to see what Candice does. For me...this is classic Shirley Bassey, but I liked Jordin...lets see what Candice does. Her voice was I incredible, although I felt it lacked the emotion that is such an important part of that song. It was great...but not an idol moment like it was for Jordin. BTW...I love the Afro Violin Boy. I hope to see more of HIM!!! Lazaro - Breakaway - Kelly Clarkson. The first part of the song felt like it was below his register. Until it broke into the chorus. He didn't look confident though. I like the retro kind of look they gave him, but the pants make him look fat. Kree - "Crying" Roy Orbison. Carrie performed this song. I ALWAYS equate this haunting melody with David Lynch - Muholland Drive. Barebones understated performance here. I thought it was great to showcase her voice, but didn't do her any favors to put her in the same league tonight with Candice and Angela. Burnell - "Flying without wings". Ruben. He is looking too cute for words tonight. I'm not sure the song did him justice. I was a little underwhelmed and felt that he didn't do himself justice to position himself as a strong contender. BTW...he must be really short, because he is a good 2-3 inches shorter than Ryan. Amber - "A Moment like this" Kelly Clarkson. Its hard not to compare her version to Kelly's. She has a beautiful voice though and I felt that the quality of her voice definitely came through on this song. One of the criticisms I've read about her is that she comes across kind of arrogant/cocky...I could actually see that tonight. Ranking them tonight: Candice Angela Amber Kree Burnell Devin Janelle Curtis Paul Lazaro I think America will vote a little differently. I suspect that Lazaro will be safe and won't even be in the bottom 3 although I have him dead last. I also don't think Janelle will be in the bottom 3, although I would place her there if Lazaro is not there. America's bottom 3 will be Paul, Curtis and Devin. This one is tough. Burnell could be there as well. I hope that it is Curtis that goes home and not Devin, but I'm afraid that those Southern voters might put Curtis through. However, I'm going with my heart and saying Curtis goes home.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Rubbertoe's top 10 rankings

Ok....so now its time to rank the top 10 10. Paul - The least talented and most blaise of the group. He isn't going to last past the first or second week 9. Burnell - Man...I hate to put Burnell this low because I really like him and hope that he goes substantially further. The problem that I see for him is that America isn't going to embrace him above the others here. Especially with AI pimping it the season of girls. I hope I am wrong here. I would love to see him go quite a bit further 8. Lazaro - He can sing pretty well, but is limited in his library and his charisma. He has a great story, but that can only take him so far. 7. Janelle - She has the country voting bloc and that could propel her further, but I think she doesn't get past the better competition 6. Curtis - He will have the bible belt vote that has proven strong in years past. However, his one note performance is going to do him in. He sings one song, in the same way that Phil Phillips does, but this year it isn't going to work in the same way 5. Angela - The judges love her and are going to push her into the top 5. After that...the competition is just too strong for her to go further 4. Deven - He has his voting bloc to himself and he is talented. There hasn't really been a strong latin guy on the show that I can think of. I think Deven is the top ranking guy 3. Amber - While I'm hoping that she'll go further. I think ultimately its going to come down to a Bree/Candice finale. Although it could be Amber/Bree 2. Candice - She probably has the best voice in the competition...but she looks substantially more mature than many of the others and I think that is going to hurt her. It could keep her out of the top 2. 1. Kree - She is the early choice of AI. They have been mega-pimping her since day 1. I don't think that she is the best voice or even the most marketable, but apparently AI sees something in her...and she is talented...I'm just not sure that she is the best one out there. I just think that AI thinks she is either the best one of the one that they can sell. So there we go. My predictions have been pretty good this year.....not so much in the last couple of years top 12....so hopefully I'm wrong about a few of these! Rubbertoe....out!

What a strange way to reveal the Top Ten...

... didn't you think? 
What with Ryan running backstage, all the endless filler with recaps, etc. The bullshit tension extension. Notice they didn't bounce back and forth between guys and girls -- they knocked out the guys (losers) first and then the girls (winners!) last. That way, you'll tune out remembering how AWESOME the girls were. 

And in all honesty, they are much better. For my money Candice is hard to beat for best singer at this point, but of course that is meaningless as far as votes.

I have to admit, I rocketed thru the proceedings on DVR because I felt Idol was unfairly trying to rob 1-1/2 hours from me for what is essentially a five-minute reveal. 
I slowed down to hear a few of the singers, and some sounded even better than before (Candice for ex.) and some a little worse (Janelle, Angie, quite a few more) but maybe some of that was nerves.

Was anybody else waiting for some kind of "shocker" announcement that there would be two Wild Cards -- and then nothing? There was that quick thing at the end where Ryan mentioned a sing-off with the runner-up guys and girls for a spot on the Tour -- but I guess no Top 12 this year. It's just as well.  IMHO this was a pretty blatant example of Idol just sliding in who they wanted and throwing out who they didn't, right? Almost like the votes, as indicated by sites like DialIdol, didn't really get counted LOL. 

I guess you can't blame Idol -- how are you going to get out of this vortex of White Guys With Guitars unless you game your own system? 

Your Top 10! Clockwise, above,  Lazaro Arbos, Amber Holcomb, Paul Jolley, Curtis Finch, Jr., Janelle Arthur, Kree Harrison, Devin Velez, Burnell Taylor, Angie Miller and Candice Glover.


2013 Top 10 Revealed

First one into the top 10: Paul Jolley - Seriously? Seriously? Wow....now I'm wondering who's place he stole..and when he sings his "victory" song and most of it is off-key/flat it reminds us all that he doesn't deserve a spot in the top 10. Wow...Mariah is completely boobalicious gorgeous tonight! Next through - Burnell Taylor - Someone who actually deserves to be here and someone that I'm hoping to hear a lot from in the coming weeks. (Was Curtis Finch excited for Burnell....or did he think that they were calling his name? I'm not really sure...I thought it was a weird reaction from him). 3rd guy through - Curtis Finch. No surprise, but I don't think he will last for long. People are going to get tired of him very fast. Wow...only two left and Lazaro and Deven have got to be the final two. Why do I have the scary feeling that the 5th one through is going to be Charlie Askew? I just have a splitting feeling. 4th - Deven Velez. Yeah. I was feeling a little worried when Paul made it through. I'm so happy for Deven and can't wait to hear more from him. I think he is one of two of the guys who have some real potential. Final guy through: Lazaro. I'm glad for him. I think that America got it basically right for once. The one exception was Paul...but it wasn't a huge gaffe...I think any of the bottom 6 except for Charlie could have been that spot. Ranking the top 5 guys: 5. Paul 4. Lazaro 3. Curtis 2. Deven 1. Burnell Onto the Girls: First Girl though - Janelle Arthur. Of Course there would have to be a country girl through...although I don't think she deserved a shot in the top 5. Who's spot did she take Aubrey or Angela's? Second in - Candice Glover - No surprise here. Third girl in - Angela Miller. One of the judge's favorites, although I haven't quite gotten her. Apparently neither do Nikki and Mariah as they don't give her the standing O that they gave the others. That means two spots left...it is definitely Kree...and it has to be Amber. Fourth - Amber is through. I'm so happy. She is my current #1 favorite. Fifth - Every girl back there has to know its Kree. Is this going to be the big AI psyche out of the night before they put her through as a wild-card? Nope...no psych out here. So..no surprises again except a small one with Janelle stealing Aubrey's spot. So No wildcards per se.....just a spot of the tour, which is kinda weird.... I have to say that I really liked the way the revealed the top 10. It created a lot of good tension and I loved watching them as they were revealed and walked out to the thunderous applause. I actually think that this group is pretty good. I have high hopes for a good season. America got it right and there isn't anyone in the top 10 that I find extremely annoying...with perhaps the exception of Curtis...but even he is ok because at least he can sing. Ranking the Girls: 5. Angela 4. Janelle 3. Amber 2. Kree. 1. Candice

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

I Don't Believe They Can Fly


Boys Top 10 from Vegas:

Holy Crap -- when I saw this lineup of losers my first thought was of that classic scene from Animal House where Flounder and Pinto first go to the asshole fraternity, and Neidermeyer leads them over to the line with Mohammed, Jugdish, Syndney and Clayton. These guys belong in that line.

1. Elijah -- what is this song? His voice is pretty good but this song is boring as hell. Idol Skunk Hair alert! The judges are blowing smoke until Randy (of all people) kept it real and said it was stuck in 1st gear.

BTW it cracks me up when they talk about records these guys will make AFTER Idol. Hey, these fools have to survive a little further first. Otherwise, Oblivion.

2. Cortez -- good looking kid, a whatev voice.  Glad this was an uptempo number, but it sounded like a reject from Up With People or something (remember the 80s?). When a judge asks how a contestant "feels" it's never good. It's always a prelude for a slam -- and it was. This is so much smoke and mirrors with all the judges, when really it's all down to his performance -- and this one was pretty forgettable.

3. Charley -- Vote For The Worst's pick! wtf is up with this kid? He looks ridiculous -- he makes Sanjaya look like a consummate pro. This song is kind of like a slow train wreck -- and those FACES! Is he in on some joke we don't know? Keith said it -- it's disingenuous. Maybe this guy had some momentum from Hollywood? But We didn't see it. PS - Kid has some issues. Kind of scary.

BTW, love how Mariah says "On-SOM-Bluh". 
Dr. L said KatPee's mom sure is getting a lot of screen time this go-round.

4. Nick -- what's up with these pasty wimps showing skin and chest hair? He looked way cuter with hair. In fact, he looks better in almost every clip EXCEPT now on Idol. Whatever. Pleasant tone to his voice, but kill me now, these have been the most boring songs ever performed in one night on Idol.
Sometimes Nicki sounds like she really understands music, then other times she's batshit crazy. 

5. Urkel -- no, wait, Burnell. Nice voice, but he looks like he wandered in from some kind of church choir trip from Omaha. He can sing, and this song was right in many ways for him, but could he be a pop singer? He is probably the best of the night so far. The judges' comments have never seemed more meaningless than this season LOL. Randy spends so much time reading Nigel's notes in front of him it's ridiculous. Dr. L said Mariah's comments never really add anything. Her faves are Keith and Nicki LOL.

6. Paul -- the Great White Hope of this season. Probably the cutest guy left, so tweens will vote for him even though he probably bats for another team. He did all right in the beginning but ran out of room in his range maybe in the high parts. He'll probably make it a little further, right?

The whole night, I've been thinking about what RT said, and I really think Idol did set up these guys as cannon fodder for the girls.

7. Lazaro -- stuttering guy -- one of Idol's sob stories this year? He can sing! Cute little guy, Dr. L said. I was a little worried when the song started, but he pulled it off. I wish he could do some kind of Marc Anthony thing and cut loose. The crowd loved him, the judges give him a tongue bath. 1st In It To Win It of the night!!! Nigel wants him to go forward, huh?

8. Curtis -- CJ -- Jr. -- Hey, I'm glad to see white hi-tops are coming back LOL. It's like 1990 all over again, y'all. This performance is a big old mess. It descends into lunacy, so VFTW might pick him up if Charley fails. But lo and behold -- he gets a standing O? WTF? The audience loves it? Man, I must have something wrong with my ears. That sucked ass. Nicki says he set the bar? I guess the Jesus thing will get the fundies voting.

Oh! There was a glimpse of the Mirage lava show. Cool. 

9. Devin -- This kid looks like Pee Wee Herman, seriously. Hearing this song, my arteries just closed up, and I aged 30 years. The Spanish part was more interesting, but good Lord, can we not sing songs from this century? His voice is fine (a little bit of a shaky start) but I keep thinking, who cares? 

10. Vincent -- ha! This guy looks like the dancing old man from the Six Flags commercials, remember them?

I realized as he was singing, he should be phenomenal -- he's in the pimp spot, right? And yet, it's just so much hot air. I couldn't give less of a crap about this guy making it or not. I still love Keith; Nicki's lollipops are going to get old; Randy better get a teleprompter; and Mariah is cracking me up with her meandering comments that get played off by the band every time LOL.

I feel like America is being Punk'd! How are these the best of ALL the guys who auditioned? There's no way. I wish I had seen some of the lead-in shows to see how the scam was laid out by Idol. I'm sure it was a thing of diabolical beauty. 

I can't wait to see who makes it tomorrow!  


Vegas or a Revival?

We are told that the ladies did so awesome last night that hopefully the guys have brought the A game. First up Elijah - He has a nice tone to his voice, but was way too nasally...and no...nasally is NOT a form of singing. All of the judges call him "Current and Marketable". Next up...Cortez Shaw - He is just so damn adorable. He also has great stage presence, although I thought the song was not a great choice. Charisma came out, but vocal was a little off. Charlie Askew - He shouldn't be here. That is all that really needs to be said. If his tears put him through on a sympathy vote then this show has really sunk to a new low. Wow...his mental illness is REALLY coming out tonight. Idol needs to cut this guy before he goes completely postal on someone. I am seriously scared of him at this point. Nick - Singing a death song about "Not wanting to go home right now". Do these people Never learn? He's a fine piano bar employee, but he is nowhere near ready for Idol top 10. The song really went nowhere tonight. Burnell - Dropped 40 lbs. since his audition...and he definitely changed his look/image. He actually has a great voice. One of the few guys in the competition who deserves to be here. I can't wait to hear more from him in the future. This song was not great and didn't do much for him, but he's through. Paul Jolley - Robbed a spot in the top 10 from a couple people who deserved it more. I'm still not feeling him. But he was better tonight. Not one of the worst tonight. Lazaro - Its hard to hear anyone do this song since Adam Lambert completely slayed it in season 9. But Lazaro did a good job with it. He will definitely go through to the next round based on a number of factors, one....including his voice. Curtis Finch - He's got a great voice....but every performance of his is exactly the same...it is a gospel worship leader version of whatever song he is singing. We've seen the same thing week after week after week after week...but hey...it worked for Phil Phillips...it could work for Curtis Finch. Great performance, but is it really American Idol? That's all I have to say. Deven Velez - First off, the guy needs a major makeover. He absolutely is 1000% better when he starts singing in Spanish. He needs to be a Spanish language performer because that is where his heart and passion really come through. For me...until he sang in Spanish it was way too old fashion and boring. Vincent Powell - Much better for me than his past performances. Tonight I actually understood him and kinda get what he is about. Not sure what the judges heard tonight...it was the first time that I actually enjoyed him Ranking the guys: Burnell Deven Curtis Vincent Lazaro Elijah Paul Cortez Nick Charlie I think America will vote similarly: Definitely In - Burnell, Deven and Curtis Probably in - Vincent and Lazaro Cusp: Elijan and Curtis Probably out - Cortez (:-( and Paul Definitely out: Nick and Charlie....unless America is sway by Charlie's tears.

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Ladies Top Ten -- looked like Prom Night


Vegas! The Mirage has a fun show out front every hour or so, like a lava flow, if I recall. Never stayed there, though.

1. Zoanette -- seems like the crowd liked her (or at least cursed and booed when the judges said negative things) but we thought she sucked big time. Wow -- shrieky, off-key, and her look was god-awful. It's the kiss of death spot, so producers must want her to go. BTW, what a load of crap from the judges -- have they been this way all along this season? 

2. Breanna -- much nicer voice than Z, nice song choice. Nice look. Voice a little shaky in spots, but mercifully on-key most of it. She should go through, right? Some tough love from the judges -- I can see what they were saying. It would be a shame if she didn't make it thru on a 70% performance.

3. Aubrey -- she LOOKS like a star. The vocal, though is just aiight. These songs with the warbly near-acapella openings almost never get pulled off on Idol. It sounds kind of weak all throughout. Probably nerves. They probably want her to go thru, because they all are making comments about her and not the song.

BTW -- is Ryan shrinking? Not just height -- it reminded me of that old movie Food Of The Gods, where animals on an island ate some toxic waste or something and grew huge. One giant mosquito sucked the life out of a guy, and Ryan is looking like he had an experience like that. Maybe all these jobs are killing him LOL. And his hair is verging on jokey with that psuedo-pompadour. 

4. Janelle -- I like this song. Elvis did a great version. Probably a good choice for her. Her voice has a nice tone. Sounds like she was running out of air towards the end though. Dr. L said she didn't sound like she had the power the song needed. She pulled out a good ending, but still. 
Judges liked her -- in a marshmallow way, but this is where the votes can crush dreams. Will the new voting apps etc. negate the tween brigade of death for some of the singers?

5. Tenna -- A warbly start, picked up at the chorus, then descended into warbly chaos again. Tries to erase it with big notes, but it was kind of weird. And what's up with that dress? It was kind of a discordant clash of colors, and those earrings were fug. Nicki is making some funny bizarre comments -- maybe Idol needs her, the way it needed wacky Steven Tyler. Randy is, once again, worthless. I must not be hearing what they are, because most of these girls were bad-to-mediocre thus far.

6. Angie -- she has that freaky face structure like Miley Cyrus, and it threw me off a little. But her voice is pleasant, if a little lacking in oomph. I could hear her on the radio, though. She's one of the best of the night so far. She looked great, and Dr. L liked her shoes. The judges definitely want her to go thru. Will America? 

7. Amber -- nice voice, good power, good range, great control. Is she a plant? I saw the video where the mom punched Ryan -- was that from last year? I don't know what they were talking about confidence, she was bordering on cocky she was so sure of herself. Great song for her, even though Whitney, Mariah etc are usually KOD. 1st In It TO WIn It from Dawg, so she's def one of Nigel's faves. MC gave her the OMG 18 shout out!

8. Kree -- kind of a sleepy song, that came alive in the end. Great voice, another country songstress. Crowd loved her, Nicki does too. 2nd IITWI from Dawg, so she must be one of Nigel's girls too. Dr. L said it looks like they really want a girl to win this year, and preferably a girl of color, but maybe Kree will go a little further. 

BTW, whenever Nicki speaks, I have to turn down the volume -- I hope they get a handle on her levels this year LOL.

9. Adrianna -- She looks nice. The key is too low for her -- I guess it was to give her somewhere to go in the meat of the song. But she kind of blew it out at the end -- it's like she would be better if she cut the beginning and end off. Nicki made a face as it ended! Keith eased in with a negative, and Nicki made the unprecedented step of voting her off herself! I couldn't believe it. Randy throws her under the bus too. Mariah throws a softball. She's probably gone.

10. Candice -- crowd favorite. In the pimp spot. The only soulful singer I heard all night. I can hear this song on the radio already -- she's great. She's my fave of the night -- I could buy her album right now. Judges love her -- Nicki is just over the Idol gig already LOL. But if America doesn't keep Candice in, then something's  way wrong. 

Dr. L & K glad to be back!

Top 10 women...its a three way race

A lot of Idol pimping the ladies. They are so shameless. Do they really believe that anyone actually believes that this year is not completely rigged to a woman winning? Does anyone believe for a second that they haven't stacked the deck with 10 of the worst top ten guys in the history of AI. Do they think we are stupid? Zoanette Johnson - What's love got to do with it. Absolutely horrendous. She was flat the entire song...she dressed like she was working the boulevard. Breanna - One of my two new favorite women. She looks stunningly gorgeous, but this song is just weird. I don't know why she would choose a song like that. I thought that she sang it beautifully in the second half but it was just such a boring song. Keith called it a perfect song choice? Wh-Wh-What? Nikki got it right. 100%. If people based it on this performance and not last week...she would be in danger of going home. Aubrey - All legs and she looks beautiful. I didn't think it was one of her best, but it was still pretty good. Teena Torres - I'm not a fan, but I thought she redeemed herself tonight. She definitely brought the power to the ballad here. Janelle - Love the throwback country to her. I didn't think it was outstanding...but enough to appeal to the voting bloc and enough to propel her through Angela - Back at the piano. The judges loved it. I felt that she screamed the entire song. Written by Colton Dixon from last year...I thought it was an swful song. Amber - My new #1 favorite. I loved her vocal tonight. Her range, her runs...her falsetto, her power and even her touch of tenderness. Standing O from the Judges....YESSSS! Kree - She has a very polished sound to her voice and her performance. The fact that she doesn't dress like she takes it serious I think might hurt her at some point. She comes across like she just got up out of the audience and didn't put any effort into her persona. Nikki just called her, "her wife"? LOL....I gotta love Nikki's comments. Adriana Latonio - Pretty blaise performance. I don't think she did anything to make herself stand out tonight. She is going to be heading back to Alaska very soon. Candice Glover - Gets the pimp spot tonight. Kinda fitting because she's gotten probably the most pimpage of all this season...except maybe Kree. I do like the Jazzy tone to her voice....and she definitely has the DIVA power. I am glad that we will get to see a lot more of her in the coming weeks. Randy throws out the "We'd better talk to the producers because we might need a wildcard" Really Randy...Really....wow that couldn't have been more scripted. Did you really think that we didn't already know that there were going to be wildcards? Ranking the women tonight: Candice Amber Kree Janelle Aubrey Teena Breanna Angela Adriana Zonette How will America Vote? Definitely OUT - Zoanette, Adriana Definitely IN - Amber, Kree , Candice. Probably out - Janelle, Breeana, Teena Probably in - Aubrey, Angela I suspect Breeana and Janelle get the two wildcard spots. At this point it is a three-way race...bewtween Amber, Kree and Candice. Everyone else might as well give up now.

Dr. L & K are back

Hey RT! Sorry we have been way out of the loop on Idol so far this season.
Once we got behind it was too much of a daunting task to watch all the prelim
rounds, and we never did. Hours of them sitting on the DVR!

But tonight we started watching again, and it is kid of interesting coming in cold.
I think J did that a few years back, and picked up on who was who pretty quickly.

So, we will hopefully post a little later!


-- Dr L & K

Re-ranking the top 10 guys

Ok....so lets just start with who definitely is not going to make the cut and waste our time any longer: Charlie Askew Nick Boddington Paul Jolley And we can say that there are a couple who are absolutely going to go through: Lazaro - not because he has a great voice, but because he has a great story and look...its going to be a girls year, the producers have already stacked it that way....so why not keep Lazaro around because America loves his story and he won't win anyway. He is going to get the votes to keep him on. Deven Velez - Probably the best male voice in the competition. I can't imagine others getting through and him going home at this point Burnell Taylor - Good Voice and AI loves him. Major pimpage from day 1. This equates to votes at this stage On the Cusp: Curtis Finch - Good Voice, but wrong competition for him. This isn't Gospel Idol. He's good at what he does, but limited in what he can do. Limited voting bloc will probably doom him, but bible belt voters might keep him around. Cortez Shaw - May stick around on looks. He is going to get votes for that and it will probably keep him in. Probably out: Vincent Powell - For some reason the judges love him. I don't get it. I don't think he is that great and I don't think voters will either. Elijah Liu - I just don't think anything stands out about him. Top 5 guys: Lazaro Deven Burnell Cortz Curtis

Friday, March 1, 2013

The Guys Part 2 - Vegas Bust

First up Mathanee...and it wasn't good. He's a goner for sure. A little less conversation a little more action. Mariah says that she didn't know the song....Are you serious Mariah....serious. How can you honestly not know that song....DOH! Gurpreet - the Turbinator. I wasn't sure that anyone would be worse than Mathanee tonight...but Gurpreet came out and made Mathanee sound good. Another goner. Completely boring performance that didn't stand out at all. Vincent Powell...another "Worship leader". What is it with Idol and all these worship leaders? Wow...three up and three really horrible performances. He's better than the other two but still not good. What are these people thinking. They are certainly making it easy for the second half. What....standing o's from everyone except Nikki? THAT was not worthy of a standing O. Randy is OVER THE TOP. THAt is soooo not good but for some reason the judges loved it. Nick Boddington - This years Phil Stacey. 4Th Horrible performance of the night. Completely boring and I can't stand his voice....Big NO from me.p Josh - Nice use of the falsetto in his performance....but the rest of the performance didn't do a whole lot for me. Better than the first 4 though by a mile. Performed an original that he wrote in 9 hours during Hollywood Week. I thought it was a little self-promoting and kiss ass when he starting talking about the importance of the "work ethic" in this industry. It came across not very genuine. David Willis - ANOTHER worship leader......Fever. I Like the arrangement and him on the guitar. Bryant - From Hawaii. Now THAT is how you do a Billy Joel song...as opposed to the horrible "Movin Out" that Phil Phillips did last year. I was lomda bugged by all his hand gestures while singing. He has a beautiful voice though. Burnell - got an urkele make-over...and lost 40 pounds....lost everything in Katrina. More strange hand gestures...but I really like his voice...and he seems extremely comfortable. I agree with Nikki...best of the night by far. Also agree with Keith, very original. Lazaro -He needs to stop the suspender look if he goes on. Song is way below his register and the first half of the song were really awkward and weird. But when it went up tempo he did much better. Cortez - Very good looking guy. I want him to stick around just for that. Excellent upper range...but I felt at times he was almost overshadowed by the backup singers. Rankings: Burnell Cortez Bryant David Lazaro Josh Vincent Mathanee Nick Gurpreet All in all an extremely weak night from the guys....aside from a couple people it could be anyone's game, mainly because most we so bad. I suspect that the judges will put Vincent through, although he was #7 from me tonight. Also I kind of expect them to put Nick through due to all the pimping he has gotten..and there has to be a Phil Stacey to irate me for a few weeks. If they get through, they get through at the expense of Lazaro and David. David is first up and first cut. Bryant is up next and out as well. As suspected the judges put Vincent through. Mathanee is out, but Lazaro is in. Cortez is in...YES!...Josh is out. Of course Burnell is in...and as I suspected, it has to be Nick. My bottom 2 and I of them goes on? Nick lives on to torment me for at least another week.