Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Hmm, things just got a little bit more interesting on The X Factor didn’t they.

Oh, the favorites going into tonight’s episode — Drew Ryniewicz, Melanie Amaro and Josh Krajcik — did just fine.

But look at little Rachel Crow, sounding like she belonged for the first time.

Look at Chris Rene, sounding really good for the first time since his audition.

Look at Astro, aka Brian Bradley, turned in his first really solid performance since the live shows began.

And look at LeRoy Bell, sounding like he could be a surprise contender for The X Factor crowd, if only enough viewers will vote for a 60-year-old.

Here’s the recap:

Best of the Night: Melanie Amaro looked fantastic and sounded better singing Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror.”   L.A. Reid criticized the song choice, saying Melanie’s singing the same type of music every week. Actually, this was  more up-tempo than anything she’d done recently, and gave her a chance to show off her personality as well as those powerhouse vocals.

Runners-up: Most of those mentioned above, especially LeRoy, Rachel and Astro. If the latter two keep that up, I might have to change my mind about them being lightweights in a competition of grownups. Rachel’s turn-around from a week ago was nothing short of remarkable.

Stock rising: I was ready to dismiss Chris Rene as a pretender after he stumbled badly the last two weeks. L.A. found the secret for success with Chris: The more rap and the less singing he does, the better he’s going to perform. Now, will voters embrace a rapper on a show like this?

Might be in danger: Stacy Francis performed first, always a potential problem, and didn’t do as well as a week ago. I always fear for Lakoda Rayne, especially because the female soloists are so strong and might dominate the votes that go to the ladies.

Should be in trouble: Ah, nice try, Stereo Hogzz, but that was no way to show you deserve to stay after landing in the bottom two last week. Paula, or whoever picked the little known “Ain’t No Other Man” for their Wednesday performance, did the group no favor.

Best line of the night from the judges: After Lakoda Rayne performed a song from the “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” soundtrack, Simon joked that Paula was working on the sequel, “How to Lose a Guy in One Day.” Responded Paula: “It hasn’t worked. You’ve been next to me for … what? Ten years?” Anyone else think that was rehearsed?

You can find my song-by-song blog here, but Tuesday’s grades appear below.

Melanie Amaro: A
LeRoy Bell: B+
Rachel Crow: B+
Astro (Brian Bradley): B+
Drew Ryniewicz: B
Chris Rene: B
Josh Krajcik: B-
Lakoda Rayne: B-
Marcus Canty: B-
Stacy Francis: C
Stereo Hogzz: C-