Idol Chatter & Voice Views

I think I’m going to grade the performances tonight on American Idol.

I mean, after being deprived last week, I’m just certain we’re going to be treated to a two-hour episode chock full of performances tonight.

Right?

OK, there will probably be some puking and fainting as well.  This is Hollywood Week, where drama counts first and foremost.

Nigel just tweeted that he thinks we’ll get a nice mix tonight. Oh, boy.

Here we go …

The Betties:  OK, bad start. The only one who sounded good among that quintet was Cari Quoyeser.  The group also includes Cherie Tucker, Jennifer Maisch, Brianna Bell and Gabrielle Cavassa.  Cari makes it through, predictably.  Jennifer Maisch somehow makes it. Don’t understand that one.  Group grade: C-

Group Sauce: This group has some wild talent with Jen Hirsh, Nick Boddington, Reed Grimm, Creighton Fraker, Aaron Marcellus   in the quintet.  Nice to see Reed finally sing something with a sense of seriousness.  Very nice job by Jen, Aaron and Creighton in particular.  We’ve barely met Jen, but she’s a real talent. Not nearly as fond of Nick’s vocal.  But well done as a group.  And they came together very nicely at the end. All five advance. Grade: B+

6-7-9: This group includes Brielle Von Hugel, Kyle Crews, Shannon Magrane, Joshua Ledet and a fifth unidentified contest — hate when they do that.  Not thrilled with Kyle’s opening. But where in the world has Idol been hiding Joshua Ledet?  Why have we not heard that voice before.  All in all, a very good performance by Brielle’s group.  OK, the fifth unidentified contestant must be Amber Holcomb. Grade: B-

Make You Believers:  This is the group that inlcudes patient zero, Amy Brumfield, plus Mathenee Treco, Dustin Cundiff and Jacquie Cera. Oh, no, Dustin starts off forgetting the lyrics. Amy sounds sick, and loses lyrics as well.  Then Mathenee tries to make up for it by oversinging horribly. Oh my word, and what was that note Jacquie just hit.  Wow, just a mess, as Randy pointed out.  The only one to survive is Mathenee.  Grade: D

Next up is an unnamed group featuring two contestants we’ve never met before who forget the lyrics. I can’t fairly grade that one.  And I feel bad for any Idol contestant who made it this far and only makes it on TV when they forget their lyrics.

Those Girls and That Boy:  This is the group Alisha Bernhart, the cop, joined at the last minute. It also includes Christian Lopez, Isabell Gallegos, Samantha Novacek and a fifth unidentified contestant.  Honestly, none of the featured vocalists we heard sounded very good. And they didn’t make it through.  Samantha is the Pa. contestant who brought planking sister to her audition. Grade: C-

Hollywood 5:  This young quintet includes David Leathers, Gabi Carrubba, Ariel Sprauge, Eben Franckewitz and Jeremy Rosado. Where has Idol been hiding Ariel? Wow, fabulous opening. We knew Eben could sing, but he sure could use a new last name.  Very nice overall performance.  Second best of the night so far.  Grade: B.

 Area 451:  Group member Imani Handy has passed out, but is determined to compete nevertheless. The group also includes Bryce Garcia, who immediately forgets his words.  Johnny Keyser displays strong vocals.  Kristi Krause goes very sharp. And Imani sounds better than any of the other group members, until she collapses again. Now medics rush the stage, halting the performance.  Only Johnny makes it through, which was deserved. Imani should have made it through too. Grade: C

We lose other contestants we’ve met, including William Thompson, Reis Kloeckener and Symone Zaire Black.

Most International Team:  Richie Lawson, Heejun Han, Jairon Jackson and Phillip Phillips still aren’t getting along.  And this Richie guy might be as big a jerk as he seemed last Thursday.  Not thrilled with that opening by Heejun.  Jairon has a very nice tone to his voice.  Richie talks bigger than he sings.  Ouch, that’s bad.  Phillip Phillips sounded very good.  A little good, a little bad.  A mixed up mess in the end.  And all of them advance.  Grade: C-

And that’s it for the Group Night performances …

Now it’s the last solo performance.

Hey, now we meet Joshua Ledet, who admits he almost didn’t get on the plane to go to Hollywood. That’s one of the best vocals we’ve heard this season.  Grade: A.

Colton Dixon:  It’s been a long time since we’ve heard from Colton.  He sings “What About Now” and does a credible job, though that lost some impact because it followed Joshua’s superb vocal. Here’s betting Colton makes the semis.  Grade: B-.

Phillip Phillips:  Put a guitar in the hands of the pawn shop worker, and he’s much more special.  Very nice version of “Not Gonna Fall in Love.”  Grade: B

Jen Hirsh: Wow, that started sleepy, but it sure didn’t end that way, did it?  Interesting version of “Georgia On My Mind” by someone who’s clearly been doing this for a while.  Very nice.  Grade: B+.

Creighton Fraker:  I wasn’t crazy about this guy when he auditioned.  It was his personality more than anything. But he sounds really good every time I hear him sing.  That might have been a little overdone, but Vegas worthy for sure.  Grade: B

 Oh, no, that was Ashley Robles forgetting the words. She was really impressive in San Diego.

Shannon Magrane:  Hard to believe this gal is only 16.  She’s really good.  One of the best female vocals we heard this season.  Grade: B+

Reed Grimm:  Idol is making this out to be so unusual, but fact is, Reed Grimm plays drums and sings lead in his own band.  This is not at all out of character for him.  Not sure why he’s getting so much special attention.  He’s doing “Georgia On My Mind,” too.  OK performance, but I’m not at all sold on Reed.  Grade: C+

Skylar Laine:  She’s another of the contestants who needed treatment after passing out or nearly passing out. You’d never know if from that exhuberant performance. Very nice, Skylar.  And very nice tone to her voice. Grade: B.

Rachelle Lamb:  Yes, Maddy’s mom made it this far.  We haven’t seen her for a while.  She’s singing a great song by Miranda Lambert.  Another country singer with a very very nice tone.  But I’m not sure that was as special as she hoped.  Grade: C+

Adam Brock:  He says it’s time for Idol to have some “white chocolate.”  We tried several doses in Season 8 and the only time it was boring was when Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta — who had not such inclinations — took the stage.  No thanks.  Not enjoying that at all.  Nice story on the hanky. Grade: C-

 And now it’s time for the remaining 98 contestants to split up into rooms.  I think about 60 advance to Vegas.

Room 1 is through.  It includes Joshua Ledet, Colton Dixon, Aaron Marcellus, David Leathers Jr., Adam Brock, Jermaine Jones, Lauren Gray, Jen Hirsh, Creighton Fraker, Erika Van Pelt, Hallie Day, among others.

Room 2 is through and includes Phillip Phillips, Skylar Laine, Eben, Shannon Magrane, Reed Grimm, Cari Quoyeser, Jessica Phillips, Amber Caparas.

Room 3 doesn’t make it through. It includes Rachelle Lamb, Sarah Phillips, Madison Shanley, Brittany Kerr, Jennifer Maisch, Jayrah Gibson. And they didn’t make it.

Room 4 also makes it through, including Angie Zeiderman, Britnee Kellogg, Richie Lawson, Heejun Han, Baylie Brown, Aubree Dieckmeyer, Deandre Brackensick.