If there’s anything I’ve learned from American Idol over the past nine years, it’s that Randy Jackson has a very limited vocabulary and that America doesn’t appreciate singer-songwriters as much as manufactured pop artists. Last week’s batch of new AI episodes proves this point perfectly. Even though we lost some stars, I’d still hedge my bets on this being the “girls’ season.”
Two weeks ago, we saw a breakout moment from bouncy haired blonde Katelyn Epperly. Transforming Coldplay’s song “The Scientist” into a beautiful and melodic piece of art, Epperly brought the audience and the judges to their feet. Sure, Ellen DeGeneres said it put her to sleep, but I discount everything that woman says: she needs to drop the “I’m speaking for America” act and fast because it’s quickly getting old and contrived. They hired her because she has years of showbiz experience under her belt; she knows how to command an audience as demonstrated by her daily talk show, so she had better start giving good, constructive advice or I’ll start muting her part. Her aside, the panel adored her lush, exciting take on an already good song. This week, she put her spin on “I Feel the Earth Move” by Carole King, giving it a smoother and more laid back feel. It wasn’t her best performance to date, but it was FAR superior to fellow contestant Paige Miles rendition of “Smile.” Chock full of pitch problems, the song plodded along at a snail’s pace. The judges uniformly agreed that it was both an awful song choice and performance, yet she made the Top Twelve, leaving a dumbstruck looking Epperly in Miles’ undeserving dust.
I do have to give props to America for “embracing the weird” that is contestant Siobhan Magnus. Her interview bits are deliciously awkward and strange. A glass blower from Sandwich, MA, Magnus has one of the most unique and surprising voices on the show. Last week, she (some thought unwisely) took on Aretha Franklin’s “Think.” The first half of the song was full of bum notes, but she comes along after the first chorus ends. Then, out of nowhere, her mouth opens and out comes a note sent straight from heaven. The audience screamed, the judges screamed, hell I screamed. “That sort of sound should NOT be coming from a tiny little white girl” I found myself thinking aloud. This week, she proved she’s no one-trick pony with her stirring “House of the Rising Sun.” She brilliantly reinterpreted the song in honor of her father. “He taught me how to sing”, she declared in a monotonous voice as she blew the song about a house full of prostitutes out of the water. She is definitely one to watch. Save the glassblower, America.
Crystal Bowersox, I love you, but you are quickly becoming overhyped. Your brilliant song choices, what you so ingeniously do with them, and your general “Screw this show, I’ll do what I please” attitude have me tickled silly. The only problem is those meddling judges who need to learn to NOT shower contestants with the likes of “you’re the one to beat” before we even hit the Top Twelve. Cool it, Simon.
Crippled early on by an unfortunate mullet and a terrible stage fright, Alex Lambert had slowly begun to grow into his shoes on the Idol stage (or as DeGeneres put it, he was a banana that was slowly ripening). Kara put it excellently (sorry, shivered a little. Didn’t feel right typing that sentence) when she told him that he was growing from week to week. With last week’s “Everybody Knows”, Lambert proved that he deserved to be in the competition. To keep guys like Aaron Kelly (looking like a member of N-Sync, sounding like that guy from your high school cabaret show) or Tim Urban (take away Justin Timberlake’s charm and talent) in the competition instead of the always exciting and super unique Lambert was a travesty. Shame, shame America.
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