AMERICAN IDOL “Top 3 Perform” Review

American Idol 2011 Top 3

AMERICAN IDOL “Top 3 Perform” Season 10 Episode 36 – Axey back, here to assert his rightful place atop the Idol hierarchy of—

What the HELL! Who voted James Durbin off the island?!

Sandie! You’ll pay for this!

(I’m just kidding. Sandie was just as shocked as I was. I’m going to do the American thing and blame Britain.)

So we were basically left with two country singers and Haley Reinhart. See, back in the Olde Days (last year) this never would have happened. Because Simon Cowell hated country music. He usually nipped country singers in the bud. And while I’m actually sort of thrilled to see a genre rise up and extend a middle finger to the departed Cowell (not because I dislike him—I just really like middle fingers) …

… I really can’t stand a lot of country music. Like back-to-back-to-back country music songs all start to blend together in my brain. Don’t get me wrong, I can swing with Garth Brooks’ “The Thunder Rolls,” or Kenny Rogers’ “The Gambler” … Hell, I even own a Trisha Yearwood album. But overall it’s really not my thing.

So you can imagine my thrill when we kicked off the show with two exceedingly boring renditions of exceedingly boring country songs. Which the judges fawned over. I was close to throwing things at the TV.

And then of course Reinhart happened. She gave me hope…

Haley Reinhart: 27
Song: What Is & What Should Never Be (Led Zeppelin)
Performance: 5 Originality: 5 Stage Presence: 4 Appearance: 4 Marketability: 4 Intangibles: 5
Notes: Zeppelin? Zeppelin!? The little child in me said, “OMG R U FN KIDIN ME,” though not precisely spelled that way, since I actually spelled things normally as a kid. Haley’s face plant was actually kind of cool. Extra points for the fact that her dad can wail. I like the fact that she wasn’t shy about gathering the rock crowd to her feet. It was like she glanced down and said, “Oh, Mr. Durban, look what you dropped,” and ran off with the RAWK. After her kickass performance I was pretty damned hopeful that the show could be saved from there.

Alas.

Scotty McCreery: 25
Song: Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not (Thompson Square)
Performance: 4 Originality: 3 Stage Presence: 5 Appearance: 3 Marketability: 5 Intangibles: 5
Notes: This one was a winner. I could imagine this in concert (and it probably will be on the Idol tour). It probably got Scotty into the finals.

Scotty McCreery: 23
Song: She Believes In Me (Kenny Rogers)
Performance: 4 Originality: 3 Stage Presence: 3 Appearance: 4 Marketability: 4 Intangibles: 5
Notes: I think we’ll see Scotty in the finals.

Lauren Alaina: 22
Song: If I Die Young (Perry)
Performance: 3 Originality: 3 Stage Presence: 3 Appearance: 4 Marketability: 5 Intangibles: 4
Notes: “Got caught up in the honesty” = missed her key change. Got it. Kind of messed up here best song was the one she screwed up the most in.

Haley Reinhart: 21
Song: Rhiannon (Fleetwood Mac)
Performance: 3 Originality: 4 Stage Presence: 3 Appearance: 4 Marketability: 3 Intangibles: 4
Notes: Jimmy Iovine’s choice was probably the worst stage song you could conceive. I mean, it’s even just an average radio song. Rhiannon is best experienced sitting on a bean bag with a bottle of 151 in your lap. Or something illegal. Not that I would ever endorse that.

Lauren Alaina: 21
Song: I Hope You Dance (Le-Ann Rimes)
Performance: 4 Originality: 3 Stage Presence: 3 Appearance: 4 Marketability: 3 Intangibles: 4
Notes: I somehow can’t help but feel this was a message from the judges: “Go be yourself and have fun.” Because this chick is just way too nervous.

Scotty McCreery: 20
Song: Amazed (Lonestar)
Performance: 3 Originality: 2 Stage Presence: 3 Appearance: 3 Marketability: 4 Intangibles: 5
Notes: Judges loved this dull song. Shocking, I know. I grade intangibles partly based on how gullible I think America might be in getting fooled into liking something they shouldn’t.

Lauren Alaina: 20
Song: Wild One (Faith Hill)
Performance: 2 Originality: 3 Stage Presence: 3 Appearance: 4 Marketability: 3 Intangibles: 5
Notes: Ouch.

Haley Reinhart: 20
Song: You Oughta Know (Alanis Morissette)
Performance: 4 Originality: 3 Stage Presence: 4 Appearance: 3 Marketability: 3 Intangibles: 3
Notes: Kind of a weak ending in my view. The low portions of the song were not in her range at all. I want to say Haley was basically torpedoed by the judges (this AND Iovine’s disastrous choice were not in Reinhart’s hands), except it doesn’t make sense to have an all-country finale.

Unless they’re purposefully all-together-now giving Simon Cowell the finger.

It’s possible.

Tomorrow on American Idol: Results! Hometown visits! Lots of tears!

Country music fans! Y’all follow me on Twitter! That’s @Axechucker, y’hear?

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Author: Tobias J. "Axechucker" McGuffin | May 19, 2011 | 7 Comments

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AJ

Why on earth would you pick any contestant a song where they don’t sing the entire song (instead of only the chorus)? Torpedoed was right but I think she was fantastic in her first two songs.
Kami2754

So when Hailey fell, “it was kind of cool” n if she goes home it’ll b cause the judges torpedoed her by giving her a song she couldn’t sing properly and cause jimmy selected a song that inherently is a bad song. very objective analysis. Personally i’ll take one soft,tender note from Lauren over a million moans and wails by hailey, Lauren will learn to growl and scream with time ala Hailey, if Lauren so chooses but Hailey will never attain the character and color of Laurens vocals, cause you can’t buy or develop that with practice, you got it or you don’t, and the difference is always clear when both sing softer and tender, Lauren touches you with the very first note from when she opens her mouth and Hailey has to wail and scream before anyone pays attention.

http://www.daemonstv.com Axe

Well, you’ll be listening to that soft, tender note all in one chord. Because she apparently is about as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs whenever it comes to attempting to hit anything remotely resembling an upper register.

FOX will be glad to see someone is drinking the Lauren Kool-Aid they’ve been serving since Alaina first stutter-stepped onto the Idol stage. Actually it’s a lot of someones, since she’s been getting a lot of votes, but you can’t tell me she deserves to be in the final. She freaking missed her chord change.
And by “missed” I mean chickened out of it.

Again.

But I’m glad she’s so spunky ‘n cute ‘n stuff, since that’s what America clearly values.

Kami2754

So now we are counting chords, well why not, how else would you justify calling Casey a singer, he could sound bloody awful in many different chords. Hailey is not nearly as bad but if Lauren doesn’t deserve the finals than does Scotty or should Hailey even be in the top 3? I’m not trying to cut down Hailey, i’m sure a lot of people find her voice magical, for me the difference between her and Lauren is the difference between high fashion and a summer dress. To each his own, there are thinkers and there are feelers, i guess i’m a feeler and if Randy Jackson ever said anything meaningful on the show it was when he talked about the tone of the voice and that’s the magic Lauren has that Hailey, imo, lacks. Singers like her and Casey are indulgent and over stylize, whereas Lauren’s voice is honest and her tone is rich with promise. She is only 16 and will only get better. And btw the girl is not putting on a cutsie, spunky act anymore than anyone else, she is 16 and perhaps not as refined or sophisticated as a Pia or Hailey, but watch her interact with that little boy who saved his brother, from the home visit clip and tell me she is not sincere and emotionally honest, and that’s precisely what her voice conveys to people, it’s no Kool Aid, it’s no high fashion or over stylized, indulgent wailing, it’s just there, if you are willing to see it.

http://www.daemonstv.com Axe

Casey isn’t a great singer, but he’s a fantastic artist. That’s what drew me to him. Haley isn’t even a great singer, but she was the best they had left. At least stylistically.

The only really great singer was Pia.

And Lauren isn’t fake, she’s very genuine, but I get the feeling all these people are either voting for her based on her “cuteness” factor, or the fact that FOX pimps her so hard, or based on the promise she’s shown. It’s not based on any of her actual performances, which, by and large, have been colossal disappointments.

http://www.daemonstv.com/ Sandie

Oh Axe I’m so happy you’re back because I don’t think I could have handled that review. Let’s just say there was a lot of fast-forwarding because I was bored. I didn’t really anything exciting, it was all average to me.

Urgh so frustrating because I really want to enjoy it. At this point I don’t care who wins. I’m even thinking of skipping the top 2 performance and just watch the finale where everyone is back.