Tuesday, March 1, 2011

American Idol - 12 Boys

Well well well... it's getting goooood!!! I miss live-blogging very muchly right now though. Drawback of a desktop. So I went old school and took notes in a notebook so I could report my thoughts back to you. Minus some of the snarkiness... because I was just plain evil with a couple of my comments tonight.

First of all, what was up with the person rockin' the "Tourettes Rocks" sign. I understand you probably enjoy a certain contestant. But I can assure you, he would disagree that Tourettes "rock." Ohhhh some people stagger me with their genius...

So let's jump in.

1. Clint Jun Gamboa. He sang "Superstitious" by Stevie Wonder. Enjoy that song. Don't enjoy Clint. I'm super biased against him for making Jacee cry in Hollywood. He was just a jerk face. I tried to put that aside. I guess he sounded fine, but I still don't like him. Steven Tyler said he was brilliant. Jennifer Lopez thought he was good. Randy loved him and called him brilliant. My guess: voted in Thursday night. But not by moms and teachers everywhere who think he's a bully.

2. Jovany Barreto. He picked "I'll Be" by Edwin McCain. BIG mistake. Huge. I've heard it sung by someone who sounded better. Actually as soon as the notes started I knew the song he picked and I told hubby, "Automatic fail." He laughed. Because he knows that I love that song and you just don't touch it unless you can be excellent. He wasn't bad, but it was nowhere near radio-good. HOWEVER, Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez liked him. Randy was with me and compared it to karaoke. The only way he's through is if girls are listening with their hormones tonight.

3. Jordan Dorsey sang something I don't know by Usher (I'm not "down" with the pop music over here, lol). And it wasn't too hot. It sounded really generic. And the pelvic thrusting? No thanks. Steven Tyler said it wasn't his favorite. Jennifer Lopez said that that type of song was not who he is. Randy called it pitchy and just not good. If voters base it on that performance alone, he won't make it through.

4. Tim Halperin. He's the one who wowed me out of nowhere in Vegas with his Beatles choice. He chose "Come On Over" by Rob Thomas. I enjoy that song, but his performance was kind of meh. I wanted to like him. I wanted him to wow me. But not tonight. Steven Tyler sounded like he would have liked to hear something else from him. Jennifer Lopez said it wasn't his strongest. Randy stated the obvious and said that he's sounded better. He was just forgettable enough that voters might overlook him.

5. Brett Loewenstern. Okay totally shocked me with "Light My Fire" by The Doors (although if you didn't know who sang that originally I shake my head at you). What shocked me more? I actually REALLY enjoyed it! It was a little different. And his head/hair shakes were making me laugh. Steven Tyler told him he brought it (I agree). Jennifer Lopez liked him. Randy "appreciated it." He'll make it through voting.

6. James Durbin. I laughed because he totes sang Judas Priest! On Idol! He actually pulled it off too. I enjoyed it, except for the fact that he has the potential to become the next Adam Lambert if he decides to try and throw in a screech or ten in every performance. Steven Tyler used potty mouth to describe how good he was (I laughed). Jennifer Lopez loved the way he performs. Randy told him that's the way you do it on Idol. I imagine he'll get through.

7. Robbie Rosen. Okay, he's adorable. Just had to get that out of the way. He picked "Angel" by Sarah McLachlan. Good song. Beautiful voice, but I didn't like the arrangement. It almost sounded like his voice and the music were at different parts a few times. He still managed to sound great to me. Steven Tyler called it beautiful. Jennifer Lopez called him a special singer. Randy decided to try and be a jerk (sorry Randy, it only worked for Simon and his accent) and said it didn't work AT ALL. Party pooper. I'm not sure if he'll get through or not. No guesses on my part.

8. Scotty McCreery. Sang some John Michael Montgomery. And it totally worked for him. He could have been on the radio already.  I just love listening to him. This voice coming out of a baby! Well, he's a baby to me anyway. Steven Tyler told him he couldn't have picked a better song. Jennifer Lopez told him he was BORN to sing country (have to agree there). Randy loved him. I'm gonna guess... he'll go through.

9. Stefano Langone. He sang "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars. A.K.A the "Amazing" song that hubby hates. I think he hears it too often at work. I love the song. And I really liked Stefano. Not quite love. But definitely a lot of like. He was really comfortable on stage, which is always nice to see. All three judges loved him. Jennifer Lopez mentioned how consistent he is. I don't know if he's memorable enough for voters.

10. Paul McDonald. Ohhhh Paul. He sang "Maggie May" by Rod Stewart. Kind of perfect for him, which hubby commented on right away. He's so fun to watch! He smiles while he sings, which I appreciate muchly. And it was just a good performance. Of course all three judges loved him. Randy even said he's a fan. Hopefully people don't think he's TOO unique, but so far I'm hearing a lot of people say how much they love him.

11. Jacob Lusk. Sang Luther Vandross. Ummmm... okay. Don't love the song choice. I get that it fits his voice, and his voice DID sound great. But can we really call the song relevant for today? I don't see him being a person to sell albums to the young crowd. He may prove me wrong though. All three judges AGAIN agreed and loved him. Steven Tyler even said it was an honor to be in his presence. I couldn't even begin to guess how the voting will effect him.

12. Casey Abrams. I could just stop there. I was so looking forward to him tonight. So was hubby. Hubby actually likes him, and I don't think he's ever cared about an Idol contestant before. He chose "I Put A Spell On You" by Screamin' Jay Hawkins. YES and YES. I love that song and ohmygoodness he was awesome. I just read an article recently where people were questioning how he would fare without an instrument. Question answered: DAMN GOOD. The judges could not stop praising him. Jennifer Lopez even called him sexy and Randy said, "More, more, more." If he doesn't get voted in I'll be floored.

Tomorrow night is the ladies. I'll take my notes carefully and report back to you yet again.

Good night!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Tourette’s Rocks Mom

I’m the mom with the “TOURETTE’S ROCKS! Show ‘em James” sign. And while I fully realize that its no joy having Tourette’s, it IS a JOY to see someone with TS fully pursuing his dream…..even when that dream requires standing up in front of an audience and ticking! James is a much-needed Role Model for millions of people suffering the ridicule and embarrassment that Tourette’s commonly brings.

My 13-year old son has TS, and every day James is in this competition, it makes it easier for him to tic in class, tic in sports, tic in whatever he chooses to do in life. And MAYBE just MAYBE people will stop telling him to “stop that!” and look beyond the blinking and arm flapping or whatever the current tic is and see the real Daniel.

You may want to know that James saw our signs and smiled wide and gave us the rocker’s “thumbs up" (pointer finger and pinky) and looked for us every time he was on stage. I know he felt our love and support. We showed our signs to Jennifer and Randy. Jennifer was quite moved, and they both smiled and approved. Randy went on and on about how talented James is, and that’s really the point here. He is genuinely talented and gifted.

Between takes, the other contestants were just relaxed and having fun….but James had the added stress of trying to calm his body and gain control. For me, it was heartbreaking to watch his additional challenge, knowing the struggle in our own family. But at the same time it was truly inspirational to watch someone willing and able to use all his being to move past his disorder...so, yes, TOURETTE’S ROCKS, and James is showing us all!

Typhoid Ashley said...

Hi TR Mom,

I do appreciate Idol and what it does for making people aware of the personal struggles and disabilities have to face on a daily basis. I enjoy that these people are shown as encouraging and uplifting examples.

I DO think that the prevalence of the particular words was an unfortunate choice. James can indeed rock, but any disease as a whole can't really be said to rock. Even if a famous rock star was rocking out while fighting cancer, I would never say "Cancer rocks!" I'm all about words though so that's my two cents. Thanks for yours as well.

Anonymous said...

Tourette's Syndrome is NOT a disease. It is a neurological disorder, BIG DIF! It will not kill anyone and there is practically no treatment, other than mind and body numbing drugs most families eventually decide to forgo.

I'm glad you are all about words. Ditto. So do your research and see that there is a book called "Crazy Sexy Cancer." That is an eye catching title to an uplifting myth-busting book about, yes, cancer, but more so, the journey.

That is precisely my point! We need to break through the stigmas and get on with it!

Each of us has a journey to travel in this life. Some are given more obstacles than others. Some succumb to the obstacles, and some hurdle them and become an inspiration for others to do so. James is jumping a huge hurdle for himself and others just like my son...who actually left school early today after 2 kids would not stop poking and chiding him...maybe these kids will see James Durbin, maybe their parents will, I can tell you the assistant principal will and is already on board with not tolerating this kind of behavior.

Suspension is not the long-term answer, public awareness is. Tourette's Rocks!

Typhoid Ashley said...

I posted this and then realized there was a typo so here goes attempt #2...

And I'm sorry for using the wrong word. I wasn't sure as I typed it so I probably should have looked it up. My lunch breaks are short, I ran out of time.

As I said before, it's my two cents. Seeing as how I'm the blog author my opinion tends to show up around here. So unless I am trying to pass something off as cold, hard, factual evidence, please don't tell me to to "do my research."

I've seen your point, anyone who reads this has seen your point. I still have nothing against James or anyone else suffering any type of ordeal (be it disorder or disease). And I am truly sorry for your son's school troubles. I am a teacher and I know how rotten children can be when someone is "different."

Enjoy the season.

Anonymous said...

Thanks! No hard feelings.

Tourette's Rocks Mom