First off, I am still reeling from the ridiculous elimination of Pia last week; however, I am excited to hear she has been vindicated with a record deal practically hours after she got the boot! You go Pia!!
Tonight, we have music from the movies...this is always an interesting theme as some contestants pull out songs from very obscure, unheard of movies (I'm talking to you James Durbin). Who had a box office hit and who had a flop? Let's take a look...
Paul McDonald (♪ 1/2) - I have already said in the past that, to me, Paul is forgetable and going first tonight will not help his cause. Aside from his placement, he was back to the weird "dancing" and at this very moment I could not tell you what song he sang cause I have forgotten. What I can't forget (because he won't let us) is that awful suit which he NOW has in black! Seriously?? I think he is in danger this week.
Lauren Alaina (♪♪ 1/2) - I called it...I KNEW she would do "The Climb"...eh. Her performance seemed disjointed to me. I could not get into it. I totally get where Jimmy is coming from with the whole "stealing Pia's voters" and he is right; however, there is no way Lauren would be the one to do it, especially not with this song/performance. I like Lauren but I feel she has lost momentum again. She also sounded like she was having some vocal issues on top of it. Anyway, I just didn't feel a connection with this performance.
Stefano Langone (♪♪♪♪) - I agree with the judges, Stefano BROUGHT IT! I believe this was his best performance so far since the Wild Card round. I really felt his emotions and he sang the heck out of the song. I want Stefano to do well and I still am shocked that he does not seem to have a strong fan base! I hope those of us (me included) who are voting stepped it up enough to keep him around another week.
Scotty McCreery (♪♪♪ 1/2) - It's a funny thing with Scotty...he is consistent and sticks to what he is good at and gets criticized by the media/public. Why can't a contestant be really good at a specific genre and stick to it? Do you see Brad Paisley trying to do pop or R&B? No. Scotty is a solid country artist and I give him (and the producers he works with in the studio) kudos for sticking to it without making the songs cheesy. Did this performance knock my socks off? No...but it was still good and he is a solid contender and if I am being honest I think he is in the running to win the whole thing.
Casey Abrams (♪♪) - Yikes on so many levels! Casey going against the guidance of industry professionals? Casey's appearance? Casey's playing the standup bass again? Casey's creepy faces are back? Ugh...just when I was starting to have hope for Casey he falls back to his old ways. This performance was lackluster and awkward. Sadly, I do not feel his risk in going against the advice of Jimmy and Will.I.Am paid off.
Haley Reinhart (♪♪ 1/2) - "Call Me" is SUCH a karaoke sounding song when anybody but Blondie does it and Haley didn't do anything to change that (take not of cheesy jazz hands pictured left). Of all the songs out of all the movies, this was NOT what Haley should have picked. Jimmy Iovine is right on the money when he is telling these contestants they need to pick songs that will make them win, not just songs they like or are comfortable with. However, Haley has garnered (shockingly) a decent following that has kept her out of the bottom 3 for a few weeks straight. Will she keep riding the safe wave?
Jacob Lusk (♪♪♪♪) - Jacob is back people! I am sure Jacob knows he has quite a hurdle to overcome after his comment in his video last week. On one hand I am glad Jimmy corrected him for it, but on the other I wish it would not have been refreshed in America's mind again. Either way, Jacob brought a fantastic performance this week. I love when he holds out for the money notes until the end and gives us something to look forward to. Great job!!
James Durbin (♪♪♪♪) - I don't know that I would call this song/performance "metal" even if James did the matrix move during the guitar solo; however, it was a good vocal by James. As you know, I am not a fan of James, but I can give credit where credit is due and he was on point this week. I like it better when he drops some of the antics and just rips it vocally, he does have quite a range when he uses it properly. He needs to be careful of the cockiness though....how do you tell the head of Interscope Records how he can or cannot tell a good song?!?! LOL Well, James is "green" so a good smack down by a professional will hopefully help keep him grounded. Good performance though.
So, who goes home?? At this point in the game I cannot figure out America and how they vote, but here is who I think is in trouble this week: Paul, Lauren, Casey and (sadly, based on history) Stefano. My preference for who SHOULD go home would be either Paul or Casey. We will see what America decides!
*photo credit to Michael Beker/Fox
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