Territorial Bloggings

Omaha, NE - Hüsker Dü. (or is that 10,000 Huskers, do…?)

Fields to the left of me, cows to the right…
Stuck in the middle with… corn-country divas?

General Observations:

• Paula’s plane delayed? Oh, the horror!
• Paula finally showed up for her Simie. Oh, the greater horror!
• Midwestern memory ain’t all that great, is it…
• That they had to create some tension by swapping Paula & Ryan, and have Ryan “judge” goes to show how much Omaha was lacking…

The Good:

• Samantha Sidley - Winner, “Well, this *was* Omaha, you know” sub-group. Nice vocal tone, very, very cute, with a nice personality.
• David Cook - Winner, “What hath Daughtry wrought?” sub-group. He could be a surprise, despite the sweater vest. Genuine. Good.
• Leo Marlowe - Winner, “He was his momma’s homecoming queen” sub-group. Not bad. Not great, but not bad. He might blossom a bit in Hollywood.

The Bad:

• Chris Bernheisel - Winner, “Exploding, over-the-top gayness” sub-group. One in a million? Thank goodness, ’cause we just couldn’t handle more than that. His heroine Kelly Clarkson is more manly. I actually wish that Paula had been there to witness that - then maybe Simon wouldn’t have been so nice…
• Sarah Whitaker - Winner, “A WWE Diva she ain’t” sub-group. I’ll give her this, she hit Seacrest.
• Johnny Escamilla - Winner, “Gold lamé has no place in proper society” sub-group. James Brown? Only when he was coked-up & ranting like a lunatic.

Honorable Mention:

• Angelica Puente - Winner, “Dysfunctional families reunited” sub-group. This was one of those stories where you just didn’t know if she’d actually be any good or not. And she wasn’t all that bad. Shouldn’t have chosen a Celine Dion song. Too young. Got through on potential only, and I don’t think it’ll be enough.

The Indifferent:

• Jason Rich - Winner, “Always remember your lyrics, kids” sub-group. Stout, IA in the hizzouse. If you can’t remember the words, you’re lucky make it to Hollywood. Pretty simple. If he folds under the initial-audition pressure, then I can only imagine what’ll happen to him during Hollywood week.
• Rachael Wicker - Winner, “Don’t arm-wrestle farmgirls” sub-group. Seacrest popped some serious bicep action! Randy was right about the “Country Yodel” factor.
• Elizabeth Erkert - Winner, “The grapevine must be a little tone-deaf” sub-group. Blah…
• Denise Jackson - Winner, “Affected Diva” sub-group. Utterly forgettable…
• Michael Sanfilippo - Winner, “Cheesy boy-band sub-group” Eh…

Total for Omaha: 19 golden tickets.

Once again, we’ve endured an audition show that was light on the talent, low on the angst, and rather forgettable. But at least it was pleasant, in a you know, Midwestern kind of way.

Up next: Miami!

-ghp