No big surprise on American Idol tonight. Didi Bonami got the boot after Katie Stevens and Tim Urban landed with her in the Bottom Three. However, Katie got the "safe" nod from host Ryan Seacrest and Tim inexplicably escaped elimination again, despite a soul-less performance Tuesday night of the Anita Baker classic "Sweet Love."
While departing Didi was more of a vocal stylist than a real singer, she demonstrated where her musical appeal and modest abilities lie with a solid reading of the Fleetwood Mac tune "Rhiannon," an ode to an ancient Welsh witch, according to its author and original singer, Steve Nicks.
This leaves a field of nine survivors. Just by shear diminishing numbers, Tim has to be the next under-singer to go - barring a flood of texts from his field of pubescent supporters. He also could be kept alive due to the efforts of a subversive Website whose bloggers are determined to keep him on the show as long as painfully possible, ala Sanjaya Malakar (as their designated pick as "worst singer among this year's AI finalists").
That Website underscores the banality of American Idol. It is more of a teen popularity contest than a true vocal competition. This year, it's become tunelessly clear that the judges picked far too many kids with marginal or no musical talent. However, some will keep hanging on way past the point of pain, due to the perverted voting texts of young fans with little or no musical tastes. Or in the case of that one screwy Blogsite - due to the efforts of some discerning wiseacres who are determined to lampoon American Idol down to its last round of competition.
Among tonight's survivors, the best singers are, Crystal Bowersox, Lee DeWyze, Aaron Kelly, Casey James and Big Mike Lynche, respectively.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room."
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Bowersox, Dewyze Rock 'Soul Night' on American Idol
Crystal Bowersox traded in her Berkinstocks for stilettos and her six-string for a piano, delivering a show-stopping rendition of the Jim Weatherly-penned Gladys Knight classic "Midnight Train to Georgia," while Lee Dewyze power-shifted his raspy baritone into high gear on an up-tempo adaptation of the Cornelius Brothers' "Treat Her Like a Lady," highlighting several strong vocal performances among American Idol's Top 10 finalists tonight.
Not far behind was Southern-rocker Casey Jones, who showed off Clapton-like guitar and vocal riffs on a blue-eyed-soul reading of the Sam & Dave classic "Hold On, I'm Coming," while Big Mike Lynche finally graduated from karoke-school oversinging and posturing with a sensitive reading of India Arie's "Ready for Love," and young Aaron Kelly sparkled on Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine."
Katie Stevens delivered a competent "Chain of Fools," but once again, let her poor choice of songs stunt her artistic growth and sense of direction - no one is ever going to confuse her version of the soul classic to Aretha's.
Biggest disappointment of the night was an off-key and uncertain performance of the Chaka Khan jewel "Through the Fire," by Siobhan Magnus, who, since her powerful and innovative version of the Stones' "Paint It Black" several shows ago, seems to have lost her way amid a couple of weak R&B song deliveries. Siobhan belongs in alt-rock, ala Alanis, but just hasn't seemed to figure it out yet.
Stumbling through predictably weak performances were: Tim Urban with a surprisingly on-key - but woefully soul-less version of Anita Baker's "Sweet Love," Didi Bonami's butchering of the Motown chestnut "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted?," and Andrew Garcia's Dave Matthews-like rendering of Chris Brown's "Forever."
R&B heartthrob and superstar recording artist Usher showed class and sensitivity in his guidance to contestants in their preparatory work - handing down smart stage-presence tips and singing subtleties to his young minions - with wisdom, kindness and clarity.
Once again, Simon and Kara argued whether young Katie's singing career belongs in country-pop (Simon's assertion), while Kara and Randy agreed that her strongest suit is in R&B-pop.
The AI show tonight had some redemptive qualities: it was much better than last week's competition, when it seemed only about two singers rightfully deserved to be in the entire competition. Based on tonight's show, Didi deserves to be the next AI finalist to get the door - closely followed by Tim and Andrew.
And that's our view from the "A&R Room."
Not far behind was Southern-rocker Casey Jones, who showed off Clapton-like guitar and vocal riffs on a blue-eyed-soul reading of the Sam & Dave classic "Hold On, I'm Coming," while Big Mike Lynche finally graduated from karoke-school oversinging and posturing with a sensitive reading of India Arie's "Ready for Love," and young Aaron Kelly sparkled on Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine."
Katie Stevens delivered a competent "Chain of Fools," but once again, let her poor choice of songs stunt her artistic growth and sense of direction - no one is ever going to confuse her version of the soul classic to Aretha's.
Biggest disappointment of the night was an off-key and uncertain performance of the Chaka Khan jewel "Through the Fire," by Siobhan Magnus, who, since her powerful and innovative version of the Stones' "Paint It Black" several shows ago, seems to have lost her way amid a couple of weak R&B song deliveries. Siobhan belongs in alt-rock, ala Alanis, but just hasn't seemed to figure it out yet.
Stumbling through predictably weak performances were: Tim Urban with a surprisingly on-key - but woefully soul-less version of Anita Baker's "Sweet Love," Didi Bonami's butchering of the Motown chestnut "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted?," and Andrew Garcia's Dave Matthews-like rendering of Chris Brown's "Forever."
R&B heartthrob and superstar recording artist Usher showed class and sensitivity in his guidance to contestants in their preparatory work - handing down smart stage-presence tips and singing subtleties to his young minions - with wisdom, kindness and clarity.
Once again, Simon and Kara argued whether young Katie's singing career belongs in country-pop (Simon's assertion), while Kara and Randy agreed that her strongest suit is in R&B-pop.
The AI show tonight had some redemptive qualities: it was much better than last week's competition, when it seemed only about two singers rightfully deserved to be in the entire competition. Based on tonight's show, Didi deserves to be the next AI finalist to get the door - closely followed by Tim and Andrew.
And that's our view from the "A&R Room."
AI Judges Need to Assume Responsbility for Having 'Wooden Ears'
This posting is for the American Idol results of March 24, 2010. By now the AI judges have to be taking some responsibility - and should be feeling some no small amount of guilt - for picking so many kids who have so little or no musical talent.
The fact that Tim Urban survived the cut and made the "Top 10," is really a joke. Admittedly, Paige Miles went from bad to worse - and completely lost her confidence - but she still has one of the best voices in the competition. Certainly, Tim, on his best day, has no clue of how to sing, interpret or deliver a song on stage.
Andrew Garcia and Didi are another couple of "weak sisters," that never should have been selected by the AI judges. Both have poor pitch, little vocal strength and really no concept of who they are as singers.
After Sibhan did a great job on "Paint It Black," she did another soul tune which shows she doesn't understand that her strengths and any potential career lie in alt-rock.
Katie Stevens, while a cutie, is a "babe in the woods," and needed another year of vocal practice before trying to become an American Idol.
For my money, the best artists of this season remain Crystal Bowersox, who is sounding and looking more and more like a reincarnation of Janis, - and young Aaron Kelly, who I believe is destined for greatness as a C&W superstar.
The only thing that was remotely "honest" about tonight's show, was the judges' new-found and overall sharpening criticism of the contestants' performances and talent. Maybe they're really starting to face the fact that they selected a number of kids whose time would be better spent pursuing academic studies - and not music.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your comments.
The fact that Tim Urban survived the cut and made the "Top 10," is really a joke. Admittedly, Paige Miles went from bad to worse - and completely lost her confidence - but she still has one of the best voices in the competition. Certainly, Tim, on his best day, has no clue of how to sing, interpret or deliver a song on stage.
Andrew Garcia and Didi are another couple of "weak sisters," that never should have been selected by the AI judges. Both have poor pitch, little vocal strength and really no concept of who they are as singers.
After Sibhan did a great job on "Paint It Black," she did another soul tune which shows she doesn't understand that her strengths and any potential career lie in alt-rock.
Katie Stevens, while a cutie, is a "babe in the woods," and needed another year of vocal practice before trying to become an American Idol.
For my money, the best artists of this season remain Crystal Bowersox, who is sounding and looking more and more like a reincarnation of Janis, - and young Aaron Kelly, who I believe is destined for greatness as a C&W superstar.
The only thing that was remotely "honest" about tonight's show, was the judges' new-found and overall sharpening criticism of the contestants' performances and talent. Maybe they're really starting to face the fact that they selected a number of kids whose time would be better spent pursuing academic studies - and not music.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your comments.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
'Tuneless Tim:' Dodges Bullet with 'Stoned' Version of 'Under My Thumb'
American Idol fans once again demonstrated their stupidity and lack of musical taste by not booting Tim Urban off the March 17 show. Urban not only cannot sing, he has no stage presence and apparently no clue that his ill-advised reggae rendition of the Stones' "Under My Thumb," would have been high-camp theater - if Tim were smart enough to be in on the joke.
Talk about emasculating a song! Tim turned one of the nastiest male chauvenistic songs of all time into a campfire sing-along ditty for nerds. It's a crime how Idol judges blow smoke up some dumb kid's butt and let him demonstrate his lack of musical acuity in front of millions of people - for his 15 minutes of fleeting and unforgiving fame/infamy. Someone should just be kind and tell the kid the truth: Tim, unless you learn how to play your guitar better or learn how to engineer, you have absolutely no future in music.
And while I didn't lose any sleep over Lacey Brown getting the boot for her limp version of "Ruby Tuesday,"
it was a crime that Paige Miles was in last night's bottom three. It's true that she butchered Charlie Chaplin's "Smile" last week. But this week, despite suffering from laryngitis, Paige delivered a strong Tina Turner-esque version of "Honkytonk Women." I think Paige should stay in this blusey-rock genre, because her voice is highly identifiable in that genre, but loses its distinctive quality in R&B pop, where she sounds like a hundred other singers. But this girl, flat out has the best voice and pitch of anyone in the contest. She just hasn't been too smart in her song selection.
Also, despite his transgender mangling of "Weinie in a Bottle" and complete misinterpretation of the Stones "Gimme Shelter," Andrew Garcia somehow escaped the bottom three - where he rightfully belonged with Tim, Lacey and Big Mike. Or, with Tim, Lacey and Didi.
Siobhan Magnus showed she is a force to be reckoned with - with her dramatic, show-stopping delivery of "Paint it Black," demonstrating an artistry reminiscent of Annie Lennox at the top of her game. Siobhan also was one of the few singers who showed an understanding of any of the Stones' songs - most of which were written 40 years before any of the AI singers were born.
My early-on favorites to win the AI title are: Siobhan in the women's category - and young Aaron in the men's, closely followed by Casey and Lee, in that order.
But considering that Idol fans are predominantly prepubescent girls, driven by their hormones and not any semblence of musical understanding or taste, they could pick Casey, Lee or God forbid, Big Mike as this year's winner.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your thoughts.
Talk about emasculating a song! Tim turned one of the nastiest male chauvenistic songs of all time into a campfire sing-along ditty for nerds. It's a crime how Idol judges blow smoke up some dumb kid's butt and let him demonstrate his lack of musical acuity in front of millions of people - for his 15 minutes of fleeting and unforgiving fame/infamy. Someone should just be kind and tell the kid the truth: Tim, unless you learn how to play your guitar better or learn how to engineer, you have absolutely no future in music.
And while I didn't lose any sleep over Lacey Brown getting the boot for her limp version of "Ruby Tuesday,"
it was a crime that Paige Miles was in last night's bottom three. It's true that she butchered Charlie Chaplin's "Smile" last week. But this week, despite suffering from laryngitis, Paige delivered a strong Tina Turner-esque version of "Honkytonk Women." I think Paige should stay in this blusey-rock genre, because her voice is highly identifiable in that genre, but loses its distinctive quality in R&B pop, where she sounds like a hundred other singers. But this girl, flat out has the best voice and pitch of anyone in the contest. She just hasn't been too smart in her song selection.
Also, despite his transgender mangling of "Weinie in a Bottle" and complete misinterpretation of the Stones "Gimme Shelter," Andrew Garcia somehow escaped the bottom three - where he rightfully belonged with Tim, Lacey and Big Mike. Or, with Tim, Lacey and Didi.
Siobhan Magnus showed she is a force to be reckoned with - with her dramatic, show-stopping delivery of "Paint it Black," demonstrating an artistry reminiscent of Annie Lennox at the top of her game. Siobhan also was one of the few singers who showed an understanding of any of the Stones' songs - most of which were written 40 years before any of the AI singers were born.
My early-on favorites to win the AI title are: Siobhan in the women's category - and young Aaron in the men's, closely followed by Casey and Lee, in that order.
But considering that Idol fans are predominantly prepubescent girls, driven by their hormones and not any semblence of musical understanding or taste, they could pick Casey, Lee or God forbid, Big Mike as this year's winner.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your thoughts.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Except for Magnus, AI Singers Show Generation Gap on Stones' Songs
Tonight's (March 16, 2010) show was very interesting. In another American Idol oxymoronic exercise, we saw a group of kids try to sing songs from the Rolling Stones' catalog, most of which was written 40 years before any of them were born. And, it was apparent that some of the singers had no idea what the songs were about. However, a few "old souls" really connected and KILLED with their renditions.
Let's Critique the Women First:
The star of the night was Siobhan Magnus, who chose the perfect song for her voice. She came ready to rock, dressed in black and true to the essence of the song, she "Painted It Black." What can I say? The arrangement with only strings and her voice at the top of the song was brilliant. And when the rhythm section kicked in, she kicked out all the stops. While her vocals wasn't perfectly in tune, so what? That was a rock 'n roll performance worthy of Annie Lennox at the top of her game. It was a captivating and passionate performance in rock by a promising and innovative young artist.. She nailed it! If Siobhan can continue to select material that is SOOO right for her, she definitely will challenge Crystal Bowersox as the best female singer in the competition.
Speaking of Crystal: She seemed a little subdued and off her game with her delivery of "You Can't Always Get What You Want." Still, this lady can really sing, play her axe and perform, so I'll give her the third-best female performance of the night.
Second place among the women had to go to Paige Miles, who, despite a bad case of laryngitis, delivered a powerful, soulful and rockin' version of "Honky Tonk Women," with fresh lyrics geared to the female viewpoint. I heartily disagree with Simon who dissed her performance. I think Paige could be a modern-day version of Tina Turner. When she sings rock, her voice takes on a certain edge and panache that distinguishes her from a lot of generic-sounding female soul singers. Keep rockin' girl!
Katie Stevens had some good moments in "Wild Horses," that kind of reminded me of a young Linda Ronstadt. But Katie comes across as very young, very protected and a bit too innocent to be singing the Stones. Still, a good effort.
The next best effort among the ladies was Didi Benami with "Play With Fire." This is one of the Stones' early songs and it really doesn't have much of a melody. But Didi doesn't have a big voice and she did some nice things with the song, knowing her limits as a vocalist.
The worst female performance of the night was Lacey Brown's version of "Ruby Tuesday," and with her rushed chorus tag delivery of "Still I'm gonna miss you," proved to be prophetic....she didn't connect with the song or her audience on any level. Look for her to be the next female to be cut from the cast.
Now the guys:
For best male performance of the night, and second of all, behind Siobhan, was Aaron Kelly's tender, poignant but powerful interpretation of "Angie." For once I agree with something Randy said. He sounds like a young Gary Levox from Rascal Flats, only less nasal. And, yes, he does have a touch of pop Justin Timberlake in his voice as well, but I think his future lies in Country. The kid is only 16 and as his voice matures, he will be AMAZING! Great performance!
Almost in a tie with Aaron was a surprisingly bluesy and gritty version of the Bobby Womack-written chestnut "It's All Over Now." by Casey James. Casey tonight showed some depth that has been missing from his earlier performances. He showed tonight that he's got some grit and guitar chops. He really belongs in this genre...and his slide guitar playing was a nice surprise.
Third best male performance was by Lee Dewyze who gets props for a solid performance of "Beast of Burden," although it didn't rock much and felt more like an AAA acoustic singer-songwriter treatment. Still, this was Lee's best vocal performance yet, in terms of good pitch, feel and power. I'm starting to think tonight's style may be his best suit acoustic singer/songwriter - and not an anguished electrified alt-rocker.
Fourth best vocal performance in the men's category was by Big Mike. He was basically in tune, but when I'm not looking at him and hear his voice, I see a 5-foot-two-inch guy who weighs 120 soaking wet, and not the big pumped-up dude we see on stage. There's nothing basically wrong with his performance tonight, I just can't see anyone dropping 25 bucks to go see him perform live. I don't see a star in Big Mike, or a singing career.
In the "interesting" but strange category was Andrew Garcia, who clearly didn't understand, interpret or deliver the anti-war chorus message of the Stones' lyric in "Gimme Shelter." Contrary to Randy's constant yapping about "pitch problems," Andy's voice was strong and reasonably on pitch. But the arrangement and vocal delivery killed all essence of what the song is about and where it's coming from...another CLASSIC BAD example of AI having kids singing songs in the wrong genre - and songs they "just don't get."
The worst performance of the night, and one of the worst I've ever heard anywhere, was Tim Urban's ill-advised attempt to turn "Under My Thumb" into a happy reggae sing-song. This is one of Jagger's and Richard's most condescendingly biting and chauvenistic lyric ever - and Tim neutered the song on every level. Tim is my hand's-down pick to be the next among the final 12 contestants to get axed.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room."
Let's Critique the Women First:
The star of the night was Siobhan Magnus, who chose the perfect song for her voice. She came ready to rock, dressed in black and true to the essence of the song, she "Painted It Black." What can I say? The arrangement with only strings and her voice at the top of the song was brilliant. And when the rhythm section kicked in, she kicked out all the stops. While her vocals wasn't perfectly in tune, so what? That was a rock 'n roll performance worthy of Annie Lennox at the top of her game. It was a captivating and passionate performance in rock by a promising and innovative young artist.. She nailed it! If Siobhan can continue to select material that is SOOO right for her, she definitely will challenge Crystal Bowersox as the best female singer in the competition.
Speaking of Crystal: She seemed a little subdued and off her game with her delivery of "You Can't Always Get What You Want." Still, this lady can really sing, play her axe and perform, so I'll give her the third-best female performance of the night.
Second place among the women had to go to Paige Miles, who, despite a bad case of laryngitis, delivered a powerful, soulful and rockin' version of "Honky Tonk Women," with fresh lyrics geared to the female viewpoint. I heartily disagree with Simon who dissed her performance. I think Paige could be a modern-day version of Tina Turner. When she sings rock, her voice takes on a certain edge and panache that distinguishes her from a lot of generic-sounding female soul singers. Keep rockin' girl!
Katie Stevens had some good moments in "Wild Horses," that kind of reminded me of a young Linda Ronstadt. But Katie comes across as very young, very protected and a bit too innocent to be singing the Stones. Still, a good effort.
The next best effort among the ladies was Didi Benami with "Play With Fire." This is one of the Stones' early songs and it really doesn't have much of a melody. But Didi doesn't have a big voice and she did some nice things with the song, knowing her limits as a vocalist.
The worst female performance of the night was Lacey Brown's version of "Ruby Tuesday," and with her rushed chorus tag delivery of "Still I'm gonna miss you," proved to be prophetic....she didn't connect with the song or her audience on any level. Look for her to be the next female to be cut from the cast.
Now the guys:
For best male performance of the night, and second of all, behind Siobhan, was Aaron Kelly's tender, poignant but powerful interpretation of "Angie." For once I agree with something Randy said. He sounds like a young Gary Levox from Rascal Flats, only less nasal. And, yes, he does have a touch of pop Justin Timberlake in his voice as well, but I think his future lies in Country. The kid is only 16 and as his voice matures, he will be AMAZING! Great performance!
Almost in a tie with Aaron was a surprisingly bluesy and gritty version of the Bobby Womack-written chestnut "It's All Over Now." by Casey James. Casey tonight showed some depth that has been missing from his earlier performances. He showed tonight that he's got some grit and guitar chops. He really belongs in this genre...and his slide guitar playing was a nice surprise.
Third best male performance was by Lee Dewyze who gets props for a solid performance of "Beast of Burden," although it didn't rock much and felt more like an AAA acoustic singer-songwriter treatment. Still, this was Lee's best vocal performance yet, in terms of good pitch, feel and power. I'm starting to think tonight's style may be his best suit acoustic singer/songwriter - and not an anguished electrified alt-rocker.
Fourth best vocal performance in the men's category was by Big Mike. He was basically in tune, but when I'm not looking at him and hear his voice, I see a 5-foot-two-inch guy who weighs 120 soaking wet, and not the big pumped-up dude we see on stage. There's nothing basically wrong with his performance tonight, I just can't see anyone dropping 25 bucks to go see him perform live. I don't see a star in Big Mike, or a singing career.
In the "interesting" but strange category was Andrew Garcia, who clearly didn't understand, interpret or deliver the anti-war chorus message of the Stones' lyric in "Gimme Shelter." Contrary to Randy's constant yapping about "pitch problems," Andy's voice was strong and reasonably on pitch. But the arrangement and vocal delivery killed all essence of what the song is about and where it's coming from...another CLASSIC BAD example of AI having kids singing songs in the wrong genre - and songs they "just don't get."
The worst performance of the night, and one of the worst I've ever heard anywhere, was Tim Urban's ill-advised attempt to turn "Under My Thumb" into a happy reggae sing-song. This is one of Jagger's and Richard's most condescendingly biting and chauvenistic lyric ever - and Tim neutered the song on every level. Tim is my hand's-down pick to be the next among the final 12 contestants to get axed.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room."
Monday, March 15, 2010
Katelyn Epperly, Lily Scott Bite the Dust on American Idol
Sorry to see Katelyn Epperly go, but it really wasn't a big surprise, given her bad song selection for the March 11, 2010 American Idol competition.
Glad to see Lily Scott get sacked. She was so caught up in her posing, she never sang one song in tune during all her auditions and performances. When she said "I guess I don't know what the American public wants," she was honest, for once. What they want, girl, is someone real. Someone who sings in tune and doesn't substitute posing for vocal ability.
In the men's competition, it didn't surprise me to see Alex and Todrick get axed. Alex had no voice or stage presence at all. Todrick is just too Broadway....way over the top for pop music...unless he reinvents himself into a male version of Lady Gaga.
I predict the next ones to get cut will be:
Women's competition: Lacey Brown. Men's competition: Andrew Garcia.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room."
Glad to see Lily Scott get sacked. She was so caught up in her posing, she never sang one song in tune during all her auditions and performances. When she said "I guess I don't know what the American public wants," she was honest, for once. What they want, girl, is someone real. Someone who sings in tune and doesn't substitute posing for vocal ability.
In the men's competition, it didn't surprise me to see Alex and Todrick get axed. Alex had no voice or stage presence at all. Todrick is just too Broadway....way over the top for pop music...unless he reinvents himself into a male version of Lady Gaga.
I predict the next ones to get cut will be:
Women's competition: Lacey Brown. Men's competition: Andrew Garcia.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room."
Crystal, Lee, Casey & Aaron Seem the 'Class' of Idol Lineup
Catching up on American Idol. This is the men's competition on March 10, 2010.
Lee Dewyze. Okay, this tune "Fireflies" didn't kill me. Here's the deal with Lee. He looks like an alt-rock recording star. And he sounds like one in his lower and middle singing registers. But when he tries to get into his head voice, his pitch and phrasing get pretty shaky. Still, he's got to be among the top three male singers in this year's AI competition.
Alex Lambert....he's definitely no "Adam" Lambert. Okay, this kid looks like a modern-day version of Peter Noone from "Herman's Hermits." He has ABSOLUTELY NO stage presence and not much of a voice. Here's another example of Idol's judges picking a likeable kid with very little musical singing ability. This should get him knocked out of the competition.
Tim Urban. Okay, I haven't liked anything this kid has sung - up 'til now. By singing the Leonard Cohen classic, he shows he might have a future in the folk-rock genre ala a modern-day Neil Diamond. Still needs to work on his voice and phrasing.
Andrew Garcia. "Weinie in a Bottle." What is a dude doing singing a song that is a stone-chick song? This was a train wreck. He ought to get dumped. Too bad, cos he has some talent, although not much judgment in picking songs.
Casey Jones. Nice looking dude. Looks like a rock star. Sings like somebody at a Holiday Inn karoke contest. He really needs to get to a vocal coach and get some diaphramatic support training. Still, his looks and affable personality probably will keep him in the competition.
Aaron Kelly. Okay, this kid is not as polished as Crystal in the women's competition, but pound for pound, is at least the second-best potential artist in the entire contest. His version wasn't "pitch perfect," but it reeked of honesty and feeling. I think this kid is destined for stardom as a Country singer, although he also could go pop.
Todrick Hall. I stand corrected from my earlier assessment of Todd. He's a dancer, and maybe a Broadway singer, but certainly not a pop or contemporary R&B singer. He is just too dramatic to take seriously.
Big Mike Lynche. The AI judges loved his version of the Maxwell song. I didn't love the original and I didn't like Mike's version. He may be a nice guy, but there's something strange about a pumped-up dude singing in a chick's range. There's something about this dude that just doesn't ring true for me. I don't see a real singing career in the works for Big Mike, although Aaron Neville, who has a similar high weird voice pulled it off. But I don't think Big Mike will make it more than two more rounds.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your thoughts.
Lee Dewyze. Okay, this tune "Fireflies" didn't kill me. Here's the deal with Lee. He looks like an alt-rock recording star. And he sounds like one in his lower and middle singing registers. But when he tries to get into his head voice, his pitch and phrasing get pretty shaky. Still, he's got to be among the top three male singers in this year's AI competition.
Alex Lambert....he's definitely no "Adam" Lambert. Okay, this kid looks like a modern-day version of Peter Noone from "Herman's Hermits." He has ABSOLUTELY NO stage presence and not much of a voice. Here's another example of Idol's judges picking a likeable kid with very little musical singing ability. This should get him knocked out of the competition.
Tim Urban. Okay, I haven't liked anything this kid has sung - up 'til now. By singing the Leonard Cohen classic, he shows he might have a future in the folk-rock genre ala a modern-day Neil Diamond. Still needs to work on his voice and phrasing.
Andrew Garcia. "Weinie in a Bottle." What is a dude doing singing a song that is a stone-chick song? This was a train wreck. He ought to get dumped. Too bad, cos he has some talent, although not much judgment in picking songs.
Casey Jones. Nice looking dude. Looks like a rock star. Sings like somebody at a Holiday Inn karoke contest. He really needs to get to a vocal coach and get some diaphramatic support training. Still, his looks and affable personality probably will keep him in the competition.
Aaron Kelly. Okay, this kid is not as polished as Crystal in the women's competition, but pound for pound, is at least the second-best potential artist in the entire contest. His version wasn't "pitch perfect," but it reeked of honesty and feeling. I think this kid is destined for stardom as a Country singer, although he also could go pop.
Todrick Hall. I stand corrected from my earlier assessment of Todd. He's a dancer, and maybe a Broadway singer, but certainly not a pop or contemporary R&B singer. He is just too dramatic to take seriously.
Big Mike Lynche. The AI judges loved his version of the Maxwell song. I didn't love the original and I didn't like Mike's version. He may be a nice guy, but there's something strange about a pumped-up dude singing in a chick's range. There's something about this dude that just doesn't ring true for me. I don't see a real singing career in the works for Big Mike, although Aaron Neville, who has a similar high weird voice pulled it off. But I don't think Big Mike will make it more than two more rounds.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your thoughts.
Crystal Outshines the Other Ladies in AI Competition
Okay, catching up on my "American Idol" thoughts. This is for the March 9, women's competition:
Siobahn Magnus did an interesting version of the old Animals' chestnut "The House of the Rising Sun." She should be among the final 16.
Up 'til now, I haven't really dug Lacey Brown, but I thought her take on Belinda Carlisle's "I Was Made for You," was well-suited to her light voice, but interesting phrasing. Still not sold on her as a singer.
Katelyn Epperly did herself a great disservice by singing the old Carole King song "I Feel the Earth Move." Song is too old. Katelyn probably blew her chances to stay in the competition. It's a shame. Nice voice, but really bad choice of song. And this girl needs to spend a summer in L.A. or NYC learning how to be hip, if that's teachable or learnable.
Didi Benami: OK, this is the best performance of the evening, so far. Nice reading of the Fleetwood Mac tune. This is the first performance of Didi that I've liked. Should get her into the next level.
Paige Miles. Talk about a crappy song selection. Her version of Charlie Chaplin's "Smile," was a diasaster. Paige has a strong voice, but no artistic direction....and apparently no common sense in picking material. This bomb may get her dropped.
Lily Scott. Okay, so I saw this girl posing at Guitar Center and it really turned me off. But not as bad as her horrific butchering of Patsy's classic. Lily has yet to hit a note on pitch. She slides every freaking note she sings. She has absolutely no talent for singing Country, and apparently no respect for the original artist. I hope she gets dumped before the next round.
Crystal Bowersox: Okay, this girl is the REAL DEAL! I've loved everything she's done to date, including the Alanis tune that Simon dissed. Crystal killed "Turn My Back Around" and made me forget how good the original version was. Crystal is MY FAVORITE LADY in the AI competition.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your thoughts.
Siobahn Magnus did an interesting version of the old Animals' chestnut "The House of the Rising Sun." She should be among the final 16.
Up 'til now, I haven't really dug Lacey Brown, but I thought her take on Belinda Carlisle's "I Was Made for You," was well-suited to her light voice, but interesting phrasing. Still not sold on her as a singer.
Katelyn Epperly did herself a great disservice by singing the old Carole King song "I Feel the Earth Move." Song is too old. Katelyn probably blew her chances to stay in the competition. It's a shame. Nice voice, but really bad choice of song. And this girl needs to spend a summer in L.A. or NYC learning how to be hip, if that's teachable or learnable.
Didi Benami: OK, this is the best performance of the evening, so far. Nice reading of the Fleetwood Mac tune. This is the first performance of Didi that I've liked. Should get her into the next level.
Paige Miles. Talk about a crappy song selection. Her version of Charlie Chaplin's "Smile," was a diasaster. Paige has a strong voice, but no artistic direction....and apparently no common sense in picking material. This bomb may get her dropped.
Lily Scott. Okay, so I saw this girl posing at Guitar Center and it really turned me off. But not as bad as her horrific butchering of Patsy's classic. Lily has yet to hit a note on pitch. She slides every freaking note she sings. She has absolutely no talent for singing Country, and apparently no respect for the original artist. I hope she gets dumped before the next round.
Crystal Bowersox: Okay, this girl is the REAL DEAL! I've loved everything she's done to date, including the Alanis tune that Simon dissed. Crystal killed "Turn My Back Around" and made me forget how good the original version was. Crystal is MY FAVORITE LADY in the AI competition.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your thoughts.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Cleaning out the Garbage on American Idol
Well, four completely out-of-their-league singers bit the dust tonight on American Idol:
In the men's group, the losers were: John Park, a nice young man who should buy a restaurant and sing karaoke to his captive customers; and Jermaine Sellers, who might have a career singing R&B-jazz - if he takes some vocal lessons and learns how to get some diaphramatic suppport and mid-range vocal strength (not all songs are written to be sung in falsetto.)
In the women's group, Michelle Delamor is a beautiful girl with a voice made for sign language; while Haeley Vaughn is SOOO young and could be developed, with some great vocal coaching - say from the likes of a Ron Anderson or Nancy Badger. While Haeley's butchering of The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand," was a vocal mess, it did show that the young girl has some interesting Indie instincts, which can be developed, with the right guidance.
AI is really an A&R train wreck. It's a TV variety show like Star Search that panders to tone-deaf adolscents with a heavy bias toward middle of the road singers - or else Adam Lambert and Daughtry both would have won their competitions, hand's down. Another screwy thing about Idol is that it has aspiring lead singers being asked to sing harmony (like studio veterans) and sing songs completely out of their genre. And while some of the judges are nice people, (Simon not included) none of them, especially Randy who always makes comments about pitch, but does a poor job of hearing it.
Here's the Women's scoop from the A&R Room. Crystal is a ready-to-record star in the making. She looks a bit wan; we hope she doesn't have a serious illness. Katelyn Epperly has a strong voice and a great pure tone, but is really "square" and needs to get hip fast. Lily looks like an alt-artist, but I'd like to hear more singing from her and see a lot less posing. Paige has a pretty strong voice, but no sense of artistic direction. Katie's singing career is in Broadway show tunes (if she studies hard) and not in pop music.
Siobahn has an interesting voice and look, but is weird - sometimes interesting and sometimes just OFF.
At this point, the only ones who've shown good instincts for choosing songs that fit them are: Crystal (a 10), Katelyn (a 9 for the Coldplay tune) and Lily (7.5).
Next week, I'll give you the lowdown on the guys. Stay tuned.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your thoughts.
In the men's group, the losers were: John Park, a nice young man who should buy a restaurant and sing karaoke to his captive customers; and Jermaine Sellers, who might have a career singing R&B-jazz - if he takes some vocal lessons and learns how to get some diaphramatic suppport and mid-range vocal strength (not all songs are written to be sung in falsetto.)
In the women's group, Michelle Delamor is a beautiful girl with a voice made for sign language; while Haeley Vaughn is SOOO young and could be developed, with some great vocal coaching - say from the likes of a Ron Anderson or Nancy Badger. While Haeley's butchering of The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand," was a vocal mess, it did show that the young girl has some interesting Indie instincts, which can be developed, with the right guidance.
AI is really an A&R train wreck. It's a TV variety show like Star Search that panders to tone-deaf adolscents with a heavy bias toward middle of the road singers - or else Adam Lambert and Daughtry both would have won their competitions, hand's down. Another screwy thing about Idol is that it has aspiring lead singers being asked to sing harmony (like studio veterans) and sing songs completely out of their genre. And while some of the judges are nice people, (Simon not included) none of them, especially Randy who always makes comments about pitch, but does a poor job of hearing it.
Here's the Women's scoop from the A&R Room. Crystal is a ready-to-record star in the making. She looks a bit wan; we hope she doesn't have a serious illness. Katelyn Epperly has a strong voice and a great pure tone, but is really "square" and needs to get hip fast. Lily looks like an alt-artist, but I'd like to hear more singing from her and see a lot less posing. Paige has a pretty strong voice, but no sense of artistic direction. Katie's singing career is in Broadway show tunes (if she studies hard) and not in pop music.
Siobahn has an interesting voice and look, but is weird - sometimes interesting and sometimes just OFF.
At this point, the only ones who've shown good instincts for choosing songs that fit them are: Crystal (a 10), Katelyn (a 9 for the Coldplay tune) and Lily (7.5).
Next week, I'll give you the lowdown on the guys. Stay tuned.
And that's our view from "The A&R Room." We welcome your thoughts.
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