Idol '08 thread

[cowtime]

He keeps reminding me of Jim Morrison with the way he moves around. But then, Michael Hutchence reminded me of Jim Morrison, even in his looks. I like this guy.

They both do remind me of Jim Morrison now that you mention it. Yep.
But neither Morrison or Hutchence seemed in so much pain while singing, or maybe they did and I just don't remember. I do know it did not bother me to watch them. I don't like to watch this guy.

As to whether I've ever bought any AI recordings? Nope. I rarely buy recordings. I have to be really blown away to plunk down money. I'm saving for a better oboe. the only one I can think of that I might consider paying to hear is Daughtry. The last cd I bought was Richard Thompson- are you suprised?

[BillChin]

My thoughts on tonights show:

I liked Brooke White and David Cook. Carly and Chikezie did well but I didn't enjoy their performances, not my style. Disappointed by Raimele, Kristy, David Hernandez, David Archuleta. The kid actually forgot the words! Yikes. If he had been on the bubble like half the contestants are, that would be enough to send him home. But with the primo closing slot and the good will towards Archuleta, he will be back. Kristy is likely to go home, and would be almost certain to go if she had been first or second to perform.

It will be interesting to see how the voting plays out. Jason from Texas, David Cook from Oklahoma, and Amanda from Indiana have a geographic edge. Like I said, it is often regional voters that save their contestant. There are two from Oregon, two from Arizona, so that is not an edge until one goes.

The folks from big states and big cities are at a distinct disadvantage. However, it will interesting to see how much other factors figure in. Will Carly pull an Irish vote? David A or David H a Hispanic vote? Ramiele a Philipino vote? Amanda the HOG motorcycle vote?

Michael Johns might be out in the cold, unless Georgia adopts him, but he is six years removed from there so unlikely. There aren't enough Aussies around to move the meter. This makes it very tough for him as the competition moves forward. One bad week and he will be likely be out.

With all those factors, David Cook with a strong regional base plus his talent moves way up the list.

I'm sure most that have already replied also watched the show, given the Beatles theme. Discuss.

[emmline]

I did really enjoy Chikezie last night. He surprised me and put a smile on my face.

It was kind of pathetic the way they set Kristy up by showing her in the clip talking about how she was hoping to win Simon over with tonight's performance. Because she did go on to present--in his apt words--something from a "ghastly country fair."

David Archuletta...well, that's what you get when you try to avoid the Beatles during Lennon/McCartney week. The thing is, he could have chosen She's Leaving Home or maybe Blackbird, and blown'em away.

I'm becoming more fond of Castro, and Brooke too, than I was.

Ramiele is consistently boring. She has a voice but little else. Hernandez too, pretty much.

I'm interested in BillChin's demographics theory of voting block power. Has that been demonstrated statistically?

[fyffer]

And here, I thought I was the only shameless Idol-ater in the Pub.
My brief thoughts:

Any past history of recording contracts aside (which I do believe should be ignored for this competition), I put Carly and David A in the final showdown. Even though David sucked last night (forgetting words is inexcusable), he's the best male singer in the group. Carly just kicks it - hands down - every time.

I have grown to have some respect for Easy Chikezie - he was spectacular last night. After that one, he'll be around for a while.

Brooke and Jason do have, as Paula says (can't believe I'm taking cues from Paul Abdul ...), an emotional connection with their audience. Even if Brooke goes away this week (which she won't), she's set for a music career. She's beautiful and personable, in addition to being a born performer.
Jason's a tougher nut to crack, but I think his modesty and unique singing style are an asset, and if my daughter is any indication, he has a certain affinity with the ladies - she says it's his eyes -- what do I know?

I think David Hernandez's brush with scandal may be his downfall. He's been consistently good - up 'til last night. He's starting to overcompensate, and he peaked too early. He'll be gone by the top 6 show.

What the hell is with Michael Johns? I have absolutely no idea why the judges have been consistently kissing him Down Under (sorry), 'cuz I think he's just plain boring and annoying. Almost everything he sings, he screams, and it's painful to watch. He needs to go. Now.

I think Amanda is coming into her own a bit - she looked great last night, and seems to be softening up a bit (is it her, or the stylists?). She nailed the song, and owned the stage. Watch out for her ..

David Cook will be another one to watch. He's top 6 material, as long as he consistently rocks it like he has the past two weeks. Besides, he's a fellow "word nerd" - what's not to like about that?

Forgettable: Syesha, Ramielle and Kristy. Syesha is definitely set no matter what: Beautiful girl, big ... er .... voice .... great body -- I see a soap opera in her future. Ramielle is a little too young to handle the pressure much longer, and Kristy - I have no idea. I couldn't even find where the beat was supposed to be in her song last night. Another beauty, but this ain't no beauty contest.


So much for 'brief' thoughts.

[FJohnSharp]

Did anyone else feel that in Kristy's song, the whole rhythm was off a half a beat or something? It felt like she couldn't find the beat the entire song.

Carly is my favorite. I love Brooke but she's sort of one dimensional right now. I wonder if she has enough range to be a star. I think the same thing about Amanda.

Chikezie is gathering momentum.

The thing is that none of the top 12 are terrible singers. There are no Sanjaya's this year.

Ramiel was saved by Kristy.

[The Weekenders]

Did anyone else feel that in Kristy's song, the whole rhythm was off a half a beat or something? It felt like she couldn't find the beat the entire song.

Carly is my favorite. I love Brooke but she's sort of one dimensional right now. I wonder if she has enough range to be a star. I think the same thing about Amanda.

Chikezie is gathering momentum.

The thing is that none of the top 12 are terrible singers. There are no Sanjaya's this year.

Ramiel was saved by Kristy.

Yeah, they started off too fast and she never quite caught up. What a bad idea, turning a moderate tempo song into a country polka. Yikes. She's off tonight. Because I come from a ranching and rodeo family, I am sympathetic to her fortunes, but between that song and her crazy eyes, I think she's done.

I continue to by mystfied that people think Brooke and Castro even belong in the competition. He half-assed somebody else's take on "Hallelujah" last week and Simon loved it. Our household was in disbelief on that one. And he batted his Adonis-like (see Paglia Sexual Personae) eyes and whispered through the number last night. I just don't get it. As far as I'm concerned, he's halfway between Ace Young, Constantine and Sideshow Bob, but not as memorable as any of 'em.

I'm disappointed to say that Ramiele isn't turning out to be more than a really good singing voice. I am sympathetic to her as well, because our country needs more cultural icons who are Asian and especially Filipino; they are very underrepresented from my admittedly West Coast Pacific Rim viewpoint. But she will always have great fortune within her community after this. I hope she finds herself, starts moving around the stage and figures out how to pursue better arrangements. I still think she has a great voice and I enjoy hearing it and seeing her up there.

Chikezie was awesome. He's kinda like Hillary. I thought I knew him, and I thought he was finished. Wrong! Then his talent just shone through last night. I guess he'll be around for a while. I think he might be right on the edge of stepping out of his humility shell just enough to take possession of the situation. It's weird, but in singing, humility is a weakness.

It's still Carly's to lose. But as Bill has pointed out, there is a whole demographic feature to consider that is way beyond "what we think" about their performances and strengths and weaknesses. I don't pretend to understand that. I work with a woman who will call in and vote for multiple contestants. Kinda skews the whole thing, to think of that going on.

Archuleta will outlast Hernandez when he gets back into his comfort zone. I mean, the kid showed his age last night, how can you not forgive him for that? He's ultra-talented. And yeah, Hernandez is on thin ice. I guess his past is doggin' him.

Bride of Frankenstein and Combover both did very well last night. I have to admit, Amanda was one of the best last night because she commandeered a well-known tune and raised hell with it. She still has severe limits in her vocal style and you can practically hear the nodes growing on her vocal cords. I still don't like the supercilious leer on Combover's face. I think he's second-rate because he's seemingly too satisfied with what and who he is, rather than having room for growth. He has neither good looks or a really good voice. If he's lucky, he'll find a one-hit wonder single to prop up his career and do okay. Speaking as a musician, I hope it happens but he ain't Idol finalist material. The bar is too high these days.

I can't figure out the Aussie kid. Some nights, he's very strong, on others he's pretty vulnerable. I don't think he can pull it together in time, yet he seems like rock star material to me. Syesha will make it a few rounds, but won't win.

[emmline]

Ramiel was saved by Kristy.

Does that mean we'll have to hear 8 Days a Week country-style again tonight?
Kind of stinks. You're kicking yourself for song choice...you lose...then you have to sing the dang thing again.

[BillChin]

I'm interested in BillChin's demographics theory of voting block power. Has that been demonstrated statistically?

Probably some students are writing papers on it already

Mostly it is anecdotal observations and those of others. There is also the "vote for the worst" campaign, but that usually fires up later in the competition. I can remember the Hawaiian contestant that got a solid block of votes every week and got to the top three, beating several more talented contestants, despite subpar performances from the Hawaiian. Sanjaya might have benefited from his ethnicity plus the vote for the worst campaign.

Virtually every season some talented contestants from big cities are tossed in the middle rounds because they have a single off week and no block of geographic votes to protect them.

Because of geography, Amanda from a small town in Indiana is likely to stay longer than some of the more talented singers from big cities. Amanda is huge news in her part of the country, while someone like Chikezie from Los Angeles doesn't get any geographic boost because city folks are too jaded to vote for someone just because it is their town or state.

Small town folks tend to take care of their own, and everyone knows each other or at least of each other in a smaller town. If it is close, those block votes often make the difference.

The veteran performers such as David Cook, Amanda, Michael, Carly are likely to be able to adapt better to the changing themes and busy schedule each week. The year Taylor Hicks won, he got through mostly on his charisma, stage presence and many years of experience, not on vocal talent. David Archuleta showed his inexperience when doing a song that he doesn't know well. A few more bad performances and the reservoir of goodwill from "Imagine" will be gone and he will be in danger.

[The Weekenders]

This might account for Katherine McPhee, an LA basin girl, not winning over Hicks, who had the country thing goin.' Man, did I disagree with his winning over her.

[Ronbo]

Ramiel was saved by Kristy.

Does that mean we'll have to hear 8 Days a Week country-style again tonight?
Kind of stinks. You're kicking yourself for song choice...you lose...then you have to sing the dang thing again.

Somebody screwed up the beat in her song. It sounded like two competing beats, neither one appropriate for the music. Sounded like a gitar player was listening to something else entirely. I think I would have had to make him eat a chair right after the show.

Chikezie did the best job of all with his song. He knocked it out of the park, but Judge Dreadlocks should be out completely. Archuletta is close to popping a cork. The pressure is squeezing him.

[Congratulations]

I haven't been watching Idol, but that Archuleta kid is adorable. And he's fairly musical on top of that.

[chas]

I continue to by mystfied that people think Brooke and Castro even belong in the competition. He half-assed somebody else's take on "Hallelujah" last week and Simon loved it. Our household was in disbelief on that one. And he batted his Adonis-like (see Paglia Sexual Personae) eyes and whispered through the number last night. I just don't get it. As far as I'm concerned, he's halfway between Ace Young, Constantine and Sideshow Bob, but not as memorable as any of 'em.

I like Brooke a lot -- I'll be surprised if she's not in the final six or so. Singing isn't just about having a good voice, it's also about making a connection with the audience, which she has in spades. My wife is a big fan of Castro; I think he's okay, but won't be surprised if he doesn't last more than a couple more weeks.

I'm mystified by the interest in Carly. She has a great voice over a part of her range, but her voice changes completely when she's in her upper register. I find her upper register really obnoxious and grating.

BTW, I predicted that Amanda would sing "You can't do that" before the show. Only my wife heard, though.

This might account for Katherine McPhee, an LA basin girl, not winning over Hicks, who had the country thing goin.' Man, did I disagree with his winning over her.

Isn't Katharine kicking Taylor's ass in album sales? I get the impression that America has realized its mistake.

[BillChin]

This might account for Katherine McPhee, an LA basin girl, not winning over Hicks, who had the country thing goin.' Man, did I disagree with his winning over her.

Isn't Katharine kicking Taylor's ass in album sales? I get the impression that America has realized its mistake.

No, but Taylor (9th on list) did get dropped by his label after his debut album. Last year's winner Jordan (12th on list), has even weaker album sales, but she is so young there may be more for her down the road. Taylor is ten years older than Jordan so he may be one and done in terms of pop albums. McPhee is 13th on the overall sales list. McPhee does have more downloads than Hicks (see second list).

from
http://blogs.usatoday.com/idolchatter/2 ... te-so.html
1. Kelly Clarkson: 9.4 million total
Breakaway: 5.9 million
Thankful: 2.7 million
My December: 740,000

2. Carrie Underwood: 7.9 million total
Some Hearts: 6.2 million
Carnival Ride: 1.7 million

3. Clay Aiken: 4.8 million total
Measure of a Man: 2.8 million
Merry Christmas With Love: 1.4 million
A Thousand Different Ways: 522,000
All Is Well EP: 53,000

4. (Chris) Daughtry, Daughtry: 3.6 million

5. Ruben Studdard: 2.5 million total*
Soulful: 1.8 million
I Need an Angel: 451,000*
The Return: 236,000

6. Fantasia: 2.3 million total
Free Yourself: 1.8 million Fantasia: 502,000

7. Bo Bice: 706,000 total
The Real Thing: 670,000
See the Light: 36,000

8. Kellie Pickler, Small Town Girl: 702,000

9. Taylor Hicks, Taylor Hicks: 699,000

10. Josh Gracin, Josh Gracin: 695,000

11. Elliott Yamin: 563,000 total
Elliott Yamin: 484,000
Sounds of the Season: 79,000

12. Jordin Sparks: 473,000 total
Jordin Sparks: 424,000
EP: 49,000

13. Katharine McPhee, Katharine McPhee: 366,000

14. Bucky Covington, Bucky Covington: 317,000

15. Blake Lewis: 286,000 total
Audio Day Dream: 240,000
EP: 46,000

-----
Katharine McPhee (6th on download list) does have more downloads than Taylor (15th) though.

> Downloads (rounded totals for all tracks found in SoundScan)

1. Kelly Clarkson: 8.9 million

2. Carrie Underwood: 5.8 million

3. (Chris) Daughtry: 4.0 million

4. Jordin Sparks: 1.5 million

5. Elliott Yamin: 1.1 million

6. Katharine McPhee: 993,000

7. Kellie Pickler: 720,000

8. Fantasia: 638,000

9. Blake Lewis: 580,000

10. Josh Gracin: 553,000

11. Bo Bice: 457,000

12. Clay Aiken: 446,000

13. Taylor Hicks: 330,000

14. Bucky Covington: 252,000

15. Ruben Studdard: 230,000

[The Weekenders]

Very interesting, those figures. I remain surprised that Bucky Covington went anywhere....regional loyalty, I reckon....

Gosh, what happened to Constantine??? Bleeeeeecchhhhhhhh.....

[Doug_Tipple]

Because of geography, Amanda from a small town in Indiana is likely to stay longer than some of the more talented singers from big cities. Amanda is huge news in her part of the country, while someone like Chikezie from Los Angeles doesn't get any geographic boost because city folks are too jaded to vote for someone just because it is their town or state.

Small town folks tend to take care of their own, and everyone knows each other or at least of each other in a smaller town. If it is close, those block votes often make the difference.

I lived close to Amanda's small town of Mulberry, Indiana for several years, so I am familiar with the small-town, sleepy feeling about Mulberry. The only thng good that I can say about Mulberry is that they serve a terrific pork tenderloin sandwich in the downtown cafe. People come from all around just to get one of the famous sandwiches. I see that someone has put Amanda up on their Wikipedia site as one of the famous people born in Mulberry.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulberry,_Indiana