I'm not using my brother's Slingbox on account of it being Passover, but I've found another online source for FOX. Not the bestest quality, but it'll suffice. I don't wanna wait for the torrent tomorrow morning to get my fix.
The theme is soul/R&B, and the mentor is Usher. This... is American Idol!
Siobhan, "Through the Fire" (Chaka Khan)
...y'know, the audio quality on this stream might actually not be good enough. She's sounding a bit flat to me, but I can't tell if that bears any resemblance to reality. Hmmph.
Okay, the judges' comments seem to confirm that it wasn't just the stream; she was off this week.
Can we not do the backstage cam anymore?
Casey, "Hold On, I'm Comin'" (Sam and Dave) [on electric guitar]
Ooh. Solid performance. We're talking Top 4 material here.
...and now the stream's a couple seconds out of sync. Whee!
Michael, "Ready for Love" (India.Arie) [on acoustic guitar]
Nice! (Maybe a bit too mellow for Idol? Not sure.)
Didi, "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" (Jimmy Ruffin)
Pleasant. Not a game-changer, but solidly in her comfort zone. (The overdramatic bit at the end seemed trying a bit too hard, I think.)
Tim, "Sweet Love" (Anita Baker)
Stay tuned here on Lite-FM, for the best in easy listening!
...okay, seriously, that didn't suck. Given the theme, this is as good as we could've reasonably hoped from him. Which is not to say it was exactly good.
Simon is at peace with Tim being this year's Sanjaya. I think that's for the best!
Andrew, "Forever" (Chris Brown) [on acoustic guitar]
S'okay. His best performance in awhile. (Will that be enough, though?)
Ryan, don't bring Andrew's mama into this...
...did he just say Katie is taking on Aretha?! I am officially afraid. Very afraid.
That said, there's the outside chance this will put her on the map. It's either that or complete flop, though, and the flop is more likely.
Katie, "Chain of Fools" (the one, the only, Aretha Franklin)
The sad thing is, if you put aside the Aretha factor, that actually was a pretty good performance. But... you don't do Aretha unless you can nail it, and she didn't.
Lee, "Treat Her Like a Lady" (Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose) [on acoustic guitar]
For a contestant I'd forgotten existed, Lee's doing a great job.
Actually, scratch that, he's doing a great job, period. I'm gonna have to rethink my rankings near the top; he's officially in the running for all the marbles.
Crystal Bowersox, "Midnight Train to Georgia" (Gladys Knight & the Pips) [in stiletto heels, and on piano (for the start, at least)]
Is it just me, but does getting out from behind the piano after the start kinda reduce using it at all to a stunt? (I know, if it's good enough for Miley...)
Anyway, solid performance. As we expect from Crystal.
Aaron, "Ain't No Sunshine" (Bill Withers)
This is not a breakthrough performance, but it's pretty good.
All in all, I think tonight ought to put to rest the claims that this year's Idol finalists don't measure up to years past.
Pool predictions go below! Good luck!
Posted by Shmuel at March 30, 2010 10:02 PM