Territorial Bloggings

• New opening graphics montage? Check.
• Big new set? Check.
• Big theatrics? Check.
• Lennon/McCartney catalog? Check.
• 12 hopeful singers? Check.
• Big pressure? Check.
• Big hype? Hells to the check!

I’m sure that this will be a bumpy ride, with lots of twists & turns, ups & downs, good & bad. I’m going to follow the format that I’ve been using for the semifinals, in that I’m basically live-blogging the proceedings, and then editing & polishing slightly before posting the writeup. My typing during our viewing is a little annoying to ttw&b (The Territorial Wife & Boss), but that’s a small price to pay for getting this turned out quickly for my vast & loyal audience! ;^)

Fwiw, I like McCartney more than Lennon…

Let’s get started, shall we?

Syesha - Got To Get You Into My Life - Well, her hair looks good. Her changes to the song/arrangement? Not so good. Nope, I don’t like the Beatles ‘funkified’. I think the band, stage, atmosphere, & song were all a little too big for her. Not a bad performance. As Randy might say, it was just a’ight. I just didn’t like it that much. Not a good start.

Chikezie - She’s A Woman - Well, if you’re going to totally change up a Beatles’ song, best to do it to one that’s not too well known. I didn’t like the bluegrassy start, but once it kicked in to high gear, I liked it quite a bit. Chikezie’s a likable guy, and he took charge tonight. And he sings really good to boot. Oh yeah, and he is really, really safe.

Ramiele - In My Life - She’s called Danny her “twin”, but I’ll try not to hold that against her. She has a nice, sweet voice; however, tonight she was also a bit boring & too understated. At this stage, you need to stand out & make an impression, in order to build a fanbase. This performance didn’t do that. Syesha was more memorable. She will probably be safe, but she better step it up, because America won’t be forgiving two or three weeks in a row.

Jason - If I Fell - This kid can really, really work the acoustic, sensitive vibe. Technically, I think he’s still got room for improvement, but he is so darned charismatic that he rises above it. The whole of the performance is greater than the sum of its parts. He has that certain X-factor something in spades. I really liked this performance. He’s safe, safe, safe.

Carly - Come Together - She looks great & I love the accent. Tonight, she showed why the hype machine has been touting her. She sounded great. I can’t say that strongly enough. Great! When you can look that good, sound that good, and command the stage that completely, you establish yourself as a favorite. And you deserve it. Now I actually believe it when I state that she can beat David Archuleta. And it wouldn’t be an upset. This was a signature “Idol Moment” performance, right up there with any that Kelly, Clay, Fantasia, Bo, Kat, or Jordin ever had.

David Cook - Eleanor Rigby - His natural sound is the one I like the most out of the Top 12. His would/will be the album I’m the most likely to buy when it comes out. He rocked that song up BIG TIME. It was another nice freshening up of a classic song, one that I actually like more than the original. He did it the right way, and it worked as a result. He is Daughtry minus the arrogantly pretentious & prickly attitude. David is more genuinely likable, and that will serve him well as a result. He could build himself a nice, strong fanbase, yes indeed.

Brooke - Let It Be - She is just a nice, sweet, girl (ttw&b accurately observed that she’s so uncommonly innocent that it’s almost unbelievable…). Bigsis had a nice adjective to describe Brooke - gentle. I think that it applies to both her personality and her vocal style. She is another, like Jason, where the totality of the performance rises above the individual elements. She is compelling, hugely so. And I’ll be surprised if she doesn’t get a record deal out of all this. It was an understated song & performance, but it wasn’t boring at all. Pay attention, Ramiele - you don’t have to rock out to be interesting. You just have to be good.

David Hernandez - I Saw Her Standing There - He’ll be at the finale, Ryan - unless the producers decide not to bring all the top 12 back for a group number. Well, this was the first really bad karaoke of the night. Tiffany’s cover back in 1988 was better than this. Way better. I didn’t like what the band did & how they sounded, and David was even worse. “Overdone” is accurate. Mayhaps he was overcompensating for singing “I saw her” instead of “I saw him“… Y’think?

Amanda - You Can’t Do That - Hrm. Not hearing a song until the week you sing it is never a good thing. And it wasn’t for Amanda tonight. It was better than Syesha & David H., and more interesting than Ramiele, but that’s not really saying all that much, is it? I don’t like the Beatles as “being done at a Southern bar/club” - it just doesn’t work for me. At least she looked like she enjoyed being there tonight, and that is an improvement over last week. I do think this will all be enough to keep her safe tonight, unless she really doesn’t have a fanbase that’ll get out & vote.

Michael - Across The Universe - This proves just how all-important song choice is, because he used this performance to re-enter the competition tonight. His performance fully tapped into his charismatic front-man mojo & delivered the emotional impact of the song. Very, very nicely done. It’s nice to see him get fully back into the mix. I’m not surprised that Paula got it & Randy didn’t. It’s very much like with Jason’s performance - there was an emotional component to the delivery that I think resonates much more with women than with men.

Kristy - 8 Days A Week - As a country song? Well, that is a risk. She certainly looks good & cute, doesn’t she? The song was a little too fast, and she didn’t seem like she was quite able to keep up with the band (ttw&b called it sort of a country polka!). I didn’t like it all that much. Paula was as brutal as I’ve ever heard her. “Dolly Parton on helium”? Nah. “…a very brave, but probably foolish thing…” is more accurate. Yes, this was an example of risking a lot & failing despite the good intentions.

David Archuleta - We Can Work It Out - L’il David gets the pimp slot? Shocked! I’m shocked, I tell you! He’s stressed & sounds like he needs to blow his nose. HE FORGOT THE WORDS! TWICE! The express train has jumped the tracks. Based solely on tonight’s performances, he would be in the bottom 3. That was a bad, bad performance. He will either learn & rebound from this stronger than ever, or this will destroy him & he’ll buckle under the pressure of it all. He’ll be safe, but not if he does this more than one or two more times. What a freakin’ letdown.

The Top 3: Carly, David C., & Brooke

The Safe Middle: Chikezie, Jason, & Michael

The At-Risk Middle: Amanda, Ramiele, Syesha, & David A.

The Bottom 3: David H., Kristy, & any one of ‘The At-Risk Middle’

Should Go Home: David Hernandez

Will Go Home: Kristy Lee Cook

All things considered, that was a very enjoyable two hours. Performance-wise, my ‘The Top 3′ were a cut above everyone else, with ‘The Safe Middle’ group landing just a hair behind them. IOW, there were 6 way above average performances tonight. That’s actually quite a pleasant surprise to me, as I think about it.

The bottom 6 performances fall into two groups for me: Amanda, Ramiele, & Syesha, who were all flawed enough that I won’t be shocked if they land in the bottom 3, and David A., David H. & Kristy who were all bad enough that I think they should be in the bottom 3; however, I’m quite certain that America won’t allow David A. to land in that group. Thus, someone else will have to take his place. In the end, however, I don’t think things will deviate from the, frankly obvious, choice of sending Kristy Lee home as the first victim of the AI:7 Finals.

-ghp