American Idol Round of 10: A Horseplayer's Perspective

[brianwspencer]

Lakisha
Her vocals are always spot-on, but despite the praise from the judges -- it just didn't do it for me. Vocally, she's obviously one of the ones in here and I couldn't fault anyone for loving her here tonight, but for me there was just something missing still. I can't pinpoint what it is that is lacking from my perspective, but there is certainly something there that needs to become evident in the next few weeks. It might just be the whole package coming together slowly...perhaps too slowly for her.

Final Score: 8.0 phone-in votes

Chris S.
He's killing the melody in this song, and he's done it too many times to count before tonight. The judges have called him out on it before, Gwen Stefani called him out on it, and I'm calling him out on it again. There is only one word for what just happened: Horrific.

Final Score: 5.0 phone-in votes

Gina
I have a really on/off love affair with her. When I heard what song she was singing, I was absolutely thrilled. I knew it would be a perfect song for her. All of the notes were there, all of the emotion was there, all of the genuine, emotional vulnerability was there. Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely loved every little thing about this. This is one of my top five favorite performances of the season so far.

Final Score: 9.5 phone-in votes

Sanjaya
First, he forgot the words just like he did in the practice tape. The thing is, is that when I watch him there are a few points here and there where I feel like he could really put it together. He's never going to match up with some of the singers in this competition, but there are shining moments in most of his performances. The problem is that those moments are fleeting. I just start to get excited that he might put it all together like he did in his very first audition, and then he lets me down and goes back to being timid. If he would just leave it all up there, he might have a fighting chance to be taken seriously. The only real issue is that he can't put it together. That said, outside of the hair, I didn't completely hate it. Just mostly.

Final Score: 5.5 phone-in votes

Haley
We're back to the same problem she had a few weeks ago when I posed the question at that point, whether anyone would really know whether she was an Idol contestant or a Price Is Right contestant. The vocal was acceptable, but there was zero of the star power we saw from her last week. Simon nailed it -- it was completely forgettable. A performance like this puts her at risk of going home because she won't stand out one bit in here.

Final Score: 6.5 phone-in votes

Phil
Not my least favorite performance from one of my least favorite contestants. It wasn't daring, but I'm not sure that it needed to be. He can hit the big notes, but he has no capacity to do so gracefully. It's more that his vocal chords allow him to shout in a high register, and that's exactly why I don't like him. It was good enough, but performances like this don't make an Idol.

Final Score: 7.5 phone-in votes

Melinda
What else is there to say that hasn't already been said? Vocally, she's simply flawless. She never fails to fire, she never misses a note. It's sick actually. No, now that I think about it, this performance was everything that Lakisha wished hers would have been tonight. Oh well.

Final Score: 10.0 phone-in votes

Jordin
When I found out what she was singing, I thought 'this is going to be REALLY good or REALLY bad.' Frankly, I was shocked at what the judges had to say about her. I think that this was the wrong No Doubt song to pick -- for just one second imagine her singing "Don't Speak." It would have been perfect. Am I right, or am I right here? I thought it was a really odd song choice, and I thought she was really awkward in how she delivered it. The vocals were for the most part, good, save a few strange notes. For as much as I love her, I just didn't feel this one at all. I didn't like the choice of song, I didn't like the outfit, I didn't like the delivery. It doesn't change how I feel about her in this contest, but this one can go in the trash bin as far as I'm concerned.

Final Score: 6.5 phone-in votes

Chris R.
Being objective here despite the amount of blinding hatred I feel every time he comes onstage. I don't think his voice or his style fit this at all. The performance itself was very shaky at way more than a few points, but when he was right he was right. It's, as usual, a little too whiny for my liking, but it was okay. Nothing more, nothing less.

Final Score: 6.5 phone-in votes