Someone Left My Cake Out In The Rain

Top 4 Night

Amber, Angie, Candice and Kree -- Dr. L said Amber looked great, but the leather pants weren't doing Kree any favors. Nikki mouthed "Hi Mom" which was sweet. Mariah battles rumors of being replaced by JLo by whipping out her boobs -- good move. Keith has an awesome redneck fish shirt on -- love it.

The Idols go to LA Children's Hospital. 

Up first: Amber in the KOD spot -- doing Celine --  usually the a capella opening brings some electricity to the performance, but for me it kind of went nowhere, and lasted too long. I thought she did better once the song started proper, but Dr. L liked the beginning too. She really looks like a star. The judges love it, so Clive is probably salivating at the chance to make her some new Whitney. 

Candice is doing Drake? How is this a good idea? A lot of Idol voters won't know this song, but I could hear this on an R&B station. She kind of over-melisma'd it, though, and Nikki makes a comment to this effect. Randy agreed, but Mariah's boobs disagreed. Vocally, she -should- be safe, but vote wise, she might be in trouble.

Kree - doing Hurts So Bad. She's such a pro, this doesn't seem like a competition, just a performance on a show. However, this song choice was pretty crap. It doesn't do her any favors, when this is a do or die week. Curious, the judges are throwing the two most powerful chicks on the show under the bus tonight. Also interesting, how did they pick these songs on the same night? I guess their 2nd sings of the night might be bomb-tacular, but this was odd. Keith says she should shred it up, but Kree always looks like she could be knitting while she sings. 

Angie: Doing Jessie J? Dr. L suggested that the Idols are now believing their own hype and choosing what I think Simon would have called "indulgent" songs. I don't know what it is about Angie, but I find her boring in a kind of overwrought way. She wants to bring drama, but it all feels so contrived. Amber still did the best. The judges act like they loved it, so it's clear they want the two young, thin girls to go head-to-head in the finale. I don't think it will happen, but Idol sure does.

Side Note: Keith demonstrating how to be "looser" would make the best Spaz avatar ever. And #Grandma was a pretty serious ploy for votes, wasn't it?

Duet: Kree and Amber do Rumor Has It. Amber is becoming the better performer, but I liked that Kree shook it a little bit at times.

Angie and Candice: what is this song? Miley Jr. doesn't quite have the pipes Candice does, but she does a pretty good job. I think this ended a little better than the previous duet. The crowd went nuts. Oh, it's a Rihanna song. Jesus, I know nothing of modern music. So much of it seems so lame, LOL. 

2nd songs: are these supposed to be one hit wonders? 

Amber does a classic, MacArthur Park. How the fug are these one hit wonders? Donna Summer had a bajilion hits. Idol is run by fools.

She looks like an Orange Push-Up. This was not as good as her first performance. Too old of a song, and the lyrics forced her to do too many vocal gymnastics. She's a great performer, but I don't know if this deserved the praise they gave her. #inittowinit makes me crack up every time I see it pop up in the corner. JIMMY SPEAKS THE TRUTH! He didn't dig it.

Candice: a song by the BeeGees? Again, not a "one hit wonder" if these are by massively successful groups, morons. She does a nice Urban Contemporary version of the song. I could easily hear this on the radio. I don't know how that equates to votes, but I'd listen to it. They give her lots of advice for next week -- will she make it?

HA! They pulled Jimmy up on stage to clock him! 

Kree: OK, this IS a one hit wonder, wtf happened to Procol Harum? I think this was a bad idea. This song seems stuck in some other generation, and what the hell is it even about? She looks great, sounds great, but I can't divorce this song from The Big Chill in my mind. They praise her to the skies, but so far the closest "moment" of the night was Amber's 1st, and all the rest are also-rans.

Angie: Julie London? Way to stay relevant, Idol. Angie's MOTHER might not have even been born when this song was a hit. A little over-enunciation going on, but she gives it all she's got. She's pretty, and her voice is good, but she seems like a Pop-bot to me, so I can't get too excited about her. She's like a Miley Cyrus clone. Randy blows his wad praising her, which really cements that Nigel wants her or Amber to win. 

I think Kree might be in trouble. Amber might be in the B2 with her, but they gave her more love show she will probably stay.  They announced a "surprise twist" -- so this might be the week they have to keep all four in, to make up for not using the save. I don't know if you read about Idol's dilemma, but the scheduled an extra week that they have to fill with crap now. So, maybe no-one goes home?

Cuz, I'm your lady!

So listening to Keith tonight....I decided to rate them on three different criteria - vocals, song choice and performance. First up: Amber. Wow...best performance from her so far. For me...that was a perfect 10 in each category. She looks beautiful. I'm loving the hair. It was the perfect song choice that allowed her to show off her incredible range. She took a classic Celine Dion song and made it modern and current. I loved the simple beginning and how she allowed it to build (30) Candice - Vocal. There is very little I can fault here. Candice was on vocally like she always is (10). Song Choice was not great. I'm not sure that Drake is a well enough known artist and unless the song is incredible, picking a little known artist is going to hurt you at this point (7). Performance...I agreed with the judges here. Candice has a tendency to pick songs and perform them in an old-fashioned way. She already suffers from looking older than the others. The adult contemporary/R&B crowd is not the voting bloc for this show (6). Overall-- (23) Kree - Vocals...not up to her usual. There were points where I felt she was off key and parts that were under her range. (7). Song Choice - I disagreed with the judges here, I thought this was a great song choice for her...the bluesyness coupled with the country played right into her vein (9). Performance - weak. She talked in the intro about dancing and rocking out. I saw neither. She didn't look comfortable (5). (21) Angela - The judges loved it...for me it was just an eh...performance. Vocal was pretty hot (9). Song Choice...I thought it was a little boring (5). Performance - Angie is very good behind the piano. I think the judges got it right here. (10). (24). Randy was waaaaaay overboard. That was no way near the best performance of the night. Round 1.....Amber (by far), followed by Angie and Candice (neck and neck)...Kree in the rear. Round 2 - ONE HIT WONDERS Amber- Vocals - Not as good as the first one. Parts of the lower register were out of her range. However she did great on the long notes and the runs. (8). Song Choice - I thought it was a perfect choice for her (10). Performance...she still needs to work on a little. As the judges say, she has come a long way, but her dancing/stage presence is something that she can work on (8). (26). BTW...I loved the look when Nikki called her Angie. It was almost like "EW...I hate that bitch!"...but maybe I'm wrong???? Candice - Emotion. Vocals..again, not up to her first (9). Song Choice. I didn't think this was a great choice for her. It wasn't a vehicle that let her show off her abilities and the melody is not one that can carry it on its own. (7). Performance. Nikki was right...less old fashioned, so it was good for that and she comes across very professional and comfortable (9). (25). The Judge/Jimmy fight was just weird and left Candice in an uncomfortable position. You could see her saying "Hello....Hello....its my turn here....cmon guys!" Kree - Better than Round 1, but still not up to Kree (8). Song choice was good, but not perfect (8). Performance - again good...but not Kree's best (8). (24). Keith is right when he talked about "middle ground" songs that don't allow Kree to shine. Angie - Vocals. Angie sounds awesome tonight (9). Song Choice...I don't think it was great. At this stage they have to be smart and stand out. Choosing an old fashioned song like this is not going to propel Angie where she needs to be (6). Performance. Angie did a great job with the material (9). (24). Round 2 - Amber, Candice, Angie, Kree. Wow...I'm sooooo annoyed by Randy tonight. What is with his gushing over Angie tonight? Even Nikki. Even if you thought Angie was the best of the night (which I obviously did not.....she was definitely no where near the overwhelming best of the night as Randy would have you believe. His over the top praise reeks of desperation. Is it that AI doesn't see any of them as especially marketable, but believes that Angie is their best hope? Rubbertoes final score: Amber (56), Candice (48), Angie (48), Kree (45). Bottom 2 - Is going to be Kree and Candice. Going home....SURPRISE TWIST (which really isn't a surprise at all......NO ONE. Surprised? Hardly. Everyone knows that currently the season is supposed to end May 16....but with only 4 contestants, that would put the finale on May 9. This being the YEAR OF THE WOMAN. There will be hometown visits for all four and tomorrow night we will be treated to an endless night of Ryan attempting to tease us...and all of us knowing all too well that no one is going home. If someone DOES go home..it will be Candice...although it should be Kree

I'm Every Woman

Just kidding, nobody did Chaka. But why not? What was the theme tonight? Divas? And something else. Song from the year you were born? That's the first round.

The Battle of the Boobs continues, this salvo fired by Nikki. Double barreled.

Dr. L said she loves how casual Keith is every night. 

First up, Candice: she's doing what you're supposed to do to win -- make a well known song your own, and turn in a good performance doing it. Straight Up actually sounded kind of cool here. She's probably in no danger in the KOD spot here. Nikki said she sang it like a BOSS, lol.

I like the new feature where Jimmy gives his snarky comments on the break. 

Janelle -- Vince Gill made her stop crying. Will she be crying tomorrow because of him? This was perhaps an appeal to hard-core Country fans, to snake away some votes from Kree? It was a little too much tear-in-your-beer for me. It was kind of Whatev for Dr. L. She has a pretty voice, but I disagreed with the judges, that the "comfort" was what she should be going for. It didn't have a "wow" factor for me. Keith spoke da truth. Jimmy agreed!

Holy crap these Idols are making me feel old. Kree was born in 1990? Jeez.

OK, She Talks to Angels, Black Crowes. Pretty smart song choice for crossover votes, I think. This is what i meant about Janelle going the other route, this was more pop. But she does what Candice does, which sets them apart. Not the best performance ever, but good enough to cement her top 2-3 status. Judges squabble but they basically agree she's moving up.

Angela was a fat baby like me! Hee! Her mom's voice sounds eerily exactly like her.  She's dedicating Stnad By You to Boston -- I forget she's from there. She did a good job, but like Nikki, we didn't feel the need to stand for that. Watching hr, I did think that someday she could be a pop star. If she can get a little personality injection, she could make it. Randy cracks a good joke about the judges and Jimmy being a "Top 5" group LOL. Jimmy basically calls Angie a drama queen.

Amber: doing Harry Nillson's I Can't Live (if Living Is Without You) -- not really Mariah's, but how would these kids know? Kelly did a better version. Amber had to start in such a low key it was almost inaudible. She made the key change all right. It was kind of pageant-y for me, but Dr. L liked it better. Keith makes a cringe-worth Amber alert joke. Nikki basically agreed with my view of the performance. Jimmy too!

Round Two -- DIVA time!

Candice: doing a Disney Mariah/Whitney song. She shows she has the real pipes to take on one of these songs. Oh shit, the choir descends from heaven in fog behind her. She's making Mariah cry! It's hard to be critical of real, sho 'nuff talent. She has it. Kids voting across the country will respond to this song. The judges are all gobsmacked. She looks lovely, I think she's our favorite.

Janelle: doing a lesser-known Dolly Parton song. This was a mistake, especially coming after Candice; this was like a Top 10 level performance. Nothing about this is in the same league with the other performances. I think she's going home. Why didn't she do Jolene? It was a nice thing Nikki said, keeping janelle's eye on the future. She can definitely be a Country star.

Kree: doing Celine. A great, powerful version, but somehow not as far into the stratosphere as it should have been. I think Candice still has the edge. This is like two competitions in one: the battle between Candice and Kree, The battle between Amber and Angie, and Janelle is kind of the odd one out.

BTW, isn't it amazing how the stylists start to get dialed in about this point in the competition? And then there was Angie's dress. WTF was that?

Angie's doing Halo. I wish I was playing Halo. I'm not a fan of Beyonce, but this was a pretty good performance. She still lacked the oomph that Beyonce is able to bring to it -- is it soul? Maybe she has no soul. I don't agree with Keith -- I don't disagree she has a great voice, but I wish there was some kind of spiritual connection with her singing that I get with Candice, a little with Kree, and never with Angie.

Amber: doing Babs. Incredible. This was one of those pure, transcendant performances like when Candice did the Cure last week. I was worried it would be too old when it began. After a couple of seconds I didn't care -- it was everything that was missing from Angie's songs. I was riveted. I don't think I've held Amber in this much respect before. She could be the dark horse and win this thing. 

To me, it's Candice, Kree/Amber (a tie between these two), Angie, Janelle. Janelle goes home.

Thank GOD there was no Lazaro this week, right?

Girl Power

Round 1: - Songs from the year of your birth Candice - Straight up. She does a different version...different from the acoustic one that was such a hit a couple of years ago. Her version is much more Jazzy. I have to agree with Jimmy on this one. Although it was awesome Jazzy and vocally, I don't think it did her any favors. It was too subdued and I don't think it will sell well with the voters. Janelle - Does some Vince Gil song. Great choice, kinda throw back country, but I don't think her vocal was all that great. I've heard better from her Kree - Black eyed peas. Again...I agree with Jimmy. The vocal was awesome, but it was not the type of showcase song that the contestants need to propel them ahead at this point. I think that they are resting a little too much on their laurels and not going for the juglar. Angie - Double whammy for her here. First, she capitalizes shamelessly on the Boston tragedy by dedicating the song "I'll stand by you" to the city of Boston. Who wouldn't love that like a basket of baby puppies? Second, as much as I'm not a big fan of hers, she slayed it. Amber - Can't live....not Amber's best. Key was too low for her for most of the song. Not until she reached the power ballad ending did she bring it on. Wow...the judge's loved it, except Nikki. As much as I LOVE Amber, that didn't do it for me. (Ranking: Angie, Kree, Candice, Amber, Janelle) Round 2 - The Divas Candice- Taking on Mariah and Whitney...wow, if anyone can do it, Candice can. Wow...that was awesome. I could see this as the Idol crowning song. Best of the night so far. That is how you do a DIVA song! Janelle - Takes on Dolly. I have been waiting for this from the beginning of this season....but of all the great Dolly songs, she chooses "Dumb Blonde"...serious? Janelle has such a great throwback Dollyness to her, but this song did not allow her to showcase it at all. This was the poor choice that will send this Dumb blonde home. I honestly don't know what she was thinking. Kree - Celine Dion. Kree did good, but I have to say it...the song was too big for her. She Almost was able to pull it off, but didn't quite do it. Angie - Beyoncé. Once again...as much as I hate to admit it, Angie did a great job. Her vocals are not at the same level as Kree and Candice, but I think that AI WANTS her to win because she is the easiest to market. Amber - Barbara Streisand. Angie hit a home run with "Funny Valentine" early in the season...but she has to be careful at this stage coming across too old fashioned for the average AI voter. She sang it beautifully though. Ranking Round 2: Candice, Angie, Kree, Amber, Janelle) Best of the night: Candice...followed very closely by Angie (However, Angie will be the top vote getter because her songs were much more modern and will resonate more with the voters. Third place tonight - Kree. Bottom 2 will be Janelle and Amber. While Janelle should be going home, she won't. The Country vote for AI is too strong and will pull her through. Unfortunately Amber is going home tomorrow. Too bad that the Judge's save is gone.

Idol still has a pulse!

Idol Top Six --

First off, a recap of Urkel getting the boot. Nikki displays what seems to be a rare moment of emotion. Idol edits it to make it seem like it was a shocker that he left, but it was by design that the dudes would all fold. Little did they think the tenacious gay male/Vote For The Worst vote would carry Lazaro so far.

Angie is up first in the KOD spot. Anyone who had a heart? She has a nice tone to her voice, and looks better every week, but this is kind of a half-invested performance. I felt like I was transported back to the 70s FM radio, and not really in a good way. Judging: Keith recycles the first shirt of the year. He felt the same as we did, there was no passion. Nikki agrees, then Randy piles on. Mariah makes the nonsensical comment that she wishes she'd sing a song she wrote -- on Bacharach Theme Night.

This show is STILL two hours? This is just an insult, Idol, people don't have all the time in the world.  We DVR it and speed thru and it's still too long. We counted 7 minutes of commercials at one point!

Amber -- reveals a terrifying habit of shrimpsicles. Good lord, she's singing Say A Little Prayer For You? She looks great, and this is a little better than Angie. It wasn't as ridiculously good as Nikki made it sound, but she does have star power. SIDE NOTE -- did you catch Mariah touching Randy's arm and looking at his watch? I think she was sick of Nikki LOL.

Prediction: after listening to these long-winded judges, I can see a finale where two singers perform for 10 minutes and the judges gab on for the other 110 minutes.

Sir Anthony Hopkins makes a kind of horndog comment about the "birds"?

Lazaro absolutely BUTCHERS Close To You. True, he may be cute doing it, but this is like a baby seal with a bloody carcass hanging out of its mouth. Plus, he's dressed like The Riddler -- what's with that outfit? That was possibly the worst performance I have ever heard on Idol. Nobody booed when Randy said it was horrible. Mariah couldn't shut up trying to softball the negative comments. Nikki is my hero for skipping this bullshit. If Lazaro doesn't go after this, then the fix is in.

Kree gets into the spirit of the night in her 70s-seafoam-green Anne Murray polyester top. She does the brave thing no one has done yet this season and actually sing a capella for a moment so we can hear how crystal clear her voice is. There's really scant competition for her at this point in terms of sheer ability. But does she have the votes? 

BTW, I love Randy's slightly disturbing Mario spangle pin.

Janelle -- time-warps in from Sonny & Cher to bring us What Do You Get When you Fall In Love? She looks good, has a nice tone to her voice. It really makes me wonder what the competition would have been like if all the guys this good had been allowed to compete? It was kind of a laid-back arrangement and sort of sweet, but I'm afraid all these songs are putting me to sleep.

Candice -- here's who Kree is in danger from. Don't Make Me Over. I had a couple of goose-bump moments in this one. Gets a standing O, and deserves it. Lazaro should slap himself for standing on the same stage as  her. I hope to God she gets some kind of R&B contract out of this Idol trip, so I can buy that CD. Dr. L said she wishes we had been there to hear it live.

ROUND TWO -- songs the Idols wish they had written. 

Angie makes the stupid decision to go with an obscure song. It sounds like a kind of Fundie song, however, so maybe she's a genius and I'm the dumbass. Jesus might help save her this week on that one. They loved it, and she showed real emotion. They give her some good advice for once. I think she's barely holding on, though, in the onslaught of Candice/Kree/Amber. It's her and Janelle at the bottom of the girls.

Amber -- doing Beyonce. Kind of floundered until the chorus. These Idols never learn, just because they like a pop song, it isn't always good to sing it. it's kind of too busy to show off her voice, and the key is all over the place. I think her personality carries this song further than it deserves. I totally disagree with Keith, I think it was a near-miss. She's got a future, though, and charisma for days.

Oh no. Lazaro is going to take a dump on Robbie Williams? In all honesty this is a MUCH better song choice for his voice. Not remotely his best vocal, but a far cry from the train wreck earlier. Kind of a weak finish to an aiight performance. The judges are so over him it's hilarious. They can't even bring themselves to praise anything here, because it might mean a girl leaves instead.

Kree -- Help Me Make It Through The Night. Wow. She is getting better every time out. Very pretty, almost understated performance. She's the real deal. I could almost like Country music if it's like this again.

Janelle -- doing Garth. She really did a good job. Nice clear vocal, not super-badass like Kree but authentic. The audience didn't like Randy or Nikki's weak praise. She SHOULD be safe from getting the boot, but who knows. If Lazaro stays it will be at her expense. 

Candice -- holy crap, a Cure song! Love the Cure, I didn't know Adele had done a version of Love Song. In my book, this was transcendent. From first to last, this was a "moment". I had given up hope that we would have them again on Idol. This was an incredible, jazzy, bluesy arrangement. She was so totally invested, it blew everyone else off the stage. 

It's Candice and Kree's show at this point, and Lazaro should be history. I think Janelle will be joining him in the bottom 2.

Top six, but a three girl race

Angie looks incredibly hot....and the judges hit it right on....her voice is great, but there is no passion there. Amber - Wow....the makeover crew is on this week. Amber looks A-MAZ-ING! She needs to work on her choreography skills a little but her voice was incredible. Say a little prayer...I'm not sure why she isn't getting the votes that she should. Lazaro - Wrong on every level. Starting with the stylists...big miss here. That suit was horrendous. This WAS Lazaro's worst performance ever...it was in a key too low for him, it was off-key most of the song...just awful. Kree - What the world needs now. The acapella beginning did not work for me. I really didn't love the arrangement of the song at all. Funny...I disagreed with everything that Mariah said...she liked the arrangement and the beginning....oh well. I did like her hot brother from the pipeline! Janelle - stylists back on again...Janelle looks hot hot hot! Too much hokey play with the crowd and judges though. Too silly. I think the performance was good, but would have been better if she had focused on the singing and not the theatrics. Candace - Vocal performance was incredible....ranked right up there with Amber. Candaces problem is she looks older and doesn't have the same youthfulness about her that the others have. Very soulful and heartfelt performance. Round 1 Amber and Candace by far Kree Janelle Angie Lazaro Angie - MUCH better performance. Back at the piano and she looked much more comfortable and showed the passion that was sadly lacking in the first. Angie just made this a three horse race. Amber - her look is very young and hip. Vocal performance wasn't as good as the first though. However, it got much better in the second half. That song could not be an easy one to sing. Lazaro - Look once again is horrible. Vocal is as bad as the first one. Strange thing is that Lazaro has enough fans that all he had to do was put out a "C" performance and he would have made the top 5. However, both performances were so bad, I cannot see him sticking around. I think even his hard-core fans are going to have to admit that he doesn't belong here any longer. Kree - Classic Country performance. Even though it came across old fashioned....I loved it. A buckle-polisher. Janelle - Garth Brooks, the Dance, Wow...her performance is off on this one. She looks pensive and uncomfortable and the TuTu dress is all wrong. This one wasn't good and put her back down in the competition. Mariah has NEVER heard this song? Really...that seems strange...one of Garth's most popular songs. Candace - Does Adele's version of the Cure...I was WONDERING when they said Candace takes on the cure. I LOVE Adele's version, but I think Candace out Adeled Adele on this one. Awesome. Round 2 Candace Angie Kree Amber Janelle Lazaro Top one of the night - Candace, followed closely by Amber and Kree. Going home for sure, Lazaro. Angie still has a shot, but at this point its a three girl race to the finish.

Why Idol Sucks

Just read this great article from The Daily Beast:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/04/04/american-idol-sucks-this-season-here-s-seven-reasons-why.html

-- and I thought it encapsulated everything I've been thinking about what has been wrong with Idol the past few years, but this year especially.

It's amazing to me that 19 Entertainment has such a golden goose here, generating MILLIONS for them, and they seem to have their heads so far up their asses that they can't keep it alive. Sure, it's still the number SIX show on television, but how many years was it number one?

I think greed, complacency, and lack of fresh blood in the inner workings here (I'm looking at you, Ryan -- you have too many jobs to pay attention to any of them, sir) are leading to Idol's demise.

-- K

Rock And Roll All Nite, or The Day The Music Died?

IDOL ROCKS OUT! An oxymoron on par with "military intelligence", but at least we won't hear as many prom-night ballads tonight. How can it STILL be two hours long? They should do this on a curve, give us credit for the torture we have already endured. This should be 1-1/2 hours tops.

Last season Idols sighting in the crowd! Josh and Holly! Nicki is dressed like somebody's Stepford Wife PTA meeting sex fantasy, right? Strange.

Hey, is Burnell wearing Dil's leather jacket from The Crying Game? Oh, and tonight is the episode where the other Idols make fun of each other. In my dream world, Idol would be more like the film Series 7:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0251031/

Holy shit -- Urkel is singing You Give Love a Bad Name. No audio at the start -- I can hear the bus coming for you son. His dance moves alone make it worth it LOL. That kick at the end! The judges are dying laughing. Why do they boo Randy? This season is officially a parody of Idol. I've sung this song better in my car.

Lazaro and Queen? Oh, a duet with Angie. Jesus, he sucks at this -- and once again didn't learn the lyrics! He actually makes her seem rocker-y, and in reality she's as hard-core as Marie Osmond. I love the snarky slam Nicki gives Lazaro on the lyrics thing. She and Randy throw Lazaro under the bus. But even when they complain it's so softball.

Kree: she's actually nice? So she can out-sing almost everyone left, AND she actually gives a shit about the little people? She's singing Janis. Dr. L wanted to know, didn't MamaSox sing this better a couple of years ago? Kree looks good, and she can sing, but this was not 100%. And with her performing in the 3rd spot tonight, they knew she needed to be buried in the middle. I'm guessing nobody will bring it with a genuine "rawk" vibe tonight. The judges all act like they love her, but Keith could tell she was holding back. She reveals she has a pinched nerve -- so maybe that's it. LOL -- Nicki says she's "outta here" -- shit like that has a way of coming back to haunt Idols.

Side Note: The HD quality of FOX LA tonight is terrible! Fox has to be the cheapest network on the air, do they really think we can't tell?

Next duet: Burnell and Candice, doing Baby Wrote Me a Letter. This was FAR better than the other slop duets tonight. When Mariah gave her non-comment, she reminded me that her one talent this year as a judge is to pick VASTLY better alternative song choices. Too bad it wasn't a rock song. They should let her pick the songs each week. 

Side Note: HD is back. Dr. L just noticed Keith is wearing a Duane Allman shirt. Props! Holy crap, we just realized we have over an hour left of this.

Jenelle: Dr. L hates her bizarre bronze-ish jacket. This is an ill-conceived take on a Billy Joel song. And once again, a basically lifeless performance. I could hear this at a county fair, but then I could keep walking to the pig races or get a corn dog or something. Nicki hints that middle America is voting for Jenelle -- she may be right. Mariah loved her vibrato, but to me it sounded really warbly. 

Lazaro -- they make fun of his PeeWee's Playhouse wardrobe. Another Queen song mumbled to death? I gove him credit, he delivers it with more power and authenticity than I could have expected. It's off-key in several places, but he almost lands the plane. The key problems derailed what could have been a really superior performance. They still have to give him ups for not crashing and burning. It was his week to bring it or go home, in my book, and he earned another shot. Keith is so funny with the matador comment.

The Gem and the Holograms trio (Amber, Jenelle, Kree) doing another Billy Joel song. Is it me or do they sing it like it's in a foreign language they don't speak? Sounded like they forgot some of those foreign words too. Nicki likes the Zombie Apocalypse Slut look Amber is rocking.

Candice: funny clip with her and Burnell. Another injury? Doing Satisfaction? She has the pipes but this is another one of those Idol-does-a-Bing-Crosby-Variety-show-from-the-70s arrangement. Mariah gives the bald-faced appeal to keep her in so we can hear whatever her magical "true" song is. Sadly, when Idol does these theme weeks, it kills momentum for all but the 1-2 contestants who thrive in it.

Amber: she's schizophrenic? And narcissistic? And Burnell is a horn-dog for her. She's doing Heart. This should have been Candice, right? She has a bigger voice than I thought, though. Nice outfit change. What a pretty girl. Hm - She can't seem to get out of her head the whole song -- wandering around the stage, scowling sometimes in concentration, then smiling? She delivered a really good vocal, but it was a weird performance for me. Still, best of the night. 

Angie: Barbie on Crack? Burnell is really funny when he relaxes. An Evanescence song? How does she get the "modern" song? Is this even in the same competition? Wind/Smoke machine? Holy shit -- they pulled out all the stops. She does a good job, but -- stack the deck much? Idol has really made it clear who the TCO must be -- it's like the rest of the pack sang Herman's Hermits or something. It does really seem like she's comfortable with this genre, or at least she made the most of it. The most authentic "rawk" performance of the night, but perhaps because it's more of an emo rock song? I had to crack up that the wind machine almost blew her top off LOL. 

Who's in trouble? I think Burnell, Candice and Lazaro? 

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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

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!