American Idol - Top 9

Wow, what a night. I actually really liked tonight, and I'm really loving this group of finalists.... for the most part. My friend Alysa commented on last week's Idol post that Matt helped lead the worship at her father-in-law's church. That piqued my interest and I did a little research and was amazed to find out that out of the top 11 contestants, FIVE of them helped lead worship at their churches. I already knew about Danny Gokey and Michael Sarver, and on top of that Matt, Kris, and Scott all do as well. Must make some interesting dynamics for Adam!

Anoop Desai -
Hmm.... Anoop decides to do Usher because he's looking for something with more energy. By the time the first line was out of his mouth I had already thought, "Wow, even if he nails this song vocally it's still going to be a strange performance because the man can't look urban to save his life." I've heard other reviewers complain about his frat-boy look, but today Anoop seemed to really be trying to look more cool, but the attempt failed miserably and he looked still looked like a nerd dressed up to sing an Usher song. He's a lovable nerd... but... still a nerd. In the end, his vocals were fine and so was the performance (not nearly as bad as the judges said), but I was left thinking that I just can't see Anoop being a hit singer.

Megan Joy-
Sorry Alysa, I know you like Megan! I do too - I really, really like the quality of her voice and I think it's unique enough to be enjoyable on the radio. The problem is that she has yet to perform well on stage. And .... that's sort of necessary. In any case, Megan sang a Bob Marley and Lauryn Hill song, which I was initially excited about because I thought it would really showcase her husky voice. Hmm... it was SO awkward. All of her little dancy moves were just painful to watch, and she still seems nervous, so it all just fell flat. Then, when the judges raked her over the coals for her performance she waved it off and said she knew what they wanted now and she hoped she'd get the chance to follow their advice next week. I thought the same thing Simon said in the background, "That's what you say every week!" Megan has lost me as a fan - I've stopped voting for her.

Danny Gokey
When Danny said he'd be singing a Rascal Flatts song, Isaac and I knew it would be a good choice for him. Danny was an early favorite and I think since everyone was familiar with him he's been getting lost in the excitement of everyone finding new people that they like. It's important for him to really reconnect emotionally now to keep his fans.... and he did. I got goosebumps at the line "never knowing what could have been", in light of the loss of his wife. It was electric. In the end I think it actually wasn't Danny's best performance, and in the comparison of his single voice to the four-part harmony of Rascal Flatts, Danny seemed pretty plain. Still, as Isaac said, there is something so appealing about him! We laughed because the worship pastor in Danny totally comes out. It just makes sense - he knows how to put emotion into a song!

Alison Iraheta
Alison chose "Don't Speak" by No Doubt. I thought the song would potentially be right up her alley as an intense rock song. She was playing the guitar for the first time, and that worked for her. From the first note it was beautiful, although I really loved the unique subdued beginning more then I liked the intensity of the rock at the end. At the end of the song Isaac turned to me and declared, "She is just ridiculous." She is so consistent, she has such fantastic vocal maturity, and every song she sings is amazing. However, I have to agree with Randy. WHAT was she wearing?? As soon as the group walked out I was like, "I hate Allison's hair!"

Scot MacIntyre
Well, Scot really "worked it out" (as Randy says) with Billy Joel's "Just The Way You Are". I chuckled when he said in his intro video piece that he was going to "strip down, it'll just be me and the piano." Really? Stripped down? Haven't all your performances been stripped down? Is this really anything new? In any case, I don't think Scot knows how to do contemporary songs, but for some reason this song really clicked with him and his performance was really good - the best so far. I bet it'll keep him in for another week.

Matt Giraud
When Matt said he was going to sing "You Found Me" from The Fray, I was excited. I thought the song would really fit his voice and style, and I was really impressed with how he changed up the tune. I LOVED IT. I thought It was the kind of performance I'd buy on itunes and listen to over and over again. He really brought me in as a fan for the first time. So, when Paula totally hammered Matt in her critique I was like, WHAT?? I totally disagreed with all of the judges. Someone compared it to when he sang Coldplay and said that rock isn't his style, he's more R&B. I thought - who says? I loved his coldplay performance and I really think he might make a better moody rocker that throws in R&B somewhere. Lets face it - he's certainly not Justin Timberlake, no matter what the judges say. Dude, curly blond hair and scruff doesn't mean mean the boy can dance it out.

Lil Rounds
Same story this week. Lil did Celine Dion's "I Surrender". She sings beautifully. She has a big voice and does big songs, but there was still no connection between her and the audience (or me). Why is that? Randy said she needed more swagger, and I thought that was a good point. I think she needs to do something sassy and fun - Mary J. was a good recommendation. However, at the end when the camera panned to her little girls and one of them gave Randy a hug it was completely adorable, and Lil's tears really helped to give some depth and emotion to her personality. That was a good moment for her. Baby girl deserves an ice-cream on the way home for that one!

Adam Lambert
Seriously, Adam is on a role. THAT WAS AWESOME. He did Wild Cherries "Play That Funky Music". It reminded me of Blake Lewis sort of song choice and is really different then what Adam has done before... but then he's really taken himself out of all categories in the last three weeks, so what am I talking about? In any case, it's a funky song, not a rock show, and Adam did what he's been doing - he took the song and just smashed it, in a good way. He totally sold it, it was just infectious and and SO MUCH FUN. I don't always like the Idol band, but Adam just works the band, and this arrangement was awesome. It's a bit surreal to look back and remember how annoyingly weird Adam was back at the start of this season - he's totally transformed himself.

Please forgive the totally inappropriate introductory comments on this youtube video - it's only an hour since the show ended, and I can't find a better version. I'll try to update in the morning.


Kris Allen
Kris has slowly but surely been impressing me. I thought he was just a preppy kid that had a decent voice, but he's really showing some style and depth now. His performance of "Ain't No Sunshine" sort of reminded me of what Jason Castro did with "Hallelujah". He really made it so tender . I thought it was beautiful, and all of my worries of it being corny were disproved. The man can play piano as well as guitar! And he's workin' the nasty-stash, it looks surprisingly good on him. This week I found a series of photos from Kris and his church group and a missions trip to Thailand. He looked like such a typical Christian college kid, and I thought during the tenderness of his performance that his wife was probably watching and thinking "My husband is HOT!" because he really has transformed himself.

My faves of the week?
Danny Gokey
Adam Lambert
Kris Allen
Matt Giraud

And - as a plug, watch this youtube video of Rascal Flatt's latest hit, Here Comes Goodbye. It was written by Chris Sligh, the chubby guy with curly hair from American Idol a few seasons ago. Chris Sligh grew up in Europe with the same mission that my hubby's family was with, so we were excited when he made it on the show, and we loved his snarky humor (and the fact that he got kicked out of Pensacola for seeing an FFH concert - what??). In any case, the song is about a breakup, but the music video makes an entirely different point and left me (and Isaac, but don't tell anyone! :)) in tears.