R&B/Soul... well they got it half right

So this week we had R&B/Soul for a theme. Thank goodness it wasn't anymore of that garbagy pseudo-theme type crap that we've been having. We've had that for how many weeks now?? I didn't recognize too many of the songs by title this time, but as is par for the course (with me, that is) I knew the song the minute I heard it. Not in all cases though, as was the case with our first performer....

Siobhan (Through the Fire by Chaka Khan): This was one song I didn't recognize right off. I guess it's time to get back into my music files again because I was reminded by Chicagolady that one of my favs, Melinda Doolittle, had done a cover of this song on her album. I so wish I could find the file online to share it (Youtube, someone, I'm BEGGIN ya!), but all I'm finding are places from which to download it (seriously, Melinda, lets get a video out for this!). Siobhan's version was beyond painful and the only thing I'm grateful for is the fact that the what has amounted to her normal ending death-shriek wasn't quite as bad as in previous weeks. Don't get me wrong it was still there, it just wasn't nearly as prominent as usual. Maybe because she'd gone so far off key and I was cringing badly at that point so I never noticed?? Thank God Simon called her out on that. Maybe it'll disappear next week. My only consolation is the fact she sang in the death spot this week and maybe just maybe she'll end up out. No offense to the Siobhan fan out there. Oh wait, that would be her. Nevermind... Her odds have risen since Friday's odds check but actually had slipped since last Wednesday. Wednesday's odds reflected the horrid performance from that week while Friday's odds reflected the knowledge that we were going into an R&B/S week and the oddsmakers in Vegas thought she was going to be able to handle this genre better than most. I half expect to see her odds slip even farther this week after this week's results show. Statewise, the Maps show that she had 3 wins/1 loss for a 2 this week. Compared to last week, she broke even. Was this enough to keep her safe this week? Or will they toss her to the B3 to shake her up some? I won't be surprised if the latter happens.

Casey (Hold On, I'm Coming by Sam and Dave): Oh. I so liked this one. What I like best about him is the southern-fried rock type grrr he has to his voice. It's not nearly as good as Bo's, but it's pretty damned close. Actually, I think he's Bo-lite part deux (part one would have been Robbie Carrico... I'm sure I made that connection at one point or another but for the life of me I cannot find the entry). This was an absolutely PERFECT choice of song for him, but Kara's right, it's time to step it up and show us how much range he ~really~ has. I'm betting we still haven't heard his best yet. This week he had 3 wins/ no losses for a total of 3. This is 2 states down from last week but I suspect part of it is because there were 2 very strong performances that came after him and he sang very early in a 2 hour show. Working FOR him is that Siobhan really left a steaming dino dump in the line of performances this week. His odds slipped a bit from last week, however I suspect it's simply because Vegas didn't suspect his country voice could pull off this week's theme. Kudos to Casey for proving them wrong.

Mike (Ready For Love by india.arie): This was another song that I wasn't overly familiar with. It was nicely done but made me feel so sleepy. I was actually much more moved with last week's presentation to be honest. After the show, I checked out the original and sadly that's how the original is as well. I so wish he'd picked a more uptempo one, like Headed in the Right Direction. That would have been awesome just for the title alone. This week he had 2 wins/ no losses for a total of 2. This is just where he was at last week. At least he's not really losing ground, well according to DI. However, if you look at the odds that Vegas has him at, he's still slipping. I'm surprised Vegas didn't have enough faith that he could pull off R&B/S. It's possible that he's in danger this week, but there were others that were either worse OR just not connecting enough with the viewers.

Didi (What Becomes of a Broken Hearted by Jimmy Ruffin): Oh... now this one was just plain painful. And here I was thinking that we'd gotten the worst one out of the way for the night. I hate to tell Randy but this one didn't just flat-line, it skipped rigor and went straight into decomp. Thankfully Didi tends to be unmemorable and the only reason I even remember this performance is because I'm a lame-ass that takes notes. Can we send MsVanilla home now? She's not even the good custardy, french vanilla.... she's the plain ol cheap imitation vanilla that you get in all the all-you-can-eat places that comes as a freebee dessert. Dairy Queen wouldn't even serve her up, she's that bland. One win/ no losses but compared to last week she dropped in the Maps. Her odds are better than some but still riding that melted slick of nasty freebee icecream straight down the drain. She's in danger this week.

"Teflon" Tim (Sweet Love by Anita Baker): Seriously? You really picked Anita Baker? Dude, you don't have the voice! The little teen girls (and the young gay dudes as well as the nefarious people on that site) will absolutely love this. Ok, ok, it was marginally better than the other weeks, but not by much. This week he got a big ol' goose egg in the Maps which is down from the 1 state win from last week. His odds in Vegas are crashing as fast as Paige's did (and we saw what happened to her). Not to say the odds are really bad, but if you were to place a $100 bet on him today (not that you really would be this dumb, but if you had money to burn and felt like doing something totally frivolous) AND by some freakish miracle he actually friggin WON, you'd be $14,000+ richer (payday on Paige's would have been a bit more than that). Better yet, just cut the check to LadyStyx care of Blogger dot com, I can always use the extra hundred.

Andrew (Forever by Chris Brown): Yet another that I had to look up after the show. Man, I'm so behind the times. Just shows me to hang up my headset. Maybe I need to start writing about music a bit more often like I used to when I was streaming it. Chris Brown isn't exactly a favorite of mine, for personal reasons. I may just have to change my tune because I'm finding that I kinda like this song (say it aint SO!). The boycott just may end up getting lifted, or not, depending on how often he relies on the auto-tuner. Andrew did a very nice job with this. I really kinda liked it (not as much as Casey's but almost) and hope that he's finally gotten his footing. This is the type of performance he's been needing for weeks. The performance was miles above and beyond what he's been giving us, however there seems to still be a bit of work needed. Seems like momma's got all the personality in the family and he needs to channel some of that feisty through himself and broadcast it from the stage to his audience. Simon's right, personality is paramount in a contest like this. Sadly, we all know that it's not all about the talent no matter WHAT the judges profess. The question is, was this too little too late? He sang in the middle and even with a performance like that, are people going to remember to vote for him? He ended up, yet again, with a goose egg in the Maps, same as last week. At least he's consistant. His odds are still falling badly, but if he makes it through this week I suspect they'll rise a bit over this next week. He's still in danger, good performance or not.

Katie (Chain of Fools by Aretha): I so KNEW she was gonna get dinked for song choice. Don't get me wrong, she does have the voice to pull that off. However, they've been harping for weeks for her to young it up some. You cannot tell me there wasn't anything close to her age group on that list they were given. The Jackson 5 must have been there (*checks* yep they are) and a great deal of them in that group were her age or younger. Then there is all of Aaliyah's stuff (she died at the age of 22 so you KNOW a good deal of her stuff will be considered young enough), some early Alicia Keys (she was in her teens when she started, in fact a big deal was made about her age when her stuff started winning awards), Brandy ( I think she was young enough at the time her songs were released), TLC, or even some Toni Braxton. Plenty there and she chooses Aretha Franklin??? We won't even go into the fact that there is something missing when she performs. It's kinda like she's got a switch inside that either allows her to have a personality OR perform but not both at the same time. She's warm and friendly in her interviews (something Siobhan really needs to learn, boy is THAT one an awkward one in an interview situation, can't wait to see her on Letterman LOL!!!), but when she hits the stage she's more bottish (?)... it's like the lights are on but nobody's home (the same thing I thought and still think about Carrie). She had so much more going for her during her rehearsal with Usher. Then again, she kinda likes him. Another one with a goose egg this week. Same as she got last week. Her odds are still falling. She's in trouble this week too.

Lee (Treat Her Like a Lady by Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose): So we're given the heads up that Lee's been suffering from walking pneumonia and it's quite obvious , as evidenced by his rather hasty "but I'm fine", that he hadn't wanted attention brought to it. Too much has been made of how sick the kids have been and he simply didn't wanna go there. Good for him. O.M.G! This was an AWESOME choice of song for him and even though he's been sick, this is a great vocal. You can't even tell he's ill. I actually gave out a fan-girly squeal, threw a 6pk of panties at the set and then craved a cigarette afterwards. He SERIOUSLY needs to take Simon's advice and watch that back a couple times tonight because it was all that, the bag of chips and skip the 6pk and go for the keg. Yes, he still has a little tweaking to do performancewise but I suspect it's still a touch of the nerves and a genuine disbelief that he really is THAT good. This week he had 6 wins/no losses which puts him 6 states ahead of where he was last week. Oh I so hope he keeps this up because right now I'd be loving a Crystal/Lee finale. His odds have been slipping slightly but he's still substantially up from when he started this show. Betting people would be smart to put a few bucks on him while the getting's good because if he keeps up performances like this week, those odds will be rising soon.

Crystal (Midnight Train to Georgia by Gladys Knight): I love how they're convincing her to put a bit more color to her outfits. Or maybe, she just changing on her own? This wasn't a bad vocal at all. Although, to be honest, she never has given us a truly bad vocal. Yes, it was a tad tentative in the beginning but she tried something different. She hadn't played in a good long while and was just getting back to it again. Yes, her eyes were closed at the piano but I can chalk that up to simply trying to visualize the sheet music infront of her. Considering that when you're playing an instrument in a competition like this, you can't have the sheet music infront of you so you have to learn twice the amount of info than those that just stand and sing. If you're not as comfortable with the instrument, it makes it doubly as difficult so you need to concentrate harder. This was an awesome choice for her though. Although I am not so certain that I would have attempted that really high note. It was rather unexpected to hear it from her, but in it's unexpectedness it may have others who havent been fans sit up and take notice. This week she yet again got the lion's (or should we say lioness's) share of the votes managing a 13 state win. This is two weeks in a row. She is the ONLY one solidly in first place (green) on the Chart (which has been in yellow for everyone since day one). Her odds have been on a steady climb (at this point you'd need to put down $150 to break even) and she was one of only TWO participants that had their odds go up coming into this week , which is strange because she's not one you'd normally visualize doing this genre. No way she's going anywhere this week.


Aaron (Ain't No Sunshine by Bill Withers): He sounded better in rehearsal with Usher, why couldn't he bring that to the stage (better yet, spare us all and just let Usher sing it...) ?? You never ever pick a song that's been DONE by one of the previous Idols as that will just bring on the comparisons, and to pick a song that was absolutely DONE by last year's winner, Kris Allen (remember, I was a Glambert last year and even I liked Kris's performance... this was one of a few "Moments" he had all season), well that's just plain suicide. Guarantee you, the Kris fans would NOT have liked that at all. This week was 2 wins/ no losses, down from last week's state win. His odds are still dropping, but not as bad as some of the others. Pimp spot or not, he's in danger this week.

So who is most likely to be in danger? If you're anyone other than Crystal, Casey or Lee, you'd better expect a trip to the B3 and here's why you'll be going:


Aaron: Attempting a song that's been DONE and not just been DONE, but DONE very recently and failing to even hold a match to it (forget holding a candle to it , because you don't EVEN have a tenth of the talent to warrant even a birthday candle). Pimp spots can work miracles many times, but they won't always save you (see: Lilly Scott).



Katie: Choosing an ancient song (or at least by her generation) from a list that had more than plenty younger and more recent songs. If you want to sing older, get some training and take up opera. Hey, it worked for Josh Groban!



Andrew: Oh, he's back again but it's very possibly too late to win back all the fans he lost coming into the competition after that wonderful rendition of Straight Up. Looking at the Maps, this could very well be the case.



Tim: Simply put, he's overstayed his welcome, skirted by on his adorable looks and is the odds on favorite to be sent home. The Nefarious ones will declare it a victory whether he stays or goes as he's tied the staying power of Sanjaya. If he makes it one more week, they'll party harder.


Didi: Don't bother calling 911 for the coroner on this one, just call the ME and get it over with.


Mike: zzzzzzz and an early performance on a night where we're still at a two hour program, not a good thing. This will be the ONLY reason he'll end up there and if he goes it'll be a "shocker" because it is truly undeserved.


Siobhan: A terrible performance with a first position singing place? Please, the only people that could sing this position and come away unscathed are Lee and Crystal at this point.


Any 3 of these could make it to the B3.

If you consider the odds, the bottom grouping of 3 are Tim, Andrew and Katie. So this B3 really should be taken into consideration, although I think it may actually be unlikely.

Rickey's Bottom 3 Prediction: Tim, Didi and Andrew Voted Off Prediction: Andrew

And MJ has placed either Tim or Didi with a possibility of Andrew going instead.


Who deserves it?
Siobhan, Didi and Tim with any of them (preferably all of them) gone.

Jim Cantiello's 60 Seconds

MTV Shows

Crystal and the *meh* back-up singers

I don't know about y'all but I'm thinking this has been one of the worst seasons to date. In my opinion, all but a very small handful could get voted off today and it wouldn't matter at all to me.

This week was supposed to have the theme Teen Idols, which would have played right into Katie and Aaron's respective wheelhouses. However, for some reason, the show changed it to the same thing we've been hearing (with the exception of The Rolling Stones last week) since they came out of auditions... Billboard #1s. They ARE going to bring on other themes, right? Or is this going to be truly the lamest season ever?

Our guest mentor was Miley Cyrus. Yeah, yeah... I groaned too. However, she actually did more than play Paula and seal-clap them through. She actually had some fairly well thought out constructive criticism for each and every contestant. Kudos for a good job there. The only thing I found fault with is that the show just had to point out how young she was...not once but at least twice which means that since I was playing the drinking game and the show had officially started, I was already good and tipsy before the first contestant hit the stage (which really didn't improve the performances any).

This week, the Maps seem to be working. They weren't last night so I dropped them a note along the lines of "Dudes, ya Maps fkd up and this has been 2 weeks in a row!". I see they got it rectified during my sleep cycle. I've pretty much decided not to add the links to this season's performance vids as they slow me down alot. However, I've added 2 links above to site you can go to to find the show vids. You will find other links scattered around that demonstrate what I mean on some of my comments.

Lee (The Letter by The Boxtops): I'm not so certain I would have picked this song for him. Kudos for changing it up somewhat. I didn't particularly like the way it was done (I'm partical to Bo Bice's Hollywood round version of it) , but at least the attempt was made to bring it into the '00's. This performance is definitely an acquired taste, I think. What I did like is that he showed a bit more confidence on the stage and I really hope that's enough to keep him around another week because I'm really sure we ain't seen his best yet. Lee seems to be like a meal in a slow cooker, it takes awhile but you know it's gonna be good when it's done. Time to turn up the heat just a little bit though because at this speed he'll be only halfway there by the time the show's done. No wins, no losses on the Maps which gives him a goose egg for the week. Normally, I'd compare the week to week change but since the Maps were broken last week I'll have to skip it this time around. His odds had a bit more than a 200 point slide this week. I don't know if it's because of the first singing position or if it is because not many liked the arrangement. Could be both. As much as I'd like to say he's in no danger, I cannot deny the numbers. He's in danger but certainly was NOT the worst of the night. That would belong to...

Paige (Against All Odds by Phil Collins): Ok hun, here are a couple examples as to how to perform this song and get the wows.... either this way (very nicely performed by a gal, such as yourself) or this way . The latter, couldn't stand this contestant at all, but this was undeniably one of his finer performances and I couldn't find fault with it if I tried. It was simply a very moving moment for him. When someone starts off key, and they KNOW they've gone off track... it really throws the confidence out the window and you never really recover. The only thing is to start over. I think she knew this the moment her mouth opened as you could see it written all over her face. She was off key and pitchy throughout; it was much like listening to nails being drug across a chalkboard. This was undeniably the WORST performance all.damn.season. You know how you know it was bad? Ellen refused to make a comment on the vocals. No wins and a single loss (only one other lost a state this week) puts her at a NEGATIVE 1 for this week. Top things all off her odds crashed so badly it was like the Hindenburg, Titanic and the Challenger all at once. From a +6221 on Tuesday to a +15,344 today (in odds, the bigger the number on the positive side, the worse you're doing...like weight loss)... even Lazarus couldn't come back from those odds. I will be absolutely shocked if she doesn't go B3 this week and almost as shocked if she doesn't get sent packing (nevermind Rickey's theory that the BDND.... black diva never dies).

Tim ( Crazy Little Thing Called Love by Queen): Working FOR him? The fact he sang after Paige. That's really about all. He needs to be thanking her profusely because her performance may just have gotten him on the tour. It was *meh* at best vocally, TMTH (too much to handle) visually. I've heard better in high school choirs, to be honest. He won one state and lost none so he is rated a 1 this week. His odds are still slip sliding away though. He's in danger of being in the bottom this time.

Aaron ( I Don't Want to Miss a Thing by Aerosmith): The kids are having a really bad time with some nasty colds and throat viruses going around. Casey's had the flu, Paige was sick last week, and this week it hit Aaron. Guys? Suck it up. We never heard so much about the kids getting ill in the previous seasons because they just handled it. Even when poor Bo was in the finals and vomitting in a bucket off stage between his performances due to the extreme pain he was in (a noncontagious, yet extremely serious condition), we never heard it until AFTER the show was done. My feeling? They saw that Crystal got the pity votes because she was hospitalized (which I doubt were actually pity votes considering the number she's always pulling) for her illness (which is NOT contagious) and they think it'll work for them. It's just lame excuses, buck up and move on or get lost. It was yet another *meh* performance from one of the kids *takes a shot* of this mediocre season. The good news? He won 3 states and loss none for a rating of 3 this week. Better news? His odds are slowly creeping up. I think he's still riding on that nice performance last week. We'll see next week. He could be in danger, but there were others much worse than him. I'd place him in midpack right now.

Crystal ( Me and Bobby McGee by Janis Joplin): You'll notice, I've got my official pick in the sidebar. Do I think she'll actually win? Probably not as in the 6 years of watching I've only gotten it right once (although all my picks are doing fairly well winner or not). I'm not overly a Janis fan, but this is one of the very few of my favorites of hers. I only have two bugs with her... the guitar (which comes across as a crutch sometimes) and the fact she doesn't make as much eye contact as the others. Will she go far? Oh hell yeah. There's only a couple ways to slow her down or get rid of her. Either the public gets tired of her because she doesn't step up a bit more OR a huge scandal of Frenchie Davis proportions. Crystal was the ONLY one solidly in green this week, the first all season pretty much. She's got 13 wins and no losses this week in the Maps and her stock just keeps creeping up. She's not to the point of hitting the negative numbers yet (which would be optimal) but if she delivers an awesome performance next week like she's hinted towards this week, it'll just be a matter of time.

Mike (When a Man Loves a Woman by Percy Sledge): He was my second favorite of the night, edging my favorite guy (Lee) out rather handily. Let's just put it this way... my panties were tucked neatly into the drawer in the bedroom, a good 2 rooms away. They managed to sneak out of the drawer, crawl to the office and throw THEMSELVES at the tv when Mike was singing. I *think* I saw Chicago's hand reach through the monitor to throw the panties back at the set, but I can't be certain. Yes, the performance could have been better if he'd done as Simon said and stripped the hell out of it, but this was definitely worthy of praise. I think once the judges listen to it back, they'll see for themselves. Mike is hubby's pick to win. There was a 2 state win with no loss this week , but his odds have slipped ever so slightly. According to numbers, he needs to be called as in danger but I won't be surprised if he makes it through to the tour.

Andrew (I Heard It Through the Grapevine by Marvin Gaye): Dog, bad pick man. He was on pitch but it was such a boring, lame performance. The only ones worse were Tim and Paige. It's a real shame he did Straight Up when he did because THAT'S the caliber performance he needs to be putting out at this point. Doing it as early as he did just set the bar too high for him to go beyond. As a friend of mine would say, "He shot his whole load on the one performance". Crude, yes, but the truth. On the other hand, if he hadn't done it then, he wouldn't have made it on the show. Andrew's just not bringing it and definitely not improving. One win, one loss (the only other to lose a state this time) gives him a huge goose egg this week. His odds have been steady tumbling since day one. He's definitely in trouble this week.

Katie (Big Girls Don't Cry by Fergie): This wasn't a bad performance but not so great either. I found it rather copy-cattish for the most part and very little was done to make it her own. It was, however, one of her better performances and you can see that she's at least trying... she's just not succeeding too well. No wins, no losses and a steadily falling set of odds pretty much tells me that her days are numbered unless she can pull an Over the Rainbow, Summertime (although I didn't like this girl either, I have to admit the performance was good),or even In a Dream sometime in the next performance. No wins and no losses also puts her in danger this week.

Casey (Power of Love by Huey Lewis): Again. Drop the guitar for a performance or two dude! Unhook the mic and carry it around the stage (as Chicago would say....play on those looks, honey!) and quit cutting yourself off from the audience. It was a nice performance, very good choice for his voice, but it was even more copy cat than Katie's. With 5 wins, no losses and odds that keep creeping up, I think it's safe to say he's made the tour group for this season.

Didi (You're No Good by Linda Ronstadt): This performance had its moments, just not THE Moment that she needs. I will say it's one of her better performances, but it's still not the quality that this show is supposedly looking for. I can't put my finger on quite what it was that I didn't like. It may simply be the way she pronounces some of the words that has me on edge. It was like listening to Megan Joy's voice coming out of Brooke White's body, not a pleasant combination. Based on this performance, I won't be surprised if she is in danger. Even though there were much worse, she's just not that memorable. Let's just put it this way, I'll remember her beautiful dress and the fact Ricky was on stage with that gorgeous standing bass. With 2 wins, no losses, and odds that keep slipping, it's just a matter of time before she's gone too. She's fodder and the only thing keeping her unmemorable butt in there is the lamentable performances of some of the others. According to the figures, she may or may not be in danger this week.

Siobhan (Superstition by Stevie Wonder): This girl reminds me of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. She has got the most awkward, uncomfortable interviews but then she hits the stage. Girlfriend has some serious pipes when she SINGS. This performance started out pretty cool. She had a very edgy look, very nice beginning and then for some reason I think the show jumped season because I could swear I heard Danny Gokey take the stage. Ok, it was somewhat incredible the first time around (albiet off-key then too) and I could understand the judges' first reactions of WOW. However, it's been 3 weeks now and to be honest, we don't need it every.fkn.performance. Even Adam Lambert changed it up week to week. If we had a rocker wail the one week (which was actually SUNG because he was hitting those high notes sans falsetto and not screaming them), then the next week we got a softer more emo-ish performance. This smacks of gimmicky ( and not in a good way like the homey feel Crystal adds with the carpet she brought out this week) and desparate. She won 2 states, lost none and her odds slipped ever so slightly. Even with the pimp spot, it's very possible we'll see her in danger. It's sad that with a pimp spot to help you out, that a mid-packer out performed you to the point of doing 6 TIMES better than you numberwise on the Maps.

Who deserves to go?
Lee: First singing postion doesn't help matters. Only thing that might help is Paige's crash and burn.

Paige: Ouch. That was painful this week. Of all of them she deserves most to go.

Tim: Meh. In a tie in the unmemorable category with...

Didi: See Tim.

Andrew: That was really bad. He peaked in Hollywood and has been a severe disappointment ever since.

Katie: Although Casey was just as Karaoke, if not worse, he's got the bigger fan base and can survive comments like that. She loses out to him there.

Siobhan: Screeches worse than a cat in heat.... it's as bad if not worse than Gokey was.


Rickey.org poll: Paige out
Rickey FROM Rickey.org: Paige out
MJ: Paige out

Me? By the numbers... Paige out. But could be ANY of the others I've listed. If you're not Crystal, you're in trouble.

Will they use the save? Nope. She aint worth it at this point. They'll save it for one of the few that are actually showing improvement.

Jim Cantiello's 60 seconds

Top Twelve week:

MTV Shows

I Got No Satisfaction

Ugh. Well I guess the producers were seeing what we all were seeing, the fact that the girls were handily wiping the floor with the guys for weeks now. I suppose that choosing The Rolling Stones for a theme week was their way of throwing the dudes a bone and giving them half a chance in this race to prove that they are worthy to grace the stage alongside the girls. Overall, I was massively unsatisfied with the performances this week.



The DI site is doing something really funky this week and the Maps aren't working at all. I certainly hope they get it fixed by the next show. Even if they were all 'meh' or all great, their names should have at least been up in the key section and they weren't. Maybe even they were uninspired? Even the odds site I visit seems to be having issues in regards to the kids this week.



Mike's Miss You was decently performed. His dancing around was a bit, as Simon would put it, corny but at least he's shown some personality, at least more than some others have, that's for certain. The only reason he'd end up in the B3 this week is because of the first place singing postion (which surprised me as he'd already sung first not just a couple weeks ago). Mike's odds have been steadily rising.



The judges all loved Didi's Play With Fire, but I didn't. There was a much worse performance later in the night so the original reaction of "oh ick" has at point been modified to a "meh". If she leaves tonight it'll be for one of two reasons, either it's due to the next deadliest performance spot (a second singing position) or due to the fact she wasn't overly memorable. Didi's odds have been in a steady slide since day one.



Casey's It's All Over Now was my favorite of the first three. He's not really star-worthy yet, but going in the right direction that's for damned sure. I don't really see him in danger this week. There were ones much much worse and far less memorable. If he goes home this week, I'll be a bit surprised. His odds started to creep up somewhat this last week.



Ruby Tuesday was performed by Lacey and this is another I wasn't overly fond with. Kara was right, people were going to be 50/50 on whether they liked it or not. Next to Didi, she was one of the more least memorable of the night and this is enough to put her in danger. Her odds have been on a slipperier slope (almost death spiral-esque) than Didi's. If she goes, it'll be because she was less memorable than Didi.



Andrew's Gimme Shelter was another performance I enjoyed. I'd like to see him do some Santana in a future performance of this show. His odds are bouncing around a bit. He started with a really good set of numbers and then slipped for a couple weeks but the last check, his odds are up. Not to where they were when he started, but still worth keeping an eye on.



I had a good laugh with this next one. They've been harping on poor Katie to be "younger", more "current", and fresher and then what they do? Stick her in this theme right out of the gate. Good going, asshats. Her version of Wild Horses was "meh" at best. I'm really kinda over her and would be happy to see her go. Between the "you're so young" comments the judges beat us over the head with and Aaron's "he's only 16" ones, I get good an drunk doing a shots game with them. Unfortunately, the shots don't get me drunk enough to enjoy their performances (usually) and just make me meaner. Not bad, but not good either and less memorable than others, it won't surprise me if there's a B3 trip for her. Katie's numbers from the beginning were good but slipped fast. She's on her way up again in the odds.



Why in God's green earth did Tim turn this into The Reggae Stones??? I love rock and I love a great deal of the Stone's body of work. However, this was a lamentable MESS. I won't be able to hear Under My Thumb ever again without thinking of this. It was such a mess that I told my NYBro that it was nefarious site worthy and that I doubted they'd wait until Paige performed before crowning him the new poster child. I was so right. Unfortunately, that makes this a memorable performance. Damn. His odds have been on a slippery slope since day one (although they rose slightly after last week's showing) and I really don't forsee him staying too much longer unless the worsters really step up their game.



I'd like to take a moment and correct Kara, if I may? I take emmense offense at you comparing Siohban to Adam Lambert. Yes, she's got the drama, I'll give you that. However, to liken her to him based on that note? Umm, NO. That, my dear Kara, was way more Gokey than Lambert. Then again, what can we expect out of someone who doesn't know early Aerosmith from later Aerosmith songs and can't tell Studio 57 from Studio 54 (only one of these actually exist and no, most Idol fanatics haven't forgotten those faux pas)? That said, Siobhan's Paint It Black was down right horrid. I want to know what all Simon's been lacing in his cigarettes and would like to advise the other judges to stand upwind of him from now on. Her odds are steadily rising, though, so I doubt she's going anywhere tonight. Especially after that cutesy act with her glasses.

Lee, Lee, Lee. I'm loving how your confidence level has been increasing, but you need to step it up dude. I ~loved~ his take on Beast of Burden, but I'm wanting more now. Much, much more. Time to release the inner Rob Thomas that's in there, let it all rip loose and start having those "moments" that Simon's crowing about. Lee's odds have been steadily moving up these days and I reckon that it'll get to the point where he won't be worth putting money on. Betting people, if you haven't put a few dollars down, you might want to invest in him before his odds go into the negative numbers (because then you won't be getting anything if he does win so nail the odds down now).

Considering that she's been extremely ill (to the point of losing her voice), Paige did fairly well this time around, although I'm not entirely certain I would have chosen Honky Tonk Women for her. It'll be sad, but not unexpected, if she ends up going home tonight. Thanks to the loss of support from the nefarious site to Tim (they can only pick one now) and the fact her already horrid odds crashed faster than the Hindenburg (they've since gotten better but still don't even come close to her opening numbers).

The biggest surprise of the night showed up with Aaron's performance. I hadn't been liking him much at all and I really don't believe he should have made it to the Top 12. However, last night he gave one of his strongest performances to date. And shocking of all, I actually LIKED it! He sang a very nice (and in key) rendition of Angie that had my jaw drop. If he was a bit older (ya know, old enough where the cougars don't feel filthy ogling him), then I may have considered a panty-throw. Not the leather studded or the purple sparklies though, just the plain ol' everyday cotton ones. Aaron's odds sank during the first couple shows but have been steadily rising again. They're not where they were when he began, but they're getting there. The question is, was this performance enough to keep him in? I think it was.

You Can't Always Get What You Want. Pimp spot for the week, check. A great song to perform, check. SUTA love from all the judges? Not so much. Don't get me wrong, Crystal did a beautiful job, but it's gotten to be expected from her these days. It's gotten so we expect a great performance from Crystal because we know she'll deliver. Is it possible that she's peaked already and we won't get any more from her? Is she another Andrew Garcia? Gosh I hope not. Her odds have mostly been on the rise, with a minor sag last week, and I really don't see her leaving this week. Then again, we saw what happened last week. Lilly was in the pimp spot and got sent home anyhow.

So who goes?
One of the following:

Didi: forgettable

Lacey: forgettable

Andrew: too little too late

Katie: meh performance on a night she really needed to be great

Tim: pass the barf bag that was so bad

Siobhan: that Gokey note really should be the death of her

Paige: those odds are going to get it right one of these days. When it gets to this point of the show they usually are on the money. Top things all off, when the worsters get to the point when they have to choose only one and they drop you in favor of your current banner mate? Well, that's a bit less support than you've been used to it.

rickey.org poll: Lacey out

rickey from rickey.org: B3 Andrew, Lacey and Katie with the latter gone.

MJs B3: Tim, Andrew and Lacey with the latter leaving.

My picks:
Should be: Didi, Tim and Siobhan with Tim gone.

Who it more than likely be: Didi, Lacey and any one of the others I pointed out (probably Andrew, but could be any of the others very easily) with any of them going for the reasons stated.

Duds R Us

Personal opinion, 2 can stay while the other 6 are flushed. This year the guys just don't even come close to competing with the girls. I'm actually quite hard pressed to actually put together a review this week for them.

Lee's version of Fireflies by Owl City wasn't too bad. It was actually a bit of an improvement over the original to be honest. Not bad, not great and I'm just waiting on the judges to harp on the guitar shaped crutch he's still using. Then again, ALOT of the kids are using their instrumental crutches this year. Lee had a slide this week going from a 6 last week to an only 2 state win this week. His odds are steadily falling in Vegas. He could be in danger this week, but no more than some of the others. We saw what happened to Haeley last week so we'll put him in the danger list.

Alex performed Ray Montagne's Trouble. My first reaction during the show was...PU!! However, upon listening to it a second time back to back with the original, I realize it was just a really bad copy-cat version much in the stylings of Freddy and the Horribles (a cover band that used to work in the Poconos... they really trashed up everything they attempted to perform). Alex went from a 5 last time around to a 4 state win this week and surprisingly his odds are rising in Vegas. He's still in danger but is in better standing than he had been.

Jeff Buckley's Hallelujah wasn't done justice by Tim, nope not in the slightest. It was meh at best. I liked Jason Castro's version from season 7 much better than this one. At least Tim was in key-ish. He dropped from a 6 win to a 5 win this week and his odds have improved substantially since his last performance. Does this get him completely out of danger? No.

Andrew reached back to the performance style we loved and Straight Upped Christina Aguilera's Genie in a Bottle. I'm kind of torn here. As much as I want to say I really loved this, I'm not sure how I feel about it. Yes, it was wonderful that he went back to a formula that made everyone love him. However, the fact that he did it AFTER the judges pointed out makes it smack of being desperate. Top things all off, it didn't quite even reach the bar he'd already set for himself. the object is to move forward, not step back. He's dropped from last week's showing of 2 to a 1 state win and his odds are still doing the slip sliding away. I think this performance could have been timed better as he should have done it BEFORE it was pointed out to him.

Casey's You'll Think of Me by Keith Urban was nice but nothing special. Rather uninspired. Really a rather too safe choice for a night like tonight. If he gets voted off, it'll be for that reason and only that reason. You need to be memorable, especially going into the Top 12 selection. Dropping from a 4 state to a 1 state win, he's stayed steady in the odds. I don't really think he's in danger but considering the slip in states, we really need to stick him in danger as well.

Aaron's performance was much like Katie's big turd of a performance. Actually, where her's was elephant sized, his was more like the scat left by a Argentinosaurus. This was easily the worst performance of the night. He has no lower range, the verses were like rubbing P12 grit sandpaper on a 3rd degree sunburn and the only thing that was even close to being half-way decent was the chorus part of the song. Once he got into his range, he was aiight. He definitely didn't do any justice to Lonestar's Already There. It was more like Please Go Away Now. Let's not even get into the fact that all 4 judges just had to point out how young he is or that he's 16. It's a good thing that I'm not home because I would have been schnockered. He went from a 1 state win to a big old goose egg and his odds have dropped as fast as Paige's (who's odds plummeted again as of this morning). A snowflake (nevermind the snowball) has a better shot in hell, folks.

Todrick had some good spots and bad spots in his version of Somebody to Love. Thank goodness it wasn't Bo-Rap. Actually, if he'd done that song, that would have assured us that he'd be going this week. He's got VFTW potential if Tim gets the boot this week. This wasn't a great showing and I'm thinking that the song was much too much for him. Omigoodness, he had an increase to a 1 state win this week! Watch him get the boot just when he's showing improvement. Too little too late? His odds stayed steady from yesterday, but they're still the worst of all the guys. He can go home any day now. You know he's splitting votes with Big Mike and after the show Mike put on this week, Todrick's more than likely doomed this week.

The only performance worthy of being listened to more than once was Big Mike's nearly panty-throwing worthy rendition of This Woman's Work by Maxwell. That nice falsetto and that glory note that hung on Adam Lambert-effortlessly forever was precisely what he needed this week. Well, that and the pimp spot helped out alot. If he and Todrick are splitting votes (and you can be damned sure they probably are), then Todrick lost this one because no one is going to remember the other AAM in this competition after Mike sang this week. Not EVEN if the other AAM is in the drafting-pimpspot. Thanks to the pimpspot, or maybe because it was a friggin AWESOME performance, or possibly both, Mike garnered 10 states (up from a 1 state win). His odds have increased substantially and I do believe he actually has a shot at this. Maybe we do have a chance at an AAM win this year.

Who goes home?

If you're not Mike, you're screwed this week.

Best bets to go?
Todrick and Aaron.

Although I'm not leaving anyone out of the mix as they all duds this week.

Underimpressed: you know it's bad when one of the highlights of the night is a fast food ad

I've got company this week and next so the reviews are going to be quickies (if they show up at all) and won't contain the links as I have a whole lot less time to work them than is usual. If you want to review the performances, please go to MJ's blog for her review and videos of the show.

Not to say that this was a horrid night, but when the highlight of the night is the new Moe's ad with a past runner-up, you know it's a bad one! Then again, the ad DID have Bo Bice looking mighty fine and that would have improved even an awesome show.



Basically, if your name aint Crystal... you could be screwed this week. Even if you WERE in the pimp spot. Usually, the pimp spot flies through so I'm fairly certain we'll see Lilly next week as well.

Katie fairly well laid a huge elephant turd on Kelly Clarkson's Break Away. That was simply the worst of the night. Why the Nefarious site didn't pick her for poster child this week, I'll never know. Maybe they don't think there's any hope of her getting past this week. No wins, no losses with a first sing position and Vegas odds showing you dropping steadily since we began AND you dropping like a rock after that performance? She's in extreme danger this week. Rickey's Vote for the First program better have stepped up last night otherwise she'll be gone.

Siobhan did a fairly nice version of The Animal's House of the Rising Sun. Kudos for the unaccompanied beginning. That was totally the right thing to do to push you into the Top 12. I'm kind of worried that she seems to be the only one to lose a state this week... AGAIN. I don't know what Ohio has against this girl, other than she gives awkward interviews. With a 7 state win/1 state loss she gets a 6 this week which is up 4 states from last week. Although she dropped from last week somewhat, Vegas still has her doing fairly well in the odds so I'm thinking we'll see a bit more of her next episode.

I wasn't familiar with Lacey's song (The Story by Brandi Carlisle). Oh look... it's in my music files. *clicks* I wasn't fond of the song but listening to the original (which I really am not fond of at all, I may be flushing this one soon), she did a very decent job with it so no fuss this week. I hope it was enough to put her through. With a 5 state win (up from 2 last week)and Vegas showing a HUGE change in the odds (for the better!), she may be safe this week. However, we saw what happened last week with Haeley so everyone is pretty much suspected in danger (unless your name starts with a C or an S).

Katelyn sang Carole King's I Feel the Earth Move and didn't manage to move anything. It reminded me of those "professional" karaoke singers you find in a bar. They're good, but not great and you enjoy them even if you aren't schnockered but you certainly don't remember what they sang the very next day. She held at a one state win this week (steady from last show), but Vegas has her dropping like a rock too.

I really wasn't fond of what Didi did to Fleetwood Mac's Rhiannon. Nope, not at all. Only thing I can say is that I'll remember her performance before Katelyn's. She dropped from a 1 state win last week to a goose egg. Her odds increased quite a bit in Vegas though. According to the Maps, she's in danger... if you look at Vegas, we may see her next week. She certainly wasn't the worst of the night.

Paige has become "That Site's" poster child with her stinker of a performance of Charlie Chaplin's Smile. Ugh. Wrong choice for the week. Drudgy, dull, depressing. Easily my second least favorite of the night. She sank from a 4 state win last week to only a 1 state win this time. Worse yet, her odds dropped faster than the Titanic sank. They dropped so badly, even the Hindenburg stayed airborn longer. Her only saving grace this week will be if the theory that Rickey has where they always have at least one black diva in the Top12. If she goes (and assuming one of the AAMs stink up the place), you KNOW it's gonna get uglier online than it did last week when we lost 3 of them. She totally deserves to join Katie and the both of them need to go.

Crystal had the best pick of the night. She looked good, sounded great. Only bug is the guitar. I'm just waiting on the judges to harp on her for it. She dropped 3 states this week to an 8 state win which tells me that some of those won last week may just have been pity votes. Sorry folks, this girl's so good she doesn't need sympathy votes.. but thanks anyhow! Give Me One Reason was easily, hands down, the best of the night. Vegas agrees as her odds have risen yet again. No surprise. She keeps going up and her odds will start registering into the negative numbers. Oh, I'd SOOO love to see that!

Lilly's version of Pasty Kline's Fall to Pieces really did just that, fell to pieces. Good thing she's in the pimp spot this week. If she makes it through, she can thank her lucky stars for the position. I really hated this ( I don't deal with old country well and to quirk one up? Ew.), to be honest. I must be one of the few as her odds rose after last night and she went from a 2 state win to a 4 state win. Hm.

So who goes this week? All but a couple are in danger this week....

The poll on Rickey's site have Paige and Katie as the lowest vote getters. I'd have to agree there.

Rickey's picks to go are Katie and Didi.

Vegas has Paige and either Lacey, Katie or Katelyn going.

So who goes? These are my suspects for the week:

Katie: That was a stinker performance. Coupled with the first position spot and the ripping apart she got, it's almost as though the judges are throwing their sunshine girl under the bus.

Lacey: too little too late?

Katelyn: Barkeep? Another Miller lite please!

Didi: What did she sing again? Even Brooke White was more memorable, honey.

Paige: This is the night you really needed to stay in your wheelhouse and throw down the gauntlet. Instead, you made us all wanna cry.

Although I hated Lilly this week, I'm not going to put her in this list as all other indications show that she just may be around next week. There were much worse and I suspect it's just a matter of taste this time around.

Jim Cantiello's AI in 60 seconds

MTV Shows

and gone this week

Boys:
John and Jermaine

Those are no surprise. One wasn't memorable enough, the other had an attitude problem that most viewers would not like.

Girls:
Michelle and Haeley

One is no surprise and although the other shouldn't have been a surprise, was. Not because she was great, oh no... she was not good at all. But the fact this puts 3 AAs out on the same week. Although they all deserved it, you know the show's gonna catch hell for it.

Now this is what I'm talkin' 'bout

Oh Yay! Crystal was well enough to sing on Wednesday!!

I haven't been this seriously excited over a group of female contestants since Melinda in season six. To be honest, the guys this time around are damned lucky that they aren't already competing against the girls because not one of them would be close to measuring up to them. It's almost like watching 2 different competitions entirely, like a junior choir trying to compete against a college level show choir. It just doesn't end well. Randy seems to think otherwise... “I think a bunch of them are really trying to win this thing." Yeah, right dude. In what reality?

Crystal Bowersox (As Long As I See the Light by Creedence Clearwater Revival): Even with being rather sickly, she was better than ANY of the guys last night, hands down. The only things I would warn her on right now. Number one, this is two weeks with the guitar (not including the times used in Hollywood). Don't bring it out so often that the judges end up mentioning it. By the time they mention it, it's already been noticed by the voting public. It's great you play an instrument, but don't use it at a crutch. Number two, singing about comin' home and packing bags, not a good idea. Yes, you pulled it off but it's still one of those quirks that happens. When people sing those topics, they usually end up going home. That said, I saw a suggestion in one of the other blogs I read that maybe she should try and tackle Zombie by The Cranberries. That's a great group for her to attempt, but I'm personally thinking more along the lines of Linger or maybe something by The Corrs or even The Cardigans? Singing first didn't hurt her in the slightest this week. She's one of the few in this field that can get away with singing first and not be in danger due to the performance spot. Last week she won 3 states with a next to last singing position and this week she shot up to 11 states won. The question to ask, how many of those are sympathy votes and how many are because she's actually that talented?

Haeley Vaughn (The Climb by Miley Cyrus): This should have been perfect for her. It was better than last week, but damn. Definitely worthy to be the posterchild on that nefarious site. They must have really enjoyed themselves with this performance. All I can say is, can she please go home now? You're singing about the fact there's a lack of confidence, you feel lost and that you need to keep trying and you're smiling?? Kara, if Haeley needs another year to work her instrument.... then why in blue blazes did you guys put her through in the first place?? There were other girls, like Alex Nester who was cut with room number two, that were much more worthy of a spot in this contest. She went from a 1 state win to a 3 state win with no losses. Considering her status on that particular site, I don't think she's in any danger this week either. I suspect we may have at least one more week of her.

Lacey Brown (Kiss Me by Sixpence None The Richer): This wasn't bad, could have been alot better though. There was an improvement over last week's performance, but it still isn't showing the promise that she showed in the auditions and Hollywood. This should have been a good one for her, and it wasn't. If she makes it through this week, I'd suggest trying some Lily Allen on for size. With a strong showing from Crystal and the backing that Haeley's got, this pretty much puts Lacey in danger. There were others that came after that sang much better and others that were at least memorable. This was definitely not the week to be a wallflower. She had an increase of one state this week for a total of two. According to what I did with the boys' review, this puts her in danger of leaving this week.

Katie Stevens ( Put Your Records On by Corinne Bailey Rae): This was a cute choice for her. The lower notes were a tad rough but overall not too bad. We heard much worse, that's for sure. We're going to see what America thinks of her considering she's not in the pimp spot this time around. Was she memorable enough? If she makes it through this week might I make a suggestion? They want younger so go back into the earlier songs of some of today's more popular artists. Technically you're taking their advice. Some names to choose from (and a really good choice from each on the link) Avril Lavigne, Britney Spears (and this song would be aimed right at the judges, honey, or at least the title would be...) or Christina Aguilera (she was 19 when the cd this one is on was released so it counts!). Fun, bright, pop type songs that will still showcase those pipes. You can really see who got helped with the pimp spot last week. Usually the contestants have a bit of momentum from a spot like that and many times manage to last at least another week. However, Katie wasn't able to keep the momentum of that 14 state win last week (that I suspect was just carry over from the Hollywood Rounds) and crashed to a big ol goose egg this week. We may have a shocker this week, folks, as she was one of the Princess SUTAs in waiting since the beginning.

Didi Benami (Lean On Me by Bill Withers): Um. No. Might I suggest Carly Simon (although I don't think Simon would approve of the selection I made for you) or Carole King if you make it through this week? That's a big if, too, because the performance was so terribly unmemorable. This week she stayed even with last week with a 1 state win.

Michelle Delamore (Arms Wide Open by Creed): I'm not certain I liked it much, but she did attempt to do something different. She is in a tough spot though. Just think of it, the judges want original, different, something new to the already existing songs but then they point they don't know who she is as an artist. If she follows the other advice the judges tend to give which is to find her niche, then she runs the risk of them saying she's predictible. So which do you choose? Do you pick a song that was done by En Vogue, Destiny's Child or Aretha and stick the the R&B /Soul niche? Or do you take the chance she did, grab a rock song and place an R&B twist on it? Either way, you're screwed. She fell from a 2 state win to only 1 win this week.

Lilly Scott (A Change Is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke): I don't know what it is about her that I like. Maybe it's the confidence and sense of self that she seems to exude when she's on that stage. I am going to point out a couple things though. Number one, open your eyes... and connect with the audience. Definitely something you need to work on. Number two, I said this with Crystal and I'm going to say it here too... you run the risk of the judges saying that the instruments are becoming a crutch. Other than that, you're golden. Personal opinions aside, Lilly went from a one state win to a 2 state win this week. Improvement, yes. But considering the buffer I'm using this week, I hate to say it, but she could be in danger this week. I really don't think so, BUT there is that chance.

Katelyn Epperly (The Scientist by Coldplay): Ok. I like this much better than last week's performance. She really needs to start practicing in a mirror though because some of those facial expressions are a bit much. She also needs to work on completing some of those phrases better. The second of three that held even this week, she had a 1 state win. Working for her is that she's a bit more memorable than Didi. It still puts her in danger though.

Paige Miles (Walk Away by Kelly Clarkson): Ok, this was ballsy. Very, very ballsy to take on The First Idol's music. Paige has the right voice to handle Kelly's music, but I do not think this was the right Kelly song to try to do. There are so many other fine songs that she could have chosen and done so much better with. Considering that you're like Haeley and like to smile while singing may I suggest one of the following for a future performance? Stick with Kelly's stuff (although I suspect you'd do a good Christina Aguilera as well) and sing either My Life Would Suck Without You, Miss Independent (Done with a smirk instead of a full smile, naturally. Channel the cockiness of Todrick and Jermaine and you'll have it just right.) or Thankful. I'd suggest A Moment Like This, but we all know how some fans are about the coronation songs of their favorite Idols. Absolutely NOBODY does them better. This week Paige shot up from a goose egg to a 4 state win. Could it be from the sweet-spot, drafting position she had in the next to last singing position? Or is America deciding they really like her guts in attempting one of the harder Kelly Clarkson songs? In any case, I don't really see her going anywhere this week.

Siobhan Magnus (Think by Aretha Franklin): One word. Wow (gotta love those words that can be read either way...). She really is a quirky thing, isn't she. When off stage or at least not performing, she's a bit strange to talk to. The interviews are really... awkward. Almost like she has to slow herself down otherwise things will just come tumbling out of her in no particular order. Then she takes the stage and becomes a tigress. Ok, so the song was a bit large for her, but not by a whole lot, that's for sure. There aren't many on that stage this year that I could see taking on The Queen of Soul herself and managing to do a half-way decent job of it (not a completely awesome job, but really very close). Siobhan is the only one to lose any states this week, which is weird because the pimped one doesn't usually start losing states until later in the competition. Because she lost a state the one state gain she had for the week got negated and she broke even. That said, even Siobhan is in danger this week, Glory note and all.

So who goes?

Two of the following:

Lacey: The key is to be memorable, and she wasn't. A sick Crystal had a wonderful performance and sang first, Haeley was memorable for a not so good reason and you had at least 2-3 others that had performances that made the audience sit up and take notice. Pretty eyes and funky hair aren't going to get you too far in this competition. It's a real shame that she wasn't put through last year instead of Megan Joy, she may have had a better chance at getting farther.

Katie: Too little too late? A SUTA princess from Hollywood, she's finding that the judges can be a fickle lot, and now she's not so much a favorite. She was one of only 2 that had drops in states this week.

Didi: The chaff is being sifted out now. If this one goes, it's due to not being memorable enough. She was followed by a quirky Lilly, a piano playing Katelyn, a decent performance by Paige and a damned glory note from this week's pimped wonder. Didi who?

Michelle: She attempted something different which really should work for her, but like Chicago told me, we don't know who she is. That and Paige outsang her hands down... and we all know those two are splitting votes right now. With the guys, it's a 3 way split and they have better odds at advancing. She's only splitting with the one (remember, the other AAF is singing country and is pretty much in a voting dem of her own) and who are you going to remember? The pretty girl with the pretty voice or the pretty girl with the outstanding voice?

Lilly: Pretty Lilly with the unique look and sound. The question is is she interesting enough to keep around? That eye closing habit of yours, I know it's because you are so into your music but it shuts down the connection between you and the audience. Not a good thing, honey. It's possible that people are seeing that she really doesn't need this show and they're trying to get her off before she gets roped into a rather restrictive contract.

Katelyn: She had a nice performance, but not a great one. There was the potential for "a moment" with this week's song and she didn't take advantage of that. You need to WOW every single time you take the stage.

Siobhan: Her interviews are awkward and although she did a commendable job on her song, that last note isn't to everyone's tastes and may just be the thing that turned alot of the voting public OFF. Yes, it was awesome in a live performance. However picture, if you will, that note hit and hearing it on the radio or on the video station. Now picture if it goes into regular rotation and you're hearing it all the time. Yeah. That's what I thought.

Basically, if you're not Paige, Haeley or Crystal this week... you're fkd.

Improved mediocrity

This week the boys sang on Tuesday night instead of the girls as Crystal Bowersox couldn't perform due to a medical condition. A bit more on that in the previous post. The question is, did it work against them? Although as a whole, most of them did markedly better than last week, it was still a *meh* performance from all. To be honest, I don't think there's a one that I have all nice things to say about. Yet again, the panties stayed folded neatly on the desk with not a thought of throwing even one. I am beginning to suspect that this year the panties will be staying in the drawer, folks.

With any luck, the videos won't need any code tweaking this week. I do apologize for the glitch but since I don't personally tape and upload it and get the videos from another source, I'm pretty much at their mercy.

This week, the DI Chart has no real clear leader (they're all in yellow and only one has any number values assigned to him). The Maps were just as bad with none on the "loser" map and all but one managing to get at least one state. Some showed improvement mapwise from last week, some slipped way down. You can definitely see who was helped by the pimp spot from one week to the next, that's for sure.

Big Mike Lynch (This Is a Man's World by James Brown): Randy, dawg, his performance wasn't worthy of the standing O...yet. Don't get me wrong, Mike's got a helluva lot of potential, but that wasn't all that. Yes, it's the right direction to go in. I'd like to hear what Mike can do with Luther Vandross because I think that would totally nail a spot in the Top 10 for him. As it stands right now, he's no more than the free entertainment that you can see at any resort. He's no headliner, yet. Looking at the Map, he showed a one state change dropping to a 1 this week. I suspect that it was simply due to the fact he sang first this time and that it was a two hour show. I'm kind of holding out hope that he's around one more week. However, considering how close most of them were performance-wise this week I'll have to consider anyone with 2 states or less in the danger zone.

John Park (Gravity by John Mayer): Umm. I'm no John Mayer fan. There are maybe a small handful of his songs I actually enjoy. The performance was better than last week's but still not all that. It was really too safe and rather forgettable. It's a shame because the guy's got chops. I mean you gotta have some decent chops if you're going to sing in an acapella group. Maybe that's what he needs to do this next week, assuming he makes it through this round, strip the song right down. Totally give the band the week off and pull a Bo Bice. Yeah, it's a bit early in the competition for a stunt like that and will be setting the bar a bit higher for himself going into the following week , but he's gonna need to do something to prove he can be memorable and deserves to be on that stage. The Map shows an increase of one state to a 1 this week (hey, it's an improvement) so evidentally the other fans of the show are seeing potential too. Unfortunately, with the early singing position in a 2 hour show, I won't be surprised if he's cannon fodder this week and Purple Haze will get their lead singer/musical director back.

Casey James (I Don't Wanna Be by Gavin DeGraw): How many times to we have to say this, do NOT attempt to do a song on this show when a previous contestant has DONE it and no one has DONE this one better than Bo Bice (Yay for being able to compare to him not once but twice this week!!). This song has been performed by no fewer than 3 past contestants so maybe it's time to retire it? Although this was one of the more memorable performances of the night, the guitar covered alot of the vocal flaws. This week he held steady with 4 wins on the Map. I'm pretty sure he's safe for one more week, but we saw what happened last week. I thought Tyler was in danger but didn't seriously think he was going to be in the bottom and what happened? He went home! *sobs*

Alex Lambert (Everybody Knows by John Legend): The one thing that can throw a decent singer off their game is nerves and when you drop a lyric (didn't happen this time) or hit a bum note (this happened a few times), it can put you into a tailspin. I am hoping that all he needs is a huge confidence boost to dispell the nerves because he's so flippin likeable. I'm still not sure I'm liking his choice in songs but experience will fix that. You know who I'd like to see him do? Some Jack Johnson... yeah, that'd be sweet. America, or at least those that use the DI program, seems to agree because he shot up from a 0 last week to a 5 state win. I don't think he's in any danger this week even though he sang mid-pack.

Todrick Hall (What's Love Got To Do With It by Tina Turner): Again, I'm going to ask why Todrick is still on the show when this story is still floating around? The sad thing is, unless it hits the national news (or at least TMZ), nothing will be done about it because the majority of the viewers of this show are totally unaware of it. Anyhow, the idea of tweaking songs up is cool as a way to freshen and make it a bit more modern. Changing it up just because you can and doing a total remodel on it (especially those that are very well known), not a good idea. Sing one straight. He might actually want to visit John Legend's songbook. Oh! Or maybe some Lenny Kravitz?? Fly Away would have enough of the cock of the walk strut to it that he craves and he'll be able to just sing it as is. The good news is that he stayed the same from last week, the bad news is that he still only got a zero. This week we cannot blame it on being the first singer of the night, he was mid-pack this time. Kara was right, where did the original Todrick go? Maybe he sold his spot to this doppelganger and then split town? I mean, he HAS done it before. Being the only one with no states whatsoever, yet again, he is in the most danger of going home this week.

Jermaine Sellers ( What's Goin On by Marvin Gaye): I really do not like this dude. It's the attitude, I know it is. Um and ditto the above comment from Todrick's. You do not over tweak a well known song, ever. He does have a beautiful voice though. I had to look up Ellen's suggestion of trying out some Frankie Beverly and Maze and I have to admit, she's got it right on. He went from a goose egg to a 1 state win this week so evidentally he did something right. The question is, is it enough?

Andrew Garcia (You Give Me Something by James Morrison): He has a gorgeous recording voice, but Im not so certain I like a live performance from him. Not sure what it is. I think Ellen was right when she pointed out that when he did that awesome rendition of Paula's Straight Up , he set the bar impossibly high for himself. The trouble now is how to top that? He needs another few moments like THAT if he's going to survive this competition. Last week he had the pimp spot and it really showed in the Map numbers this week. He slid from an 11 win way down to only 2 states won this week. I think last week's numbers were due to not only the pimp spot but also because he was coming off the high from the Hollywood Rounds. Number say he's in danger, but I don't think he'll be going home this week. He severely needs another awesome performance next week though.

Aaron Kelly (My Girl by The Temptations): This was a nice performance but rather dated. R&B gone country-ish. Not really memorable. I remembered more about the fact he does photography then anything. In the Maps he dropped from a 3 to a single state win. This isn't good. He's definitely in trouble this week, especially since he seems to split votes with Casey, Tim and Alex and they all did rather well.

Tim Urban (Come On Get Higher by Matt Nathanson): This song should have been a great choice for him. However, his performance of it wasn't all that. You know it's bad when the judges ask you "how was that for you?". Yes, it was a bit of an improvement and he had a good attitude but a karaoke performance is still subpar at this level of competition. Looking at the Map he shot up from a 2 state win to a 6 state win. As it looks like that damnedable site has a victory with him this week, I'd like to suggest a little Rocco DeLuca (now that I think of it, Alex would do well with a DeLuca song as well....).

Lee Dewyze (Lips of an Angel by Hinder): Hm. This artist was absolutely the right choice for Lee's voice. I really do wish he'd picked another song though because I really do NOT like this song at all. I really wish he'd chosen Without You, Better Than Me or better yet really cut loose and do their version of Born To Be Wild. No wait, I don't think his nerves will allow him to do that last one, not yet at least. Seriously, the only thing standing in his way right now is his nerves. The pimp spot helped him out this week and he went from a 1 state win all the way up to a 6 state win. I really hope he can keep this momentum up. Dude, believe in yourself, you've really got it.

So, who goes home this week?

Unfortunately Mike, Todrick and Jermaine are all splitting votes as they are all singing in the same wheelhouse. Aaron, Alex, Casey and Tim are splitting the "Omigosh he's cute"/ country male artist vote.

This week's weak links:

Mike: He sang first on a 2 hour show night and although there was some improvement from the prior week, I'm not certain anyone will remember it much. The only way they'll remember is the fact he's a new papa and he's built like Ruben.

John: He's fodder. A second place sing and an unmemorable performance with a lack of connection with the song didn't do him any favors this week.

Todrick: The only one to not garner any states and with Munchkingate hanging over his head, it's just a matter of time before he's gone. The only one with a bigger diva 'tude then him is Jermaine.

Jermaine: The diva 'tude really needs to go. I was so over it during the Hollywood rounds and I'm beyond past it now. I'm just waiting on the show to tell him to pack his onesie and go already. Only thing to save him this week is if Mike or Todrick are sent packing because we know Idol won't send two AAMs home the same week because the publicity would really suck for them if they do.

Andrew: As much as I hate to say this after all the pimping he got during Hollyweird, I do believe he had set the bar too high and I'm beginning to doubt that he's going to even match it at this point. He needs to be taking notes from Crystal and Lilly this next week if he makes it. Know what you can do and go out and own it.

Aaron Kelly: With Casey getting the cougar vote and Tim getting the tween vote and both of them singing country, Aaron's in real trouble. When you have others in the same wheelhouse, just being cute aint going to cut it. You.MUST.be.memorable. Sadly, he wasn't.

As of this early afternoon

At this point we still don't know if Crystal is going to make it back to the show. I'm really hoping things are looking better for her....