Refund Please!

Umm, hmmm, I want my money back dammit!! Ok, to be honest, country isnt EXACTLY my thang... so please keep this in mind as I critique this. Song choice and performance order may or may not play a factor in this week's show. The fact that the judges still have their veto to use may not be an option this week because unless one of the chosen 4 gets voted off, I dont suspect they'll use it. Why? Because that means next week they'll need to let 2 go and who really wants to decide which of two can go on tour and who cannot? I know I sure as hell wouldn't want that job. Can you imagine telling one they can go and the other..."well sorry, you aint invited to tour with us"? Ah well.

Michael Sarver (Aint Goin Down Till the Sun Comes Up by Garth Brooks). Ok. Straight up, if he falls into the B3 for the week it won't be for song choice or a bad performance. If anything, you must give this man props for singing such a difficult song. To keep in key, stay on tempo and manage to get 98% words right and ennunciated correctly is total magic. Doing an uptempo song like that correctly takes ALOT of hard work! Ask me, I know. I was in the musical production of Music Man in my senior year of high school and there was this one song called Pick-A-Little/ Good Night Ladies that was MURDER trying to learn due to the speed of the song. So I really feel for Michael having to learn this one. With a 4-10/B3/7th listed rating and a Map rating of -1 (2 wins and 3 losses), it's highly possible that he'll be one of the 3 on stage for the reults show.

Allison Iraheta (Blame it on Your Heart by Patty Loveless). Personally, I thought she was the best female of the night. She sang rings around Michael (as well as several later in the evening) and I thought she was still fairly memorable by the end of the evening. My biggest worry for her is placement. First and second singers generally fall into the B3. The judges seemed to like her but looking at the DI site... *sigh*, it looks like I am one of the very few that thinks this way. With a 6-11/B3/10th listing on the Chart and a -1 Map rating (1 win, 2 losses), there is a very BIG possibility that she's headed for the walk of shame.

Kris Allen (To Make You Feel My Love by Garth Brooks). His performance was really iffy for me. On a first listen, during the show, I felt he was kind of bland...a very vanilla performance. I do have to agree with Kara that it didn't sound like an Opryland kind of song the way he sang it (which is actually a GOOD thing, trust me). I'm listening back to it right now...it's not bad. I'm not sure I really liked it but he does show a huge measure of control in his voice which is one thing that he'll need in the long run and it DID show another side than what we've seen so far. With a 4-9/B3/5th listing on the Chart and a +1 Map rating (3wins, 2 losses)...it's possible (but I'm thinking not likely) that he'll be in the B3.

Lil Rounds (Independence Day by Martina McBride). I'm VERY disappointed in her tonight. Something sounded really off during the performance (I had originally deemed it only ok) and as I'm listening back, girlfriend was OFF on alot more than just a few notes. The judges pretty much panned her choice of song (there were several other better choices for her there...Randy named a couple really GREAT choices for her voice). It looks like America didn't agree with the judges (nor me) and rated her a firm 3rd on the DI Chart and a rating of +1 on the Maps (1 win and NO losses). She is in absolute no danger this week folks.

Adam Lambert (Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash). Ummmm ummmm yeah. Where the HELL do I start with this one? His treatment umm no...styling...no...arrangement (*sigh* all are right but nothing adequately expresses what I want here) on this song was ummm different no...umm UNIQUE to say the absolute least. I'm partially with Kara on the fact that I was left confused but I wouldn't necessarily say I was happy afterwards (well, maybe a little happy because it was fun watching Kara so tongue-tied and speechless for a change). Who am I kidding, my first thought was "When did American Idol get into the porno music industry???". Yeah, I so went there. Not to tell Randy he's wrong, but dawg...America didnt agree with you. The girls in the audience may have been swooning and ready to throw fling their panties on stage but the ones watching it on tv werent feeling it so much. DI Chart rating of 4-10/B3/6th listing (down from a firm #2 last week) and a Map rating of +1 (3 wins and 2 losses) pretty much shows you , dog, how confused the American viewers were on this one, dude. With his ranking, it would NOT be a surprise to find him in the B3 spot on the stage. However, I suspect that the only way he'll make it there is if the judges (read Simon) wants to make a point to not do that again. Do I think he's going home? Nope. Too big of a fan base.

Scott MacIntyre (Wild Angels by Martina McBride). I loved his version of this song. It was well done and very pretty. Actually, this week's performance was much better vocally than last week. Somehow, I knew at least one of the judges were gonna dink on him for being behind the piano again. I was just very very surprised it was Paula that brought it up. Kudos to Scott for offering to have the piano moved closer. Go figure that it would be SIMON of all people to go to his aid and defend Scott's being at the piano. Yeah, Simon, who harped on the contestants last year that used their instruments as a crutch....HE defended Scott. Sorry folks, yes...he's mostly blind...no, there aint much he can do short of sitting at a piano OR sitting on a stool on stage. Get over it. I've said it before...I'm gonna say it again. To not only learn the song but learn the arrangement to play on your instrument is amazing. To have to do it while vision impaired is nothing short of miraculous. Should you keep voting him through "just because he's blind"? ..hell no. If the vocals arent there, then they arent there...no acceptions. This week DI has him rated at a 4-10/B3/8th listing on the Chart and a Map score of -1 (1 win and 2 losses). It's very highly possible that Scott will be in the B3 this week. Does he deserve to go home this week? Not really, as in my honest opinion there were a few far worse and much more forgettable. However, it's highly possible that he will. If Idol knows what's good for them, they'll keep him just one more week and send him on tour.

Alexis Grace (Jolene by Dolly Parton). Ok. Yes, she looks a bit like a young Dolly and yes in some words she sounds like her too, but could you PICK a more PREDICTIBLE damn song???? Randy basically said the arrangement didn't work and she was pitchy. I'm listening back and she's not having pitch issues...it's just the tone in her voice. That can't be helped, sorry dog. What WILL help it is if she picks better songs for her tone. On the Chart she's rated 9-11/B3/dead last in listing and on the Map she ended up at -1 (no wins and 1 loss). More than likely she'll end up in the B3. If she does, she's one of the few that I suspect they'll use the veto on. Did anyone else notice, there was no boos during the critique for her? Not even much of a response when Simon said she'd be forgotten. So will they save her, or toss her under the bus?

Danny Gokey (Jesus Take the Wheel by Carrie Underwood). Can I ditto my comments on Alexis? This was a very PREDICTIBLE choice for Danny. I really didn't love it and found it rather meh. The first half was extremely forgettable and it's almost as if he didn't start singing until the second half. This contestant, although he can sing, is starting to annoy me somewhat and that's NOT a good thing. DI has him in a firm 1st with the Maps supporting it with a rating of +18 (again, the lion's share). No way in hell he's going home this week... unless there's a nasty internet scandal.

Anoop Desai (You Were Always on My Mind by Willie Nelson). I'm so glad he slowed it down some and reminded us why many are so excited to have him in the competition. Now, Willie's version of this song is one of the few I really like of his and is hands down one of my all-time favorite country songs from an older era of artist (Im not much on old country, not at all). Anoop's version, I'd actually listen to. It was one of the best male vocals of the entire night. He is well deserving of the firm 2nd place on the DI Chart (last week he was a 4-11) and rated a +5 on the Maps (5 wins and NO losses). There is no way he's going home this week and he needs to be very thankful he didnt get booted last week.

Megan Joy Corkrey (Walking After Midnight by Patsy Cline). I really hated this. I also dont believe the girl can just stand and sing. All the twitchin and chicken wings she does with her arms are VERY distracting. Ok...props for coming out even though she's sick as all hell. I certainly hope they have her in quarantined otherwise the whole mansion of kids will be infected by this time next week. I think the biggest question I have right now is, did the judges ~really~ like her or were they just being nice because she is sick as a dog? I only ask because my colon got a 3rd degree burn with all the sunshine that was shone up the ass in the comments. Rated on the Chart with a 5-11/B3/9th listing and a 0 on the Maps (1 win and 1 loss), she's in danger for the week. I'd really like to see her go home now...honestly. The twitching and over-ennunciating (or what ever it is about her voice that Im not liking) is enough for me to want to pull my hair out in clumps.

Matt Giraud (So Small by Carrie Underwood). I liked it. It was very nicely done and I ~almost~ see what everyone else sees in him. *ALMOST* The only thing that pissed me off was that there seems to be a little inequality around here. In all fairness, if you're going to dink one contestant for contantly being at the piano and tell him that he needs to stop using it as a crutch...
YOU NEED TO SAY IT TO THE OTHER ONE TOO!!!!
But noooooooooooooooooooooo! We blow sunshine up the one's ass because he's a "dark horse" and singing in the pimp spot. *fumes* Ok, he's got a bit better voice...but still....I mean REALLY! With a 4-8/4th listing and a +1 on the Maps (2 wins and 1 loss)...he aint going anywhere this week.

So. Who's in the B3 for the week? Well there are alot of possibilities to be honest. Several had the B3 notation next to their names. If we go with just the chart then our picks are:

Alexis
Allison
Megan

But if we throw in the Maps too we add:

Scott
Michael

We know that sometimes the DI chart doesnt end up with the lowest vote getter on the bottom (which might save Alexis). It's also very possible that either Scott or Michael will end up in Megan's place (of the 5, she's the only one that broke even in the Maps). Possibly both may end up there if Alexis actually placed higher than DI says she did.