This is another tough night to judge. No major missteps among these contestants. There are many candidates that could go home only because the competition is so tight. Fan bases will need to work overtime to keep their favorites in the competition. Few people seem safe. I loved the majority of the performances tonight, and these contestants had a lot to live up to since I’m a huge fan of the Elton John songbook. This season’s contestants did these selections proud (sorry Season 3, you ain’t got nothing on this crop).
Scotty McCreery - The country crooner started off the night by bringing out the guitar and strumming some “Country Comfort”. And he sure did comfort the crowd with his soothing, deep voice. Scotty surely knows how to choose songs that suit him. His vocals were still solid and he looks very comfortable on stage. It looks like he now has the grandma vote - I mean seriously, that whole grandma shout-out was so sweet and I’m sure it warmed the hearts of his many fans.
Naima Adedapo - It’s time to bring some reggae to the Idol stage with Naima as she adapted “I’m Still Standing” to give it some island flavor. I love the creativity and daring sensibility Naima has, but I’m not sure it all came together tonight. The cohesion in the arrangement was lacking. The song felt like it was trodding along. I appreciate the risk taking but it just didn’t work. The vocal was good and she is always a fun performer. I hope she gets another chance but I worry her early performance spot and lukewarm critiques might send her home.
Paul McDonald - Another tender, guitar strummed performance helps bring back the Paul we loved from Hollywood week. Paul tackled “Rocket Man” and soared high with this performance. It was sweet and understated. His captivating raspy voice with the perfectly imperfect delivery of the phrasing are always appealing to the ears. The performance was a little coffeehouse, but I enjoy a lot of coffeehouse music. The judges are right with the fact that Paul needs to “push,” probably with some big song with mega notes. Or perhaps rearrange a song that would normally be out of his wheelhouse, like what David Cook did with “Hello” and “Always Be My Baby.” Paul needs to step it up since his competition is beginning to stand out more than him.
Pia Toscano - I knew someone would dare sing the song that has been oversung on Idol many a times. “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me” has been covered by Justin Guarini, Clay Aiken, Jasmine Trias, Bo Bice, David Archuleta, Jorge Nunez and now Pia Toscano can be added to that list. Great song, but I so very tired of hearing it sung on these competition shows over and over again. Well, with that said, I was actually pleasantly surprised with my liking of this performance. I still want to see Pia eventually do something more contemporary-leaning or up-tempo, but I didn’t mind hearing this ballad sung well. And Pia SANG well! She hit all the right notes and continuously shows her vocal prowess. I can’t fault her ability, but I can still fault her choices.
Stefano Langone - Stefano tried to win back America with “Tiny Dancer.” This was just a good vocal. He is emoting a lot more, which is good. But there was nothing stellar about this performance. I still love this guy’s voice. I hear hints of Bruno Mars in his voice and that is what is hot in the music scene right now. Stefano needs to bring more of that soothing R&B throwback swagger to his performance. I don’t hear enough of it and I want to hear more.
Lauren Alaina - We finally hear a ballad from Lauren. I’m glad we had chance to hear this as Lauren and “Candle in the Wind” ended up being a marriage between a beautiful voice and an epic song. The country twang actually brought out more depth to the lyrical interpretation of the performance. The vocal was sincere and the arrangement was appropriately simple. This was clearly her strongest performance to date. I’m slowly getting on the Lauren Alaina bandwagon.
James Durbin - James knows how to perform and he performed the hell out of “Saturday Night‘s Alright For Fighting”. His vocal is consistently strong and he always shows impressive range. I approve of James’ theatrics because everything he does is so genuinely him. I don’t see any fakeness in his performance or persona. I’m totally buying into his rocking sensibilities. The fire may have been a little much, but I must admit that it did amuse me.
Thia Megia - Thia is trying to break from the robotic persona she is known for by throwing some emotion into “Daniel.” She was actually using her own life experience, of having a brother leave her, to relate to the song. I didn’t see the emotional connection throughout the whole performance but there were moments of brilliance. If she had performed the whole song like in her final few lines with the verge-of-crying sound in her voice, the presentation would have had a lot more depth. As the youngest girl in this competition, this girl has a lot more developing to do. Had she entered Idol two years from now she’d be a frontrunner. As of right now, she isn’t ready.
Casey Abrams - The saved Casey sang his heart out and serenaded us with “Your Song.” This is my favorite Elton John song and Casey did it proud. He set aside the histrionics and just sang it. The notes were there. The performance was beautifully stripped back. I love that he just sat on a stool singing next to a grand piano. Casey needed an unplugged performance to showcase his voice. He still gave it hints of his growly flavor, but he didn’t distract from the sweet, tender quality to the song. Casey is back in the game!
Jacob Lusk - Jacob keeps trying to tone down the over-singing. I’m not sure he can help it. If this is restrained for Jacob, I don’t know how much I can take if he really goes for it. “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word” is a song that is supposed to be understated and heartfelt. I’m not sure if Jacob is capable of that. The vocal was strong. He certainly has great skills but I felt all that tremelo was too much.
Haley Reinhart - Haley has one of the most interesting voices in this competition. Her vocal ability is very impressive. She growls and yodels all in key and she shifts phrasing with ease. I love the jazzy nature to her voice. In tonight’s performance of “Benny and the Jets,” she really highlighted everything that is great about her voice. It was actually a sensational performance. It sounded like she started off too fast, as the piano and her didn’t seem in sync at the opening, but she adapted and it sounded a lot more organic and her vocals blew it out of the park. She still needs someone to coach her on what to do with her body when she is on that stage. The flailing of the arms and awkward bending was a bit distracting at times and uncomfortable to watch. But I do see a lot of potential in her.
My rankings:
1. Casey Abrams
2. Pia Toscano
3. James Durbin
4. Scotty McCreery
5. Haley Reinhart
6. Paul McDonald
7. Lauren Alaina
8. Stefano Langone
9. Jacob Lusk
10. Thia Megia
11. Naima Adedapo
Who’s Going Home? Naima Adedapo and Thia Megia Bottom 3: Naima Adedapo, Thia Megia and Stefano Langone
This is tough to pick who goes home. With all my critiques aside, everyone brings something interesting to the table. I will be excited to see them all on tour. It will be sad elimination from here on out.
