American Idol – The Finals – Week 2

And away we go:

Two hours, huh?  I’m weary already . . . .

Mandisa —  I Don’t Hurt Anymore —  Woohoo, Barry’s loving’ on Mandisa.  She did great.  She has great control of her voice.  Started off the show with a bang.  Great period performance.

Bucky — doing 50s, huh? Should be interesting . . . — Oh Boy — Uh oh, Barry wasn’t showing him the love like he did with Mandisa.  Uh oh, Bucky is boring me . . . .  Hey, try this — if you squint really hard, and the lights are really dim, and you’re really really tired, and you have a headache, he kind of reminds me of Brad Pitt in Thelma and Louise.  Oh lord, I must be tired . . .

Paris — Fever — Yeah, she can sing.  But she bugs the crap out of me.  ‘Nuf said.

WAIT WAIT WAIT — I just heard that schmoopied-eyed Constantine from last year, was dating Kellie Pickler.  I am so grossed out.  ;(

Chris — I Walk the Line — Wow, nice compliment from Barry.  Hmmm, interesting.  Very different.  He really put a modern spin on it.  I was a little nervous for him in the beginning since the first line or two dipped a bit below his range.  He is definitely my kind of performer — I really like intensity in a performer.  No matter what, this guy has a career ahead of him, but I’d still prefer to see him fronting a band and not being a solo performer.  I think he’s very different from anyone they’ve ever had on AI.  If someone compares him to Bo Bice from last year again I will scream. He’s NOTHING like Bo Bice. 

Katherine — Come Rain or Come Shine — Good performance.  A slight problem with some of the high notes, but otherwise good.  Still, she’s not one of my personal favorites.  Cute dress, but it makes her look wide.  She’s such a pretty girl — maybe Tom Cruise will hit on her when he and Katie split up and she runs off with the baby to save it from the clutches of those Scientologists.

I am trying to pay attention to the performers but the dogs are in the midst of a three-way Chin gang bang next to me on the couch and it’s quite distracting.

Taylor — Not Fade Away — I don’t know about this performance.  He sang it well, but there’s so little to this song, I don’t think it was a great showcase for him.  Simon was a bit rough on him, but it just wasn’t one of the best.  Sorry Taylor, you know I love you, but tonight wasn’t your night.  It’s okay though, everyone has an off day.

Lisa — Why Do Fools Fall in Love — I’ve always liked this song.  She sang this well, so why didn’t it seem right?  Seemed like not all the words came out.  It was kind of odd.  I think maybe she doesn’t pick the rights songs, although I like that she sang young — none of the others did.  Towards the end, she hit a bad note.  I like this girl, so why don’t I like her?  She looks really cute tonight.

Kevin — When I Fall in Love — His face is creeping me out.  That said, Barry gave him good advice and really improved his performance.  He did a fine job.  Not to my taste, but you can’t fault the performance.  Charlie Brown done good, and his voice seems to have sedated these wild and crazy Chins of mine. 

Elliott — Teach Me Tonight — Barry is such a pro — you could really see it as he gives them advice.  I think Barry challenged him so he seemed a bit uncomfortable, not as confident.  He really seemed to lose it during the last 1/3 of the song, going off key, not hitting the notes.  I wonder what happened?  Am I the only person who heard that?  All the judges loved him.  Ok, re-watching — I think he just wasn’t fully confident for about two of the lines, didn’t sing it full out.

Kellie — Walking After Midnight — See, she even charmed Barry.  Kellie gets better every week.  I really, really liked her performance, although it looks like she’s been watching too much America’s Next Top Model and has been practicing her signature walk.  😉 

Ace — In the Still of the Night — The rehearsal sounded crappy.  The performance?  Awful!  Time to go home, Ace.  Wait, now it’s getting better.  Oh wait, that was flat.  And he looks bad, too.  You know this is really interesting because he had moments where he sounded really good and then it all went to crap again.  That last falsetto note was good.

Who should go home?  Ace — absolutely.  Bottom 3 — Ace, Bucky, Lisa.  I hope Lisa doesn’t go yet, but I’m ready to sell Bucky down the river based on tonight’s performance. 

Watching the recap, the best performance of the night was Chris’.  There’s something in his voice that is so affecting, and his performance stood out.  The recap made me go back and listen to him again.

So what did you all think?