American Idol 9: Semi-Finals Round 2 Men's Performances, Tuesday 3/2/10

Due to the illness of Crystal Bowersox, the ladies of American Idol will perform tomorrow rather than tonight as scheduled.  This means the guys have to step it up and go onstage a day earlier than planned.  They only received the news early this morning. 

(1) Michael Lynche sang "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" by James Brown (1965).  Michael started the night off perfectly, and we hope it bodes well for the rest of the men's performances tonight.  Perfectly in tune, perfect attitude, perfect delivery.  We agree with the judges in that it was Michael's best performance so far in the competition.  Grade: A

(2) John Park sang "Gravity" by John Mayer (2006).  John has a nice, rich tone to his voice that is both unique, and, we feel, commercial.  He seems much more relaxed this week, but we weren't crazy about his song choice as it really didn't give him the opportunity to show a wide vocal range.  Further, his performance was capable, but lacked star quality.  Grade: B+

(3) Casey James sang "I Don't Want To Be" by Gavin DeGraw (2003).  We remember Elliot Yamin's version of this song during Season 5, and it was also performed by Bo Bice (Season 4) and Chris Richardson (Season 6).  Casey accompanied himself on the electric guitar, and it may have changed the arrangement of the song too much because we were underwhelmed by his vocals tonight.  His voice fell short in several places and it was swallowed up by his own guitar.  We agree with Simon and Kara's critiques in that this was not a song and arrangement that he could pull off successfully.  Grade: B

(4) Alex Lambert sang "Everybody Knows" by John Legend (2009).  A lot of the guys this season have distinctive tones to their voices, and Alex is one of those.  His performances sound interesting no matter what song he sings.  We liked Alex last week more than the judges did, but we agree that his performance this week felt more natural and relaxed.  His vocals were good-to-great as usual, and we look forward to seeing Alex devleop as a performer over the coming weeks.  Grade: B+

(5) Todrick Hall sang "What's Love Got to Do with It" (1984).  Todrick said he wasn't going to change the song from the original version as much as he did with last week's choice, but we still felt he obscured the classic melody way too much.  For those of us who can't remember his original audition which wowed the judges, we are only left with two consecutive weeks of lackluster vocals.  Last week, we chose Todrick as one of our bottom performers, and thus far he's the worst of tonight's.  Grade: C

(6) Jermaine Sellers sang "What's Going On" by Marvin Gaye (1971).  Once again, we didn't care for Jermaine's performance.  His falsetto is way too thin and indistinct to carry so much of the song.  We agree with all the judges in that he took a great, simple song and overstuffed it with tricks and vocal gymnastics that were inappropriate to the meaning and intent of the lyrics with the end result being emotionally uninvolving.  Grade: C-

(7) Andrew Garcia sang "You Give Me Something" by James Morrison (2006).  This performance by the usually-reliable Garcia was surprisingly disappointing to us.  Andrew's voice flattened out in a couple of places, and it was overall the most inconsistent performance from him thus far in the competition.  Andrew is still a fan favorite, but we did see a major misstep tonight.  Probably not fatal at this point, but he does need to recover from this.  His frontrunner status is now not as certain as it was coming into the semi-finals.  Grade: B

(8) Aaron Kelly sang "My Girl" by The Temptations (1964).  Aaron took a very difficult and beloved song and did a fine rendition of it.  Noticeably more comfortable and confident than he was last week, his vocals were much more solid and consistent.  Definitely an improvement, but still hasn't vaulted himself out of the midlist among the guys.  Grade: B+

(9) Tim Urban sang "Come On Get Higher" by Matt Nathanson (2007).  Tim was much better this week, both vocally and in his performance, and accompanied himself on acoustic guitar.  He still doesn't have the best voice among the guys and continues to hit the occasional bum note, but we now at least have some idea of what Tim can do with a song.  Taking the two weeks together, we're still dubious about Tim, and wonder just how far he can go in this competition.  Grade: B

(10) Lee DeWyze sang "Lips of an Angel" by Hinder (2005).  Lee gave another impressive, memorable performance this week.  While Andrew Garcia has been getting the lion's share of the buzz this season, Lee is a potential dark horse and is one of our favorites from among all the 20 contestants remaining.  If Lee keeps improving his performances and stage presence, we can see him in the top 2 this season.  Grade: A-

For us, this week, the guys were overall much better and more relaxed than they were last week in spite of having to go a day earlier than expected.  Our predictions for the bottom 2 this week would be Todrick Hall and Jermaine Sellers.  If Aaron Kelly ended up there, we wouldn't be surprised because his song choice, "My Girl," may simply have been too old for the American Idol audience.

American Idol 9: Semi-Finals Round 2 Ladies' Performances, Wednesday 3/3/10

After a day's delay due to the illness of Crystal Bowersox, the ladies take the stage.  Did they make the most of their extra day?  Read on to see our take on the highs and lows of ladies' night.

(1) Crystal Bowersox sang "Long As I Can See the Light" by Creedence Clearwater Revival (1970).  Fantastic way to start off the night.  Crystal was in complete control of this song all the way through and delivered a spectacular vocal in spite of being seriously ill just 24 hours earlier.  We didn't "misunderestimate" her last week the way Simon did because we did see her as a potentially great folk rock performer, and she certainly continued to prove us right this week.  Grade: A

(2) Haeley Vaughn sang "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus (2009).  Off-key throughout much of the song, we actually felt that she was better and more enjoyable last week in spite of what the judges thought.  We think Haeley is in serious danger after tonight's performance.  This song should have really worked for her, but her voice needs a lot more work before it can tackle this deceptively simple song.  Grade: C

(3) Lacey Brown sang "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer (1997).  Better than last week in that the song was not beneath her range the way Stevie Nicks was, but still a lackluster effort from Lacey.  We think the judges made the correct decision last season when she was not put through to the final 24.  We agree with Simon in that Lacey simply is not memorable either as a performer or a vocalist.  Grade B-

(4) Katie Stevens sang "Put Your Records On" by Corinne Bailey Rae (2006).  Competent, but not spectacular.  We don't think that the problem is that Katie isn't choosing songs that are "young enough."  We just feel that Katie doesn't have the chops to take a song and make it soar.  Much like Haeley, she can be cute on cue, but as a performer fails to get past a high school musical vibe.  Grade: B

(5) Didi Benami sang "Lean on Me" by Bill Withers (1972).  We love the tone of Didi's voice.  It reminds us somewhat of Meagan Joy from last season, but this was clearly a wrong song choice for her as her alterations to the melody made this classic track unrecognizable in most places.  However, we felt that she took the judges' criticisms way too hard and it showed in her face and body language.  That may transmit to the audience and give them the subliminal suggestion that they should not bother to vote for her, which would be a shame.  Grade: B

(6) Michelle Delamor sang "With Arms Wide Open" by Creed (2000).  Surprising song choice by Michelle, but she simply didn't put the power in this famous power ballad.  For us, the vocals just laid there.  They weren't understated enough to take the song to a melancholy place that could have been different and interesting nor were they bombastic enough to compare favorably to Scott Stapp's original.  Grade: B-

(7) Lilly Scott sang "A Change is Gonna Come" by Sam Cooke (1964).  Like Crystal Bowersox, Lilly is a performer that one wouldn't ordinarily associate with a showcase like American Idol, but we agree that it's a good thing that she's in this competition.  Like Simon, we prefered her last week, but she's always watchable and interesting each time she hits the stage.  A Sam Cooke song is a challenge for even the most seasoned of performers, but we think she acquitted herself well.  Grade: B+

(8) Katelyn Epperly sang "The Scientist" by Coldplay (2002).  We liked Katelyn last week, and we loved her this week.  Katelyn has such a rich, full voice, and we thought that her slowed down, methodical version actually worked because it allowed that richness to shine through because each note was fully developed and not rushed.  Singing that slowly is actually a risk because if she were off-key or "pitchy," it would really be noticeable, but fortunately she didn't have that problem.  Katelyn's a favorite of ours, and we hope she continues in this competition.  Grade: A

(9) Paige Miles sang "Walk Away" by Kelly Clarkson (2004).  Overall enjoyable, if a little uneven.  When Paige nailed it, she was spectacular.  In other parts, she was good, but not great.  Great song, co-written by Idol judge Kara DioGuardi, that Paige was able to bring to life with her power vocals.  Not as soaring as the original by Kelly, but one of the better performances of the night.  Grade: B+

(10) Siobhan Magnus sang "Think" by Aretha Franklin (1968).  It started off a little rough, but it got better and better as it went along.  We thought Siobhan's higher-register voice couldn't and shouldn't tackle something as deep and soulful as an Aretha song, but she did an overall spectacular job that pleasantly surprised us.  One of our favorite contestants.  Grade: A

Overall, a nice night of performances from the ladies and better than last week.  Following the judges' often puzzling and contradictory advice, many of the ladies experimented a little and made changes to the arrangements or melodies -- with mixed results.  Both the successes and failures were readily apparant.  Standouts include Crystal Bowersox, Katelyn Epperly, and Siobhan Magnus.  Most of the ladies fell comfortably in the middle of the pack and should be in no immediate danger of being eliminated.  Our picks for those in danger of being sent home are Haeley Vaughn and Lacey Brown.  If Didi Benami or Michelle Delamor ended up in the losers' circle, we wouldn't be shocked, either.

American Idol 9: Semi-Finals Round 2 Results, Thursday 3/4/10

Looking at the four contestants who were voted off tonight, only one name truly surprised us: John Park.  We gave him a nice grade, but did note that he lacked star quality.  However, we did think that Todrick Hall performed far worse and should have been the one to go along with the male contestant that we correctly picked, Jermaine Sellers. 

Among the females, both were from among our four picks and, interestingly enough, they were paired off with each other in the way we noted above.  In the first round of female eliminations, it came down to Didi and Michelle, and in the second, it was between Haeley and Lacey.  Last season we had a great track record of picking the ones to be sent home, and, thus far, it has been just as easy this season.

In summary, the four contestants sent home after Round 2 were: John Park, Jermaine Sellers, Michelle Delamor, and Haeley Vaughn.

Next week is the last semi-final round.  On Thursday, four more contestants will be sent home, and we will be left with our top 12 who will compete on the big stage to become the ninth American Idol.