Idol Chatter & Voice Views

The consensus is in from what I’m reading online.

The Idol ladies were hardly awe-inspiring on opening night.

I blame part of that on nerves.

I blame part of that on not paying attention, ladies.

The formula for success on this show is pretty simple. Former contestants have blazed the path. The judges aren’t exactly keeping it top secret.

* Pick a song that suits your voice (kudos for doing that so well Tuesday, Katelyn Epperly).

* Pick a song you wouldn’t be expected to sing (pretty decent choice, Lilly Scott).

* Change up the song you decide to sing, but don’t ruin it (the arrangement was only a small part of Haeley Vaughn’s problem).

* Don’t just mimic the original when you can’t possibly come off well by comparision (Lacey Brown would be exhibit A for breaking this rule, but hardly the only example).

Tonight, we get to see if the guys learned from what they watched.

Meanwhile, did anyone else think the judges’ commentary ran on forever Tuesday night.

I still think four judges is one too many on Idol. And I’m hoping Ellen gets her footing as the semifinals progress. She hardly seemed in top form Tuesday night.

Potty-mouthed Kara, who let the ‘B’ word fly Tuesday, was … well, Kara, which means the judging panel would still be better off without her, in my opinion.

And what will this show do without Simon? Again Tuesday, I found myself listening most closely to his critique. I loved what he told Crystal Bowersox. Essentially, good job, you can do better, take risks.

Looks like Andrew Garcia will get to close the show. Anxious to hear from John Park, Alex Lambert, Tyler Grady and Tim Urban, guys we’ve heard very little from to date.

Don’t you so love the way Simon tries to help everyone relax by telling them if they forget the words tonight, they can kiss their career goodbye.

Listening up, Aaron Kelly?

And here we go …

* Todrick Hall: First up is the guy with all the baggage from “The Oz,” which he brags about on his MySpace, with nary an apology to all those little munchkins who never got to play the roles they paid to play because of canceled shows.

Give Todrick this, he’s picked a song you wouldn’t suspect, Kelly Clarkson’s “Since You’ve Been Gone.” And he changed it up. Not thrilled with the arrangement. But there’s a spark of originality we saw very little of last night. The vocal wasn’t great, not by a long stretch. Simon says he comes across like a dancer trying to sing. Good analogy.

Grade: C, plus a + for originality, but minus a full grade for the Oz fiasco. Result: D+

* Aaron Kelly: Gotta root just a little for a Pa. guy. The 17-year-old from Sonestown is going to sing Rascal Flatts’ “Here Comes Goodbye.” Wise choice. He’s not straying from his country roots, as Janell Wheeler did last night.

Problem was, the vocal was pitchy, though he pulled it through with the big finish. But Simon is right: He’s cute, he’s young. He’s going to get the young girl vote. So I don’t think he’ll have any problem sticking around for another week. Grade: C+.

Jermaine Sellers: This 27-year-old gospel singer declared he isn’t meant to sing in a group during Hollywood Week. Well, Jermaine, tonight the stage is all your’s, all alone. He’ll be performing “Get Here.”

Hey, like the tone of this guy’s voice. That’s what I was hoping he’d do, start soft and build through the song. The only problem is, parts of the middle sounded more like screaming than singing. And a little too uncontrolled. But he showed potential.

All in all, I think that was the best vocal we’ve heard so far. Grade: B-

Wow, the contestants might still be warming up to the Idol stage, but Simon is already in mid-season form with the cuts, huh?

Tim Urban: Now we hear from Idol’s last minute replacement for Chris Golightly. This guy’s a Christian singer, too. One with a very good voice from what I heard on MySpace. He’ll be singing “Apologize.”

Not sure that was the attention grabber of a song he needed, having gotten so little airtime heading into this show. He’s getting very bad feedback on that performance, and Randy hit it on the head about the falsetto. He was straining for notes that he just couldn’t hit. Grade: C-

Joe Munoz: Hey, Joe does sing. Wouldn’t know it by watching Idol so far this season. Like Tim, he’s another guy who needs to come out strong tonight because viewers have seen so little of him in the leadup to the semifinals.

Or maybe he doesn’t sing. Ouch. This isn’t going well at all. Singing Jason Mraz’s “You and I, Both.” Can’t wait to hear what Simon says about that. Joe’s getting decent reviews. I didn’t like that at all. And I can’t imagine anyone thinking that was a memorable performance. Grade: D

Tyler Grady: Here comes the other Pa. guy in the competition. He sounded very good on the Wailing Waters songs I’ve heard. As one might suspect, he’s going to tackle a classic rock song, “American Woman.”

On a night when inspired performances have been few and far between, we just saw an attempt at one. He changed up the song a little. But, again, the vocal wasn’t dead on. And I have a feeling as many people are going to hate that as love it. Grade: C.

Come on, someone, please, step up and show us something memorable. And give us something memorable to listen to.

Lee DeWyze: This 23-year-old might be a paint sales clerk (which explains him telling us mixing paint is among his special talents), but he’s got more experience than many of this year’s contestants. He’ll be singing “Chasing Cars” from Snow Patrol. Hey, very nice tone to his voice. And we’ve found at least one contestant who can pick a song that fits his voice.

Randy thinks Lee’s a rocker. He hasn’t listened to any of Lee’s music, has he? Personally, I thought that was a decent vocal. One of the best of the night. Way to go, Simon. Dead on. This guy has a good voice. Potentially one of the top males. Grade: B.

John Park: It’s been forever since we heard John sing, and then his performance was overshadowed by Shania’s silliness. So, let’s see what got her so excited.

Huh? That was really, really bad. Absolutely listless. The vocal didn’t thrill me at all. Wake me up when it’s over. Nice point, Ellen. Here’s been touted as an Idol hottie. Not too many young girls are going to be thrilled by that performance. Grade: D.

Michael Lynche: He’ll be singing “This Love.” OK, this isn’t exactly what I expected from Michael. The guy who calls himself Big Mike playing guitar and singing a pop song.

Does this arrangement sound rushed to anyone else? Like he’s speed singing or something. But he’s got a good voice, and I liked the ending. And the mood of the song fit his personality. Look, this guy is going to be back next week. Grade: B-

Alex Lambert: The other Lambert is going to sing “Wonderful World.” Was there a line early in that song about not belonging? This vocal isn’t sounding like it belongs on the Idol stage.

This is really quite painful. Don’t worry. There won’t be any Adam Lambert flashbacks after that performance. He seemed nervous. Once in while, he hit the mark. But only once in a while.

Well, I do sorta like this guy. He just said he’s performed like three times in public, at coffee houses. So he isn’t nearly as seasoned as Glambert either. Grade: D-

Casey James: Kara’s designated hottie will be singing “Heaven.” Hey, look, Kara, he’s wearing his hair down for you. Even has the first few buttons on his shirt undone. But is he having trouble holding back a laugh?

Well, his vocal wasn’t bad. He wasn’t pitchy. And, tonight, that’s a pretty big accomplishment. Wish the judges could get down to a serious critique. Bottom line: Casey’s not going anywhere, though folks might turn on him just because of Kara’s silliness. “You might be eye candy, but you’re ear candy, too.” Seriously, Kara, the vocal wasn’t that great. Grade: B.

Andrew Garcia: Well, we have one last chance at a truly memorable performance. Please come through for us, Andrew. He’s going acoustic, which is his strength. Remember “Straight Up?” He’s singing “Sugar, We’re Going Down.”

Very good voice, but Simon’s right, it wasn’t a great song. Not the unforgettable performance I was looking for. But there’s no denying that this guy has one of the best sounds among all the guys. In terms of critiques, I think he might have suffered from high expectations. Nothing I saw changes this impression: Of the guys, he has the most potential to impress over the long haul. Grade: B-

The recap blog has also now been posted. Here’s the link.