March 2006 Archives

This was yet another week in which I found myself agreeing with Simon way too much. When Bucky was on, I paused his performance and then called Alecia over to listen to how he mumbled when he sang. Then, when Simon reviewed him, he complained about not being able to understand a word. When Paris was doing the Beyonce, I told Alecia it was comical, and looked like a little girl trying to dance like a grown-up. Simon said the exact same thing minutes later. And I seemed to agree with him even on the people I like: When he told both Mandisa and Chris that their performances were indulgent, I agreed. By this, I took it to mean that they both did songs they liked and wanted to do without considering their audience. They either saw themselves as safe or didn't care, so they did songs that the bulk of the voters couldn't relate too (Chris's was too hard, Mandisa's was too gospel). And I agreed with what Simon said about Chris needing to be more pop-styled to win the competition (though it was a bit hypocritical since Simon just praised him a week or two ago for being the one contestant in show history never to compromise). So I seemed to have been channeling Mr. Cowell tonight.

Anyway, here's how I saw tonight's performances:

1. Taylor Hicks - I love the Ray Lamontagne song that he sang, though I agreed with the judges that it didn't have wild enough runs or a big enough sound to do his voice justice. But it was still the best song of the night. Oh, and I LOVED his new look, as did Alecia. The only handicap, in my opinion, that will keep him from winning this competition is his old, soulful voice and his older look. He'll stay on for a while, but will get bumped sometime around or before the top three due to this handicap. Once some of the younger contestants get voted off (Ace, Kellie), their young people votes will have to go somewhere, and they'll most likely go with whoever's left competing with Taylor. So I think younging up his look (if not his sound) was a bold move, and one he should stick with. He's a major dark horse to win, so any risk is worthwhile.

2. Paris Bennett - I still abhor this annoying little kid. But I love that Beyonce song. And once I closed my eyes so they wouldn't be melted by her awful dancing, I had to admit that it was a good performance. Since everyone else was so weak, she actually made it to the top of my list! Enjoy it while you can, Paris. I think you have about three or four weeks left. You'll be this season's Latoya London or Constantine--someone who gets bumped off before weaker competitors, just because the audience is bored/sick of you.

3. Elliott Yamin - I loved his look and the fun he had with this song. I even liked the way he funked it up when he sang it. But he did screw up the lyrics, and there were a couple raspy spots, so he's relegated to third this week. I'd still like to see him do Jamiroquai soon, or something modern and funky, instead of trying to make songs that aren't really him work with his style. He's my favorite in this competition, and I'm not even sure why. I know he has no chance of winning.

4. Ace Young - I thought this was the best Ace's done in weeks, and the judges were just being overly critical of him. They talked about the songs from tonight being representative of what the singers would do on their first albums, and then ripped Ace for his song choice. Well, Ace picked a song with strong instrumentals and no real singing, which is what he'd need on his first album. Made sense to me. It was cheesy when he showed off his scar (it's like when Kellie winks whenever the word "wink" or "blink" is in the song). But I still think Ace is a nice guy, so I have to give him credit when it's due. He'll be gone soon enough, no need to rip him now.

5. Katharine McPhee - I haven't been much of a Katharine fan lately. Her song choice is boring and her fashion is bizarre. What's with picking only clothes that accentuate her big hips? Anyway, even though I hate that Christina song, I have to admit she sang it okay. That's about all I can think of to say about her.

6. Kellie Pickler - I was in the doctor's office earlier in the week, and "The Soup" was on TV. On the show, they replayed the clip from last week of Kellie asking "What's a ballsy?" And then the host used it in a sentence for her: "It's mighty ballsy of you to keep up this charade of 'I'm a dumb southern girl who's never seen anything!'" He then made fun of her a little more, mocking how she keeps getting stupider each week, and how she'll soon be saying things like "What's water? What's singing?" It's good to see that someone else out there sees her like I see her. Her performance this week was typical Kellie: Stupid and overly cutesy. She shouldn't be at risk this week, but she (hopefully) won't be around too much longer.

7. Chris Daughtry - Chris, what are you doing? You were doing such a good job at making your hard rock persona relateable for a mass audience. Then you go and sing something way harder than people ever want to hear on this show! Cut it out! Keep the edge, but find songs people know and love, and give them your own twist. It should've been you singing something like Davin Magraw like Elliott did this week. Oh, and it's kind of funny that you credited your performance from last week to a version of taht song by Live. During last week's show, I kept telling Alecia, "Man, he sounds just like Live. I could totally see them doing this song." HA! Busted! Now let's get back to the Filter and Fuel stuff next week. (Dear God, don't let it be a disco theme.)

8. Mandisa - YAWN. Who was singing along with you this week, besides the family you brought to the show? You're likeable enough to live through this performance, but it was way too boring and unrelateable. And you're having that problem again, like I commented on a few weeks ago. You know, where you belt the song out at full roar all the way through, with no low tones or soft spots? This time, even Paula noticed. Let's find something more recognizable with more range for next week and see if you can outlast a few more contestants.

9. Bucky Covington - I think Bucky will hit the country charts in the next few years, just like Josh Gracin did. A well-written song and a good studio producer can make Bucky's unique raspiness sound awesome. But until he gets that producer (and accompanying vocal coach) he'll always look slightly uncomfortable on stage and will continue to sound like he's mumbling. And as loveable and HONEST as his southern gentleman schtick is, he'll probably go home next. On a side note, was anyone else surprised to see his wife in the audience? I didn't expect him to be married, for some reason.

10. Lisa Tucker - As soon as she announced she was doing a Kelly Clarkson song, I shouted "No!" at the TV screen. Watching this show is like watching Survivor sometimes. Every season on Survivor, one of the castaways does something incredibly stupid that is exactly the same stupid thing someone did on a previous season to get voted off. So I find myself screaming at the TV, "How can you go on a show that you've obviously never watched before? You should know better than to do that! They did that last season and it didn't work!!" It's the same thing with American Idol. Lisa should've known that doing a Kelly Clarkson song would bring down the unholy wrath of the judges. It's blood in the water for those three when someone tries Kelly, Clay, Mariah, Celine or Christina. They always say the same thing: "Don't try the greats/past contestants if you can't do it better than they did." Of course, that makes no sense, since 99% of the performances on here won't be as good as the originals (which were studio edited, professionally mixed, and often written just for the original performer), but it's what they always say. And Lisa definitely didn't top Kelly (although she did sound better than the judges said, and her runs weren't so bad). Lisa should be in the hotseat once again.

I expect the final three this week to be two returners, Lisa and Bucky, and then a surprise third member. Lisa and Bucky will be in the bottom until they're eventually voted off. Whoever survives this week will go next week. There's no escape. But whoever gets in there with them this week should take it as a wakeup call and realize they're probably next to go after these two, if they don't get it together.

I'm betting that third member this week will be Kelly, or maybe Ace in a longshot. But like I said, it will just be a wakeup call for that singer since either Lisa or Bucky are going home this week.

As for which of those two will go first...I'll go out on a limb and say Lisa. Bucky deserves it more, but I think he has a strong enough niche to stay alive one more week. Lisa's not only struggling, but she's not unique enough to control any subset of the audience. Her hair did look nice this week, though.

On Friday we went to pick up Josie's glasses, which had been ordered the week before. We had ordered baby blue lenses, but they sent pink by mistake. We'll pick up the blue ones next week (the pink were cute, but they looked brown at the office so we ordered baby blue instead. Think, cuter.

Josie took to wearing them extremely well. We had practiced with baby sunglasses at home, smiling and clapping whenever she put them on. She loved the extra attention and would give the biggest smile. On Friday we ended up with almost all of the doctor's office nurses standing around ("She's so cute!") while Josie put them on for the first time. Everyone started clapping and she just giggled. Assuming that Maddie would want glasses too, I brought her sunglasses and she put hers on to applause as well. Josie wore the glasses for the next hour and half without even touching them. Since then, she really only tries to take them off when she wants to touch her eyes - ie. when she's tired and rubs her eyes, or when she's playing peek-a-boo. We really are amazed at how well she's doing, but as the doctor said, she probably likes being able to see now. I have noticed a little difference in her behavior the last two days. You always have a little focusing adjustment when you first get glasses and Josie seemed to have a little trouble picking up her treats on Friday afternoon. She'd attempt to pick them up and then stare at her hand in wonder. She figured it out soon, though. She's also more interested in things like TV and books. This morning she actually lay down in the beanbag and watched Sesame Street. She just stared at the TV in amazement. It sounds simple, but unlike Maddie, Josie has never had any interest in TV shows. She'll look over when she hears Elmo's voice, but that's it. She watched almost an entire show this morning. Then she sat down with me for about half an hour just looking at the pictures in her baby books.

The glasses we ordered were actually the only ones at the office that were the flexible kind. You can actually twist and bend the nosepiece and arms all the way around and they won't break. (I was looking for little cat's eye frames with rhinestones, but they just don't make those with flexible frames. haha) Bill's vision insurance is great. We get one free pair of frames a year (with $15 copay). Plus the warranty on these frames includes replacement on any problem except losing them. So any damage to them will be fixed for free.

We go back in July to see how Josie's vision is doing with these frames. At that time Maddie's vision will be checked as well (just to be sure). Since we're getting an early start on things, Josie's vision may not be so bad in the future. Plus, glasses this early will prevent her eyes from crossing, due to stress on the brain from trying to focus so hard.

On Saturday we got to see The Schneiders while they were passing through on their way to Florida for Spring Break. We only got to see them for the day this time, but we had so much fun. We all went out to American Roadhouse for lunch and then came back to our house for some Guitaxxxr Hero time. Everyone did amazingly well for their first time playing. I think we may have just sold another game for PlayStation. We should get commission or something!

After a short trip to the park it was time to say goodbye to everyone. It was great seeing them, if only for a few hours, and we look forward to heading north again to see them soon.

First off, just a few things I thought were funny about tonight's show:

• Did anyone else notice that Mandisa's tongue was green? I'm mostly colorblind, and I could still see it. I wonder what the heck she ate before the show?
  
• I had to laugh when Bucky moved his hand around while his number was being read, as if he was rubbing the top of the graphic at the bottom of the screen. There were probably a lot of people at home who wondered what he was doing (he could probably see the banner with his number in the monitor in front of him), but it was one of those moments that showed why I like Bucky so much: he's just a good old boy trying to have fun.
  
• Don't be surprised at the fact that Constantine was there--he's dating Kellie Pickler. Seriously. Do you still like her now? I sure don't. Oh, and just for my mom: Ryan "Huge Hair" Cabrera that was sitting next to Constantine is a hack pop star best known for dating Ashlee Simpson. The fact that he was with Constantine makes perfect sense, since they're both posers.
  
• Does anyone else thing Ryan says totally awkward and inappropriate things to Katharine everytime they're on stage together? Is something going on between those two? Just something to think about.
  
• I think Lisa Tucker stole her hair and wardrobe from my sister's senior year of high school. Seriously, she's so eighties sometime.
  
• There's actually a movie coming out called "The ATL?" Take that, you Hoosiers. Has there ever been a movie called "The Bend" or "The Fort?" I think not. The movie looks awful, but I want to eventually see it just to see how much of it was filmed in areas I recognize.

And now on to my ranking for this week. Keep in mind that this isn't my overall ranking, I'm just ordering them based solely on tonight's performances. (If I was ranking them overall, my top four would be some combo of Elliott, Chris, Katharine and Taylor, with Mandisa a close fifth.)

1. Mandisa - I like a bunch of this year's contestants for their great personalities, but Mandisa is one of the coolest. Doesn't she just come off as such a super sweet person? I want to hug her. And I think she looks better each week. She may or may not be losing weight, but she's definitely dressing better. It sounds odd to hear that big girls should wear tighter clothes, but anyone who's watched What Not to Wear knows that wearing baggy clothes to hide your figure just makes you look bigger. Mandisa's form-fitting dress tonight actually made her look her slimmest, even if it was all an illusion. And just so you don't think I'm talking about everything but the song: It was awesome. I'd never heard it before, but she made me love it. It was a perfect fit for her, and I could see her recording it today. I criticized her last week for overdoing the strong parts of the song, but she hit all the soft notes this week and had a more complete performance.

2. Elliott Yamin - Okay, I love this guy. If I could choose anyone's voice on the show to have, I'd choose his. It's so smooth. This is the second performance that made Maddie pay attention. This time, when she asked who it was, I said, "That's Elliot." She said, "That's Alien! Alien is sig-nin'!" Then, she broke into dance. Right then, Alecia came in and Maddie asked her to dance. It was a touching moment. Elliott was on tonight. Good song choice and a return to greatness for him. And you can tell he's humble and honest, and a student of music, which is nice. No posing, no arrogance. I would be totally fine with him winning the whole thing (though I don't think he has much of a shot, despite his talent. I think he'll go no further than the top five.)

3. Chris Daughtry - Wow. "Walk the Line" has gotten a lot of radio play down here ever since the Johnny Cash movie came out, so I must've heard the song a million times over the last six months. It's sort of a simple, goofy song, but it's catchy and a lot of fun. Well, what Chris sang was a totally different song, and something I think could be on his first CD if he wins. It sounded nothing like Cash's original, which was sort of amazing. It's not like he made the song fit him, it's like the song was just waiting for that version to be pulled out. I agree that it wasn't his best vocal (and he admitted he blew some of the lyrics), but it did show his softer side. It actually sounded like a song Live might do, which was sort of cool. This guy is definitely going to be in the top three if he doesn't majorly choke.

4. Paris Bennett - Still the cockiest teenager in America. Someone needs to explain the word "humility" to her. Sure, she's talented, and this week's style fit her to a T. But once the pretenders are gone, and it's down to the top five or six actual singers, she should be booted just on attitude. (And also on bad hair, which may or may not be her fault.) She nailed "Fever," one of the most overdone songs on this show, but I still don't like her.

5. Taylor Hicks - HA! So Barry loves Taylor, too! Take that, mom! Just a quick aside: I had a staff meeting this morning, about thirty people in the room, and the subject of American Idol came up. Our VP--who loves the show--asked how many people were watching it tonight. About twenty-eight people raised their hands, which is no surprise, since it was a mostly female, very TV-minded crowd. Then, our VP did an informal poll about who people were rooting for. Again, the result was almost unanimous. Taylor Hicks owned the room. Everyone loved him. Sort of funny, really, since I would've thought our group would've been more split than that. Anyway, back to tonight's performance. Not my favorite of his songs. I think Buddy Holly is sort of a bad choice for this competition. His songs have no range, so they don't show off the vocals, and they're very repetitive. They seem long, because they involve the same line over and over again. Taylor did the best he could, and was entertaining, but it wasn't his best. I think he'll be safe for a while because everyone but my mom likes him, but he needs better songs in weeks to come.

6. Kevin Covais - I think Barry had a crush on Kevin. You could totally see a dreamy look in Barry's eyes when Kevin was singing. It was sort of romantic. Anyway, I know, I know, I KNOW Kevin has no chance to win this competition. But I sort of liked his song this week. And it was the only one that made Maddie pay attention. Each week, she plays at the table in front of me while I watch this show, and each week, she ignores the whole show until a song or two gets her attention. Last week, it was Chris's Red Hot Chili Peppers song. This week, it was both Kevin and Elliott. She actually started swaying to the music, then turned to me and said, "Who's that, Daddy?" I replied, "That's Chicken Little!" Well, she thought it was funny. My only complaint about Kevin this week: When is the dude going to wear a jacket or dress up a little? This week's shirt and slacks were an improvement over his usual untucked button-up and jeans, but he could stand to wear a sportscoat someday.

7. Ace Young - Hm. Not sure what to think. This may be his best performance since the George Michael song weeks ago, but there were parts of it that were a little weird for me. And I'm not sure if I liked the jazzier version of "Still of the Night" like Barry predicted some people might not. But like I said, it was one of his better songs, and his falsetto at the end was nice. I think he improved enough to move back into the top five or six for a week or two, ahead of a few people who actually have more talent than he does.

8. Katharine McPhee - Wow, she's way less pretty without makeup, isn't she? Of course, even with makeup (when her face is beautiful), she seems to be picking worse dresses each week. Her hair looked great during her performance, but she tends to choose the outfits that make her boobs look saggy and her belly look poochy. Her performance this week wasn't so great for me. It was boring, and seemed half-assed. And her runs hurt my ears. Still better than at least a third of the other competitors (even on a bad day, she's top five), but nothing to write home about. I think she's sort of getting cocky, too. Maybe Simon mentioning her as one of his top three built her ego a bit too much. It would be nice to see her in the bottom two, just to scare her. Or at least let Kellie get voted off so she doesn't have her sorority sister to be cheesy with.

9. Kellie Pickler - What a poser, what a freaking poser. This was one of Kellie's better vocal performances, but I can't stand to watch her anymore. She's the fakiest person on the show. Her country lilt is forced, her innocent act is totally bogus, and I am not a fan. Seriously, tell me how she can be slinky and sexy, then goofy and unassuming like she does? One of them is an act, and I don't think it's the seductress. I'm so ready for her to go home, even if she did have one of her best weeks this week.

10. Lisa Tucker - Poor Lisa. She's SO talented, but so boring. I think that's why she was bottom three last week. She may be one of the top five singers, but she's just not relateable or...fun, really. I love the song she chose for this week, but she sounded off the entire song. Like her cadence was wrong, or something. Even her big notes were underwhelming. I think her bottom three finish last week broke her confidence, and she'll be gone soon. I think she should stick to musical theatre, which isn't exactly a bad thing. I'd love to do Broadway. :)

11. Bucky Covington - I love Bucky, and eagerly await his performance each week, but it's obvious that these themes are going to be fatal for him. He doesn't have the most range, anyway, but the fact that he has to pick songs that are so far from his natural style is killing his chances. I lilked the effort he put in this week, but it was very average. If he does manage to squeak through, he'd better hope next week is "country rock" week, or he'll be the next to go.

I think my bottom two this week will definitely be in the bottom three tomorrow. I think Bucky and Lisa are in there for sure. Beyond that, I'm at a loss. Ace was there last week, but that should've scared his fans into voting, and he did do better this week. I'm thinking Kevin may finally get into the bottom three. I've picked him to either be in the bottom three or get voted off for about six weeks now, and I've been consistently wrong. So maybe now that he finally nailed a song, he'll get too few votes for once?

If it's not him, I'm thinking maybe Elliott. I love him, but his style isn't universal, and he does look funny. He may not have enough of a loyal niche to save him each week. It would suck to see him get hosed like that--except for maybe Chris and Taylor, I don't think there's another contestant this season who lives and breathes his art as much as Elliott does. But it's not about how much they want it, it's about what they're doing to get it.

Anyway, if the bottom three is Bucky, Lisa and either Kevin or Elliott, I'm saying Bucky goes home this week. Like I said, his style isn't working with these themes. And Lisa was in the bottom three last week (while Bucky wasn't), so she has the benefit of her fans being scared into action. So bye bye, Bucky.

Thoughts?

Just watch the clip, and it will all make sense. (At least, as much sense as it can.)

My wife has the unique ability of developing crushes on people based solely on personality and/or charisma, despite what they actually look like. This makes her my complete opposite, since I develop my crushes solely based on boob size. Okay, not totally true. My latest crush (Natasha Bedingfield) is no Dolly Parton. But you get my point. Appearance matters to me. Alecia, on the other hand, was recently infatuated with the Outback commercial guy. Yeah, he's hot.

Anyway, last week, Alecia developed a new crush. She'd already become a fan of his music in previous weeks, but when we went to see Australian artist Ben Lee perform at Smith's Olde Bar in midtown, she fell for him. I have to admit, the guy was very funny, very talented, and one of the nicest semi-famous people we've ever met. Heck, he even quoted Eddie Izzard (one of our favorite comedians) on-stage, which was almost enough for me to start crushing on him. Still, not having seen his show, I can almost guarantee you guys will look at the pictures below and say "Alecia's attracted to THAT guy?"

Keep in mind, however, that this is the same guy who dated Claire Danes forever, so Alecia's not the only pretty girl falling for his guitarista powers.

UPDATE: Just so you can get a feel for Mr. Lee, here are a few of his songs. They won't be up long, due to bandwidth and copyright concerns...

Gamble Everything For Love
Catch My Disease
We're All in This Together

You can buy Ben's CD, Awake Is the New Sleep, here.

Yes, I know I've only been posting about AI lately. Sue me.

Anyway, tonight was the first time the guys and girls have competed together since the competition began. I was frightened of what we might see with the theme being Stevie Wonder. This year's group was so diverse, I thought picking such a difficult and limiting set of songs would automatically handicap some of the artists. And for the first half of the show, I was right. I sort of hate these theme nights, because they're not an accurate test for becoming an "American Idol." After all, what superstar has to straddle every genre? What star has to sing songs from every era? The key to being successful is finding your niche, so it's not fair that someone should get voted off for singing Stevie Wonder badly if they're a husky rocker. So these theme nights are sort of stupid when you think about the end goal of the competition, which is to find the most commercially viable and immediately bankable star.

Of course, despite the challenge of the music, I was pleasantly surprised by the second six performers. I agree with the judges that it was sort of like there were two competitions tonight. Half of the group was just trying not to be the worst, while the other half was truly battling to be the best.

Here's how I ranked tonight's performances, in my opinion:

1. Taylor Hicks - I know the judges were saying that Chris's song was one that could sell albums immediately, and I don't disagree. But I think they would've said the same thing about Taylor's song if they could look past his epilepsy. I've never heard the song he sung, but I thought he nailed it. It didn't seem like someone trying to make a Stevie Wonder song his own, it seemed like a song he wrote for himself. And I found his vocals and performance to be the best of the night (although it was a close race).

2. Chris Daughtry - It was almost cheating that Chris managed to find a song that was rock amidst all the stuff Stevie did. To be fair, Stevie should've written a couple of country songs, just for the country folk in the group. Anyway, I loved the way he worked some runs into what was already a great song. He really did sound like something I would buy or hear on 99X in Atlanta.

3. Katharine McPhee - I hated her makeup and dress, but she is still the person to beat in my mind. I wouldn't make the comparison to Kelly Clarkson that Simon made, but I would agree that she has immediate marketability and a voice and persona that can take on any song. She doesn't have the underdog, come-from-nowhere quality that Kelly had, but she does have better sex appeal, which will help her along. I still think she'll be final three, no matter what genres they're forced to do.

4. Paris Bennett - I still don't like Paris, but her performances are getting less staged and more organic, her style is getting better, and she's talking less and less as she goes along. All of which works in her favor since she's already super talented. Of course, her singing during the phone number part was stupid and you could tell it annoyed the judges. If she keeps doing arrogant, annoying stuff like that, she may find a way to trump her own talent with stupidity. Otherwise, she should stick around a while.

5. Kevin Covais - My mom said I couldn't say anything bad about him this week, and that she was voting for him. I don't have anything negative to say, anyway, so she needn't have worried. I really liked his performance. His voice strangely fit the song tonight, and he seemed to really put his all into the act, even taking risks with some dancing and some runs. He's not as talented as about three-fourths of the other contestants, but he's working as hard as anyone, and seems to be doing just enough to squeak through each week. He needs to let go of the whole "sex symbol" joke, as it's played out. But he's still likeable.

6. Mandisa - I LOVE her personality, and I'll admit she has chops, but I'm starting to think she belts her songs out a little too much. She has that overpowering Aretha voice, and it tends to overwhelm the song and give you a headache after a while. I think her style's getting better, but she needs to find more soft tones in her voice. I still think she'll stick around long enough to do a stereotypical fat girl song like "It's Raining Men," but I don't think she'll make top five or have a chance to win it all.

7. Lisa Tucker - Sort of boring, but she's a good singer. She didn't take any risks with the song, so it was totally forgettable. But her style is getting better (the straight hair was sort of hot), and she should have a few more weeks before her boringness catches up to her. In that time, who knows? She may find a spark of uniqueness. Lord knows she has the talent if she can find a niche.

8. Elliott Yamin - One of my favorites in the competition, but I think he totally dropped the ball this week. His favorite artist of all time, a guy whose style he cribs for his own songs, and he was too nervous to perform. He didn't take any risks and still sounded totally shaky, on a night that he should've been an easy number one. I hope it was all just nerves related to the star power, and not a trend of Elliott choking. He's not charismatic or handsome enough to get by if he doesn't nail the song, so he needs to pick it up (and a more interesting song wouldn't hurt).

9. Melissa McGhee - I thought her song had some rough spots in the beginning, but she showed better range this week than she ever has. Unfortunately, she was probably already in twelfth place in the competition before tonight, and forgetting the words live after already forgetting them on film in practice was the worst thing she could do. She seemed like a total idiot, and that blunder will distract most people from the actual song. Talentwise, she should probably outlast Bucky, Kellie and Kevin (sorry, mom), but I think she may be the next person to go home. The fact that none of the studio audience laughed at the jokes she was making to Ryan was a bad sign. If your own family and friends don't laugh or cheer, what will the people at home do?

10. Bucky Covington - Bucky did way better than I expected with this theme, but it was still totally boring with some shaky vocals and awkward stage presence. And I agree with Simon, that girlie hair was awful! As if it wasn't bad enough before! Bucky's one of those people I look forward to watching each week just to see what song they'll choose and how he can put his own spin on it. So I hope he survives another week. Maybe he'll have enough country fans rooting for him to outlast some of the other, more boring contestants?

11. Ace Young - Okay, I think this dude's getting by totally on looks now. I thought he sounded out of breath during the whole song tonight, and half the time, I couldn't even hear him over the band. Since his George Michael song three weeks ago, I haven't liked his song choice or performance in anything else he's done. I don't think he has a chance in hell of going home this week, but he'd better start singing some actual songs soon, because looks can't carry him into the top five if he can't pull together at least a couple strong performances.

12. Kellie Pickler - Man, is she annoying. What a dimwit. And her obsession with Katharine McPhee is almost scary (just watch the two of them anytime they're in a group setting--they're always hugging). I'm bored with the hillbilly schtick, and would rather hear Bucky's "aw shucks" anyway. Plus, I stand by my earlier statements about Kellie's complete lack of talent. She just can't sing. And she looked totally disinterested tonight, as if her approach was "It's not my style, so why should I try?" I really don't enjoy watching her, and wish she'd go home.

Okay, that's how I'd rank them after tonight. The girls and guys are pretty well distributed, so tonight's theme didn't really support my theory about the guys being so much more distinctive and better than the girls. If anything, it kind of showed that doing specific artists or genres will actually hurt the guys more, as a Bucky, Chris, Ace or Taylor will find it tougher to do a variety of styles than a generic pop singer like Katharine, Paris or Lisa.

Anyway, I'd have to guess that Melissa McGhee is going home tonight. A boring performance, punctuated by blown lyrics and bad jokes should seal her fate. Of course, I've put her in the bottom three twice already, and she's escaped both times, so I could be wrong. If it's not her, I'd say Bucky or Kevin would be on the line. But who knows? Kevin's bouncing bullets off his chest like Superman, so I wouldn't bet against him at this point. Heck, even my mom's voting for him.

Like I said, if I was voting someone off, Survivor-style, I'd pick Pickler. But I think she'll be safe one more week and we'll see one of the three people above get the axe. Let me know if you agree!

I meant to post after the girls went, but didn't have time. So I waited for the boys to sing before giving my reactions. I knew I'd like the boys much better, anyway. The girls were so flat this week, with even the best of them giving mediocre or unpleasant performances. In fact, it's hard to even remember all of them just two days later.

Anyway, here's how I ranked them according to this week's songs:

Girls:
1. Mandisa - It's weird how much I agreed with Simon this week. Almost everytime he disagreed with Paula or Randy, I was of the same mind. And when he said Mandisa was the best girl of the night, I also agreed. She did exactly what Ayla did the week before: sang the perfect song for her voice and sang it perfectly. And unlike Ayla, she did it at exactly the right time, just when she needed it to get into the final twelve. (The final twelve make the tour, if you've wondered why it's such an important jump. Plus, once it's coed, you have more people that could possibly choke to save you from going home.)

2. Katharine McPhee - I still think this girl is the favorite, or at least will be in the final three. She can sing anything, even if her song choice has been boring lately. And she's hot, but in a weird way. This song was boring and didn't challenge her at all, but she did as good a job as you could do, I guess.

3. Lisa Tucker - I agree that she needs to pick some more contemporary and fun songs. She also needs to stop wearing such bright eyeshadow, as it only highlights how much she arches her Vulcan eyebrows. But no matter what she sings, she always does it well. We'll find out starting next week if being boring is enough to get her sent home, once she's competing with some less talented, but more fun guys.

4. Kinnick Sky - Okay, maybe I'm just tone deaf, or maybe I wasn't listening closely enough, but I didn't think the song was as out of tune as the judges thought. And on a night when everyone sort of sucked, I would've put her performance in the top half. She picked something that was right for her voice and look, as opposed to the country she sang last week. But she'll still be going home tonight. She's just not charismatic or good enough to keep getting votes.

5. Melissa McGhee - I agreed with Simon that she shouted the entire song, which was a shame since it was a good choice for her voice. She just sang it like she had a sore throat and had to force it out. She also looked sort of uncomfortable, even once the song was over. She saved herself by getting all slutty last week, but I don't think it will work two weeks in a row. She wasn't awful this week, but will probably still go home.

6. Paris Bennett - Okay, I never liked Paris to begin with, but I think she's getting worse as time goes on. They criticize her older song choices, so she becomes contemporary by picking an eighties Gloria Estefan tune? (By the way, I really think Gloria Estefan should be brought on the show to replace Paula. I've said that for a while now.. She's talented, respected, and--as opposed to Paula--is known for her singing chops. Plus, she'd bring a latin flair to the already multicultural competition. But I digress...) I think Paris's dancing was AWFUL this week, but more importantly, she changed the song so much that it was almost unrecognizable--and not in a good way. You couldn't sing along because of her weird runs. I just hated this entire performance (though Paris probably looked as pretty as she has so far).

7. Ayla Brown - I love the song Ayla chose, it's one of my favorite current radio songs. And I think she's really smart for picking it. After all, like I said before, she couldn't do a ballad better than she did last week's. So she might as well show her youth and pick a peppy, current hit. Sadly, she just couldn't pull it off. She seemed really stiff, the dancing was awkward, and she didn't really get the vocals of the song. Natasha Bedingfield sings it with a fun energy, but Ayla's performance was controlled and restrained. I think she made smart choices, as she always does, but I don't think it worked. I did still sing along, though, which is more than I can say for half of this week's girls.

8. Kelly Pickler - I haven't been a fan of Kelly lately, I think she's putting on a big act with both the redneck personality and her performances. You can't tell me she's this innocent simpleton who just happens to become a slutty, raspy-voiced rocker for three minutes each week. She's not as black and white as either of those, and I don't think she's being honest with either version. That being said, I wish she'd go back to a country song soon. She doesn't have much of a voice (maybe the worst of the remaining girls as far as strength, range and quality), but she sounds especially creaky when growling out these rock songs. It just doesn't do it for me. I know Simon's right when he says people like her--she's sexy as hell, despite her butt being big and her eyes being too far apart--so she'll sail through to the final twelve. But I think she deserves it less than several people who will be cut this week.

In summary, despite how I ranked their performances, I think the bottom three tonight will be Kinnick, Melissa and Ayla. As for who goes, I'd say definitely Melissa and probably Kinnick. But while I've been right on my bottom threes lately, I've always gotten one of the dismissees wrong. So maybe Ayla is out. Who knows?

Guys:
1. Taylor Hicks - I love this guy. You can tell he takes the music seriously and puts EVERYTHING he has into it. Yes, he's a freak, but he's entertaining and talented. I'm not a fan of the song he did last night, but he made me like it. I can't imagine he could've done better with that song. And try to tell me you weren't jumping around at home when you watched it. His spastic movements are contagious!

2. Gedeon McKinney - I've always thought that Gedeon was talented, just overly cocky. Well, his song choice has been dead on lately, and he hasn't been talking as much. (But did you notice how stiffly he does talk? When he was talking about that painting, it was robotic!) I think Gedeon is still one of the best singers/performers in the competition. Paula was right that his moves are totally choreographed, which is sort of annoying. But he deserves to stick around at least until he starts talking cocky again or makes a song choice that doesn't work with his style.

3. Chris Daughtry - I thought the song was really boring, but his performance was perfect. I know he wanted a softer song to show off his ballad chops, but there are so many better rock songs that would've let him do that. I hope he picks something more fun next week.

4. Bucky Covington - I thought his version of Wave on Wave was a nice homage to Pat Green, though a bit boring. He did a great job, even if he did start to do the rock roar a little too much. Was anyone else freaked out not by the fact that he has a twin, but by the fact that the twin was named "Bucky" and had the same ugly pirate hair? I mean, who told them that was a good look? Even despite their teeth, they're both sort of handsome guys, but that hair is awful. Anyway, I like Bucky a lot. He's everything Kelly Pickler SHOULD be: honest, unassuming, modest, etc. I don't know how much longer he'll stick around, but I'd like to see him stay just so I can see what songs he'll do.

5. Kevin Covais - I totally get what Simon meant about the song being something a little kid would do. It was so syrupy sweet and Kevin's voice is so little that it sounded like something a children's choir would perform. Still, Kevin was PERFECT for that song and nailed it. He does as good as he can do each week, and he is likeable. Will he make it past this week? Probably not, but he does seem like a nice kid, and I don't know how you can pick on what he does.

6. Elliot Yamin - WRONG SONG. I love Elliot. He has that Jamiroquai voice working, and does the urban white guy soul thing so well. So why a Bryan Adams song? That song wouldn't have worked for anyone, unless maybe Chris could give it a hard rock edge. And he definitely seemed uncomfortable up there for a change. I hope people are smart enough to not send him home for one weak performance, but I have little faith in the callers.

7. Ace Young - I guess I don't listen to enough Michael Jackson, because I've never heard that song. It was weird. He did nail the falsetto, but that didn't make me like the song. I want to see him get back to something more similar to the George Michael he did several weeks ago. I like Ace, besides the fact that he's a pretty boy who wears his name on his shirt. But I'm starting to think he's floating through on his sex appeal. Seriously, Kevin Covais outsang him this week, but you know Ace will be top five while Kevin's soon to go home. Also, Ace makes weird faces while he sings. How is that sexy?

8. Will Makar - Okay, so his biggest fanbase is young girls...so he does only songs by fifty-year-old artists? I love James Taylor, but I don't think Will nailed this song. Last week, he proved he could sing. This week, he proved he has no clue about song choice. And you can tell when a singer is unfamiliar with the original, because they step all over the best parts. Will stumbled and sounded corny everytime he had a "yeah baby" this week. Instead of showing soul, he seemed like he was forcing it. I wonder how many young girls will keep rooting for Peter Brady when they can't sing along with his songs?

Anyway, despite the criticism, I still think the guys did much better than the girls this week, as usual. There were a few bad song choices, but the guys really do seem to know their own style better than the girls. I predict there will be a few girls going home first when the top twelve sing. The top six guys will have more style and be more fun than the top six girls, any day of the week.

But, to get to that top twelve, two more have to go home. I'm thinking it's Kevin, Will and Bucky in the bottom three this week, with Kevin and Will going home. But I could see one of them (probably Will) staying so that Bucky can exit. It's hard to call because all of them have such a solid niche and are so likeable.

We'll find out in a few hours who goes home (and if Bo Bice's new stuff is any good). And next week should be a blast. Not only do we get to see the genders square off, we get to see those funny group musical commercials. I love that crap.

It's official. Josie will be getting glasses. Her eyesight hasn't improved much since our last visit and the doctor wants to be proactive in preventing her vision from getting any worse from the strain. She's extremely farsighted and has to strain to focus, which could eventually cause her eyes to cross if not taken care of early.

We went to get her glasses this morning after the appointment ("anywhere!" the doctor said) but no place had them small enough, or breakproof-enough for her. After calling around today, I've found a few places that we'll be visiting soon to hopefully get them for her. The doctor assures us that she'll struggle to wear them at first, but then she'll realize she can actually see and will keep them on. Yeah, right.

We go back in a few months, at which time he'll check Maddie's vision as well. Just in case.

The photo below is Josie with the sunshades after the doctor's visit. Her pupils were dialated, so she was supposed to wear these home. Check out the other Flickr photos and you'll see that didn't last long.

We'll keep everyone posted, and Yes, of course, we'll post the pictures of her with her new glasses just as soon as we can get them.

Our niece Cheyenne was in the Miss Legend Pageant last weekend. I just had to post these pics to show how cute she was. Apparently she loved the spotlight and couldn't stop blowing kisses to the audience.

Okay, I would like to say that last night totally validated the statement I made a week ago about the boys being better, as a group, than the girls. Sure, there are still a few pretenders in the male group, but even the weak singers are so freaking loveable that you don't want ANYONE to go home! And they all seem to be having so much fun and seem to be such good friends. The girls seem cliquey already, and a little overstressed. I'm liking the guys so much more this season.

Here's how I would rate the men based solely on last night's performances:

1. Elliot Yamin - It was a tough call as to who was best this week. It seemed like everyone loved Elliot (even Alecia was amazed by his performance), but Simon made a good point that he won't win with songs like that. It's true. He needs to do stuff that people can sing along with and that people know. But come on, didn't he make you WANT to know that song? It was amazing, and I'd buy the single (or at least download it illegally). I still think the only thing that will stand in the way of him winning is his ferret face. If we could combine he and Ace, the rest of the contestants could just go home and save themselves the trouble.

2. Chris Daughtry - I root for this guy every week due to how nice a guy he seems to be. Luckily, he never disappoints. I'm a big fan of the Fuel song he sang, and I could totally picture his version being the radio version. He really did sing it as well as the original band. And he resisted the urge to scream it out, too, which was nice. Good stuff. Like I said, a close second to Elliot's performance.

3. Gedeon McKinney - I don't like this kid. I think he's cocky and a little too choreographed. But I have to admit that his performance last night was his best yet, and one of the better ones of the evening. He's definitely talented, and he was smart enough to pick a song where his weird facial expressions and exaggerated dancing would fit the genre. I hate to list him so high, but he was enjoyable to watch.

4. Bucky Covington - Here's another guy I root for. Unlike Kelly Pickler, he seems more genuine in his southernness. He also seems like he would fit right in amongst Alecia's family in Alabama, and I mean that in a good way. He has no pretention about him, he's just a sincere, honest, good old boy. And I loved his version of Garth, which is saying a lot since Garth is one of my favorite performers. In fact, every season someone does an awful version of "Ain't Goin' Down 'Till the Sun Comes Up" (including Josh Gracin, years ago), and I cringe when it happens. Nobody ever seems to pick the slower, smoother Garth songs until now. Bucky did a great job. I would've liked a little less of the rock roars at the end, but he came back to the soft ending, so all is well. I thought he and Chris would compete for votes as the rockers. Maybe Bucky can stay in as pure country?

5. Will Makar - Okay, did anyone else know this kid could sing? Sure, his performance was sort of sterile, and he seems like a bit of a jack ass (I'll cut him a break for being so young). But last night, he nailed that song. He had a little Josh Groban thing going, and I agree with Simon that the young girls will love him. After the Jackson Five thing last week, I thought he didn't deserve to be there, but his voice came out this week. Maybe he'll pick something a sixteen year old would actually know next week and impress us all. (More likely, he butchers Backstreet Boys and gets sent home.)

6. Taylor Hicks - Like I said before, the guys are just so darned likeable! Taylor is so well-loved here in Atlanta that they do little featurettes about him in the news, and my co-worker just bought a CD off the Internet that Taylor self-published a few years ago. I don't think his Lionel Richie was as good as his past performances, but if he stays around another week, he'll go back to a Joe Cocker-type song and we'll all love him again. Think about it, he's a blues guy with a Ray Charles style, and he's done Elton John and Lionel Richie. If he's getting votes with those songs, he should be in good shape when he finds his niche again.

7. Sway Penala - I wasn't a fan of the song he did last week. I thought this week's was a better choice, but a weaker performance. I don't think we've seen him flex his vocal muscles yet, so I hope he gets by another week so we can see him really pump it out. In auditions, I thought he might be one of the best of the guys, but he's been largely unimpressive so far. I mean, you could tell he could sing last night, but nobody was calling their friends afterwards saying, "Did you hear that?!"

8. Ace Young - Aw, man. Not good for me. The worst part, I think, was the song. He built it up as this song he loved and wished he wrote, and then it was very underwhelming. It didn't have enough catchiness to stick with you, or enough familiarity to let you sing along. He also started out awful on it, though the second half was much better. I don't think Ace is in trouble at all this week, but he definitely needs to find better stuff. His George Michael last week was perfect, and he needs to find that again.

9. Kevin Covais - Kevin, my geeky little buddy, I love you. Which is why I hate to say that it's time for you to go. We all know you can't win this thing. And it would be sort of unfair if you stayed at the cost of a better singer who could actually improve and take home the title. We love to watch you, love to watch your parents, and even love to hear you sing, even when it's more comical than good (like last night). But I hope you've enjoyed the experience so far, because it's coming to an end. "I heard it through the grapevine" is another one of those songs that gets attacked EVERY season, for reasons unknown to me. But the damage was fatal last night.

10. David Radford - Okay, so he listened to the judges and did his genre, and he still looked totally nervous and sounded pretty weak. There's not much more that he can do. I suppose that if he stays past this week, he can try to find a more contemporary version of the Rat Pack (Harry Connick, Michael Buble, Jamie Callum, etc.), but I think it may be too late. He even looked like he knew he was in trouble. The weird faces he makes when he sings were strained with fear last night. My wish for him is that he already realizes he's going home and accepts it. That way, at least his farewell song tonight won't be ruined with tears and sobbing.

Tonight's results show will be really interesting. We're at a point now where we're going to see how loyal people are to their favorites. For example, we all know that America loves and is rooting for Kevin. But with his performance being one of the worst, will he get the votes he needs? And David should definitely be gone, but will his cuteness (and probable army of pre-teens) save him? The same goes for Rich, Will, and even Ace and Sway. All were in that medium range where they could just as easily go home if their fan base bails on them. It will also be interesting to see if being in an exclusive niche will help. Will Sway be aided by the Japican vote? Will Ace be aided by the "men with beanies?"

Anyway, I'd send home Kevin and David, and I hope the audience is with me on this. I could easily see one of them staying in place of Sway if the audience is feeling especially anti-filipino. (Seriously, do we know what his origins are?)

Thoughts, anyone?

Rather than waiting until after the guys sing tonight to post this, I figured I'd separate the sexes to keep my posts shorter (ha!) and more readable. Here are my thoughts on the females from last night. Please comment and let me know who YOU liked and disliked. :)

Last night's performances (NOT overall talent), from best to worst:

1. Ayla Brown - Yeah, I know I just said last week that she wasn't as talented as some of the other girls, but she was awesome last night. She made me like a Celine Dion song, for Pete's sake. And she looked gorgeous. I still agree with what Simon says: she has yet to make a connection with America. I think she deserves to stay after last night's performance, but I'm not sure who will vote for her. Also, even if she survives this week, she CAN'T get any better than she was last night, so next week would probably be her last.

2. Lisa Tucker - I know I said she looked weird last week, and I figured out why. It's the way her Vulcan eyebrows move when she sings. But she was great last night and is definitely talented. Plus, she seems to be staying humble, which the other youngsters aren't able to say.

3. Katharine McPhee - Her song last night was boring, but she nailed it. She's still the girl to beat, in my opinion, because she can do any look and any genre.

4. Melissa McGhee - Okay, my comment on her last week was that she had a good voice but nothing special about her look or personality, so she'd be gone quick. Well, right after I say that, what does she do? She gets new hair, new clothes, and a new attitude. You girls may not have noticed, but she was sexy as heck last night. And it was a good song and fun performance. Despite what the judges said, I think she did EXACTLY the right thing. She was about to disappear due to being anonymous. Well, people know who she is now. If she survives this week, she'll need to keep the sex appeal but pick a song that better shows off her voice next week.

5. Kelly Pickler - Everyone from this point on was just okay for me, including Kelly. I think she's really hot, and I liked the way she messed her hair up during the song, but I still don't think she's that good of a singer. And her "Ah've never been to the big city!" bit is almost too much lately. Seriously, doesn't it seem like at least a little bit of an act? Oh, and either her butt is getting bigger, or those were totally the wrong pants last night. Overall, she's becoming one of those contestants I almost like better with the sound off. But America will love her and keep her around, so I'm sure she could care less what I think. (Just a random side note: Carrie Underwood won on the power of her voice, but if she'd looked like Kelly and had that whole southern charm thing going for her last season, it would have been even more of a blowout. Combined, they'd be the perfect country star.)

6. Heather Cox - I can totally see what the judges were saying about Heather being underwhelming on a Mariah song, but they came down a little hard on her last night. She was really good last night, despite not being up to Mariah's level. It was her best performance of the competition, but she got no credit. As pretty as she is, she's not going to last much longer. Like Ayla, there's just not a fanbase for her.

7. Paris Bennett - Okay, I am officially OFF the Paris bandwagon. I thought she was awful last night. Not out of tune, just not the right song for her. It was an old woman song, and she sang it in an old woman way (real deep and slow). But if that was the only problem, I'd probably be cutting her some slack and still be on her side. What makes me not a fan of Paris is how cocky she's already become! During her whole interview and her time with Ryan and the judges, she seemed so full of herself. I know it's probably easy for all of the nice things she's hearing to go to the head of a sixteen-year-old, but she needs to keep the "sweet young thang" act up and not become the female Gedeon, or she'll eventually get put in her place.

8. Mandiza - The big notes were great, but the rest of her performance wasn't so hot for me. I was surprised all of the judges liked it so much. Maybe I'm biased because I like country music a little (which none of the judges do), so I'm familiar with Faith's original version, but Mandiza lost all of the softness the song has. Overall, not her best performance. And she keeps dressing in a way that may hide her huge butt, but makes her look like someone's great aunt or a gospel singer, or something. She looks like she's the same age as the judges, not the contestants. She may get into the top six on likeability, but I think she's going to run out of fans soon after, if she even makes it that far.

9. Kinnick Sky - Dear god, was that awful. The only reason I don't have her on the bottom of this list is because I hate Brenna so much. But man, did Kinnick blow it last night. I know Vonzell did a country song in a cowboy hat last year, but that was after everyone knew what she could do and loved her for it. Kinnick went to the well too early. She hasn't shown people how strong her voice is yet, so doing a song that's gimmicky, redneck, and requires no vocal range was a bad move. I think her fans cast their votes for Mandiza last night.

10. Brenna Gethers - If my daughters grow up to act like this in public, I'll consider myself a failure as a parent. She's so randomly mean, undeservedly cocky, and altogether repulsive that I can't stand to watch her. The funny thing is that I thought she'd bring the fire tonight and do some kind of sassy song that had attitude and would keep her on another week. But not only did she go with a safe and boring song, she followed it by saying such cocky things that she probably turned off what loyal fans she did have. There's still a chance that someone like Heather could go in her place (boring probably trumps mean when it comes to getting voted off), but she definitely DESERVES to go home after this.

So who do I think is going home tomorrow of the girls? Kinnick for sure, then either Brenna or Heather. I'll go out on a limb and say that those three and Ayla will be the last three voted off, so the final six girls going into the coed portion will be Lisa, Paris, Kelly, Mandiza, Melissa, and Katharine. And just like last year, the girls will be whittled down before the guys will.

By the way, I know it seems like I take notes during the episodes. But you should know that I write these with a browser window open to http://www.idolonfox.com/contestants/. I wouldn't remember half of their names (and definitely wouldn't spell them right) without it. Plus, the site has recaps just in case I forget who did what. I not only watch these without my notebook, I've been watching the first half with a sick kid in my lap for the last few weeks. :)

Just be happy I'm not writing these mega-posts on shows that nobody watches, like Battlestar Galactica or Surface!